Hair Wax How To


Remember when hair wax was a must-have for every hairdo? That's how long I've been making this hair wax.

It provides a medium hold, making it useful for a variety of short and semi-short hair-do's.

This formula is easy-peasy, quick to make, and has quite simply never failed me. As a matter of fact, I've never even been tempted to tweak it.

Not even once.

I wish I could take credit for creating it, but I can't. It is from Danish Urtegaarden. For those of you who prefer reading the original (in Danish), there's a link at the bottom of this post.

Shall we get started?


Equipment List

  • Container for your product
  • Scale
  • Stirrer
  • Heatproof container



Ingredients List

For a single (50 ml) tin as shown above, you will need:

  • 13 grams Palm oil (Elaesis Guineensis  - extracted from the pulp of the palm fruits)
  • 29 grams Lanolin 
  • 7 grams Beeswax
  • 12 drops Essential oils of choice (optional, but a good idea for adding scent and extra hair-loving action)

Hair-Loving Essential Oils

To give this wax an extra hair-loving boost, try choosing from these essential oils

  • Rosemary
  • Cedarwood
  • Geranium
  • Grapefruit
  • Lavender
  • Sandalwood
  • Cypress
  • Peppermint



Method

  1. Weigh out the lanolin, beeswax, and palm oil and place in heatproof container
  2. Melt the ingredients SLOWLY over LOW heat
  3. Remove from heat as soon as everything is melted and stir until the mixture begins to thicken. 
  4. Add essential oils
  5. Stir and transfer to your container


On and Off 

I usually use a small amount of wax at a time (for a light hold), but this wax will also function as a (softer) hair-sculpting product. If you prefer using a generous amount of wax, the easiest way to remove it again is to apply shampoo to your hair before adding water.


Enjoy!

The Original

Urtegaardens original recipe (in Danish)

Comments

Olivia J said…
I was just thinking of making my own because one of my fave products had been discontinued. I didn't think about the essential oil part which you reminded me of. I will have to try this recipe or something similar. I was also thinking of adding some pigments to give the hair a bit of luminosity. I hope it works out.

Thanks for the great photos, I am less intimidated now, and will certainly make a batch!
LisaLise said…
HI Olivia - What an interesting idea adding pigments! Do you know which type would be visible enough or are you just looking for a 'tint' of color? Do promise to drop a comment and share your experiences! :)
Nanette said…
Hmm, maybe just a light reflective mica?
LisaLise said…
Hi Nanette - excellent suggestion! :)
Nina said…
this looks great! Any thoughts on a substitute for lanolin? I'd like to make a vegan version with candelilla instead of beeswax. Thanks!
LisaLise said…
Hi Nina,

Aroma Zone sells a plant-based product as a lanolin substitute. that would fit your needs. At this moment the name of the product escapes me, but if you search for lanolin on their site, this product will come up. There is a link to Aroma Zone on the sidebar of the blog under links. Best of luck with it!
Anonymous said…
Hi :)
What can i substitute for palm oil in this recipe??
I never use any palm oil as it is so unethical, and from the research I've done even so called "sustainable/ethically" sourced palm oil can be pretty shady too!
Thanks
Grace

LisaLise said…
Hi Grace - You might be able to replace with coconut oil but you will have to tweak the lanolin and beeswax accordingly as coconut is a softer oil. I urge you to read the post on this blig called palm oil and politics -- there is much more to this discussion than you might think. There are also several enlightening comments under the post. Best of luck with it
Unknown said…
Im thinking of making temporary color hair wax and might substitute the palm oil and lanolin. Came accross this post. Am I allowed to post pictures of the result
LisaLise said…
Hi Synara - Thanks for your comment. What an interesting question! I don't think it's possible to upload pictures to the comments on this blog, but to be quite honest, I am not sure-- I've never tried, but looking at the comments field, there isn't an option for uploading anything--- Your idea sounds interesting! Please do post a follow up comment on how it goes :)
Unknown said…
Thanks for this recipe - it works great as a mustache recipe - I substituted the Palm Oil for Cocoa and it works great.
LisaLise said…
Hi Franco - I wish I could take credit for this formula, but it was developed by a Danish company called Urtegaarden. Glad to hear it works for mustaches!
Satyanarayan said…
Hi Lisa, can we use anything else in place of Lanolin?
LisaLise said…
Hi Satyanaranyan — I’ve never tried making this with the ‘vegan lanolin’ (a mixture of waxes and oils) but it might work.
Satyanarayan said…
Thank you Lisa and is it possible to use flax seed gel in this recipe?
LisaLise said…
Hi again — that won’t work in this formula