rose /rosa damascena

Rosa Trigintipetala
Originally uploaded by multiflora.

'Look to the Rose that blows about us - ' Lo,

Laughing ', she says 'into the World I blow:

At once the silken Tassel of my Purse Tear, and its

Treasure on the Garden throw.'

- Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam-

A true rose odour is unique and incomparable, undefinable and best represented by the Rosa Damascena, cultivated in Bulgaria. One of the principal varieties grown in this area is Rosa damascena 'Miller' . The perfume is most powerful when the flowers open. Both single and double varieties are grown. The Damascena Roses with the Gallica roses are some of the oldest varieties known today.

There are ten districts in Bulgaria of which the most important are Kazanlik, Karlova, Brezova, Tchirpan, Nova Zagora and Stara Zagora. The flowers are cultivated in this famous Valley of the Roses, 200 kilometres east of Sofia accessible by road over the Klissoura Pass. The harvest takes place during May and the early part of June, but this depends on atmospheric conditions. Ideal conditions are gentle rain occasionally with a little sun. The roses are collected before they begin to open and while they are covered in dew. Roses gathered later in the day although emitting a more powerful perfume in distilling does not creat such a sweetness in the essence.

Kazanlik another Damascena Rose, originating in the middle east, is a vigorous rose and also grown in the rose fields of Bulgaria as another variety used in the manufacture of 'attar of roses.' The soft pink petals are very fragrant with a colour of warm pink. A dark green foliage and shaggy, double blooms. Height reaches 5' x 4' .

Other varieties of Damascena include...'Belle Amour' , 'Blush Damask' 'Botzaris''Celsiana'. 'Coralie', 'Gloire de Guilan,' 'Ispahan', 'La Ville de Bruxelles,' 'Leda,' 'Marie Louise', ' Mme Hardy', 'Mme Zoetmans', 'Omar khayyam' another rose of antiquity with seeds propogated on plants gathered from Omar Khayyam's tomb. 'Quatre Saisons both the 'Autumn Damask and Blanc Mousseux, 'Rose d' Hivers, 'St Nicholas... Triginpetala also called Kazanlik and described above and picture here and 'York and Lancaster.

Portland Roses including varieties such as 'Jacques Cartier'. 'Rose du Roi' and 'Rose de Rescht among others are included under the heading of Damasks although they have a shorter growing habit.

Different varieties of Rose and different cultivars of the same species can produce quite diverse characteristics and compositions. Below is a table comparing the main components of Bulgarian Rose (R damascena) or 'attar' to the French rose absolute (R centifolia ) from Julia Lawless Rose oil book. The Rose/Rosa Centifolia I shall write about in another post.

citronellol R. damascena 34-55% R.centifolia 18-22%
phenylethanol R. damascena 1.5 - 3% R.centifolia c.63%
geraniol and nerol R. damascena3--40% R. centifolia 10-15%
farnesol R. damascena 0.2 -2% R. centifolia 0.2-2%
stearopten R. damascena 16-22% R. centifolia c.8%

plus traces of: nonanon, linalool, nonanal, phehylacetaldehyde, citral, carvone, citronellyl acetat, 2-phenylmethyl acetate, eugenol, rose oxide.2.

In Persia and Damascus people used to bury jars of unopened rosebuds in the garden and dig them up on special occasions, when exposed to warmth their delicious perfume would suffuse the air.

Today, the perfume of the Bulgarian rose 'attar' is still considered to be the highest quality available.

In future posts I will look at the various methods of extracting the rose perfume , taking a look at Rosa centifolia, its uses in the various categories of perfume, Mythology and its benefits in healing.

References:

Classic Roses by Peter Beales

Perfumes Cosmetics and Soaps Vol 2 by Poucher 8th edition

Rose oil by Julia Lawless

some good places to visit about Rosa damascena miller

http://www.uni-graz.at/~katzer/engl/Rosa_dam.html

http://www.henriettesherbal.com/eclectic/bpc1911/rosa_oleu.html

http://www.ics.trieste.it/MedicinalPlant/_MedicinalPlant.aspx?id=21

alot has happened this month

This has been a month of only 2 posts yet alot has happened.

