Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Jeanne Schell keeps bees in Medina County, Ohio, with the help of her daughter, Katie.
Jeanne says the beauty of her simple hand cream recipe is that you can substitute vary-
ing amounts of shea butter or cocoa butter for the palm oil and coconut oil if you want
to customize the aroma and thickness of your cream. Experiment with varying amounts
of oils and butters to get just the right mix for your hands. Just make sure that the com-
bined amount of oils and butters, other than base oil (olive oil), equals one full cup
(235 ml). You can also vary the amounts of the ingredients to make more or less of this
cream, but the basic recipe fills about one dozen 2-ounce (55 g) containers—more than
enough for your use, with lots of extras to share.
Jeanne's Hand Cream
2 cups (475 ml) olive oil (the base oil)
¼ cup (60 ml) palm oil
¾ cup (175 ml) coconut oil
6 ounces (170 g) beeswax
2 vitamin E tablets or 6 drops of vitamin E oil
40-50 drops essential oil(s) (optional)
Combine the oils in a 2-quart (1.9 l) stainless steel sauce pan, and stir over medium
heat until the oils (and butters, if using) are melted. Add the beeswax to the pan,
and stir until melted. Then test the mix by dropping five or six drops onto a sheet
of waxed paper, let cool, and test the hardness. If it is too hard, it will be difficult
to rub onto your skin, and your mix will need a bit more base oil added to soften
it. If it is too soft or greasy, add a bit more beeswax to stiffen it.
When the hand cream has the exact thickness you want, remove the pan from
the burner and allow it to cool until the cream begins to harden on the sides of the
pan. Then stir in two vitamin E tablets or six drops of vitamin E oil to enhance the
healing properties of the hand cream.
For a fragrant hand cream, add any combination of essential oils after removing
the pan from heat, or simply rely on the subtle fragrance of beeswax and the oils
in the basic recipe. A popular blend that offers a whiff of fragrance without being
overpowering contains 15 drops of lavender oil, 15 drops of rosemary oil, and 15
drops of geranium oil. You can use other oils, or vary the proportions of these, to
suit your taste.
When well mixed, pour the cooling cream into individual 2-ounce (55 g) con-
tainers and allow it to cool, uncovered, overnight. Then cover the containers, label
them, and store at room temperature, out of direct sunlight.
