Borax uses

[Livelovebath]

I had a lady asking me to add borax to various products of mine (bath salts etc.) beacause she liked the way products with borax makes her skin feel but wants to buy from me (weird lol)

Now I have looked up borax on the net and found that alot of recipies call for it and heres a good site with information on it http://www.mountainroseherbs.com/learn/borax_powder.php

I have some that I have used as an ingredient in machanic's soap for the DH

But I was wondering what you all use it for... in what recipies... how much do you add... do you add it dry etc....

Help please!! Thoughts and opionions will be super helpful

Thanks in Advance

Jenny

[Meridith]

I add a little bit of borax to my bath bombs. I use about 1/4 tsp per pound.

[Livelovebath]

oh and a good follow up question would be what do you think it adds..any benifits?

[cindym]

Jennyjr has a recipe I think in the recipe section and uses it in bath bombs.

[Grumpy Girl]

I use it in my bath bombs too.

[Carrie]

Can a person buy borax locally? I've seen the borax in the laundry aisle at the grocery store...Same or different?

[friendlyMOM]

I was wondering the same thing, can it be bought local and what are the advantages of using it wow I read the link and very interesting but can i get it local

[lbtddr]

borax in the laundry aisle at the grocery is the same.

[classylady71118]

I also use it for my bath bombs.

[CandleFreak]

borax is found locally in grocery stores, etc...it's known as 20 Mule Team Borax in the laundry aisle (Sodium tetraborate Na2B4O7 )

"mineral softens water and is a cleansing agent, and has the unique ability to suspend soap particles in water so they don"t adhere to the skin or clog the pores. The skin is left cleaner and softer because of it." (Quote from Rosemary Gladstar's book titled "Herbs for Natural Beauty.")

Which that is all on the site you posted as well!

http://www.fromnaturewithlove.com/recipe/default.asp has some recipes for lotions, creams, etc with borax...you can do a search recipe and type in "borax" - for some reason I couldn't link it correctly

[MsDammit]

ok borax is one thing that I have seen at Wal-Mart, lol.

[Livelovebath]

thanks for the help everyone! There are some interesting reads out there on borax lol...

[Peeko Sanchez]

I know this is an old thread, but I've been doing research all day on whether borax is safe, hence why I was reading this. I couldn't leave without providing some clarification before someone ends up with severe skin problems.

Borax that is found in the laundry detergent aisle of your local store is usually a decahydrate form of sodium borate http://www.sciencestuff.com/msds/C2545.html combined with surfactants and detergents to make a powerfully caustic cleaning agent. You have to wear gloves when using this cleaning powder so it doesn't eat your skin off- NOT a good idea to put the decahydrate compound in any product you plan on exposing skin too.

On the other hand, it appears that the cosmetic grade of Borax, which is NOT a decahydrate, is not nearly as toxic and is safe for use in toiletries (low quantities), but this is safe according to the FDA. It is still a skin irritant. It's the amount at which this irritation is harmful that is debatable and so it has earned the FDA stamp of approval. http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/ingredient.php?ingred06=705996

When combined with beeswax, sodium borate acts as an emulsifying agent.

If you're set on using borax, I would recommend purchasing the cosmetic grade from a health food store, in person or online, and make sure that the chemical name is just Sodium Borate, no decahydrate or other chemical prefixes or suffixes and no other ingredients.

Hope no one got burned, literally!