Making an Incense powder
|
Now we know the global composition of an incense
powder we will have to make to step to come from raw ingredients to a workable
powder. We will split this process in two: 1.Recipe basics 2.Powdering | ||
|
Recipe basis |
|
|
|
For an incense powder we will need a recipe or
we have to make our own recipe, keeping into our minds the basis rules of
composition from the last chapter. The first thing you need is a little
notebook into which you note the recipe you're going to make. Things you'll
also note here are how your incense burns or smells, improvements you're
planning, peculiarities during the making, etc. Take it for granted that you
will forget at least one important detail and that you'll not be able to
duplicate your recipe when you've not jotted it down. Next you will need a digital kitchen scales
which reads out in separate grams. An incense stick is rather light so when
you are going to make a powder, 20 grams is already a fair amount. A scale
with a pointer is too rough and will only be useful when you're coming over
200 grams, but in such a case you are really making 'production'. For the
time being it is better to work from the perspective of home and family use
of incense. Later on we will discuss a modest production method. It might be possible that you have a recipe
that is written in volume units : the ingredients will not be in grams but in
parts, cups, spoonfuls, handfuls, sniffs, etc. This is of course possible,
but think that a cup full of Lavenderflowers may only produce a spoonful of
Lavenderpowder!. How did the maker of this recipe mean this? A recipe stated
in grams cannot be wrongly understood and is therefore easier to work with.
In the chapter with recipes everything is in grams. From that point you can
easily convert into a percentage. The next obvious step is to obtain your
ingredients. Try to get stuff that is as dry as possible. When you have a
choice try to get it as much as possible in powdered form, it will be less
work for you. You will have to make a decision now whether
you are going to make Bamboo sticks or Tibetan sticks. Keep as a rule that
you will need very fine powder for Bamboo and that for Tibetan it can be a
little more coarse. Also when you are in doubt whether your stick will burn
good enough you should go for the Tibetan stick, a bamboo stick has more
difficulty burning. |
digital scales |
|
|
mincemeat mill |
mortar
and pestle |
kitchen machine |
|
Powdering |
|
|
|
We
will have to make powder now. We will discuss some tools
and techniques for that: Sieve: a sieve
with little holes is indispensable. It is also a test that cannot fail, while
when you would judge with your eyes whether you would really have a good
powder you would make mistakes a lot. A middle sized brush: A brush is nothing else
then a little broom. You can easily rub something through a sieve with it,
brush rests out of a tray, etc. trays, measuring spoon, a stirring stick. a mortar and pestle: with this you can easily
pulverise hard gums and resins, provided that everything is well dry. I prefer
a small one because often the thing has become very dirty and sticky, and
then I will be able to boil it out in a pan with soda (natriumcarbonate). kitchen machine: There are many types but the
common principle is a closed compartiment with a powerful rotating knife
inside. Take care to keep the knives sharp. For example, when you but big
lumps of Copal in such a machine, you run the risk that the knives become
blunt. better chop the pieces down in a mortar and put in then in the
machine. The kitchen machine is also handy as a mixer: when you mix powders by hand you cannot be sure how
well everything is divided, putting it for 30 seconds in the machine solves
this issue. mincemeat mill: Ideal to pulverise charcoal. Take care to pull through only
small amounts to make the strain as small as possible. Weapon yourself
against dust by attaching a small plastic bag at the exit, in the case of
charcoal. grain mill: excellent for dry herbs. Note that two millstones
can produce a lot of heat so that the material in between can easily get
stuck on the stones. grinding paper: wood dust can be easily
obtained by grinding. Make it easy for yourself by glueing some grinding
paper on a flat piece of wood so that you have a smooth surface to wipe your
dust from with your brush. You get your higher octave here by working with a
grinding machine with an attached dust bag. You will have optimal revenue
when you attach a vacuum cleaner to exit of the grinding machine. Other
substances can also be grinded with this method. It is with slight pride that
I will be probably the only person in Europe to have a vacuum cleaner with a
heavy Cinnamon scent! Powdering can be a tough job. Especially when
your ingredients are sticky or not completely dry. In the latter case you can
try to dry it by putting it for a very short while in a micro wave or in an
oven. Heat will evaporate our aromatics so we must be careful with that.
Charcoal impregnation is an other method of obtaining scented powder, we will
discuss that in the chapter with recipes. |
grainmill |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
