12 Creative Ways to Use Beeswax (& Benefits)

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Creative Uses for Beeswax
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Imagine for a second a scenario in which you were simultaneously:

  • caring for a newborn that needed constant care
  • building a house with your own hands
  • having to fight off people trying to break into your home
  • still responsible for normal cooking and cleaning

Stressful… right? Yet this is what a honey bee colony does every single day. On top of that, every single thing they produce is beneficial in some way!

Why Bees Are Amazing

Ever seen the inside of a honey bee hive? It’s incredible.

Everything is completely ordered, clean, and functioning at all times. At times I have had trouble taking care of one baby at a time, and honey bees take care of hundreds, all while building a house.

As a former beekeeper and now watching my son take care of his bee hive, I’m in constant awe of how amazing bees are.

Honey, Honey

Honey may be the most popular product bees create, but it is far from the only beneficial one. (But try using honey on your face if you haven’t already.)

The word apitherapy refers to the practice of using bee products like honey, bee pollen, royal jelly, and beeswax in beneficial ways. Even honey bee venom has been used therapeutically! Sound crazy? Check out this video from the Discovery Channel that explains it.

Now, before I ramble on for hours about how cool bees are (and I really could ramble for hours about it!), I want to focus on one specific product bees make and the many uses it has…

Beeswax: Bees Being Brilliant

While we usually prize bees for their honey, royal jelly, and other beneficial (and tasty) by-products, beeswax deserves to be high on the bee appreciation list as well.

Bees actually make beeswax in order to form the structure of their hive. They secrete wax from special glands, then chew it up and use it to form perfect hexagon-shaped honey comb.

Ever tried to even draw a perfect hexagon? It’s tough even with a ruler, and bees do it with mathematical precision.

Honeybees have also apparently been on board with minimalism since the beginning. Their hexagon-shaped honeycombs offer the most storage space with the least amount of building material (in this case, beeswax).

When beekeepers harvest honey, they remove the cap off of each cell in order to extract the honey. These cappings are melted down and filtered to remove non-wax particles which yields the beeswax we use in many beauty products and DIY recipes.

Beeswax is one of the 7 ingredients I buy in bulk and always keep on hand for a good many of my natural recipes and remedies. It has dozens of uses around the home.

Benefits of Beeswax

Beeswax is an excellent addition to cosmetic products, for many reasons.

  • When used in lotions and creams, beeswax creates a barrier which helps to seal moisture into the skin. This is especially beneficial in lip chap during the dry winter months.
  • This barrier also helps to protect the skin from environmental toxins and irritants.
  • Unlike petroleum jelly, which is used in a large variety of beauty products, beeswax will not “suffocate” the skin, but rather allow it to breathe while still providing a protective barrier.
  • Beeswax helps to thicken homemade cosmetics and lotions because it is solid at room temperature and has a relatively high melting point of 147 degrees Fahrenheit. This is especially helpful in recipes that include high amounts of coconut oil, which has a low melting point, or other oils that are liquid at room temperature.
  • Beeswax also has vitamin A, which improves hydration to the skin and promotes cell regeneration.

12 Uses for Beeswax Around the Home

Beeswax is an incredibly versatile natural ingredient for DIY beauty and natural home products. It is a staple in my homemade beauty products and around our house.

While beeswax uses are almost endless, there a few easy ways I use it at home. If you haven’t already, try beeswax in these homemade recipes:

1. Homemade Deodorant

I’ve been making my own deodorant for years because it works so much better than store bought. One of the ingredients I use is beeswax because it helps form a natural protective moisture barrier. This means it helps avoid sweat stains on clothes without the need for harmful and unnecessary chemicals. Here’s my favorite DIY deodorant recipe, as well as a super-powered version for men.

2. Lotion Bars

I’m biased, but these are the best moisturizers in the world. A perfect combination of oils, shea butter, and beeswax forms a solid soap-like bar that is used on dry skin. It helps soothe skin, locks in moisture, and even has natural anti-wrinkle properties. Make your own with this simple tutorial.

3. DIY Lip Balms

You can make dozens of homemade beauty products with the same set of simple ingredients. This lip balm recipe uses the same ingredients as the lotion bars but with a couple of added ingredients for scent or color. Once you have these basic ingredients on hand, you can make lip balm for pennies a tube (instead of the $2-3 in stores!). My favorite is this imitation Burt’s Bees lip balm.

