My favorite time of year is when Spring arrives and the flowers begin to bloom. Apple Blossoms, Tulips, Lilacs, and Roses….. they simply make my heart smile.
Rose water makes me smile the same way. It smells heavenly and causes me to feel pretty and just plain happy! As an extra bonus, it has many amazing health benefits too.
This lovely aromatic water is a by-product of Rose Essential Oil distillation or it can also be made purposefully as a hydrosol (aromatic flower water).
If you simmer a pot of rose petals for around 30 minutes in distilled water you can easily make your own rose water. Just be sure to simmer the petals until the color of the flower petals lighten. Then, you simply toss out the petals and put your homemade rose water in a container to store and use.
Tip: Garden roses are the best for this as they have the strongest aroma & greatest therapeutic quality compared to roses found at your local florist. My local florist explains that commercial roses are mass produced for beauty, but not for their oils or aroma.
Benefits of Rose Water
Rose damascena (Damask Rose) is the most common rose used to make floral water and is full of incredible therapeutic benefits. It has many similar uses and benefits as rose oil, but for a fraction of the cost.
- Antimicrobial
- Antioxidant
- Anti-aging
- Anxiety reducing
- Anti-inflammatory
Who do you know that wouldn’t want this water?? It fights germs, removes free radicals, and combats aging all while reducing anxiety and lessening inflammation. Sounds like magic to me!!!
5 of my favorite uses for Rose Water
Rose water is commonly used as a perfume for religious ceremonies and is frequently added as a flavoring for foods in the Middle East. At weddings in India, rose water is often sprinkled on guests to welcome them. Cleopatra, the Queen of Beauty, was known to regularly bathe in rose water. As we all know, roses are a well-known symbol of love, desire, and beauty.
Me? I like to use rose water for my skin, my hair, and as a spritzer perfume.
1. Facial Toner
I love to use rose water as a facial toner. It helps to shrink the pores and clear blemishes. Great for mild skin conditions that make your skin appear uneven. As a toner, it can be simply splashed on your face using the palm of your hands or you can use a cotton ball and apply it over your skin.
I like to blend rose water with witch hazel and essential oils to make a spray-on facial toner. The addition of witch hazel adds an extra astringent boost and essential oils can bring a multitude of skin care benefits.
Read 15 Luxurious Essential Oils for Your Skin to learn more about which specific essential oils are best for your skin type.
Rose Water Toner Recipe
Ingredients:
2 ounce glass spray bottle
2TBS witch hazel
1TBS Rose water
3 drops Frankincense
4 drops lavender
2 drops geranium
Place essential oil drops, witch hazel, and rose water to the spray bottle using a funnel (or simply pour carefully).
Fill the remainder of the bottle with distilled water 
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Shake well before each use.
To apply: use as spritzer or with a cotton ball before moisturizing.
2. Relieve Puffy Eyes
To help with puffy swollen eyes, you can take a facial cotton round and soak in Rose Water. Use this as an eye compress by gently placing the soaked cotton round over your closed eyes and rest. ahh……….. This is so incredibly soothing and the rose water acts as a mild anti-inflammatory to reduce eye puffiness.
TIP: Store the soaked cotton rounds in the refrigerator to add extra soothing coolness for your puffy eyes. For an added bonus, you can add a single drop of lavender essential oil and take a calming nap while your eye puffiness resolves and the lavender oil helps with soothing your skin & with growing your eyelashes!! DOUBLE BONUS!
3. Hair After-Shampoo Rinse
Use rose water on your hair as a leave-in floral rinse. To do this, I simply put a small amount of rose water in my palm and rub it into my hair. You can also make a hair rose water spritzer by placing the rose water into a spray bottle and spraying it over your wet hair.
Rinsing with rose water gives your hair a wonderful smell and for me, it seems to make my hair less heavy and more manageable. I like to keep a squirt bottle of rose water in my bathroom to use on my hair after every shower.
4. Rose Bath Soak
To bathe like Cleopatra, add 1/2 cup of rose water to your bath. This is such a lovely aromatic, luxurious, and relaxing experience. To make it extra special, be sure to add a few actual rose petals too! After a rose bath soak like this one, your skin will be refreshed and rejuvenated making you feel like the Royal Highness you are!
5. Romantic Rose Linen Spray
Using a 2oz glass spray bottle, rose water, and aphrodisiac essential oils, you can whip up a sizzling hot rose water linen spray.
Lover’s Linen Spray
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There is simply the rose; it is perfect in every moment of its existence.
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Thanks for the information! My family has used rose water in cooking for generations (it is a staple in arab kitchens) I have recently been looking for ways to incorporate it some every day things. <3