I have begun tincturing the bluebells in the wood ( s'okay ....my wood well we bought it but I consider myself custodian) I started early as I wasn't sure how it would develop. I finally solved my organic alcohol dilemma and although costing me an arm and a leg in custom duties I at least have what I need. I shall dedicate a complete post with pictures that my beautiful daughter took as I feel it deserves this.. I think Iam pioneering this as if it has been done before it was many many many years ago.

I have been buying and sourcing lots of raw material and buying old books....... one came today a historical reprint from 1857... 'The art of perfumery, and the methods of obtaining the odours of plants; with instructions for the manufacture of..... dentifuces, pomatums, cosmetiques, perfumed soap etc by G.W. Septimus Piesse.

I am so excited to read and browse through this.. I am saving it to the last this evening when I slip between the sheets and savour the cover and its contents. I thought it may have been reprinted in french but it has been translated.

I will be going to the Botanic Gardens tomorrow .. More over on Flowers of Myddfai ... the blog dedicated to this project... I must try and post more next month

Coming up with a few glitches on a perfume I am working on for a client in London....... there is something in there that she finds too sweet...... so I am sending blotters down to see if we can define who the culprit(s) are......

The Natural Perfumery Group is alive and full of interesting information and exchanging of ideas......

Lilacs are blooming, hawthorn blossom, apple blossom, bluebells, milk maids, daisies, roses budding, peonies coming up , hydrangea petiolaris flowers starting to bud up, Wisteria starting to flower.... such a beautiful time of year.

viola odorata - sweet violet

Viola odorata - Sweet Violet
Originally uploaded by ceterach.

I have transferred this story of the viola odorata to Janita's Attar as it was the riviniana ( wood or dog violet) that the physicians used and not the odorata (sweet violet).... I have removed the non-pertaining material about the project now. I am delighted to have identified it with the help of Andrine Olson-Kirschenman. The thread originally came from the NP group.

Walking home yesterday from adjudicating an Eisteddfod at Gwernyfed High School . ...I live halfway up a mountain and it was beautiful day, ..... The banks are full of celandine , I also noted swathes of tiny white flowers dotted alongside and amongst the celandine .... my curiosity to draw nearer... I realised they were tiny white violets. I delicately picked one and held it up and sniffed lightly...... very faintly almost imperceptibly the most exquisite violet aroma became apparent...... just lovely..... when I reached home I came to flickr to see If they had a photo to identify the type but I can't see it. checked white violet in google too and welsh field violet and nothing..... I will get Mina to take a photo and perhaps one of you may recognise the variety. there is no veining of colour at all. very tiny and pert with just a yellow orange centre......

the daffodils are abundant as the primroses, celandine....everywhere on the banks at the sides of the country roads...... the daisies are beginning .... the lambs are frolicking ...........eau to be in the marches......

Hi Janita,Funny you should write this -- I was just reading about violets yesterday in Roy Genders' Scented Flora of the World. Your white violet could be one of two that I read of there:(Originally from "Pansies and Violas", published in 1892 by Messrs Dobbie and Co, in words by one Dr. Stuart)

"It was... ten years before I succeeded in finding a really rayless viola. In Queen Victoria's Jubilee Year whilst walking round a seed bed, I found what I had long been seeking -- a pure white rayless self. It was a warm night and the perfume from the blooms attracted my attention."...A box of bloom was sent to William Robinson, editor of The Garden, who at once recognized a new strain. It was given the name of Violetta, and quickly became a favourite in the cottage garden... 'No family has given our gardens anything more precious'. Almost a century later, the same may be said of it and yet it is known to few gardeners."V. odorata. The Sweet Violet, is distributed from the British Isles, across northern and southern Europe to the Himalayas and northern Asia... The flowers are borne from January to June, depending on the locality and are violet-blue, white or purple, the side petals with or without a tuft of hair, whilst the spur is short."

