Preserving breast milk for jewelry

[skaran]

There are two things that can turn yellow, the preserved milk or the resin. Every resin will turn yellow at some point, because of oxydation. The milk can also turn yellow if not well preserved. The recipe on Etsy looks very sound and rational, as the ingredients will all help to prevent everything from degrading. However, I suspect the result will be whity-white, not really the color of human milk...

All of the ingredients prevent microorganisms from deteriorating the milk. This is something I think you can achieve with heating and dehydrating well. I also skim my samples, because fat doesn't seem to go well with resin. What I made two years ago was a pasteurized milk torouhgly dehydrated and it preserved well for two years... However, it wasn't kept in the sun. And I didn't make a jewel back then.

No matter what you try, this recipe or another, you can inspire yourself from tried and true manners of preserving food stuff: desinfecting everything, heating, dehydrating, removing air (sous vide), using chemicals to make the food inhospitable for microorganims, like using salt. One could even think of radiation. But since you are not going to eat it, you can also inspire yourself from the cosmetic industry. It makes a very large playground. :)

My personal goal is to try to stay very close to the milk itself. I do not like how white a lot of milk jewel turns out. I fell what I am seeing is more the colour of the preserving powder, not the actual milk. So I'm continuing to experiment.

Hello, I just found this thread after searching for hours on what the “secret ingredients” for this breast milk preservation powder are. This is the closest I have gotten! I would also like to start making crafts for other moms and unfortunately the process seems to be such a closely guarded secret. I also want to keep the color as accurate to the milk as possible.

Do you think all of the ingredients in this Etsy recipe would really be necessary in order to prevent deterioration of the milk? If they all essentially do that, maybe we could just use some of those ingredients and achieve the same effect, without too much impact on color?

 

[Geee]

I think yes and no - the rationale for every ingredient in the recipe is sound. I'm not a chemist, my last courses were in high school, however, I wouldn't try to change the recipe from Etsy too much, it seems very well balanced and everything has a function. Ingredients interact with each other, if you understand well why each one is there, you could try to omit some, however, it is biological stuff and milk will degrade. If her recipe, as she claims, is tried and true, you would have to experiment yourself and see what happens in time. The point is not really the impact on the color, but creating an environment inhospitable for microorganism and preventing the impact of UV. You are essentially preventing food from rotting...

 

[Lesha]

breast milk + preservative (Optiphen) + citric acid (mix those three)
boil in double boiler (not sure if best boil then mix or mix then boil)
leave to dry on wax paper for minimum 2 days then put in mold then apply resin (anyone can suggest UV filter resin?!)

 

[Agnesdavid]

Thank you for your reply, i am in experimenting process. I have a gold and silver jewelry studio on my own. Once i’ve done with experimenting, i will be doing any kind of design. I totally understand that you don't want to share your secrets, but this forum/ platform is for sharing information, not to sneak , read new ideas and say i won't share mine.

hi folks, once i’ve done with experimenting i will share which products i use with measures. I just need few months to share here . Wait for it :)

Hi are you found it

 

[Lesha]

I found this on reddit if anyone wants to try..

 

[Lesha]

I found this on reddit if anyone wants to try..

and they provided pic of their result

 

[danaNZ]

Yes, exactly. How much of the plaster to add and how much optiphen will be your experiment. Use cow’s milk until you are satisfied with it.
If it sets too slowly, add an accelerator.
https://www.usg.com/content/usgcom/.../gypsum-plaster-accelerator.160216.html#!back

If it sets too quickly, try a retarder.
https://www.usg.com/content/usgcom/en/products/walls/drywall/plasters/gypsum-plaster-retarder.html

borax is a good set retarder for plaster and it has antifungal properties as well. Two-fer!

What the!? that's amazing, this "special preservation powder" is sold in the 5 grams for a bit of money, to realize its something as simple as plaster of paris is amazing, and even more amazing is the way you have explained how it works! thank you very much!

 

[mooni]

Hi is there any updates ??

 

[Naomidom]

breast milk + preservative (Optiphen) + citric acid (mix those three)
boil in double boiler (not sure if best boil then mix or mix then boil)
leave to dry on wax paper for minimum 2 days then put in mold then apply resin (anyone can suggest UV filter resin?!)

Have you tried and tested this? Seems quite simple. So I'm curious to learn if this method works, even after months no discoloration.

 

[Naomidom]

I found this on reddit if anyone wants to try..

Has anyone tried this? Does it work?

 

[Naomidom]

Hi are you found it

Hi, can you share any results? :)

 

[Resin Artist]

did mixing the plaster of Paris and raw breast milk work? Did the plaster alter the natural color at all?

