Naturally, we associate bees with the summer and the gorgeous golden honey they produce, but there’s also another wondrous substance that our buzzy friends create: beeswax. Indeed we’re lucky to have our own beehives here in Wales and understand the importance of helping to provide habitats for bees and other insects to prosper. So with the numerous uses and benefits beeswax offers, it seems summer-essential that Balmy Fox takes a moment to delve into this lesser-known bee product!
This unique substance is a natural wax produced by honey bees in the beehive. The bees secrete the wax from glands on the abdomen to build the honeycomb, essentially the storage system for storing the honey. A little unknown fact about beeswax is that it starts clear, becoming the yellowier colour we’re more familiar with as the beeswax stores the honey and pollen. According to the British Bee Keepers Association, they estimate that a single bee needs to visit an astounding 30 million flowers to produce a pound of beeswax—we can only say wow!
There are all sorts of uses for beeswax, with many people preferring to use beeswax-based products instead of chemically-laden alternatives. For instance, beeswax makes a super wood and leather polish, and it’s also used in soaps and candles. In addition, the gorgeous substance contains natural anti-bacterial properties, making it super valuable in food protection, especially in the form of beeswax food wraps as an alternative to throw-away cling film or aluminium foil. And with beeswax similarly containing anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties, this hero ingredient is also beneficial in skincare balms and salves to help fight infection and heal wounds, making it perfect as a beeswax first aid cream. Indeed, a beeswax moisturiser or balm can help in healing bruises, inflammation and burns.
Here at Balmy Fox, it is perhaps unsurprising that we include this naturally good ingredient in our non-vegan skincare. With all its nutrients and rich goodness, beeswax is the perfect humectant with the ability to draw in and retain water which is super essential for keeping skin healthy and hydrated. And its natural anti-inflammatory, anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties are the perfect unison for skin calming nourishment to help keep it clear, infection-free and healthy, making it the ideal ingredient for our Hand & Foot Repair Cream. This rich moisturising skin repairing cream is the best beeswax hand cream for sore, dry skin and also super beneficial as a repairing foot cream for cracked heels. In addition, our anti-chafe cream embraces beeswax, where hydration is crucial to prevent chafing and sore skin caused by moisture and repetitive motion. And it’s also integrated into our hand and foot repair balm for on-the-spot instant intensive moisturisation just when you need it most!
If that wasn’t enough natural beeswax goodness, vitamin A is another remarkable nutrient this rich yellow substance carries. A fat-soluble vitamin, it helps to protect the skin cells from external environmental irritants, supporting cell growth, meaning a quality beeswax cream benefits those suffering from dermatitis, eczema, or general dry skin itchiness. Opting for a rich beeswax moisturising cream, especially as a beeswax cream for eczema sufferers and other dry skin conditions, really is beneficial. And with its anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties, beeswax truly is nature’s healer—the crucial ingredient for any intensive anti-allergenic moisturiser!
If you hadn’t realised by now, Balmy Fox is barmy about bees, so it’s no surprise that we have our very own beehives here at mission control in Wales. We provide bees with the habitats they need to survive and flourish. And while they busy themselves pollinating flowers, food crops and plant life, we utilise their gorgeous Welsh beeswax in some of our skincare products to reap the rich qualities and natural healing properties it delivers. Without bees, there are no crops or plant life, so life simply doesn’t exist without them. So, join us by creating bee-friendly gardens, whether containers or flower beds or if you’re lucky to have land, then go wild with a wildflower meadow. If we all do our bit to help our little yellow furry friends, we can boost our bee population for a happier environment!
Be inspired by Balmy Fox, follow us on social media to get the latest
skincare news, exclusive products & more