Things to Do With Resin

Perfume and Incense

• You can make your own perfume or incense using various types of natural plant resin. Many of the perfumes and incense products people use daily contain plant resins and oil. For example, both frankincense and myrrh, two natural perfume and incense ingredients, are derived from the plant resins of the boswellia sacra tree (frankincense) and commiphora tree (myrrh). You can find distillations of these two resins in the potpourri and incense sections of craft stores, natural supplement shops and aromatherapy stores. Mix together a few fragrances and create your own sweet-smelling concoction.

Chewing Gum

• You can also use certain types of plant resin as chewing gum. Mastic, made from the resin of mastic trees native to Greece and parts of the Middle East, is a chewy substance that has a flavor reminiscent of pine. Many Greeks and Middle-Easterners chew mastic like Americans chew bubblegum. You can purchase mastic in some specialty Greek groceries stores and online.

Prop-Making

• You can use synthetic resins to make props. Many of the foods, weapons and creatures that you see in movies are made of synthetic resins. You will need to follow manufacturer directions very carefully when working with synthetic resins because they often contain chemicals that are both highly flammable and toxic if ingested.

Other Uses

• You can use resin as natural furniture polish. Find and collect some pine resin from a pine tree in your backyard. Rub it on a wooden chair or table to give your furniture a natural shine and a pleasant fragrance. There is also a natural plant resin called rosin that many people use on stringed instruments and in ballet performances to provide friction on slick surfaces.

Common Uses

• There are several activities that many people do regularly that involve resins. For instance, if you want to see resin in action, just paint your fingernails. Nail polish is one type of synthetic resin that, like almost all types of resin, hardens over time. Other products, such as soap, printing ink, glues, and wax seals all contain resin.