FAQ
Q: Do your tallow lotions/balms smell beefy?
A: Our tallow has been expertly rendered and purified a minimum of 4x to remove impurities. This gives you a product with minimal natural scent. The unscented lotions/balms have a very slight scent that I would describe as an "oily" scent, and the scented lotions/balms contain frankincese essential oil to help eliminate any natural scent.
Q: How do you "purify" your tallow?
A: There are a couple methods to rendering tallow, "dry" or "wet" rendering. We use the wet rendering method. This involves putting the prepared suet into a slow cooker on the lowest setting with water. Once the suet is fully rendered (3-4 hours) it is then poured through a fine mesh strainer lined with paper towel to remove debris. Now it is left at room temperature to harden. Once hardened, the tallow disk is removed from the water (the water traps the impurities) and reheated with fresh filtered water until it is melted. We repeat this "purification" a minimum of 4 times, allowing the tallow to harden each time, pouring out the water from the previous heating, and adding more fresh filtered water before reheating again. This is repeated until the water that remains under the hardened tallow disk is completely clean.
A final dry render is done to remove all moisture.
Is this method more work than dry rendering? Absolutely! Is it worth it, to purify the product and reduce scent? 100%!!
Q: Can I use the lotions/balms on my face & body?
A: With the exception of the lip balm, you can use our other products head-2-toe! A little goes a long way, so start small to avoid waste. Some customers even use our whipped lotion/balms as a hair oil treatment, face oil cleanser, makeup remover & tattoo moisturizer. It really is versatile stuff!
Q: Does it help with eczema/psoriasis?
A: While we cannot make any specific claims about healing properties, many of our customers have reported back that they have found relief for various skin conditions. To view customer feedback, check out our reviews on facebook and give us a follow! :)
Q: Why do you use organic castor oil in your whipped lotion/balms?
A: Well, it certainly isn't because it's cheaper haha! Organic castor oil (we always purchase cold pressed, hexane-free in a glass bottle) is quite expensive, but we don't cut corners around here! Castor oil has long been used (since biblical days!) for it's healing properties, exceptional moisturizing abilities, managing acne and reducing inflammation. It is a perfect match for tallow! I believe that the castor oil allows the tallow to penetrate deeper into the skin, allowing it to work it's magic.
Q: Do you render your own tallow?
A: This is a question you should ALWAYS ask before purchasing! First of all, my answer is YES. I would never purchase tallow from a 3rd party.
Making tallow is an art, it takes a lot of time (and trial and error) to get it right. Anyone can purchase "mystery tallow" and easily make lotions & balms...but do they know for certain it was rendered correctly? Was trim fat used in addition to suet, resulting in a lower quality product? Do they know why the texture/smell varies from one order to the next? IT'S ALL A MYSTERY! If a tallow skincare company purchases their tallow already rendered, they are at the mercy of someone else's standards. I'm not rolling the dice on that.
Have a question that isn't answered here? Message us on Facebook, Instagram or email: head2toetallow@gmail.com