DIY Bees Wax Wrap

I’ve been wanting to do this DIY for a while, but could not, for the life of me, find the bar of beeswax I had used to seal my mason bee house. I wanted to be as close to plastic free as possible, not only because of environmental reasons (although that is a perfectly good reason) but because I was tired of having warped plastic covers for my glass tupperware. I don’t actually understand why I can’t have glass top tupperware (non-leak proof, for obvious reasons) but I haven’t been able to find them for a decent price anyway.

This wrap is actually far better for things such as cheese, since, left in an anaerobic environment such as within cling wrap, the bacteria in cheese will start producing ammonia–it’s why the best cheese shops seal cheese in wax or wax paper for long term storage. This not only cuts down on waste, but it also saves money too, since you could actually use old T-shirts or sheets cut to the size and shape.

Some recipes call for jojoba oil and pine resin, and I was worried it wouldn’t hold without them, but it was actually sufficiently sticky enough that when you held it in your hands and rubbed a bit, it would stick to itself from your body heat alone. Whether or not jojoba oil and pine resin are necessary… well, I don’t think so, but it can’t hurt to use them either if you really want to.

This DIY, however, does not contain those ingredients. Only good old fashion square pieces of cotton cloth (I had a bunch leftover from making furoshiki–but that’s for another post) and beeswax.

Some other DIY sites will tell you to either do it bain-marie style, in the oven, with a paintbrush, but I found an easier way that did not destroy your cheese grater, paintbrush, or pots since melted beeswax is notoriously difficult to get off of things.

You can run this under cold water and wash with light detergent to clean. Each will last through many uses (some people say up to a year if taken care of properly.) That’s a year’s worth of cling wrap I’m not contributing to!

You Will Need:

• Square pieces, multiple sizes, of cotton cloth fabric (organic non-dyed is best, but you can use regular if that’s all you have)
• 1 bar of beeswax
• 1 large skillet
• Aluminum foil
• Disposable chopsticks (optional)

DIY Bees Wax Wrap

1. Take a large skillet and line it with aluminum foil and heat skillet over LOW heat (high heat will cause the wax to smoke and burn.)
2. Depending on the size of your cloth, you may or may not need to fold it over a few times and place in the center of the skillet. This should not be an issue since the wax will permeate through.
3. Press bar of beeswax down firmly onto the the cotton cloth until it has begun to melt, and continue to do so while moving it around to ensure the entire piece of fabric has been covered. You will notice the cloth take on a darker, shiny quality.
4. Allow the beeswax to penetrate all the layers and then remove the cloth from the skillet. I used my hands, but be careful, it will be hot! A disposable pair of chopsticks can work too.
5. If folded, carefully unfold before the beeswax has cooled, and lay over paper towels to cool. Repeat with the remaining cloth.
6. Discard aluminum foil and disposable chopsticks when you’ve finished. If you’ve accidentally spilled any of the melted beeswax on the skillet, you can absorb it with a paper towel.