vegan beeswax substitutes?
Posted by berryraw on Jan 02, 2010 · Member since May 2007 · 539 posts
Does anyone know of any good ones? I've used candelilla wax for making herbal salves but am wondering if anyone has heard of or used anything else and gotten good results in salves, lotions, etc.
Back in my salve-making days I don't think I used bees wax for anything but lip balm. What's an example recipe?
Well, it is a recipe for a lotion that calls for 1/2 oz. of beeswax along with water and carrier oils and other ingredients. Have you made lotions before? Thanks!
Try carnauba wax.
Beeswax Carnauba Wax Candelilla Wax
Melting Point 143.6-149 F 181.4 ºF 155 - 165º F
Candelilla wax tends to be a bit more greasy (imo) than carnuaba wax, so you probably wouldn't want to use it for salves (think lipbalm).
Try carnauba wax.
Beeswax Carnauba Wax Candelilla Wax
Melting Point 143.6-149 F 181.4 ºF 155 - 165º F
Candelilla wax tends to be a bit more greasy (imo) than carnuaba wax, so you probably wouldn't want to use it for salves (think lipbalm).
Thank you! I did use candellilla wax for lip balm last year and it did end up pretty greasy. It seemed to work okay in the salves for me, but the store bought salves always seemed a bit greasy to me. I definitely don't want that quality in my lotions though so I'll look for carnuaba wax to try.
Ive used Shea butter with good results, it isnt greasy to me, but is much softer than beeswax at room temp so you might have to cut down the amt of water
Due to money constraints, I had to go ahead and try using the candelilla wax in my lotion and cream recipes. Never again! It is way too greasy, just like you said, hh. It's usable still, I just don't want to give any away with it being like that.
So I'll be investing in the other waxes and shea butter eventually. Do I need to alter the quantities of these waxes and butters to replace the beeswax? Or reduce other ingredients, like the carrier oils or water?
Thanks again for your help. Wish I would have been more patient and tried your advice when I could afford it though, silly me. ::)
I've been thinking about the shea butter. I wouldn't use it for lip balms or salves because of its low melting point (89-95 degrees F), but for lotion it might be okay because lotion doesn't have to be all that thick. I picked substitutions with high melting points for a thicker lotion, but thin lotions are really nice for body lotion (as opposed to a thicker chapped hand lotion).
I'm about to get some shea butter and am going to try that soon with a lotion recipe instead of waxes. I'll post about the results of that experiment.
One of the lotions I made with the candelila wax was Rose Calendula Lotion (made with rosebud and calendula flower infusion and geranium essential oil). While it didn't turn out the greatest to me due to its slight greasiness and some separation of the infusion, my sister absolutely loves it. It actually isn't too thick and it absorbs moderately slowly. The smell is awesome and kind of old-timey (nostalgia - my great grandma had beauty products that smelled like this). My sister says it makes her skin super soft too. As long as she likes it, huh?
Thick/less thick in that shea butter would be a liquid at room temperature in the summer because of its melting point (if you're like me and don't use air conditioning).
Well depending on the recipe you might not have to use a wax at all. Im not well versed in vegan waxes but mountain rose herbs has a great selection and i believe two vegan waxes. If its a liquid lotion you can substitute the wax and part of the liquids with a firm butter like cocoa or shea. I prefer lotion bars but i do plan on trying to make my own liquid/creams soon :). Good luck!