DIY Making Beeswax Polish for Furniture

Beeswax polish is great to use on a lot of different projects, no matter whether you're finishing furniture, protecting metal tools or making wooden drawers slide easier. Suffice to say, having some beeswax polish on hand is definitely a good idea! There are lots of different ways you can make beeswax finish, however this is a very simple and basic recipe that will get you far. Making your own polish is not only fun, it will also save you money. Plus, you can always alter the proportions to get a polish that fits your needs and preferences perfectly.

Ingredients:

• 1 part solid beeswax (I used about 2 oz)
• 1 part Mineral Spirits (or Turpentine)

Equipment:

• Stove / hot plate
• Pot with water
• Stainless steel bowl
• Mason jar / metal tin or something else to store the polish in

Method:

Either chop off small pieces off a block of beeswax or grate your desired amount of beeswax. Prepare a double boiler. You need to melt the beeswax gently, so it's necessary to use a double boiler, much like when you melt chocolate.

Once the water comes to a simmer, put the beeswax in the stainless steel bowl on top of the pot. Slowly melt the wax until it has dissolved. At that point, add equal parts mineral spirits, and slowly combine over the double boiler. Pour into a mason jar, a metal tin or something else to store it.

Tip: It's a good idea to have a dedicated stainless steel bowl for this job, as it can be difficult to completely clean it off for food later.

To use:

Apply polish with a soft cloth over your desired project, wait a few minutes and buff off the excess with a clean cloth. Wax polish is great because it doesn't require any time to cure like other finishes and it can be used for so many different uses.

Concentration

For a softer polish, use a higher concentration of mineral spirits, or for a harder polish, use a higher concentration of wax.

You can also use oils such as linseed, tung oil or mineral oil, however for a soft polish with oil it's a good idea to use 1 part wax and 4 parts oil.

For a more in depth look of how to make the beeswax polish, check out the video.

For even more ideas on how to use beeswax polish and different recipes, check out 15 Awesome Wax Hacks!