Rosewater?

[DarleneH]

Are there any advantages to using rosewater in your hair? Other than making it smell wonderful. :D

I bought some rosewater and glycerin at a local drugstore and have been using it as the base for my homemade vitamin C serum, and that got me to wondering how it would work in hair stuff.

[archel]

Glycerin is used in shine sprays and serums sometimes. It's a humectant which can pull moisture from the air, which is good if you're in an environment with moisture in the air. However, if you're in an arid climate it may pull the moisture out of your hair, which is not so good. Your mileage may vary and all that. But I think the smell would be heavenly.

[krissykins]

Rosewater has antiseptic properties, so there's a benefit! :)

[BlazingHeart]

Rosewater is a mild astringent, so it could be beneficial to oily scalps.

[pelicano]

Rosewater that has no additives can be quite oily, so it can help hair in that way. I find I can never get the amount right, and I end up looking greasy.

[DarleneH]

Do any of you have suggestions for the best places to buy rosewater?

[CurlyMopTop]

Try your local health food store if you have one nearby. If not, you may have to order it online. :)

[BlazingHeart]

Or if you have access to lots of fresh roses, you can make your own, which is awesome because then it won't have preservatives in it (though of course it will have a limited shelf life and will need to be stored in the fridge). I'm happy to write up instructions if anyone is interested.

~Blaze

[giuditta]

How exactly do you use it on your hair, as a rinse with water?

[anniemae]

Or if you have access to lots of fresh roses, you can make your own, which is awesome because then it won't have preservatives in it (though of course it will have a limited shelf life and will need to be stored in the fridge). I'm happy to write up instructions if anyone is interested.

~Blaze

I'm interested in your recipe!! Thanks. :)

[archel]

Ok, I have roses and I have glycerin - hit me!

[BlazingHeart]

Right. So, this is a very traditional method of making rosewater, and will make a small amount of rose oil as well.

Things you will need:

*1 large pot - stockpots work great for this.
*2 heatproof bowls smaller than the pot
*1 heatproof bowl about the same size as the pot - if you put the bowl right side up on top of the pot, the bowl should be able to create a seal around the edge of the pot. The bottom of the bowl needs to be no bigger than the top of the smaller bowls. If you don't have a bowl that fits this description, the rounded lid that comes with stockpots can be turned upside down to replace this item.
*Lots of roses (several pounds, the fresher the better. Newer roses - ones that have not gone all the way open and started to fade - will work better and provide more rose oil)
*Water (tap water is fine, as this method will distill the water)
*Lots of ice (ice from tap water is fine, as the ice will not touch the finished product)

Put one of your smaller heatproof bowls in the bottom of the pot. Pour water into the pot, up to the same height as the bowl. Flip the bowl over so that the water can get in, and leave it upside down in the center of your pot. Add roses to the pot until they come to the same height as the bowl.

Stack the second smaller bowl on top of the first one, this time right side up (so the base of this bowl will rest on the base of the first bowl).

Put your larger bowl (or the upside down stock pot lid) on top (so you should have a concave thing on top that dips down towards the inside of the pot). Fill this with ice.

Turn on the heat to medium. You want this just hot enough to bring the pot to a low boil or simmer. Keep refilling the top bowl as necessary - it doesn't have to be totally full but it is important that there is always ice in it.

In 20-25 minutes, everything should be done cooking. When you remove the top bowl/lid, you should find that the smaller bowl inside the pot has liquid in it. Dip the rose oil off the top. There will not be much, and it will be separated from the rest of the liquid. What remains is true rosewater.

~Blaze

[Dorothy]

Blaze, do you think I could freeze it? I have a few old roses - mostly Therese Bougnet - that bloom once a year in wild abundance and then not again. It sounds like your recipe could work - do you think I can freeze cubes of rosewater and put them in a plastic bag in the freezer for later use?

MMMMMM going to try my rose oil olive oil beeswax lotion as a hair tx....
a little worried about the beeswax.

[rusika1]

If you want to buy your rosewater, try a Middle Eastern or Indian market. Since those are probably in short supply in Mississippi, on-line is most likely the way to go. Cortas is a pretty good brand--it's what I usually use for cooking-- and it looks like it runs about $5 for a 10 oz bottle on-line. Just be sure you don't accidentally buy rose syrup!

[scorpio_rising]

Right. So, this is a very traditional method of making rosewater, and will make a small amount of rose oil as well.

Things you will need:

*1 large pot - stockpots work great for this.
*2 heatproof bowls smaller than the pot
*1 heatproof bowl about the same size as the pot - if you put the bowl right side up on top of the pot, the bowl should be able to create a seal around the edge of the pot. The bottom of the bowl needs to be no bigger than the top of the smaller bowls. If you don't have a bowl that fits this description, the rounded lid that comes with stockpots can be turned upside down to replace this item.
*Lots of roses (several pounds, the fresher the better. Newer roses - ones that have not gone all the way open and started to fade - will work better and provide more rose oil)
*Water (tap water is fine, as this method will distill the water)
*Lots of ice (ice from tap water is fine, as the ice will not touch the finished product)

Put one of your smaller heatproof bowls in the bottom of the pot. Pour water into the pot, up to the same height as the bowl. Flip the bowl over so that the water can get in, and leave it upside down in the center of your pot. Add roses to the pot until they come to the same height as the bowl.

Stack the second smaller bowl on top of the first one, this time right side up (so the base of this bowl will rest on the base of the first bowl).

Put your larger bowl (or the upside down stock pot lid) on top (so you should have a concave thing on top that dips down towards the inside of the pot). Fill this with ice.

Turn on the heat to medium. You want this just hot enough to bring the pot to a low boil or simmer. Keep refilling the top bowl as necessary - it doesn't have to be totally full but it is important that there is always ice in it.

In 20-25 minutes, everything should be done cooking. When you remove the top bowl/lid, you should find that the smaller bowl inside the pot has liquid in it. Dip the rose oil off the top. There will not be much, and it will be separated from the rest of the liquid. What remains is true rosewater.

~Blaze


Thank you so much - I have read instructions for making rosewater what seems like a million times and they've never entirely made sense to me. Your directions are completely and utterly clear, precise, and understandable. I appreciate it! :)

[BlazingHeart]

You can freeze rosewater. If there is still rose oil that you haven't been skimmed off, I'm not certain whether it will freeze completely (or what temperature would make it do so), so you might end up with a bit of a slick layer on top of your rosewater cubes. You can also freeze bags of roses and make the rosewater at a later date, though obviously that would take up a lot more space. You get something like up to 1/2 cup of rosewater per pound of rosepetals, as I recall.

Some people prefer to pluck the petals from the roses before making rosewater; you can then make other things from the rosehips like tea or jam.

Some people also cook it for longer than I suggest; I think the ones who cook it for hours don't know what they're doing (the longer you cook it the more water you distill so the weaker your rosewater will be), but the ones who go as high as 40 minutes may get more out of their roses than I do. I prefer strength to quantity, and I think around 25 minutes you have the highest strength you will get.

I'm glad you found my directions easy! I read a lot of other people's directions and for me, a lot of what was lacking was why I'd want one thing rather than other, so I tried to explain that in my own directions.

~Blaze