Rose Petal Shower Tea

 

As much as I enjoy sitting in a hot tub under the stars, I'm really more of a shower person. 

I love the idea of soaking in a tub with lovely scented rose petals. I thought that maybe I could come up with a similar experience for the shower.

Tub teas are a blend of ingredients that soften and scent the water in which you bathe. The shower tea that I have created will give you a fragrant, uplifting experience with all of the skin benefits of rose petals.

Rose petals are widely used in skincare products. They help to soothe and nourish the skin. A rose petal shower can easily become part of your self care routine. 

The ingredients used in the Rose Petal Shower Tea are safe for your skin. If you have any concerns, try scrubbing just one area first and wait to see if you have any adverse reactions.

•Rose petal shower bags have just three ingredients: 6 parts dried rose petals, 1 part colloidal oatmeal and 1 part grated bar soap (unscented) 

•Mix the dried rose petals and colloidal oatmeal. You can store this part in a glass jar. Keep the grated bar soap in a separate container.

•Fill your soap saver bag with a heaping 1/3 cup (or 7 tablespoons) of the dry shower tea mixture. Add 1 tablespoon of grated bar soap to the bag. 

•In the shower, rub the soap bag between your palms to mix and activate the contents. You are now ready to enjoy an invigorating aromatherapy experience. Add more water to the soap bag, as needed.

After you have showered, empty the bag, rinse it out and then hang to dry. You can reuse your bag, but your shower tea is for one time use only. 

If you don't grow your own roses, you can purchase dried rose petals. For my Rose Petal Shower Tea I used packets of unscented Aveeno oatmeal. One packet is about 1/3 cup which you will mix with approximately 2 cups of dried rose petals. I use a castile bar soap for my Rose Petal Shower Tea and it works quite nicely.

There are lots of different types of soap saver bags. The sisal variety will give you a refreshing exfoliating shower experience. Depending on how much you want to spend, you can get soap saver bags that can be laundered.

Rose Petal Shower Tea is a wonderful treat for the senses and it makes a great handmade gift. Enjoy your rose petal shower!

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More Mud: Rose Petals & Lavender Clay Mask

Time to pamper yourself! Give this French pink clay mask recipe a try and enjoy an amazing and rejuvenating clay mask experience.

This mask is one of my original recipes. It uses French pink clay which just seemed to beg for roses, which in turn demanded a hint of lavender. It smells divine. This is a smooth mask that applies easily, feels great and dries quickly. It is gentle enough to use on a regular basis. This recipe uses dry ingredients so it can be stored indefinitely.

French rose/pink clay is good for normal, dry, sensitive and mature/aging skin. French rose clay is a blend of red illite and white kaolin clays. It is very mild. French pink clay is light, smooth and luxurious. It’s probably my favourite. 

Clay masks are best mixed in a ceramic or glass bowl with a wooden spoon. When making your own masks, always remember to do a skin patch test to determine sensitivity to the mask. Before using a clay mask, cleanse your skin to remove make-up and surface dirt. When rinsing off the mask, remember to thoroughly rinse out the sink and flush out the drain with running water. If you use a facecloth to clean off the mask, use an old one, especially with French pink clay. 

Rose Petals & Lavender Clay Mask Recipe

2 tablespoons dried rose petals, ground

2 tablespoons dried lavender buds, ground

3/4 cup French Rose clay

water or lavender water or rose water

1. Grind dried lavender buds and dried rose petals using a grinder or mortar and pestle. Use only rose petals, not the calyx.
2. Using a wooden spoon, thoroughly mix ground lavender buds and rose petals with the French pink clay.
3. Store clay mixture in a glass jar.
4. Mix 2 tablespoons of dry clay mask mixture with 1 to 1¼ teaspoons of water (or lavender water or rose water). Use a small wooden spoon or stick to blend. Add additional drops of liquid until you have the desired consistency.
5. Apply to face and allow to dry for 5 to 10 minutes. Wash off with warm water using an old face cloth. Follow up with a moisturizer.

Enjoy!

Botanic Planet is a good source (Canadian) for clay and botanicals.

