I apply the lee valley stuff to my strop by shaving little pieces into a small plastic mixing cup (shot glass size), put in a few drops of alcohol(which dissolves the wax), mix with a stick until the whole mess turns into a kind of thin paste, spread on strop evenly and let dry. This method gives me a very uniform thin coating of compound across my strop with very little heart ache. It will take you a few times to get the proportions correct.....remember it doesn't take much.