Hi I have also been looking for an additive to add to breastmilk, I bought a 'breastmilk preservative powder' on line expensive for just 4g. I made my jewellery with it and it was pleasing with a lovely milky colour (very much looks like Granite) my customer was over the moon. The secret powder looked and felt like plaster of paris so purchased a bag. Had some left over milk and with my customers permission I tried it with pop it reacted the same and dried, I ground it into a powder exactly as I did before but when I added it to the resin even though the now powder looked very white the colour after mixed looked a little grey after adding a little white Mica powder it looked better but I felt it lost its natural beauty after seeing the first batch. So I don't think this secret preserving powder that's on the market currently is plaster of paris. However I'm still searching and experimenting before I'm happy to sell my breastmilk jewellery.

 

[Tom.G]

How about trying Talc, maybe with the Mica?

 

[Resin Artist]

How about trying Talc, maybe with the Mica?

Thank you Tom I will try that. Its just trial and Error till I find the perfect compound to add. This weekend I will be trialling Jypsom and your Idea of Talc , although the POP with Mica turned out well in the end but not as white as I'd like it.

 

[Tom.G]

Chalk (calcium carbonate, and/or calcium sulfate) may also be worth trying.

"Chalk" is one of those catch-all terms in that several different materials are given the name. Try a Google search for 'chalk' to find a few.

 

[amybeth518]

Hi, I'm very curious if you have found any way to successfully use breast milk into resin jewelry, without discoloration.
I would really like to try this myself, but there is no greater secret on the internet, than the method for preserving breastmilk for resin. Nobody will help me.
So maybe you can tell me your experiences?

It's a year later but i just starting this experiment. I'm 3 mo ths in and have used sodium benzoyl and corn startch, dehydrate kin my air fryer) for 26 ish hours in a glass container. After a few days, scratch it out, grind it down and put in resin. I'm goi g to try plaster of Paris on wax paper. That sounds fairly easy, at least easier then what I'm doing now.

[Moderator's note: Personal data removed. Please do not post email addresses on PF.]

 

[Naomidom]

Hi I have also been looking for an additive to add to breastmilk, I bought a 'breastmilk preservative powder' on line expensive for just 4g. I made my jewellery with it and it was pleasing with a lovely milky colour (very much looks like Granite) my customer was over the moon. The secret powder looked and felt like plaster of paris so purchased a bag. Had some left over milk and with my customers permission I tried it with pop it reacted the same and dried, I ground it into a powder exactly as I did before but when I added it to the resin even though the now powder looked very white the colour after mixed looked a little grey after adding a little white Mica powder it looked better but I felt it lost its natural beauty after seeing the first batch. So I don't think this secret preserving powder that's on the market currently is plaster of paris. However I'm still searching and experimenting before I'm happy to sell my breastmilk jewellery.

Sounds very interesting. Please do share any experiences you encounter with your experiments. Looks like you're really getting somewhere :)

 

[Tinoy]

You have my hopes, i just want to create my own breastmilk jewelry that will last that's all. I hope you successfully have "the secret method"

 

[Mike S.]

There are a great many methods in industry for preserving milk: powdered milk, condensed milk, evaporated milk, boiled milk, gamma irradiation, dulce de leche, baked milk, yoghurt, cheese... it makes you think about all the sweet options the babies are missing out on, but fresh antibodies are the only way to go I have to admit. Here's a home science project for homemade casein "plastic" ( https://learning-center.homesciencetools.com/article/casein-plastic-project/ ); I don't know if the "plastic" is stable long term but maybe the project will be usable when Junior is older. There's actually some history to it, might be usable ( https://www.realmilkpaint.com/blog/tips/history-of-casein-plastic/ ). Sweetened condensed milk seems like another option - gives a liquid appearance and it seems to last a long time in a can on the kitchen shelf. Heat sterilization, sugar, vinegar, lyophilization, formaldehyde, gamma rays ... there are doubtless a huge number of ways to do what you want, but you might not want to play with all of them. ;)

 

[Naomidom]

You have my hopes, i just want to create my own breastmilk jewelry that will last that's all. I hope you successfully have "the secret method"

I really just hope someone shares their experiences, bad and good. So we can all learn from it :)

 

[dreadless]

Purchased the Etsy recipe almost a year ago and bought all the ingredients it requires from Amazon. The many samples we made with with my wife’s milk came out very well and 8 months later are still in great condition. You could follow the link for the Etsy store recipe and try buying it to give it a whirl.

