Description
What to do with bee wraps that no longer stick well?
The lifespan of L’abeille qui emballe bee wraps in daily use is approximately 3 to 4 years, provided they are used every day and cared for properly. With their generous layer of beeswax mixture, they are much more durable than most of those available elsewhere. But after years of use, the wax coating begins to wear off and they stick less well. There are several solutions:
- Turn them into “fireballs”, i.e. natural firelighters for lighting a wood stove, fireplace or barbecue, for example. The remaining wax is perfect for this.
- Compost them by cutting them into small pieces.
- Use the refill kit from L’abeille qui emballe to refresh them!
The secret to an effective and durable bee wrap
For several months now, I have been working on developing easy-to-use refills for your bee wraps that need a new lease of life. The mixture used is the same as in my workshop: local beeswax from honeycomb caps, organic French pine resin and organic jojoba oil. A composition with a secret formula that has proven itself time and time again!
Composition of beeswax mixture blocks
- Untreated beeswax from beekeeper Jean-Louis Lautard, president of the Provence Beekeepers’ Union. It is 100% French and smells wonderful!
- Pine resin from the Landes region. It is certified organic by the Eco-cert label and contains no allergens. Let’s support French resin tapping, a practice that is dying out!
- Certified organic jojoba oil. It is antiseptic and highly miscible. That’s why I use it in my workshop rather than French organic sunflower oil, which does not offer the same results.
Tutorial: refresh your beeswax wraps with the refill kit
This kit is ideal for recharging your bee wraps with beeswax when they’re running low! The process takes about 5 minutes per beeswax wrap and is very easy to do. A child can do it under adult supervision.
What will you need?
- a block of wax suitable for the size of the fabric (provided)
- A bee wrap to restore.
- two sheets of baking paper slightly larger than the bee wrap
- An iron and a suitable work surface
Simple tutorial to refresh or make your own bee wrap!
- Cut two sheets of baking paper larger than the bee wraps to be refilled
- On a wooden or metal table, place the first sheet of baking paper, put the bee wrap to be refilled on top, place the bee-shaped refill in the middle of the bee wrap and place the second sheet of baking paper on top
- Set your iron to “cotton” (100°C) and melt the beeswax refill onto the bee wrap.
- After a few minutes, when the wax block has melted, spread it evenly with the iron.
- Remove the baking paper from the top, take the brand new bee wrap by the two top corners and let it dry for a minute in the open air.
- It is now ready for several years of loyal service, keeping your food fresh without waste!
Another use for the refill kit – make your own bee wraps
Rather than trying to find the ingredients and the right proportions of beeswax, resin and jojoba oil yourself, this kit allows you to create your own bee wraps using the fabrics of your choice. With this kit, you can be sure of a good start.
The choice of fabric is important: you need cotton that is free of toxic products (Oeko-Tex certified cotton, for example, or fabric that has already been washed many times). It also needs to be highly absorbent. If you are unsure about your choice, you can use the DIY 3 bee wraps creation kit from L’abeille qui emballe, which also supplies the beautiful fabrics used in my discovery packs.