Lotion bars

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I use dyes, solvents, and contact cement a fair bit in my day job, and I am constantly making things with heavy leather. Especially in winter, the skin on my fingertips can get very dry and rough from this work. What's worse, I frequently get painful hangnails and sometimes the callouses crack on my thumbs and index fingers. Regular lotions and balms work fine on my hands in the summer, but are not protective enough for winter.

I created a "bartender balm" a few years ago that I use when my hands are in trouble. It's a lotion bar that leaves a definite waxy coating on the skin. Most people probably wouldn't like it for everyday use -- only when your hands need extra protection. I rub it into my cuticles and fingertips before and during work. It also is nice to pack around a painful hangnail, put a band-aid on, and leave it overnight to soften and heal.

Here's a recipe to make 4-6 lotion bars about the size of mini peanut butter cups. I make the bars small so they get used up fast and so it's no great loss if one gets dropped on my dirty shop floor.

Beeswax 25 g
Cocoa butter 20 g (use deodorized if you don't want a chocolate scent in your product)
Liquid oil 5 g (I have used meadowfoam, sweet almond, or rice bran, but any oil will do)
Fragrance 0.5 to 1 g

Hold the bar in your hands for a moment to let it soften with body heat, then rub it over the areas you want to protect including the creases around your nails.

I infuse the liquid oil with calendula for a little extra healing and soothing. I've only used cocoa butter to make this bartender balm, but other butters should work well with some tweaks. Shea melts at a lower temperature than cocoa butter, so if you want to use shea, you may have to alter the proportions to use a bit more wax and less shea. Mango butter melts about the same temp as cocoa butter, so you might be able to sub it directly for the cocoa butter.
 
Would you please share the link/site where this has been proven/studied. I'd be interested to see the research proof on this.

I use it on my eyebrows mixed with a little bit of cocoa powder, which does on fact grow hair. Also in a empty mascara container it helps to grow lashes. But not too much as you do not want it to get in your eyes.
 
I haven't been able to track down any scientific proof of castor oil growing hair and every article I've read mentions the same. Some believe that the benefits come more from massaging the oil into the scalp. Apparently it's hard to remove the oil once it's on your scalp so perhaps the residual oil gives the impression of fuller hair and it's a process and requires a big chunk of time...
 
I discovered that if you melt 5% beeswax and add 95% castor, you'll get something like petroleum jelly.

Yes, adding a little castor wax works great as well :)

View attachment 33447
I made these yesterday and I am in love with them, super easy. 3.5 oz. of olive oil, 3.5 oz. shea butter, 2.5 oz. of beeswax, and 3 ml of fragrance. Melt oils, add fragrance, pour into mold, leave 4-24 hours and unmold.

Very nice! Love lotion bars ❤️
I lived, went to school and worked for a dentist in Panama City, sure miss it!
 
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I haven't been able to track down any scientific proof of castor oil growing hair and every article I've read mentions the same. Some believe that the benefits come more from massaging the oil into the scalp. Apparently it's hard to remove the oil once it's on your scalp so perhaps the residual oil gives the impression of fuller hair and it's a process and requires a big chunk of time...

I haven't met anyone who uses only castor oil on the scalp, you are right, it's a hard labor to clean it afterwards. It's much better to mix it with lighter oils like sesame oil, pomegranate oil, Aragon oil, Nigella sativa oil, jojoba oil, almond oil, avocado oil, olive oil, tea tree oil, rosemary oil. This what I can recall from what I have heard. As I travelled so much, I got to know a lot of ladies from around the globe, it happen to meet so many with a beautiful thick hair, I always asked what do they do, I found that what they have in common is using oil bath on regular bases for the scalp as a routine, of course there are other factors were mentioned like food, sleeping habits, not using too many medications, and stress level.
 
When I make lip balm (which uses beeswax), I melt my beeswax + oils in a glass measuring cup. When I'm done, I put water and some vegetable oil (cheap stuff like canola or soybean, not a good olive oil), and microwave it. The heat will melt the beeswax and the oil will help dissolve it. Pour the water in the trash (not down the sink) and wipe the measuring cup with a paper towel.

If you are melting down the beeswax by itself, save a metal can and use that as your melting pot. When not in use, keep it in a ziplock bag so it doesn't accumulate dust and hair. Or just throw it away.
The metal can idea is GENIUS Dixiedragon. Thanks!

View attachment 33447
I made these yesterday and I am in love with them, super easy. 3.5 oz. of olive oil, 3.5 oz. shea butter, 2.5 oz. of beeswax, and 3 ml of fragrance. Melt oils, add fragrance, pour into mold, leave 4-24 hours and unmold.
Gorgeous Shalome! Thanks for sharing your recipe. Mine turned out too hard but they didn’t have any liquid oils.
 
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