4. Lotion Bar Sticks

Like the lotion bars above, this recipe uses beeswax, oils, and shea or cocoa butter. This recipe is a modified version that allows it to be used in a deodorant container. This makes it a little easier to store and apply than the traditional lotion bar. Recipe here.

5. Beeswax Candles

I ditched the scented candles and air fresheners years ago. We only use beeswax candles in our home and they are easy and fun to make yourself. They also make great homemade gifts for the important people in your life. Try this tutorial to make your own!

6. Homemade Soaps

Beeswax is often added to soap recipes to make the finished soap harder and last longer. It should only account for up to 2% of your soap recipe. Add any more than that and your soap will begin to lose lather. Try this spiced essential oil soap. My husband loves it!

7. Baby Products

Most babies will have a diaper rash at some point. I make an effort to only use natural skin care products, but with the new sensitive skin of a baby, I take extra care to make sure all ingredients are natural and safe. I use beeswax in diaper rash cream as a thickener and because it provides a protective barrier for the skin while helping the other beneficial ingredients stay on the skin so they can have a greater effect on clearing up the rash.

8. Soothe Cracked Heels

A simple salve of beeswax, coconut oil, and magnesium makes a great remedy for cracked heels. Here’s how to make it.

9. On Cracked Hands

I really believe that almost everything we need to remedy minor ailments can be found in nature. Beeswax is a great remedy for cracked hands from gardening or outdoor work. It also creates a protective barrier to help avoid future damage.

I like to add in beneficial herbs from the garden to speed relief even more. Plantain grows in most yards and is a natural remedy for bites and stings and even sunburn. Grab the recipe for DIY gardeners’ hand salve here.

10. Natural Neosporin Alternative

I keep this “boo-boo lotion” on hand to treat scrapes, stings, poison ivy, bruises, and for any other sort of mild injury my kids manage to get. It works almost as well as kisses for relief of minor scrapes and boo-boos.

11. Cold and Flu Relief

When any illness strikes, I turn to beeswax based natural remedies. Homemade natural vapor rub helps when coughing and congestion hit and provides some relief without slathering petroleum jelly all over your skin.

Frequent nose blowing during illness can wreak havoc on the tender skin around your nose. This sore nose soothing balm recipe combines herb-infused oil with beeswax and shea butter for a healing, nourishing balm.

12. Reusable Food Wraps

Heather from Mommypotamus has a great tutorial on how to make your own reusable food wraps. These have a “cling” that makes them a wonderful alternative to plastic wrap.

Not everyone has the time and interest to make their own food wraps, so it’s worth mentioning that there are wonderful beeswax food wrap options online as well.

Where to Buy Beeswax

Although I like things natural, I won’t ask you to go digging in a bee hive! I like to buy beeswax pastilles because they are incredibly easy to work with when you need smaller amounts for lip chap and salves.

Having pastilles isn’t necessary when you are doing larger projects like candles because you can measure by weight, rather than by the tablespoon. You can also buy beeswax in block form, which is slightly less expensive than the pastilles.

Another option is to buy it locally if you are able to get in touch with beekeepers in your area. This helps support local beekeepers (which is important!) and you can often find it relatively inexpensively.

How do you use beeswax? Share some of your favorite uses below!

Benefits of Beeswax

Katie Wells Avatar

About Katie Wells

Katie Wells, CTNC, MCHC, Founder of Wellness Mama and Co-founder of Wellnesse, has a background in research, journalism, and nutrition. As a mom of six, she turned to research and took health into her own hands to find answers to her health problems. WellnessMama.com is the culmination of her thousands of hours of research and all posts are medically reviewed and verified by the Wellness Mama research team. Katie is also the author of the bestselling books The Wellness Mama Cookbook and The Wellness Mama 5-Step Lifestyle Detox.

Comments

24 responses to “12 Creative Ways to Use Beeswax (& Benefits)”

  1. Milou Nicolaes Avatar
    Milou Nicolaes

    THank you for the helpful info! You mention several times that you use beeswax for natural deodorant, but when I go to your link for the DIY deodorant I don’t see beeswax as an ingredient. Am I missing it somewhere? I tried your deodorant recipe but I think the baking soda gave me a rash so I’d like to try a new version without it and include the beeswax. Thanks!

