How to Make Rosewater (Hydrosol)

After yoga tonight, I decided to destroy my beautiful pink roses and tear them apart to create a lovely thing called rose water or rose hydrosol. A hydrosol is a plant product that has been steam distilled and extracts the water soluble components from the plant. The result is like an essential oil but far less concentrated.

There are many uses for rose water, in both cooking and for cosmetics. I decided to create a very small test batch to try out the kitchen-distillation process, and to test out some skin toner recipes. This small batch process is a bit tedious but the result is like the sweetest perfume or body spray you have ever tried. Here we are extracting the water components rather than the oil components.

Rose water has properties such as:

• Reducing inflammation is key - it can reduce broken capillaries and other skin inflammation conditions such as eczema
• Balancing the pH of your skin and purifying it
• Preventing pimples and acne by removing oil and grime
• It is used after facials to close open pores. Applying rose water after a steamy shower will tighten pores and capillaries
• It can heal sunburns and wounds
• You can use it on your hair as a scalp and hair conditioner
• For tired and fatigued eyes
• Some say it helps bad breath 
• The aroma is soothing - great for stress and anxiety

You can also use it for cooking, fixing makeup, and creating your own fragrances.

On to the tutorial!

What you'll need:

• Fresh roses (pesticide/chemical free)
• Large pot with lid
• Small heat safe glass or ceramic bowl/jar
• Distilled Water
• Ice cubes
• Container to store the product in

I have used chemical and pesticide free pink roses I picked up at Whole Foods for about 15 dollars. I recommend that you grow your own if you plan on making a lot of this stuff (I was tempted to steal some of the neighbors roses from their rose bushes!).

I did not have large enough bowls and lids, so I created my rose water in small batches over several hours. I do not recommend this - next time I will be using much larger pots and bowls to increase efficiency. A dozen roses gave me about 1.5 cups of rose water, although I was impatient and did not wait 2 hours for each batch. However, the process is the same if you choose a larger setup.

Remember to ALWAYS first sterilize your equipment and storage containers by either pouring boiling water on the tool or bottle, or by using rubbing alcohol.

1. Fresh roses are best, especially when they are picked from a dewy garden. Take apart the rose petals but discard the rest.
2. Place a heat safe glass dish in the pot, one small enough to fit completely inside the pot but wide enough to catch the water.

3. Arrange the flower petals around the glass container, but do not over fill so as the petals are below the edge of the glass dish.

4. Cover the petals using distilled water. Press the petals into the water so they do not float too much. You could probably use filtered water, but the purest water available is best.
5. Place the lid of the pot upside down so that the handle faces into or towards the glass bowl.

6. Gently simmer the water for 1-2 hours on low heat. Once the water begins simmering, place a handful of ice cubes on to the glass lid to condense the steam into water on the lid. The water will travel to the center of the lid to the handle and drip down into the glass container. You may need to do this several times.

7. After you are finished distilling the water , your rose petals will look bleached and any remaining water will be a darker color. This is likely the rose oil and other compounds from the roses. I had a lot of extra water because I simply ran out of time.

8. After simmering 1 to 2 hours, you should have collected enough water to funnel into a glass bottle. I like the hermetic seal bottles. I got mine at The Container Store for around 9 dollars, as well as this cute stainless steel funnel. The bottle was a bit large, but they are available in different sizes.

9. When all the water has been collected, it is best to store the water in a cool, dry location. The fridge is the best place to store this for up to one month. I do not personally keep my toners in the fridge, but I want to keep my raw batch as fresh as possible.

Use your rose water for cooking, baking, fragrances, lotions or toners. I am planning to make a rosewater-kombucha toner to start, and then I will try a rosewater-cucumber-aloe toner, and also a pure spritzer to fix makeup with or to spritz for a refreshing dewy glow.

If I receive good feedback from the rose water toners, I will consider getting a distillation system made out of copper, and make other hydrosols such as cucumber, calendula, and lavender!

Morning Update: I created a rosewater-kombucha toner! I tried it on my face last night and the results were a bit surprising! More to come.

Thanks for reading and enjoy your rose water!