So, you could have Violetta, or it could be Viola odorata. Or it could be something else that is still a mystery to me. But given that Roy Genders was writing specifically about flora in the British Isles, it could very likely be one of those two.Whatever they are, I would gather some if you can, and try an enfleurage. I have a Viola odorata enfleurage going right now. It's amazing how those little teeny flowers pack such a wallop of scent! And they don't break down into mush in the enfleurage -- they dry up and still smell good! I may even put them into something else after I pull them from the enfleurage -- maybe I'll attempt a little tincture... The only current drawback is that I'm using crisco, and so will need to store it in the fridge or freezer until I can wash the fat with alcohol so it doesn't go bad

lavender pays

25 March 2007

This lavender from pays or country lavender is fresh and clean yet rich, not too sharp and with and excellent soft top note dropping down to a warm green undergrowth. There is a sweetness there in the middle that is not too overpowering and a lightness that is enchanting....I seem to have collected lavenders since starting my blueprint perfumery in 1998 and I have quite a few. I have my favourites and for a long time The English Hampshire lavender Co was number one . That is until Salaam from Profumo.it send me a sample of his lavender pays.....This lavender transported my back to my childhood. It is the exact note I remember of the lavender I used to smell in colognes that my mother used to bring home. As a child I was brought up by my grandmother , a Tambour Beader who worked for Norman Hartnell(Couturier to the Queen Mother and other members of the Royal family) and my mother was one of the first air-line stewardesses working for TWA and travelling the world.... she always brought me back perfume samples....... and the obsession was born !Yes, my top three lavenders now stand as Profumo.its lavender Pays, English hampshire lavender and Seville lavender(the Seville Anya sent to me and I just love it so different from other lavenders)

taking the plunge

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Well after being totally in awe of her for nearly a week now... much to humourous delight all...... I read the pamphlet oiled her up.... and paced around...

Today I took the plunge...... she is fast!!!!!! The spool was wound in seconds! The threading is a little different from what I am used to but the real fun was trying to use the automatic needle threader.... well I couldn't get it! and because I just wanted to see what she could do shelved that for another day.

It is very earlier days as at the moment I have just tried the straight stitch taking her up to the 6mm..... beautiful stitch put the pedal to the floor and she flew in my hands....... and reveresed her back up...all on painters canvas and a fairly thick cotton .....

I will continue gently now next using a thicker thread on the bottom and reversing my fabric so I shall be working from the back. and using the quilting foot as well as no foot to see how we go.... alot to try out before I start ....... this will take quite a few hours before I feel as comfortable as I do with my brother but there is no doubt she is a thoroughbred, perfect for me.

Peony the Imperial Flower

' surely there has never been such a flower among mortals' (9th century chinese writer)

A sweet and heavenly perfume, inspired by Artists and poets.

Peony
Originally uploaded by bernadettemacphersonmorris.

I have collected and specialised, delighting in old and highly perfumed roses for many years. While browsing through some old master botanical paintings a couple of years ago I realised that it was the peony that had captured my heart. This spectacularly beautiful, fragrant plant, thornless and healthy, ruffled, soft and gentle. There are so many beautiful photos of this glorious flower I could not make up my mind.... it is now late and I will write more tomorrow.... I may even change this whole piece and photo but this will suffice for now....gifts of peonies are an exchange of friendship and prosperity.

Buddha revisited with Sandalwood

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The photo here is a Sandalwood buddha from Mysore India-


I am sitting here swathed in the aroma of Sandalwood. This beautiful meditative wood completely assails my senses as I write this.

A few weeks ago Salaam from Profumo.it kindly sent me some samples of raw materials .This first one is Sandalwood Mysore. I have a few other samples of Sandalwood oil and I have decided to compare this one with the agmarked (Indian government stamp of approval) Sandalwood from Nishan oils, a gift from Bernie and Sandie, Butterbur & Sage and have now had for some years.

Of course today this particular Sandalwood is endangered so thus for ecology it may be prudent to look for alternatives in managed woodlands and alternative type for this most special of oils.... I am writing about this, as this particular type has been used in rites incense religious festivals for centuries and I love its aroma. It is a great benchmark for other more ecological sandalwoods that are now offered.

Both penetrate and surround the air with its woody meditative ambience. Salaams has a greener note than the fuller and rounded ag-marked sample. Poucher describes the true oil as pale yellow and viscose which indeed profumo.it sample is.. I am amazed at how the aroma penetrates deeply into my senses and through to the third eye. The agmarked sample is also pale yellow and viscose. So it looks as if these are both true for which I am delighted as adulteration can occur by using castor oil and cedarwood oil. The agmarked seems sweeter and fuller as if one has put a minor third in it than Profumo.it's greener higher note which may have something to do with the age. I would have no hesitation in recommending Salaam's beautiful calming Sandalwood. You can find Salaams site on my places to visit link. I have also some very fine sandalwood chips given by Dorian Schneidman which also pervays its calm aroma when warmed.