Pebble in the Pond Environmental Society is based in Powell River, BC Canada. (www.pebpond.com)
See the video version at: http://www.youtube.com/pebblepond
We put together a quick and easy tutorial for you, to help reduce the amount of plastic we use. Kids (8 yrs +) will love this!
Wax Wrap can have many applications, and is food-safe! Wrap your sandwich in it or make a cone design and use it to replace plastic film produce bags. Use it as a bike seat cover or make clothes out of it. Art? Why not! Come up with your own designs.
Wax Wrap is water-resistant and can be used hundreds of times.

To make one Wax Wrap that is roughly 18" x 18"
You will need:
1- a piece of clean (preferably new), tightly woven (200+ thread count), light-colored 100% cotton fabric.
2- aluminum foil (2 sheets each about 2' x 2'
3- newspaper
4- a clothes iron
5- a handful of grated, 100% natural beeswax
6- a cheese grater or potato peeler

Step 1: Let's Start!

Lay down some newspaper (to protect your table), and cover that with a sheet of aluminum foil. Lay your sheet of parchment paper on top of the aluminum foil, then on top of it all, lay down your cloth flat.

Step 2: Protect Your Iron!

Once the wax melts, it can make a mess. So, use that second piece of aluminum foil to wrap around your iron. Keep your iron setting pretty low-- remember, beeswax is flammable! Use a thicker aluminum foil especially for this step.

Step 3: Grate Some Wax Onto the Fabric

Use a vegetable/potato peeler or use the 'mozzarella' side of a cheese grater to grate some beeswax onto your fabric-- a small handful should be enough. It's better to have too little and add more later, than too much.

Step 4: Melt the Wax Into the Cloth

Using a downward motion at first, melt the wax into the cloth, then mode your iron outward from the center so that the wax will seep into all parts of your fabric-- watch to make sure the edges are the same yellowish color as everything else. Once you are satisfied with the results, quickly peel off the fabric, flip it around and run your iron over this again, making sure all parts of the cloth are equally soaked.
Used too much wax? You can use another clean piece of cloth, lay it on top of the over-soaked one, and this will absorb some wax (plus, you're part way through your next Wax Wrap!)

Step 5: Lift Off!

Peel off your warm wax wrap from the parchment paper; if it's stuck, then run your warm iron over the whole cloth and try again. Then, just flap the Wax Wrap around a bit until it cools off; this will harden the wax a bit so that it will result in a thin, leathery feel. You may want to spiffy it up a bit by using pinking shears (zig-zag scissors).

Step 6: Folding, Etc.

Your Wax Wrap is pretty much done at this point; it just depends on what shape you would like. Cones and envelope shapes are popular. Wax Wrap can be sewn, and buttons can be added.

Step 7: Maintaining Your Wax Wrap

Your Wax Wrap should last on average a couple of years. To ensure that it remains food-safe, you need to rinse it and use a weak bleach or peroxide solution occasionally. Inspect the Wax Cloth each time you use it to make sure there is no discoloration (or mold), and you can also place it in the oven at 150 degrees C. for 4-5 minutes every once in a while to reset the wax and disinfect the Wax Wrap. You may also use an iron to re-flatten your Wax Wrap to make new shapes, add more wax, etc.
Enjoy! Visit us at www.pebpond.com!