Wax: A must-have for your winter DIYs

Winter often rhymes with freezing hands and dry, cracked lips. It is, therefore, the perfect season to incorporate wax into your recipes, a choice ingredient in balms and ointments due to its protective and film-forming action (meaning it prevents the skin from becoming dehydrated). Because skin that cracks under the effect of the wind ruins a day of snowshoeing, to say the least.

There are many types of wax on the market, but since it is not always easy to find your way around, here is an overview of the available options and some super easy recipes for incorporating this essential raw material, which is provided to us as much by bees... as by a cactus.

Plant-based waxes

Sunflower

Sunflower wax is a hard wax made from sunflower oil. It is the ultimate vegan alternative to beeswax. Creamier than its cousin candelilla wax (and more ethical!), it is a choice ingredient in the making of balms and ointments. It protects the skin from dehydration and external aggressions by acting as a protective barrier.

Candelilla

Its effect on the skin is gentle, it offers good protection against external elements, and it comes from a desert shrub, which I find quite appealing.

A major downside: the wax extraction practices in the industry are unethical and threaten the health of workers. This is why Les Mauvaises Herbes decided to stop offering it and to replace it with sunflower wax.

Carnauba

Did you know that you can make wax from the leaves of a Brazilian palm tree? It is called "carnauba" and it can be purchased in the form of yellow flakes. Personally, I was not very impressed by carnauba wax in lip balms, but perhaps it was just my recipe that was not suitable.

Soy

Made from soybean oil, this wax is mainly used in the making of artisanal candles. It replaces paraffin, which is petroleum-derived and whose environmental consequences are not at all worth the benefits of a lilac-scented room. Unlike its cousins, it is not a hardening agent, meaning it will not turn an oil into an ointment. On the market, you can find it in beads or flakes.

Animal wax

Beeswax

Yes, indeed! For those who had any doubts, bees are animals! Their wax is naturally yellow and has a sweet scent, but it is possible to find it in white, clarified with clay. Its main advantage is that it can be found locally (ours comes from Quebec).

Les Mauvaises Herbes much prefers raw wax in a block that can be grated. It is less processed and more effective, especially in the making of beeswax wraps.

The melting point, or how not to ruin your recipes

You found a great ointment recipe and you want to replace the beeswax with candelilla wax? If you do not change the amount of wax, you will notice quite quickly that the final product will be much firmer. The reason is simple: the melting point, which is the temperature at which waxes melt, differs depending on the type of wax. Carnauba and candelilla waxes have a higher melting point than beeswax and will not give the same texture to the product. A simple trick is to divide the amount of wax by two when replacing beeswax with candelilla or carnauba wax.

Bonus: jojoba oil

Anyone interested in cosmetic vegetable oils knows about the fabulous jojoba oil. Non-comedogenic and similar to the sebum naturally produced by the skin, it works wonders on all skin types. I also put it in most of my creams. But did you know that jojoba oil is actually a liquid wax? It comes from a cactus found in Mexico and the southern United States. Due to its composition, jojoba is not susceptible to rancidity, an undeniable advantage when compared to fragile argan and rosehip oils.

Try our winter recipes!