The long wait between growing, picking, distillation and bottling is over!
Hello everyone,
I cannot begin to convey the absolute thrill of capturing the pure essence of botanicals in water…and thereby, in a bottle. From first growing and nurturing, to anticipating the season, then the auspicious day on which to collect; to the time-honoured labour of love that is the picking, harvesting…the gathering of the material itself; to the preparation of both plant material and still. Then eventually…the ultimate, quiet, meditative process of distillation.
But once the water is captured (at that very specific peak moment in the season when foliage or flowers display that aura best described by Hildegard of Bingen as ‘viriditas’; then the water must sit quietly, allowing all the cellular components to realign in their new found form and settle.
And so it is, that the 2024 batches have settled…and are ready to release! I had tinkered with the idea of lifting the lids on each of the three hydrosols over the last week, but hadn’t quite got around to it ’til prompted by a couple of spontaneous orders to dispatch. And so I retrieved the clear jars from the cellar where I keep them in the cool and dark, twisted their lids, popped their seals…and…swoon is all I can say! As I carefully lifted the lid of each individual jar, the air simply filled with olfactory delight.
One after the other I opened the LAVENDER, then the ROSE GERANIUM and lastly the ORANGE BLOSSOM. Each one had me reeling…each one evoking a different memory, feeling, sensation.
So at last the results of all those Distillation Days I carried out last year are ready to send to you – a hint of the garden here, for you to revel in there. A little spritz to the face on a hot day is a lovely uplifting treat…and how I’d love to see your eyes light up and twinkle at the sensation! Of course you can always pop it on your wrist, but remember it isn’t perfume…it’s hydrosol, or aromatic botanical water and each one is pure as pure can be, there’s nothing ‘added’.
You can read more about the BOTANICAL WATERS and order them via the link at the bottom of the web page here. Each can be ordered in either 10ml or 35ml atomisers. I’m finding it hard to believe I’ve released them into the world now over four consecutive years…I know many of you followed my distillation journey as it came to fruition!
I’ll have news soon of the first workshop of the year…and intend kicking off with my own Kitchen Gardening Day on Saturday 08 March about which I’ll send you full details, but in the meantime…how I’d love to be sending you a Botanical Water or two!
With warmest wishes
Mickey