Recipe:
2 cups firmly packed fresh rose petals
approximately 2-1/4 cups water (distilled water is preferable)

Place the rose petals in a saucepan and cover with the water. Simmer over low heat until water is reduced by half. Let cool and strain out the petals. Store in sterile jar or bottle.

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Do I have an exciting weekend planned!  I have two other concoctions that I need to post about, but I want to start with this one.

A good friend of mine (Hi, Megan!) suggested that I try this recipe for rosewater toner.  At first, I said no because I really want to try to keep things simple.  I want to use things that I already have at home or that I can easily get on my next grocery shopping trip.  If the project takes an extra trip to a specialty store, then what's the point?  Then, I looked at the recipe again.  Since the Witch Hazel (which, by the way, can be found at your local grocery store) and the glycerin (which will probably mean a trip to the craft store) are optional, I thought I'd give it a shot after all.  Since it is my first wedding anniversary this weekend, my sweet hubby brought home roses for me yesterday - another reason that I'm giving this recipe a shot.  Instead of the toner, I am just making rosewater  (which apparently makes a decent toner all by itself).

I have to say, right off the bat, that this turned out to be an absolute disaster.  I blame myself, though.  I did not use distilled water - which may well have been a contributing factor to the ick that I ended up with.  I read somewhere that you should use organic rose petals, but I didn't do that, either.  I just used store bought ones.  Now, I don't actually think organic rose petals are that important to the recipe, but I do know that today's commercial roses are bred to last longer in a vase and have longer stems.  Unfortunately, that also breeds a lot of the rose's natural scent out. 

The liquid that I ended up with smelled like beef Ramen broth.  I even had my husband confirm this because it confused me.  It looked like chicken Ramen broth with a drop or two of soy sauce mixed in to make the color a tad darker.  Sort of an amber color not unlike beer.

I am sad to say that, after smelling it, I had no intention of putting it on my face or anywhere else other than down the drain.

Because I do think that I will get a different outcome if I use distilled water and fresher roses, I withhold judgment of this particular product until I have tried it again.