  2. olamide Avatar

    Hello, I enjoyed your Article, thank you .
    I make my own body butter cream, but it doesn’t stay whipped for long because of the temperature here, it starts to melt.
    Can I use beewax to keep it whipped,how long would it last with it, and the quantity to use?
    Thank you

  3. Roxy Avatar

    Hi

    Thanks for your great posts. They’ve helped or so much since having my son.

    I wanted to ask what’s the best type of beeswax to buy for making baby lotion. There are different colours white, yellow. I would assume beeswax that’s been heated with no extra nasties added plus organic would be the best. Where would you suggest buying from?

    Thank you.

  4. MARK REYNOLDS Avatar
    MARK REYNOLDS

    Just happened to run into this page. Great writing and products! Hope to favorite this page and read more.

  5. April Avatar

    I make wonderful furniture polish with it, using Rosemary essential oil.

  6. Ana Rose Avatar
    Ana Rose

    Thanks for another super timely, informative, and inspiring post! Can’t wait to use the beeswax bars I already have on hand for coating the mouth piece of my flute.
    I have also been trying to learn about the benefits of taking beeswax internally, of which there seem to be many, but information is vague. Would love to see a post by you on this subject someday too! xo

  7. Angelica Oliver Avatar
    Angelica Oliver

    I’ve been wanting to create my own lotion to use while all wet in the shower before getting out… Want to incorporate beeswax but i know that it is not water soluble! How can i wash it off in the bath? Wouldn’t it just stick to my skin?

  8. Holly Avatar

    I recently started making my own lotion bars and other things following your recipes. I noticed my dogs feet were stinky and rough so I took an older one to use for his feet. Next time I make them I’m going to make one with a little more lavender and beeswax to help protect his feet better. Any suggestions on modifications that would be better for his paws?

  9. Alex Avatar

    Thats a great piece of information. Contrary to the popular belief, the waxing is less painful than it is actually perceived. In fact, if done properly, waxing can produce smoother results than shaving and causes less irritation.

  10. Colette Avatar

    I’m looking to buy some beeswax and a lot of the reviews on even the higher end organic products say they have a horrible smell. I want to use it for lotion and don’t want a chemical smell.

  11. Mary Avatar

    I made a moisrizer with equal parts shea butter, mango butter, coconut oil, and jojoba oil and whipped it for a creamy texture. Is it possible to remelt it and add beeswax? Thank you

  12. Leslie Avatar

    Dear Katie, I have made your homemade lotion, which contains beeswax. I have noticed that my gallbladder starts to have issues when using lotions with wax (as well as other homemade lotions with other more dense ingredients like Shea butter and cocoa butter). It seems my body has a hard time processing richer lotions. Do you know why this might be?

  13. Nora Avatar

    I have this question I can nowhere find the answer for.
    I started switching to all natural products since a while, and am loving it. However the thing is that I have a lot of expensive lipsticks i used to wear, and since i’m a big lipstick lover, still like to do. Sadly all the chemicals in them are bad for my lips.
    SO, i was wondering, since beeswax is a natural barrier from environmental toxins and irritants, will it also help protect my lips from the harsh ingredients of my lipstick, if i use it as a base layer under the lipstick?

  14. Sherryl Avatar

    Thanks for the article, it was wonderful. I use beeswax in many of my homemake products. The one I use the honey in the most is a simple but great face moisturizer. Coconut oil, dash Argan oil, dash honey, lavender E/O, and sandalwood E/O. It really is wonderful… keeps the wrinkles away, too!

  15. Barbara Dyer Avatar
    Barbara Dyer

    I recently burned myself. When I lifted a pot lid off a gas burner that had been turned on without my knowledge. It gave me a second degree burn. As part of my first aid kit, I keep Manuka honey. I put the honey on the burn and within and hour it calmed the pain. I have kept a very thin layer on the wound, with a bandage to protect it. I can see daily changes and believe it is the honey that is helping the wound heal faster.

  16. Raya Bell Avatar
    Raya Bell

    Thank you for this article! I used to put beewax in my homemade body lotions but lately I haven’t done it for a while… Definately going to the health store today 🙂

  17. Bonita Marilyn vanPopta Avatar
    Bonita Marilyn vanPopta

    Thank you do very much for all the wonderful info about the industrious bee and the product we can make from honey and beeswax. Thanks too for all the recipes. You are an amazing, resourceful woman and I’m sure at least as busy as a bee:).

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