You need very little kitchen equipment to make your own skincare. Most people have a whisk (or can improvise with a fork) and a spatula (which can be substituted by a spoon) but the ‘double-boiler’ can stop you in your tracks. Just what is it?
Have no fear, it is simply a way of warming ingredients without direct heat. The gentle heat provided in this way means your ingredients will not burn.
You can do this in many ways and get exactly the same result. Here are the options I’ve tried, let me know if you do it differently:
Option 1: The classic double-boiler, also known as a ‘bain marie’ or ‘porringer’ is a saucepan-on-saucepan piece of equipment. You put a couple of inches of water in the bottom saucepan and then put the whole assemblage onto the stove. As the water in the bottom pan heats, the steam (which has been enclosed by the pan on top) rises to provide a gentle warmth to the pan above. All your making – melting and blending of ingredients – happens in the top pan.
Double-boilers generally come in either stainless steel or enamel, there are some really beautiful examples available, but you’re likely to be spending £40 or more. A great investment (or a lovely item for your Christmas list perhaps?) especially if you cook a lot – it’s perfect for melting chocolate, scrambling eggs or making sauces such as hollandaise, I could go on … But there are other ways of achieving the same effect.
Option 2: The melting pan. With just a very small investment – under £10 – you can get a piece of kit that works perfectly for making up small batches of skincare, as you do using a Field Fresh Skincare kit. A melting pan is a simple stainless steel pan with pouring lips and a handle which rests safely across the top of your saucepan. This gives all the advantages of controllability and being easy to lift, carry and pour from, while still being affordable and easy to store. Many people prefer to have equipment that they use solely for making skincare, separate from their cooking equipment, and this is ideal in that toolkit. I like this option so much, I’ve made the melting pans available to buy through the Field Fresh Skincare website so you can get all your skincare-making provisions in a few easy clicks.
Option 3: Heatproof bowl over a saucepan. Mimic the double boiler by putting a heat proof bowl over a saucepan of water. Generally this will be stainless steel or strengthened glass, such as pyrex. This works well, but you do need to be a little bit careful in practice. Aim for the best match possible in size between bowl and saucepan so it fits securely on the top, a wobbly bowl could mean a spilt product, but more importantly a hurt you – we don’t want that. Make sure you minimize the gaps that would let steam seep out, the steam alone can cause burns if your hand lingers over it for too long. Also plan ahead to know what you will use to lift the bowl off the pan once it’s hot – a good heat-proof glove with which you can get a firm grip is ideal.
Option 4: Heatproof container. If you haven’t got the right combo of bowl and pan, another alternative is to simply sit a heatproof container inside a saucepan of water. Use something that is much smaller in circumference and has high-enough sides to be sure none of the water will spill over into the product. A clean, empty food tin can work well (and the heat is transferred quite quickly), or a mug or jar can be a handy alternative. You will be working directly over the boiling water in this instance, so do take care. And you’ll probably need tongs to lift the container out of the water as it could be quite hot.
Some people use a microwave to heat beeswax. I do not advise putting the oils into a microwave. Personally I don’t have a microwave (a long while ago I looked to minimize the number of objects in my home with plugs on and the microwave was something I reckoned I could do without) so I can’t advise on this apart from suggesting extreme caution. The gentle, controllable heat of a stove is certainly preferable.
So there are plenty of ways to create the gentle heat needed to warm the oils and melt the beeswax as you create your products, all of which are very effective. Chose whichever method suits you best and always do your making calmly with care, love and attention – enjoy the process.
There is an added advantage too in using this double pan method – when you’ve done all the heating and melting you need, you can transfer the top pan from the stove and place it over a bowl of cold water (or exchange the hot water in the bottom pan for cold). This provides the opposite effect of the warming bottom pan and enables you to cool your product quickly, a great time-saver when making skincare. Just be ready to act fast because the cooling and solidifying can happen quite rapidly, especially if you are adding more cold ingredients at this stage.
You’ll want to keep your kit in top condition, clean and ready for its next use. The best advice for this is to clean off any remnants of oils and waxes while the pan is still warm (or re-warm the pan briefly to clean it). Wipe around with soft, absorbent paper – such as kitchen roll – and all should come cleanly away. Then you’re ready to immerse it in hot soapy water and wash it up as normal. I’ve more advice on cleaning equipment here
Now you’re equipped, let the experimenting and creating begin – unleash the kitchen alchemist within!
