How do I Fill My Bedroom with the Scent of Roses before Bedtime?

November 28, 2018 11:53 PM

I just bought some rose-scented frankincense from the Middle East but the rose scent dissipates quickly leaving only the frankincense scent.

I bought some not inexpensive rose-scented frankincense from the Middle East as an experiment. It appears to be yellow whole frankincense tears coated with dried rose petals and some kind of rose oil. When I light it at bedtime, it smells wonderfully of rose at first but after the coating burns off, only the smell of frankincense is left.

I do not like the smell of frankincense alone. How do I fill my bedroom with the scent of roses without breaking the bank or resorting to chemical rose scents so that I can fall asleep with rose in the air?

I have small quantities of rosa damascena floral wax and rose otto but they are both pricey and I can't just burn through them on a daily basis, especially the rose otto. I hate potpourri. What are my options?

I own an electric incense burner. I am considering making wax melts with the floral wax (I also have beeswax) or making kneaded incense with dried rose petals (but I think the scent will be too faint without adding rose absolute?). Are there any better ideas? Just be content with making solid perfume with the rose wax and applying it before bed? I am currently aging some handmade rose parfum but would like a solution that perfumes the air.

posted by whitelotus to Sports, Hobbies, & Recreation (9 answers total)

Best answer: If you can find rose hydrosol it makes a lovely room and linen spray. Various preparations are sold as 'rose water,' but you want a pure distillate. It's nicely scented but gentle -- you can also spray it on your face or hair. It's especially nice in hot weather as a facial spray -- I keep a little bottle in the refrigerator and it's so soothing. It's often pretty affordable too; with shipping it might be more, but many vendors online have bottles for $6 or $8 USD.

If you spray a little onto your pillow, and a little onto yourself, it should linger nicely as you fall asleep. Some vendors make a rose/lavender hydrosol combination and I like that even better for bed. If you can't find the hydrosol, though, you can make your own room spray out of the rose otto, and it will go farther.
posted by halation at 12:21 AM on November 29, 2018 [5 favorites]

You could add a drop of essential rose oil every once in awhile to refresh the scent. I'd dilute the oil in a carrier oil so each drop has a little less if your concerned about price.
posted by AlexiaSky at 12:22 AM on November 29, 2018

Have you ever tried rose geranium? Not quite the same as true rose, but it's very nice. I've had good luck with this company, and you can order small quantities to test it out.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 3:36 AM on November 29, 2018 [1 favorite]

Best answer: How do I fill my bedroom with the scent of roses without breaking the bank or resorting to chemical rose scents so that I can fall asleep with rose in the air?

I would probably suggest just getting high quality essential oil and diffusing just a drop or two right before bed. My favorite seller of premium essential oil is Ananda Apothecary, and they have samples you can try. I know you said that you don't want chemicals, but honestly, synthetic perfume molecules are identical to nature-made, what we associate with a particular scent is molecular (the lemon scent comes from the molecule limonene, for example). So if you are really wanting to pinch pennies, I think a well-made rose perfume is better than a crappy essential oil or incense any day of the week. Perfumer's Workshop Tea Rose is an amazing rose fragrance, and it is incredibly affordable.
posted by nanook at 7:12 AM on November 29, 2018 [2 favorites]

Two suggestions, check out L'Occitane room scenting products. I love their rose scent. However it is expensive so i stopped only buying their solid rose perfume which lasts. Also not sure if available in the US.

For my bedroom i now use a sachet from greenleaf, of rose scent, not sure what is inside, bought over 8 months ago i think and keep in a bedside cabinet which i open if i want the room to smell of roses and shut it if i don't. While the cabinet is open the fragrance fills the room. I do keep it closed during the day mostly because I am not always in the mood for the scent. I can still smell then but very weak.
posted by 15L06 at 7:37 AM on November 29, 2018

Just saw the link to greenleaf did not work let me try again
posted by 15L06 at 7:39 AM on November 29, 2018

You can get real rosewater from the baking or international section of most larger grocery stores. You can use rosewater as a room spray or simmer a little bit on the top of an essential oil burner.
posted by windykites at 7:43 AM on November 29, 2018 [1 favorite]

Tea Rose Perfume This inexpensive perfume is super rosy strong and long lasting.
posted by effluvia at 9:33 AM on November 29, 2018 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thank you all for your advice.

halation: rose hydrosol is lovely but from my experience when I spray it on my face, the scent doesn't linger longer than ten minutes. Worth a try though.

Marie Mon Dieu: I do have rose geranium EO but it's just not close enough to the real thing.

nanook: The Tea Rose Perfume is very affordable though the ingredient list seems to be full of synthetic chemicals based on the reviews (thanks effluvia for the link). I would consider trying it even though I am really looking for damask rose and not tea roses or just make my own perfume (which is more expensive but probably more therapeutic) and spray it before bed.
posted by whitelotus at 12:40 AM on November 30, 2018