 

[MamaBear01]

I found an Etsy page and bought the download! Here are the ingredients:

1. baking powder
2. baking soda
3. arrowroot powder
4. pickling lime (calcium hydroxide)
5. calcium chloride pulverized
6. borax
7. EDTA (calcium disodium)
8. lye (pulverized)

The download has a ton of info like amounts and directions. Worth it in my opinion for those of us who want to do this full time, otherwise just buy a small amount of the powder for your own personal use. https://www.etsy.com/listing/103142...der&ref=sr_gallery-1-6&organic_search_click=1

Hi I clicked on the link but the product is no longer available.. Would anyone who purchased this be willing to share the formula with me.
I just want to create some jewellery for myself as a first time mum and have been researching for months now and this is the first time I have any hope at all of finding the magic powder formula!

 

[Tom.G]

I really wonder how a PDF file can be "Out Of Stock."

Perhaps, if there is no copyright notice, @dreadless could just send the recipe.

A Google search of Can a Recipe Be Copyrighted returns many results indicating that the list of ingredients can NOT be copyrighted. Many also state that the instruction, directions, etc CAN be copyrighted, and suggest that those be reworded (at least somewhat creatively) if you are passing-on the recipe.

https://www.google.com/search?&q=can+a+recipe+be+copyrighted

Good Luck!

 

[DrJohn]

Almost everything you create is copyright - images, documents, books, a web template or entire site, whatever. There is no need to have a copyright sign and a date. Unless it specifically says "this is placed in the public domain and free to use", it is copyright. People assume, very wrongly, that putting something on a website means it is now in the public domain. It is not. It is public knowledge, but copyright.

People add a Copyright sign to avoid court cases and arguments, but it is not necessary. They add it in books and magazines because some publications that pay for the content to be written take over the copyright, so authors who don't sign over copyright want to state implicitly that it is still their property, not the publishers.

The creator of the original PDF document owns the copyright of the document.

PS I suspect that by recipe it is really referring to the recipe for a cake or similar. The mixture would be considered as a formulation, and different formulations are usually copyright.

 

[thejennyrebecca]

breast milk + preservative (Optiphen) + citric acid (mix those three)
boil in double boiler (not sure if best boil then mix or mix then boil)
leave to dry on wax paper for minimum 2 days then put in mold then apply resin (anyone can suggest UV filter resin?!)

Have you had any luck/good results?

 

[Ddk]

There is formula on etsy. I don't have it so can't say if it works.

edit by mod: this link was posted countless times, please, do read thread before answering

 

[DeanJohn91]

I was following this thread, i tried with talcum and it turned good. Not sure how long it will hold its colour.

 

[Naomidom]

Okay, so it's been a couple of months. Anyone experiences to share?

 

[amielynn129]

Water will react with most resins so the water fraction of the fluid must be “fixed” in a chemical manner. This can be easily done by adding plaster of paris (the hemihydrate of calcium sulfate) and allowing it to harden. The result of this reaction is the dihydrate of calcium sulfate. This is simply gypsum powder like you would find in “desert rose.” It helps that the plaster is a brilliant white just like milk.
The instructions call for grinding the hardened (they refer to it as dry) plaster into a powder and suspending that into the resin. Drying something like this will prevent bacterial growth if kept sealed from atmospheric moisture... like maybe suspending it into some epoxy. The white of gypsum will stay that way for the ages! The resin will darken long before the remaining proteins and fats will cause any problem.

So should I mix plaster of paris into my breastmilk or gypsum powder?

 

[Borek]

Plaster of Paris and gypsum powder are the same thing (chemically calcium sulfate hemihydrate).

 

[Varsha J]

TL;DR Summary: I’m looking for help to find the right preservatives for preserving breast milk in order to make jewelry with resin.

Hi everyone! My wife and I want to make breast milk jewelry but I’m having issues finding the right preservatives and amounts to use. We will be heating approx 5ml of milk and need a chemical preservative to mix in order to keep the milk from turning bad after months/years in the resin. The idea is to heat the milk with the chemicals until it’s a paste then spread it on wax paper. After it completely dries/(100% free of moisture )the product will be crushed into powder and mixed with the resin to make jewelry. I have optiphen and sodium benzoate. Would these be helpful? I’m no chemistry pro so just looking for opinions! Thanks

Hello
How much preservative powder should be added with 5ml of milk?

 

[Renuga devi]

Hi I clicked on the link but the product is no longer available.. Would anyone who purchased this be willing to share the formula with me.
I just want to create some jewellery for myself as a first time mum and have been researching for months now and this is the first time I have any hope at all of finding the magic powder formula!

Did you use on it

 

[JulesB-S]

Hi everyone,.... anyone had any luck with this since Jan!?

 

[fresh_42]

Hi everyone,.... anyone had any luck with this since Jan!?

This subject has already more answers than it deserves.

Thread closed.