photo: apartment therapy
photo: apartment therapy

Just about everyone we know wants to cut back on using plastic wrap and ziplock bags but are having a hard time actually doing it. One way is with clever Abeego food storage sheets: cotton sheets that are coated with pure beeswax, jojoba oil and tree resin, known for their preservative properties. The sheets are malleable, and slightly sticky, so they will wrap around just about anything. And the are re-usable, depending on use for about a year. You just wash them with mild soap in cold water.

Abeegos were created by a young Canadian couple who set parameters for what they wanted to create: sustainable, re-usable, pure ingredients and then set out to figure out how:

I listened to idea after idea, thought after thought in what was to become Abeego, morning, noon, and night, for almost five months. I took the long way home from work occasionally for the peace and quiet. 

Here’s how Abeegos work:  (Video link here.)

…We’re thinking Abeegos would make a great house gift. A reader just tipped us off to a similar product called Bees Wrap. You can read a review here.

beeswax as an alternative to plastic wrap
photo: apartment therapy

Then we started wondering if we could make them ourselves. There’s a trove of how-to’s on the internet; we liked The Art of Doing Stuff‘s. The gist:

-gather some 100% cotton or muslin and cut into squares or rectangles.

-arrange them — do not overlap — on a baking sheet lined with tin foil or parchment.

-sprinkle evenly with greated beeswax.

-then put them in a slow oven: 150 – 170 °F until the wax melts and saturates the fabric.

-remove from the baking sheet right away (you can use clothes pins or clips to hang them until they cool and firm up)

 

beeswax as an alternative to plastic wrap

We found another how-to at this website and a method using pure beeswax pellets and an iron at DIY Natural. They had a few caveats on diy plastic food wrap:

We have found after using this food wrap that it is not completely waterproof or airtight. It does a wonderful job covering casseroles and baked goodies, or wrapping items such as cheese, veggies, sandwiches, cookies, and many other food items. It is not meant for extremely wet or juicy foods, as there will be some leakage in these cases. It works best for short term food storage (less than a few days) and for packing lunches. Because it’s somewhat breathable, your food will not retain moisture if used for long term storage.

photos courtesy apartment therapy and the art of doing stuff

related posts: how to store fruits, vegetables and eggs without a fridge
how to dye easter eggs with food-based dyes (easy!)
gift: endlessly useful furoshiki cloth…you can even wear it
alt plastic food bag solutions: re-usable cloth, mesh, or freeform…?
big, light tyvek tote bag

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2 replies on “diy or buy: not-plastic beeswax food wrap

  1. I just ordered organic muslim fabric covered in bees wax from Bees wrap in Vermont. I will try this product out when it arrives. But it’s a Mom in Vermont marketing this.

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