Here are a couple of my most recent creations. I have a beautiful rose bush growing feral on the side of my house. She has always provided me with lush blossoms and vivid color in the Spring. Over the years I have lived here she has grown large and full and never failed to herald springtime in Texas except for the year my husband hacked her back to a stump thinking she was just some sort of weed. Just when I thought she was gone, she poked out suckers and grew back even larger than before with these HUGE thorns that seem to say " Hey buddy, try that again. I dare you." So now she gets free reign to put on her show in April and May and get's a hair cut in June.

What I have here in jars are two lovely concoctions using the blossoms of my rose. I've put up Rose in Apple Cider Vinegar and Rose in store bought Witch Hazel. Why would I do such a thing? Well, in addition to keeping her ruby hue with me all year long, Rose is an astringent, cooling plant. All members of the Rose family have that property. They are also rich in bioflavinoids and other elements of Vitamin C. This cooling, astringent quality is what I'm after in these preparations. The Rose vinegar is going to be used to help cool off the lighter skinned members of my family if they happen to get sunburned( I'm dark skinned and have only had one mild sunburn in my life so far). Diluted with water in a spray bottle, Rose vinegar spritzed on the skin provides soothing relief from the sting of a mild to moderate sunburn. And it smells pretty nice too.

The Rose Witch Hazel blend is going to be a facial toner for me now that I have reached a certain age. I could use the astringent, skin tightening effects of the rose as well as her cooling effects when I get those hot flashes that seem to be creeping up on me these days. This preparation I'll use straight up rather than diluted as a toner and diluted with Sandalwood Hydrosol as a hot flash spray.

For information on Rose check out this link :Botanical.com

And Kiva Rose had a great blog and information about the lovely Rose. Check out her info here:Wild Rose

 Well until I get to harvest more from my sweet backyard rose, Auf Wiedersehen!