Benzoin Resinoid 20%

20% Benzoin diluted in 80% benzyl benzoate. This is very easy material to work with.

Adam Michael has this to say “Benzoin is used for healing many kinds of skin lesions, from cracked and chapped hands to chilblains. Friars Balsam has long been used by ballet dancers to heal cracked toes and prevent further cracking. You can put benzoin into hand creams for people who work in the open – gardeners, foresters, builders, usually adding lemon and or lavender, to mask the vanilla smell and contribute their own healing powers. Benzoin also combines well with rose absolute.

Benzoin is derived from the tree Styrax benzoin which grows in Thailand and adjacent islands. It is not an essential oil, as pure benzoin is a resin, and has to be melted by heating over hot water before it can be used. The granulated gum, called ‘gum benjamin’ in old herbals, is a dark reddish-brown, and is often used as a fixative in pot pourris, but the form in which benzoin is probably best known is as ‘Friar’s Balsam’ or compound tincture of benzoin. The active constituents of pure benzoin include benzoic acid, benzoresinol, siaresinotannol and vanillin, which gives it its characteristic ‘ice cream’ aroma.”

Botanical Name: Styrax benzoin

Origin: Siam