Too Busy For Words - the PaulWay Blog

As a woodworker, I use Carnauba Wax mixed with lemon oil on my wood turning pieces to give them a nice shine that's also dust-proof and preserves the wood, preventing it from drying out and cracking. And as a student of popular culture, I've seen the reference to the Saturday Night Live sketch about Shimmer, the revolutionary product that's both a floor wax and a dessert topping.

So it amused and amazed even me to find out that Carnauba Wax is all this and more. It's the product of the Carnauba Palm, has a melting point way higher than most waxes, and is harder than concrete in pure form. It is used both in woodworking and in car polishes for its high-gloss, protective coating, but in that capacity (and because it's edible) it's also used as an ingredient in some cake icings and on the coatings of Tic-Tacs and othe candy to make them glossy. Likewise it's used in products such as lipsticks and blushes for the glossy, resilient coating. With a solvent in a can, it's sprayed into moulds for epoxy resin products such as semiconductors to make sure the product breaks free from the mould easily; because it's not soluble in water or alcohol it can be used in liquid epoxy casting too.

And to think that most people think that Shimmer doesn't exist...