Beeswax Alchemy: How to Make Your Own Soap, Candles, Balms, Creams, and Salves from the Hive

by Petra Ahnert

Featuring over 40 DIY projects that illustrate how to transform one of the world’s most natural ingredients into tangible creations, Beeswax Alchemy is the perfect amalgamation of recipe craft book and beekeepers’ guide.

Considered the miracle of the beehive and used by humans for 8,000 years, beeswax remains a vital ingredient to society and is still used as the foundation for many household products in the twenty-first century. Learn from apiarist and entrepreneur Petra Ahnert about the history of beeswax , as well as tips and techniques on how to mold it into beautiful, reusable creations .
 
An introduction details the different ways in which beeswax has been used throughout history, as well as the products that contain it today. You’ll also find an explanation of the different types of beeswax, as well as insider tips on working with beeswax , followed by step-by-step instructions for making candles , balms , salves , creams , scrubs , soaps , ornaments , art , and more out of beeswax (either your own or store-bought). Color photos illustrate the processes and show finished results throughout. Among the useful and beautiful things you’ll learn to make out of Whether you are an expert beekeeper or experimental crafter, Beeswax Alchemy is the best guide for anyone aspiring to make wellness-boosting treasures to keep or gift to friends and family.

Genres: Nonfiction, Crafts, Reference, How To, Cookbooks, Lifestyle, Art

136 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2015

Reviews

[Trisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a beekeeper and always looking for ways to use beeswax. I had this book recommeneded to me by another beekeeper and it doesn't dissappoint. It covers how to clean the wax along with many different things to make including soap, candles, balms, creams, polishes, waxed cotton wraps. Often there is a base recipe and then how it can be adapted for different uses. Although the book is American, the recipes are in metric (some have imperial too) and some have percentages for if you want to adapt them to make your own. There is a section about ingredients with their INCI name, chemical make up and how each behaves or uses. A really good introduction for all things wax. I shall be recommending this

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beeswax Alchemy is well written and very informative. However, I found most of the recipes quite complicated and/or requiring ingredients that I'm not willing to use. There is a lot of great information contained in here about production of beeswax and the most comprehensive list of uses of beeswax that I have seen. There are also many photos in the book, but as I was reading on a Kindle Paperwhite, the photos were wasted on me. :-(
I have used beeswax alongside other ingredients to make my own products for about a year. I purchased Beeswax Alchemy for more information and some new recipes. The section of the book that I found most helpful was the page or two that dealt with cleaning up beeswax, which sometimes seems nearly impossible.
I am rating this 3 stars because though I would not use most of the recipes, they are thorough and "seem like" they would work beautifully.

[Allyn Ransom · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is really more of a reference/cookbook than it is a reading book. It's about the use of beeswax for candles, soap, balms, salves, and home decor, and I pulled several recipes from it for future use. But chapter 8 is what impressed me most. There, Petra provides a basic introduction to all of the ingredients she uses in the recipes in the book, plus a few. This one is going on my "buy someday" list (which doesn't mean it'll ever be bought, but it's worth buying.)

[Tara Morton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was surprised at how thorough this book was! It gave information I didn't even know I wanted (but I definitely did!) Honestly the only thing that knocks it down for me is some of the suggestions are not very sustainability-minded, which is surprising for a book of this nature. It recommendeds a lot of disposable products, shopping at big-box stores, etc. I wish they had recommended reusable alternative or ways to get materials, etc secondhand.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book and I think that I will have to buy this and try everything. What I love about this book is that at the top of each page it tells you the difficulty, beginner, intermediate, advanced. Also there were different types of uses for the beeswax. There are also pictures to show steps. In the back of the book there is a guide for oils and other ingredients.

[Ruth Windle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wealth of information

I found this book to be a wealth of information and inspiration for upcoming projects. This book will find its place as an oft-used reference for formulating new recipes.

[Rowan · Rating 5 out of 5]

An impressive, thoughtful, and thorough book to equip readers with a very solid foundation for beeswax crafting. An example: Ahnert acknowledges that making soap with beeswax is an advanced technique, so she provides a non-beeswax recipe to practice with before moving forward with beeswax soap.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of information about how beeswax is harvested and cleaned, plus a lot of recipes. I make soap, lotion, and balms, and learned about some unfamiliar ingredients (must track down mango butter) . Interesting tidbit: Beeswax is what makes gummy bears gummy.

[Kei · Rating 3 out of 5]

USeful information. May help me in my quest to make tea scented candles.

Also gave me a better idea of how much work that idea is going to be - and that I should probably decide on and collect designated tools for it first... and start slow.

[Jodi Geever · Rating 5 out of 5]

Have you ever wanted to read a YouTube video? That’s what using this book is like. There are step-by-step photos accompanying each project and the projects are explained so that even a novice will be motivated.

And you can DIY beeswax icy hot. The recipe’s here, along with many others.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many recipes I want to try.

[Todd Haines · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a refrence type book

I got some ideas from this as to what to use our beeswax for. This is more of a reference but I did read it to get new ideas.

[Kerry Clair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some great ideas in here. Going to give a bunch of them a try.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great resource! The author gives great explanation of the different types of beeswax, and which type is needed for certain projects. Highly recommend!

[Angela Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd like her to do a whole book just on candles next please!

[Carol]

I’ll definitely get this book again if I get bees or get an excess of beeswax.

[Mutalip Begenik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can l get this.book pdf or all l.need it.thank.you

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book if you’re looking for ways to use beeswax!

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars for content, -2 stars for font and layout.

[Sherry B. Huffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a long experienced soap maker, I still enjoyed and much appreciated the information in this book

[Jean Wagner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Learned a bit from the author's stories. Looking forward to a new hobby of using the beeswax from our hives.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great collection of beeswax crafts - from the complex to the very simple.
many i have tried and some that are new to me.

[Kerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been wanting to try to make my own candles for awhile now and with this book I actually feel like I can really do it. There are a few other things to try as well.

[Bored Housewife · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful

I bought this as I love honey products and thought to make myself some.

Petra has written an excellent instruction manual which is simple but thorough.

The soap turned out beautifully as did the lotion.

There isn't much else to add other than it was worth purchasing. Love it.

[J · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the better crafting books I've come across. I am a small time bee keeper which is what drew me to the book but after reading it cover to cover I'm looking forward to utilizing my wax for some of these types of projects. This book left nothing about the projects unexplained. It's a thorough and beautiful book.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Met the author at my local farmers market and purchased this book and 6lbs of honey from her. I like the book and everything seems to be explained fairly well. I will try out a few projects and update this review later.

[Sarah Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Informative about how they get beeswax and the various types/colors of beeswax. I actually wanted this for a few of the beauty recipes but there are instructions for those, soaps and candles. Nice book if you are interested in beeswax crafts!

[Bee Nordgren · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is excellent! I can't wait for cooler weather when I'll be rendering and recycling this season's wax. Goodies to come!

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is a keeper and belongs on any homesteaders shelf

[Alyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This stuff looks great! Looks easy to understand with photos to show the steps for each project.