Making A Lemon Blossom Perfume / Tincture
So I am involved in a year-long herbal apprenticeship, spending a day each month to learn about a variety of herbs that are beneficial to the body, inside and out. One of the methods of extracting the benefits from many herbs (dried or fresh) is through tincturing.
A tincture is a concentrated liquid form of an herb that is easy to make and easy to take. Tinctures preserve and concentrate the properties of the herb, making them more effective and longer lasting (Wellness Mama)
I have made several tinctures already including one out of Dandelion Root. and also one out of Holy Basil . I am looking forward to making many more.
Lemon Blossom mix tincture (1st day)
In any case I was peeping my lemon bush outside and noticed now that the lemons are gone there are these beautiful blossoms blooming. I am obsessed with citrusy herby perfumes and whatnot and thought about doing a folksy tincture (without all the alcohol to herb ratios math) with lemon blossoms and few sprigs of mint, rosemary, lemon thyme and lemon balm (lots of different scents of lemon - I am hoping it doesn't turn out smelling like Pine Sol).
I took inspiration on how to do this from a NY Times Articleon how to make a fragrance from flowers:
The rest of the process is straightforward. And repetitive. Drop the whole petals or leaves into the jar and pour in just enough alcohol to cover the top. Maybe slosh it around a little. Wait a day, then strain out the petals or leaves through the netting. The alcohol level will drop, but don’t add more. Instead, add new, clover-dried petals. And more petals. And do it again. And again. And again.
Lemon Blossom mix tincture (2nd day)
After one day I strained the mixture. You can tell not only the essential oils infused into the alcohol but also the color as well.
Afterwards I drained it with a cheese cloth and added some more fresh material in it. I am judging that I will have to do this about a dozen times accounting for the still significant percentage of water in the Everclear (I am trying to get 98+ proof Cane Alcohol next month) and there is also a lot of water in fresh plants as well so it might make the tincture which will eventually be the fragrance, unstable. But will hope for the best!