Gum Arabic Powder Frontier Natural Products 1 lb Bulk

This gum arabic is finely ground, and was nicely sealed up in the package. I had an air tight cannister ready for it, and I recommend using such a thing because getting this powdery stuff out is a serious potential mess.I use gum arabic for water color and the pre-diluted stuff is VERY overpriced so I mix my own, and I also decided to try an experiment in making eyeliner sealant and setting spray, which is also VERY overpriced. I sterilized a few glass containers and one small plastic one as well-- gum arabic can get moldy, though I've never had it happen to me, so I use very small containers for things like this. In a small jar I mixed 1 tsp gum arabic to 3 tsps distilled water-- as expected it clumped, was milky and frothy looking, etc. You have to let it sit overnight to dissolve properly. In the morning it was dissolved completely, the liquid was clear, I gave it an extra shake and then filled the tiny container and used a small brush to put it on over my eyeshadow eyeliner, which I winged like crazy for this experiment. I kid you not, it hasn't budged all day, and I have oily skin, tend to randomly forget I have makeup on and rub my eyes, and also I made myself cry over a short video featuring a rescue puppy, and the eyeshadow did not budge. I just tried rubbing it now, it is perfectly in place. 10/10. (I'm not a total fool, I also tested it on my arm last night before it had completely dissolved, and it didn't budge then either, but washed cleanly off with soap and water, so a regular makeup remover and cleanser will work fine too.)Then I used three droppers (not drops, a dropper) full of the liquid in a small glass spray bottle (2 oz), added three drops of glycerin, a capfull of witch hazel (the kind with alcohol, approx 1 tablespoon), and filled the rest up with distilled water, gave it a shake, you can use a drop or two of essential oil if you want, and used that as setting spray. I didn't do a full face to test it, but in terms of skin feel it's nice, and definitely set the powder on my t-zone. I'll use it over a full face in a few days and if it's a horrible disaster I'll update, but we all know it won't be a horrible disaster.The rest of it I'm using with watercolor. I also plan to make some ink at some point.So it's pure gum arabic, dissolved without any particles left so I'm sure it's unadulterated, and it works for everything I've used it for. If I can think of other experiments I'll have enough to play with.PS: I am not a chemist, use my suggestions at your own risk, I'm just telling y'all what I did with my purchase.[edit: 2/26/19]1. It took approximately three months for a batch of the gum arabic solution to go moldy, at room temperature. Weather might speed that process, it's been very cold here.2. The setting spray solution doesn't seem to change at all, probably because of the alcohol.3. The setting spray solution also works really well as a light hairsray, I'm going to test a stronger batch to see if it can get a stronger hold. I hate most hairsprays because of the scents, so if this works, heck YEAH.

A recipe for the Lion's Tail cocktail got me interested in making my own gomme syrup. I did some shopping around and found that Frontier had a good price for a reasonable quantity of gum acacia -- and I've had good experience with them in the past. No problems with the order. The gomme syrup came out quite well -- as expected, a silky, sweet syrup with a very slight, pleasantly vegetal flavor. (FYI, used the recipe in Jeffrey Morgenthaler's Bar Book. Instead of trying to stir the powder into the water, you simply mix and let sit for 48 hours. Takes longer than other methods, but if you've got the time it's easier and works better than brute force.)

I used this for making gomme syrups for cocktails and it works great. I take 1/4c. gum arabic and add 1/4c. water just off the boil. Stir to try and incorporate as much of the powder as you can. After stirring for 5 min. or so, scoop off all the white foam and any clumped powder that won't dissolve. Then add to a rich simple syrup (2c. sugar to 1 c. water) and refrigerate. You can add stuff to it for flavored syrups too. Split and scrape a vanilla bean and add that, juice some raw ginger to sub for ginger beer in a Moscow Mule...tons of possibilities. Gives cocktails a great silkiness that makes them seem more rich and classy.

Purchased this to make gum syrup for cocktails, and it worked excellently with a 2:1 simple syrup. Adds excellent texture and body to any sweetened cocktail. Perhaps a little too much for the dilettante bartender such as myself, but good quality.

I've purchased this twice now for use in gum bichromate printing and mixing with watercolors. This gum arabic is consistent in quality and color, if a bit foamy. I always add the whole bag to 1000mL of warm water, stir, and let sit for 24 hours to come together. I add a bit of thymol to preserve, but even before I did that it didn't seem to go bad after being mixed for over a month. Please note: I do NOT use this food applications. Do not add thymol to anything you intend to eat.

Not a great weight loss tool. emulsifies slightly after being put in water, but only slightly, I still would not want to drink it. Use this for other than weight loss.

The product was nicely packaged and appeared pure. However, the only specifications/description of the contents was on a small label on the package marked "Acacia Species." With that vague, generalized description, we do not feel at ease using it and will probably discard it.

Have been using this to make a skin-friendly light adhesive for about a year and it works well. In a glass jar, mix 2 parts gum arabic to 3 parts boiling water. Stir vigorously until gum arabic is dissolved. If it's struggling to dissolve, heat in about 10-second increments in the microwave. It bubbles up quickly, so recommend watching it continuously if heating in the microwave to avoid spillover.Inside the package, the gum arabic smells of curry, likely because of the facility where it was produced, but have not found the smell lingers when heating or using it.