I am older and my hands are always dry and chapped from working in the yard and cleaning. I have been wanting to make a hand and foot treatment using bees wax. I was surprised to not find any online recipes. I did find a salon who made their own bees wax formula with honey so I thought I would try making a recipe adding honey.This instructable is the process I went through to make a formula for a bees wax treatment for hands and feet. Let's make a recipe~

Step 1: Tools and Ingredients

This recipe is the last of four that I made. I adjusted the recipe for a thinner consistency so it will be easier to adjust according to your preference. All of the recipes I made moisturized my hands and was very good except for the thickness of the first one.

Ingredients for 2 cups of hand or foot wax :

1/4 cup Raw filtered bees wax
1 1/4 Cups Organic Coconut oil Room temperature is best when using coconut oil.
1/8 Cup Organic Jojoba oil
1/8 Cup Shea butter room temperature
1/4 Cup pure raw organic honey
Essential oil if desired
2 Capsules vitamin E oil
Sugar scrub for washing hands

The tools list does not show pictures of everything; this was an experiment and I added to the list as I realized I needed more tools.Use old utensils because chances are you won't be able to use them except for melting wax or wax related projects.

Tools:

Very important you must have a double broiler or a system like it to make this recipe, because wax will ignite and cause a serious fire if not handled properly.Please do not leave the stove or hot wax unattended as long as the wax is very hot.

Old double broiler or make one like I did using a metal bowl and an old sauce pan.

Thin rubber gloves If you will be using the hot treatment

Thin cloth gloves if you will be using the hot treatment Tin foil if using a large piece of wax

Old spoon, dipper, tongs for removing large pieces of wax like mine if you don't want to melt the whole piece, strainer,extra bowl is needed if you need to strain the wax, funnel, hot pad,large towel to protect table,hand towel, old worn sheet for spills and straining wax if needed.

Paper towels if you have them.

Sterilized glass wide mouth Mason jars.I don't recommend plastic

Scissors to cut vitamin E capsules optional

Cheese grater helps for melting smaller pieces of wax, mine was much too large to use a grater

Step 2: My Experiment

Disclaimer: I am not an expert on making a treatment for my hands using bees wax, in fact this is my first attempt. I am sharing my personal experience of making a hand wax treatment that worked for me; by the way, the wax is much hotter than you think and it may or may not be the safest way to make this recipe. It needs to cool a tad bit more before applying it to your hands. Hot wax is very dangerous and can cause serious burns. Please be safe and research before making this recipe.

My first formula one part wax to a mixture of honey, jojoba oil, and 2 capsules of vitamin E oil. After making it I did not achieve the consistency that I needed to make a hand wax that was similar to the paraffin wax salons use.

I realized that the wax set up too fast before it cooled enough to stick my hand into it and I noticed it was quite sticky.I went back to the internet and found a link where a lady that experimented mixing coconut oil with bees wax here ; I wished I had found this earlier because I had already melted my wax and added the honey, jojoba oil, and vitamin E oil.

I wanted to achieve a creamy texture that could be heated in a sauce pan and not leave a wax residue and would lightly coat the hands or feet like paraffin wax. I re- melted one of the containers and added more jojoba oil,honey, and added Shea butter and Coconut oil. It was much better but was still a little too thick so I continued to tweak several jars until I was close to the mixture I wanted. I made the last recipe from scratch instead of adding to the existing jars but the honey settled to the bottom again and I don't know why. It won't matter because this mixture will be heated for a hot hand treatment anyway.

A little bit of honey settled to the bottom of the first and second batches. I had one batch that was clear but the ingredients were not noted. I am wondering why the first couple of mixtures separated slightly and one didn't.

The good news is; if you make a mistake you can remelt the mixture and make adjustments because the recipe is very forgiving.

Step 3: Set Up Work Station

Adding the ingredients to the melted wax goes pretty fast and as soon as the mixture is stirred you don't have long before it cools enough to dip your hands into the mixture, so your gloves need to be handy. It helps to have another person helping with this process.

Set up a work station with everything you need.

Step 4: Heat Water

Method:

Start heating the water.

Oil the metal or glass bowl with salad oil, Pam, or jojoba oil using a paper towel.

Step 5: Melt Wax

Method:

Place the wax into the broiler until it is completely melted.

Add the coconut oil and Shea butter and allow mixture to melt.

Remove the bowl using a hot pad.

Allow to cool until mixture is cool enough to touch comfortably.

Step 6: Add Oils to Wax

Incorporate ingredients:

Add the oils and essential oils to the cool mixture.

Mix thoroughly.

Step 7: Oil Hands and Apply Wax Mixture

While the mixture is hot I decided to try out the formula. If you won't be doing this then go ahead and pour the mixture into the jars following the instructions in step 9. Even though the pictures show this is thick it worked on my dry hands very nicely.My last batch had a little creamier texture like a salve.The last four pictures in this group shows the last formula I made and it is close to a paraffin wax.If it is too thin you can add a small amount of wax to thicken it up. It will be a lot easier to thicken it if the mixture is too thin than too thick.By the way the coconut oil and honey smell so good~

Method:

Wash hands using sugar scrub.

Rinse and dry hands.

Oil hands with jojoba oil.

Remember this mixture tends to be a tad bit hotter once it is applied to the skin.

Dip hands into the mixture and let the wax form and dip your hands a couple more times allowing the wax to coat the hands or feet.

Put the rubber gloves over the hands. Use a plastic bag for the feet and the foot socks over the plastic bag.

Put on the cotton gloves.

Relax for an hour or longer.

Step 8: Remove Wax

Method:

Carefully remove your gloves and throw them away.

You will notice how clean your hands are, thanks to the oil used before dipping into the wax.

Wipe the excess oil and wax using a paper towel.

Wash hands with soap and water and rinse and dry. Repeat if necessary.

Step 9: Reheat Mixture

Method:

Allow the mixture to cool for a couple of hours; this will give you a good idea how it will set up.

Add more oil or wax to the mixture if you do not like the consistency.

Reheat mixture until it has re- melted.

Allow to cool before pouring into glass containers but watch it closely so you can still pour it into a container so it will look like a finished product with no lumps.

I don't know for sure but I think this mixture will keep for a couple of months before going bad. It has honey and vitamin E oil and these are known to keep at room temperature.However I would keep it in the refrigerator if you will be using the coconut oil because on my bottle it says to refrigerate after opening.

Step 10: Sunshiines Final Thoughts

This recipe is great for those who are sensitive to paraffin wax. My hands feel so amazing~ Honey and wax are a great combination for dry hands and feet and the added oils really make it a wonderful hand and foot treatment. I am very happy with the results and will be making this again tweaking the recipe each time. I will make another recipe without the honey for everyday use. I hope you give the wax a try. This time of the year ants can be a problem so it is a good idea to make sure no wax is on the outside of the bottle.

I wish to thank contributors for making instructables the best place to hang out on the internet~ Thanks for stopping by and do have a great week~

sunshiine~