DIY Grapefruit, Lavender & Rose Botanical Cologne

I've always been fascinated by the power of plants for their medicinal and healing abilities. My love and understanding of nature stems from my career as a marine biologist and environmental educator. But my spiritual connection to our natural environment sparked when I paired yoga with my appreciation for the stillness nature gives me. I'm constantly striving to live a natural, simple, & sustainable life, but of course it isn't easy especially in an urban environment. So here's to doing the best you can, enjoying yourself, & being mindful about the power of nature and the impacts we can have.

I’m eager to share with you my latest natural experiment - making Grapefruit, Lavender & Rose Botanical Cologne! I never knew how easy it was to make your own perfume. It's cheaper and personalized - they make great gifts too!So for my experiment, I used Ketel One Botanical Grapefruit & Rose Vodka, but you use any odorless (unless you like the scent!) and clear spirit. Lucky me I stumbled upon locally sourced dried lavender at the Union Square Holiday Market courtesy of Lavender by the Bay. I’ve worked with herbal infused oils, and in those cases you can only use dried herbs since fresh herbs have too much moisture that will make your product rancid. But in this case I’m testing out whether it matters to have the herbs fresh or dried by using both. I’ll let you know what the end result is but I definitely know I'll be making more of natural colognes!

Here’s my rendition of @HelloGlow’s recipe:

1 pint mason jar

2 (1oz) bottles of Ketel One Botanicals Grapefruit & Rose Vodka (you can use any vodka I just love that this has a natural grapefruit scent built in)

A handful of rose petals (dried)

4-5 pieces of fresh roses (gently crushed) - optional

Handful of dried lavender

Drying rose petals:

Preheat your oven to 200 degrees F

Pick the freshest looking & mature flowers that have just bloomed)

Gently wash the petals & pat dry

Place parchment paper on a baking sheet and spread the petals on a single layer

Place in oven for 10-20mins, until the petals crack like potato chips

Allow the petals to cool before continuing

Let's put it all together:

In a clean and dry mason jar, add the dry lavender & rose petals and pour the vodka ensuring there is at least an inch of vodka under the floating herbs.

Close the jar tightly, give a quick shake, and write the date on the lid.

Store your jar in a safe place that receives occasional sunlight.

In 4 weeks, strain your mixture using cheesecloth of a fine strainer (squeeze all the extra goodness from your herbs!) Reuse an clean old perfume bottle and enjoy your homemade cologne!

Play around the ingredients and make your own herbal combination! Share your unique mix using #holisticblyss