Making a curious Varnish for the Face

I will begin with saying that this was the most surprising of all the recipes I have tried so far as it didn’t behave at all as I thought.

The updated recipe
Brandy (cheapest brand possible) 44ml
Sandarac 2 gram
Benzoin resin 1 gram

This is something of a famous first. No need to substitute any of the ingredients and the original recipe has measurements for everything. So it was very simple to just pare it down to a suitable test sample. I grounded the resins before pouring it into the brandy. I used a small jar with a lid. After that I just shook it every time I passed it until a week had passed.

Both Sandarac and Benzoin are soluble in alcohol, but though I can’t find any information on how strong the alcohol should be for the Sandarac, Benzoin is generally recommended to be dissolved in 80% alcohol, dissolving even easier if you warm it a little. Brandy is about 40% and this recipe says nothing about warming the solution either. The Swedish pharmacopeia of 1775 recommends 50% alcohol in a ratio to 6 parts alcohol to 1 part Benzoin. Let it stand for three days and strain though a paper. (Source) A recipe with both stronger and more alcohol than the recipe I used.

Benzoin resin

Source: therapyangels.com via Elisa on Pinterest

A curious Varnish for the Face

The recipe
263. A curious Varnish for the Face.

Fill into a bottle three quarters of a pint of good Brandy, infusing in it an ounce of Gum Sandarac, and half an ounce of Gum Benjamin. Frequently shake the bottle till the Gums are wholly dissolved, and then let it stand to settle.

Apply this varnish after having washed the face clean, and it will give the skin the best lustre imaginable. (The Toilet of Flora, p. 213)

Breaking down the recipe

Brandy Spirit from distilled wine. As safe as any alcohol you can drink.

Gum Sandarac Resin from the tree Tetraclinis articulata. Used as varnish and incense. Safe.

Gum Benjamin or more commonly, Benzoin resin. Despite the gum, which indicates that it is soluble in water, it isn’t. Used as incense and as a fixative in perfumes. Vanilla-like scent. Safe.


My thoughts
This is a varnish, indeed, and ought to leave the face in the desirable shiny state. Presumably for people who didn’t want to use white face paint, but wanted the shininess. I’m curious about it and if I can find Gum Sandarac I will test it.

Source: 18thcenturyblog.com via Elisa on Pinterest