So, today's post is not so much a craft as a natural remedy for eczema - a skin condition that bothered me throughout my childhood. The other day I noticed that Nola was scratching a little spot of eczema behind her knee. My first reaction was to reach for the oats... this is a treatment that has been passed down my family and is from my Welsh great uncle. And - it works - amazingly well.
My dad has these soft, big, cotton handkerchiefs that I used as a kid. As Eric does not own any handkerchiefs, I talked him into donating one of his old work shirts to cut a square out of. My point - any cotton will do - cut into a 8" square.
Put 3/4 cup of old fashioned oats onto the center of the cotton square.
Gather up the corner of the cloth and tie to keep all the oats inside the 'pouch.' I used a little Pink Sorbet twine from The Twinery so Nola felt extra special.
Fill a bowl with boiling water and put the oat pouch inside the bowl. Wait a few hours (or overnight) for the water to cool down. Take the pouch out of the water and gently squeeze the water out. A very light, watery paste will appear through the cotton as you squeeze the oats.
Dab this paste onto the eczema and let dry. Repeat every few hours. You will see improvement the next day. We used pouches for 2 days and then made a new one. The eczema usually went away in a few days.
Please note: I am not a medical doctor and this is not medical advice, simply a natural solution that helped me (and now my daughter) feel a little more comfortable.
