Lavender wands & ROSE BEADS

Herbal gifts are a lovely idea, combining usefulness and the pleasure of giving. So why not try making traditional scented gifts your friends and family will love!

Rose petal beads are almost as old as roses themselves. These natural beads were invented by early Christians, who came up with the idea of stringing rose beads together to help count their prayers: they called it a rosary. Make a fragrant necklace or bracelet for yourself or as a charming gift for a loved one.

First, pick your petals. Use the petals of dark red or pink, heavily fragrant rose varieties – these retain the best colour and perfume as beads. To make 15-20 beads for a bracelet, you need at least 5 cups of loose petals. Chop the petals with a sharp knife. The finer you chop the petals, the smoother the finished bead will be. You can whizz the petals at this point in a food processor (add a little water) or with a stick blender.

Place the chopped petals into a small pot and cover with water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, place a lid on the pot and simmer for 1 hour, then set aside to cool. Let stand overnight.

The next day, add a few drops of scented rose oil to the pot. Use a fragrant oil as opposed to the more expensive rose absolute as heat destroys any therapeutic value.

Return to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 1 hour. Repeat this process for 4-5 days, until the mixture resembles thick red porridge. Add a few drops of food colouring for darker beads. Note: you may need to add extra liquid during this process if the pulp thickens too quickly.

Strain the petal pulp through a sieve or muslin cloth, reserving the liquid in a plastic container with a lid.

Shape the pulp into bulbs. Squeeze excess moisture out of the petal sludge, so that you can roll them into large beads. Keep in mind that, as the beads dry, they shrink considerably (by at least half), so make them at least 2cm in diameter.

The mixture isn’t sticky like clay; be gentle forming the balls, or they’ll simply fall apart. When you’re happy with the shape of your beads, use a metal skewer or bamboo kebab stick to gently create a hole. Set aside to dry in a warm place (not in direct sunlight). This takes a few days. Or speed the drying process up by popping your beads into a warm oven after you’ve turned off the heat after baking.

To cure the beads and provide lasting perfume, paint or dip beads in the reserved liquid every day until they’re hard. Note: fully drying between each coat is important, or they’ll turn mouldy. Thread the beads together – and you’re finally done!