Make beeswax! Didn’t expect that did you?
I have these beeswax cappings left over from this fall’s honey making process. They have been sitting and waiting patiently for me to render the honey out of them and collect the wax. I have a special pot that I keep just for this job. It is impossible to clean up after working with wax, so I don’t bother. 
This is actually pretty simple. Take all the cappings left over from your honey gathering. Wait for a miserable gloomy day. Pop them into the big melting pot. Sit it on a warm woodstove and slowly heat until the whole mess is melted. 
It will look like this. Not appetising at all, which is good because you are not meant to eat it, though of course you could eat it if you were desperate. Which I am not. So I won’t. 
Now get those beautiful new black silk stockings that you never got to wear because you never go anywhere in those ridiculously high heels. Tie the nylons firmly over a little old bowl kept specifically for this purpose because you will never get it clean, so don’t bother trying. 
Carefully strain the mess through the stockings. And there you have it. The wax will rise to the top and the honey will sit below. Wait while the wax cools and sets.
Bit longer. 
Bit longer.
There. 
Now take the wax off the top, clean and put aside for making into lip balm and candles, on another miserable gloomy day. And pour the honey into vessels. Mark it as heated. 
This honey I use in the bread. 
OK Daisy, maybe you can have a little honey with your beet shreds in the morning. Such a spoilt cow. She is getting bigger you know. Such a spoilt pregnant cow!
I will rummage about and find all the makings for lip balm and we can cook up a batch of that soon. Now I am off to make miniature Party Pies!
c
The Kitchen's Garden 
90 responses to “How do I ruin a perfectly good pair of Sheer Black Stockings?”
I enjoy your blog so much. Your photos are truly beautiful. Thanks for taking me inside your world.
You are always welcome, cliche. c
Daisy looks very deep in thought. Probably thinking about college funds, etc., for the little sprout.
Lip balm, eh? Burt’s Bees lip balm actually dries out my lips!
I add a little honey to my lip balm so it is very creamy and tasty and lasts.. c
Send some up here to us frozen, cracked lipped Canadians… please and thank you!
I second that! 😉
This is another piece of farm life that I’d no idea about. I get my honey from the BeeMan in Michigan every September and he gets it from his bees and there’s wax. That’s the extent of my honey knowledge, well, till now. Thanks, Celi, for the primer.
You are welcome John. Once you get the wax it opens up a whole new world of ‘stuff’.. We will make some interesting and useful potions this winter with the beeswax. c
There is a stand up comedian who has the whole spiel about nylon stockings and they way Soviet women use them versus French women.
French women: wear with those ridiculous high heels.
Soviet women: store onions,strain jams,and so on.
Now he can add your method 🙂
Oh that is fantastic, I am a soviet woman, I also use nylons to store my Tuberosa bulbs in the basement for the winter!!.. c
That is wonderful Cecilia..you know after a time of blogging you are going to have to open your place up for tour and tea and honey as I suspect a lot of us would pay for that!
You would not have to pay darling! You could do the chores and I will have the tea ready when you are done!! c
Great pix and highly insightful – Daisy looks quite interested in the process, IMHO 😉
Daisy fosters that intelligent interested thoughtful look to get out of work! Now, puzzle time.. IMHO…hmm.. I Might Have Orribles, NO? .. ok wait .. I May Hate Oranges. Daisy actually likes oranges and lemons..Oh I know. I Might Have One!! Exactly she was watching the cats play and was thinking ..I Might Have One! Yeah?.. c
You are a wonder, woman! You have the special talent of making things that I have no interest in, interesting. When a writer can make bees’ wax a good read, they have arrived! Love you, Celi!
John you are a darling.. c
Damn…you are amazing! Is there anything you can’t do??
I can’t do all the stuff YOU can do, makes life so much more interesting don’t you think! c
Your “BEES WAX” written on that special pot reminds me of the enamelware bowl I have from my maternal grandmother. She wrote “Strawberries” on a piece of white tape and stuck it onto the bowl. My grandma died within months of my birth, so I never knew here. But I’ve heard the stories about the kind, wonderful woman she was. Every time I use that bowl, I think of her. I’ve never once considered removing the “Strawberries” label.
Thanks so much for causing me to think of my grandmother this morning via your story.
Audrey that is wonderful, i would have left the label on the bowl as well, it is great to have your grandmothers actual, if faded, handwriting.. c
Cool and interesting post.
Thanks rosemary, hope you are having a lovely day.. c
You have a way of describing the processes, whether they be baking, making beeswax or lip balm that makes them sound like fun. I hope you enjoy doing the things you do, because I really enjoy reading about them.
Ronnie
I do enjoy what i do. It is something I am very sure of in my life .. i hurry through the stuff i do not want to do (dishes!) so i can get to what entertains me, and most of all i enjoy that you enjoy reading if that makes any sense at all.. c
I am totally fascinated by beehives and all the goodness that comes out of them…and that series of photos is wonderful.
Teach me more? 😀
Sure marie, more to come for sure!! c
What a wonderful “use of everything”! You know that’s what I’m all about… I love this! And beeswax, for candles, lip balm, whatever — what a super gift from the bees! Thank you for sharing… mmmm…
I love to use everything too Rachel, I think it is the essence of sustainable, everything finds a use. And something we can all do in our own homes! You are pretty good at it I know! c
Your pots for collecting your bees wax sound like Pete’s candle wax pots – not worth cleaning either. Bet he would give an eye tooth to get hold of some of your wax to make into candles.
🙂 Mandy
I am going to have to pick Petes brains (try and say that fast with a wine glass in your hand!) about the candle making, mine last year were not so good.. c
I have bees and even I never thought of that. DUH? 😐
I actually did scrub out my pot and my colander that held my cheese cloth… once. So, it can be done, but I don’t want to do it again. EVER! Thinking I will visit the second hand store today for an old pot to mark bees wax. Thanks Cecilia!
~ Lynda
I found this one in a garage sale Lynda, I am a sucker for enamel too! c