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Floral Water: Lovely Lavender

I’ve always liked floral waters and have been intrigued by the idea of creating scented water from flowers. I recently gave it a try and it was astonishingly easy to do. I call my creation Lovely Lavender and, needless to say, I love it.

Lavender water has lots of uses. It’s great as a facial toner. It can be added to your clay face mask recipes. Put some of your lavender water into an atomizer and use it as a linen or room spray. Or give yourself a spritz to relieve sunburn pain, or just because it smells great and it will make you smell great, too.

Lovely Lavender floral water is made with witch hazel. You can find witch hazel in most pharmacies or health food stores. Witch hazel has many of its own amazing properties and uses. It is a natural antioxidant and anti inflammatory, and is used extensively in skin care products. Witch hazel also acts as a stabilizer and gives your floral water a longer shelf life.

I always think that it's a curious thing that when you steep lavender, the water is not purple like the flowers. The same thing happens when you make lavender jelly. It still smells wonderful, though, even if it's not lavender in color,

Lovely Lavender Floral Water

1 cup water

1/4 cup dried lavender flowers

2 tablespoons witch hazel

1. Boil water and pour over the lavender flowers. Allow to steep 20 to 30 minutes. 
2. Strain lavender water several times through cheesecloth to remove the lavender flowers.
3. Put witch hazel into storage container and then pour in the warm lavender water. Cool, cap and store in refrigerator for up to six months. 
4. Shake well before each use. 

Botanic Planet is a good source (Canadian) for botanicals.
If you’re just looking for lavender, check out Weir’s Lane Lavender and Apiary.

You can learn more about lavender by reading this post: Lavender Love 

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More Mud: Herbal Clay Mask

Making your own mud masks is a fun way to treat yourself. Create something special that meets your personal skin care needs and pamper yourself on a regular basis.

Mud masks recipes use a variety of different clays that target different skin types. This Herbal Clay Mask uses bentonite clay. I use this mask only occasional to detoxify my skin. Bentonite clay is great on a more regular basis for oily or acne prone skin types.

Bentonite clay is made from aged volcanic ash. It is highly absorbent and draws out impurities. Bentonite is electrically charged which helps it to draw out the impurities in your skin. Because of the electrical charge, you must use a wooden spoon or stick to mix masks that use bentonite.

The original recipe for this Herbal Clay Mask suggests grinding the ingredients in a food processor. I used a mortar and pestle. This recipe can be used as a scrub or a mask. Start out with a five minute mask application to see how your skin tolerates the detoxification process. If you have normal or mature/aging skin you may want to first try this recipe as a scrub. Remember to follow up with a moisturizer.

Before using a clay mask, cleanse your skin to remove make-up and surface dirt. When washing off the mask, remember to thoroughly rinse out the sink and flush out the drain with running water. If you use a facecloth to clean off the mask, use an old one.

Herbal Clay Mask Recipe

3/4 cup colloidal oatmeal

1/4 cup dried lavender buds, ground fine

1/4 cup dried calendula, ground fine

1/2 cup powdered milk, ground fine

1/2 cup bentonite clay

1. In a grinder or food processor, grind lavender buds, calendula and powdered milk. A mortar and pestle will also work. 
2. Mix all ingredients together in a glass container. Don't put the clay into the food processor. Don't use metal with the bentonite clay. 
3. Store clay mixture in a glass jar.
4. For a scrub, mix 1 tablespoon of clay mixture with approximately 2 teaspoons of water to make a paste. With finger tips, lightly scrub face. Use olive oil or honey instead of water if you have dry to normal skin. Rinse with warm water. 
5. To use as a mask, mix 2 tablespoons of the mask with approximately 3 to 4 tablespoons of a half and half blend of apple cider vinegar and water to make a paste. Apply to face and allow to dry for 5 to 20 minutes. Wash with warm water. Follow up with a moisturizer.

N.B.: Bentonite clay absorbs a lot of water. You may have to adjust the amount of fluid that you add to the dry mix.

Thank you to Melissa @ Pioneering Today for the recipe on which this clay mask was based. 

Botanic Planet is a good source (Canadian) for clay and botanicals.

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