Rose Wax.

Shave a few curls from the block, warm them gently with a little oil, and the workroom fills with a soft breath of rose. Floral waxes are the most solid of nature's aromatics, and this one is made for the maker's bench.

Rose Wax is Rosa damascena, solvent extracted, from Bulgaria. Making a rose absolute begins with a concrete, a solid or semisolid mass holding all of the plant's waxes and aromatic compounds. The absolute is then washed out with alcohol, and what remains is this: a solid, mildly fragrant aromatic wax. Extended with a little Rosewood oil, it makes a lush rose soap.

Details

• Botanical name: Rosa damascena
• Origin: Bulgaria
• Method: solvent extraction; the wax that remains once the absolute is washed from the concrete with alcohol
• Texture: solid, mildly fragrant

How to use

• Solid perfume: melt the wax in a heatproof glass cup, add a little warmed oil until it reaches the softness you like, and pour into a lip balm jar. For more intensity, add a drop or two of the absolute or a complementary essential oil.
• Creams and lotions: melt it into the oil phase for thickness, body and scent.
• Cold process soap: even at the low rate used for natural fragrances, it tends to give a slightly harder bar and strengthens the scent.
• To measure a few grams, shave off curls with a potato peeler and add them to your warming carrier oils.

A rose you can hold in your hand; bring it to your workbench.