Rose water is great all year, but it's especially awesome to have on hand in the summer. It's recognized by the Ayurvedic tradition to have cooling properties. It's also anti-inflammatory and a mild anti-depressant. This makes it great for cooling you down when you're hot and angry and useful for treating sunburned and mosquito bitten skin. I feel so good when I spritz it on my entire body after running in the summer sun!
You could buy rose water, but why not make your own for a fraction of the cost?
You need:
- spring, distilled, or filtered water
- organic dried rose petals (available at Mountain Rose Herbs)
- mist spray bottle
- funnel
Do this:
- Rose water is basically a strong tea made from roses. Make rose water by pouring boiling water over rose petals. Approximately 1 and 1/2 heaping tablespoons for every 8oz of water should be enough. Cover and allow to steep at room temperature overnight.
- Strain rose water into another glass or jar. Squeeze petals to get every bit of rosey goodness. (See detailed tutorial with pics in my blog post: How to Make & Use Rose Water.)
- Use a funnel to pour the rose water into a mist spray bottle.Happy misting!
- You can also add a little rose water to lemonade or sparkling water for internal benefits. Just make sure it's fresh!
- Store in the refrigerator for up to a week. We don't want it to get moldy and gross. You can add grapefruit seed extract as a "natural" preservative, but there is controversy about some brands possibly containing parabens.
Adapted from a post that originally appeared on OliviaCleansGreen.com.
