A boil is an infection that is located in a hair follicle or a gland. They often take the appearance almost of “infected pimples,” and they can be quite painful.

As an additional safety note, you should be wearing your goggles at all times in the lab, but should something happen, we do have an eye-rinsing station at the front of the room. If this Potion makes contact with your eyes at any points, it will also require a trip to the infirmary.

Remember brew times for ANY potion vary, depending on the cauldron used. In class a Pewter cauldron is used.

Ingredients:
6 snake fangs
4 horned slugs
2 porcupine quills
Flobberworm mucus

Instructions:
Part One
1. Add all 6 snake fangs to your mortar and crush them into a fine dust using your pestle.
2. Take the measuring spoon you see beside your mortar and add 4 measures of the fangs to your cauldron.
3. Heat your cauldron to 394 Kelvin (that is 121°C/250°F) for 10 seconds, then turn down the flame. Please be careful not to ignite your instruction sheet, each other, or anything else in the classroom while adjusting the temperature up and down.
4. Wave your wand once clockwise. At this point your potion should have a pink hue.
5. Depending on your cauldron, your brew times will vary. For the purpose of today’s lesson, you can leave your pewter cauldron brewing for 22 minutes. Throughout much of this Potions’ brewing, you will notice that, even as the color of the Potion changes, the smoke remains pinkish in hue. (If you were using a brass cauldron, the brew time would be approximately 19 minutes. Copper cauldronshave a brew time of 16 minutes during this step.)

Part Two
6. At this point, all 4 Horned Slugs should be added directly to the cauldron.
7. It is important during this step to take your cauldron completely off the flame before adding your porcupine quills. Failure to do so will result in the Potion emitting a terrible odor and your cauldron melting. When this happens, the compound is known to cause very painful boils.
8. Now that your cauldron is off the flame, add 2 porcupine quills to the Potion and then return it to the heat.
9. Wave your wand 5 times clockwise and bring the heat down to 318 Kelvin (45°C/113°F).
10. Let the Potion finish brewing for 17 minutes. (This would be 15 minutes for a brass cauldron or 12 minutes for copper.)

To Finish
11. At this point, take your cauldron off the flame entirely. The potion should be sky blue in color, and the Potion will begin to stop steaming as it cools down.
12. Add Flobberworm Mucus (about 3 measures), and leave to thicken for about 5 minutes.
13. Stir the Potion to ensure it is of a uniform consistency, and then use a funnel to bottle it in a clear glass or crystal phial. Remember to correctly label your phial before storing it.

Usage Notes: Avoid using this Potion on sensitive areas of skin, such as on your face or particularly near your eyes. If you do get it in your eyes, flush your eyes out immediately and seek medical assistance. In some cases, an allergic reactions may occur. These symptoms are usually very mild, and consist of irritation and minor rash. 

STORAGE:

When storing Potions, it is important to take into account a few variables to ensure maximum shelf life. The first variable is amount of light. Some Potions are best stored in sunny areas, such as on a windowsill or other area where they have easy access to light. Other Potions do not require any particular amount of light or dark to store, as long as they are not exposed to extremes of either. Some Potions are thrive in dark areas. In the case of Potions that require darkness in order to properly keep, it is wise to keep a dark cabinet and to store them in tinted glass or crystal phials to minimize light exposure.

Temperature is also a factor that needs to be taken into consideration, as some Potions store best at room temperature, without any exposure to extremes. Others thrive in a warmer environment, either in direct sunlight or kept in a warmer cabinet with like Potions. It is also wise to have a slightly cooler cabinet, as certain Potions need to be kept cooler.

As you may have guessed, the reason for these specifications is the ideal amount of dynamic energy received by the Potion in order for it to work most efficiently. In the case of the Cure for Boils, there are not too many storage specifications: it can be kept at room temperature for up to 4 years before it should be safely disposed of and replaced.