Stable aqueous emulsions of oily, fatty or wax-like substances are obtained by the use of one or more reduction products of alcoholic character of naturally occurring resins or resin acids or one or more ethers, acetals, or organic acid esters of such products. Suitable compounds are resin alcohols obtained from colophony or manilla copal, their glycerine or glycol ethers, or esters with mono-or polybasic organic acids, e.g. linseed oil fatty acid, oxystearic acid, benzoic acid, salicylic acid or citric acid, or acetals such as copal alcohol formal. They may be used to emulsify fats, fatty alcohols, oils, wax alcohols, natural or synthetic waxes, e.g. paraffins, petroleum jelly, ozocerite, fatty acid ketones and alcohols obtained therefrom by reduction, fatty acid glycerides such as Japan wax, hardened castor oil, hardened rapeseed oil or stearic acid mono-glyceride, or wax esters, and particularly wax-like substances of a hydrophile nature, e.g. fatty alcohols, wax alcohols, their glycerine ethers, and mono-glycerides of fatty and wax acids. Such substances as form stable creams with water are further stabilized by the above compounds, e.g. hydroxyl-containing wax-like bodies, if desired with the addition of paraffins or esters, form mixtures of a wool-fat like nature which can be triturated with water to form white ointments. According to examples: (1) 50 pts. of saturated alcohol obtained by reduction of beeswax, 45 pts. of a mixture containing the saturated aliphatic alcohols of 14, 16 and 18 carbon atoms and 55 pts. of resin alcohol obtained by catalytic high pressure hydrogenation of colophonium are mixed by wetting and emulsified in a suitable machine with about double the quantity of water. A stiff, non-sticky ointment base is obtained which may be admixed with petroleum jelly, ethereal oils or medicated substances to form pharmaceutical or cosmetic products; (2) a skin cream is made by melting together 200 pts. of a mixture of cetyl and octadecyl alcohols and 100 pts. of the resin alcohol described in example 1, and dissolving therein 3 pts. of the sodium salt of cetyl alcohol sulphuric acid ester. 20 pts. of this mixture are fused with 40 pts. of petroleum jelly and 120 pts. of water added. The mixture is then treated in an emulsifying machine. The petroleum jelly may be replaced by solid paraffin or spermaceti. Dilute emulsions may also be obtained which may be used for cosmetic, pharmaceutical or impregnating purposes; (3) an ointment base is obtained by fusing together 40 pts. of the resin alcohol described in example 1, 40 pts. of dammar resin alcohol obtained by catalytic hydrogenation of natural dammar resin, 40 pts. of the fatty alcohols corresponding to hardened rapeseed oil and 1,2 pts. of the sodium salt of cetyl alcohol sulphonate, and working up the mixture with 240 pts. of water. The resin alcohol from colophony may be replaced by the glycerine ether derivative, the salicylic or oxystearic acid ester, or by the resin alcohol obtained from manilla copal; (4) in a melt of 20 pts. cetyl alcohol and the resin alcohol mixture described in example 3, 70 pts. flaked paraffin, 10 pts. aluminium oleate and 2 pts. of the sodium salt of cetyl alcohol sulphuric acid ester are dissolved and the whole worked up with 9000 pts. of water. The resulting emulsion may be used for the impregnation of fabrics. Specifications 443,487; and 446,488, [Group IV], are referred to.ALSO:Stable aqueous emulsions of oily, fatty or wax-like substances are obtained by the use of one or more reduction products of alcoholic character of naturally occurring resins or resin acids or one or more ethers, acetals, or organic acid esters of such products. Suitable compounds are resin alcohols obtained from colophony or manila copal, their glycerine or glycol ethers, or esters with mono or polybasic organic acids, e.g. linseed oil fatty acid, oxystearic acid, benzoic acid, salicylic acid or citric acid, or acetals such as copal alcohol formal. They may be used to emulsify fats, fatty alcohols, oils, wax alcohols, natural or synthetic waxes, e.g. paraffins, petroleum jelly, ozocerite, fatty acid ketones and alcohols obtained therefrom by reduction, fatty acid glycerides such as Japan wax, hardened castor oil, hardened rapeseed oil or stearic acid mono-glyceride, or wax esters, and particularly wax-like substances of a hydrophile nature, e.g. fatty alcohols, wax alcohols, their glycerine ethers, and mono-glycerides of fatty and wax acids. Such substances as form stable creams with water are further stabilized by the above compounds, e.g. hydroxyl-containing wax-like bodies, if desired with the addition of paraffins or esters, form mixtures of a wool-fat like nature which can be triturated with water to form white ointments. According to examples: (1) 50 pts. of saturated alcohol obtained by reduction of beeswax, 45 pts. of a mixture containg the saturated aliphatic alcohols of 14, 16 and 18 carbon atoms and 55 pts. of resin alcohol obtained by catalytic high pressure hydrogenation of colophonium are mixed by melting and emulsified in a suitable machine with about double the quantity of water. A stiff, non-sticky ointment base is obtained which may be admixed with petroleum jelly, ethereal oils or medicated substances to form pharmaceutical or cosmetic products; (2) A skin cream is made by melting together 200 pts. of a mixture of cetyl and octadecyl alcohols and 100 pts. of the resin alcohol described in example 1, and dissolving therein 3 pts. of the sodium salt of cetyl alcohol sulphuric acid ester. 20 pts. of this mixture are fused with 40 pts. of petroleum jelly and 120 pts. of water added. The mixture is then treated in an emulsifying machine. The petroleum jelly may be replaced by solid paraffin or spermaceti. Dilute emulsions may also be obtained which may be used for cosmetic, or pharmaceutical purposes; (3) An ointment base is obtained by fusing together 40 pts. of the resin alcohol described in example 1, 40 pts. of dammar resin alcohol obtained by catalytic hydrogenation of natural dammar resin, 40 pts. of the fatty alcohols corresponding to hardened rapeseed oil and 1,2 pts. of the sodium salt of cetyl alcohol sulphonate, and working up the mixture with 240 pts. of water. The resin alcohol from colophony may be replaced by the glycerine ether derivative, the salicylic or oxystearic acid ester, or by the resin alcohol obtained from manila copal. Specifications 443,487 and 446,488, [both in Group IV], are referred to.