Alternatives to Plastic - Beeswax Wraps

Most of us are looking at ways to replace plastic and or cling wrap/film in the kitchen especially as it is becoming more apparent that it really is a problem and is affecting the seas, the wildlife within it and various other problems.  I am conscious of leaving no imprint behind me, but sometimes that is not possible as you have to do what you can with the things available to you.  All of us have different options on this point no two people are necessarily the same.  It is funny that plastics have now come full circle for me in any event.  I remember the first plastic bags for freezing food were expensive and I remember both my grandmother and mother washing out the bags and putting them on the washing line to recycle them because they were so expensive.  Now that they are that common but not very good for us.

I received the new Lakeland catalogue the other day and I noticed that they have invested heavily in this but that the prices are not cheap although they may be ethically sound!  However realistically this often means that the price is quite hefty.  Not all of us can afford this and the whole point for me is that I should be able to do something that I can afford and which is ethically sound.

In any event I was doing some research into different types of preserving when I came across these two videos on You Tube.  Both present different ways of creating your own beeswax wraps out of cotton fabric that is probably not going to be of much use elsewhere apart from patchwork.  However what struck me is that both the videos present different ways around the same issue which both provide for ethical and useful items for your family home cheaply.  It is recycling in another format.  I keep beeswax in the house in any event as I use it for making polish and you can buy the pellets or indeed the blocks off of Ebay and the like.

The first link is here:

Beeswax Wrap 1

This is from a blog from the Homesteaders.  From what I have seen so far it is very good. 

There is a lot of good and sound information here on all sorts of preserving.

The second is here:

Beeswax Wrap 2

By a lady called Aannsha Jones.

Another useful way of creating your own beeswax wraps in a slightly different way.  In any event both ways are really good.

These are on my to do list.  However I thought I would share with you all as well.  I have lots of scrap cotton fabric but I also recycle shirts.  I also keep a bucket full of old cotton tee shirts or cotton rags to use in mucky jobs rather than buying kitchen roll so the beeswax wraps fall very much inline with my philosophy to recycle where I can and also be relatively cheap to do being the skinflint that I am.  It is also something that the kids can help out with under supervision of course so it is including them in every day life and it is something else you do not have to rely on the stores for.

There is also a tutorial here on how to refresh them once you have made them:

Refreshing

Hope this helps and catch you soon.

Pattypan

x