Rose Absolute Essential Oil, 1/3 fl oz

Made by solvent entraction of the flower petals.

Rose absolute has a sweet, deep-rosy, long-lasting aroma. It is used in perfumes for both its scent and fixative qualities.

Aromatherapy benefits: romantic, uplifting.

Rose oil is used in creams, lotions and soaps for its mild anti-viral and bactericidal properties, as well as for its fragrance. Rose water, recovered from the distillation of rose oil, is mildly astringent and beneficial for cleansing and refreshing dry, sensitive skin.

With the advent of distillation in the tenth century, Persians began extracting rose flower water from fresh roses. The difficulty of extracting rose oil from the plant has always caused it to be a very expensive substance. A rose blossom contains only about .02% essential oil. It takes about 60,000 roses to produce just 1 ounce of oil, and ten thousand pounds of rose blossoms to produce 1 pound of oil.

The extraction of rose absolute with chemical solvents is more efficient than the steam distillation of the essential oil. Ten pounds of a substance known as concrete can be extracted from 10,000 pounds of roses using this method. The concrete is further refined to produce rose absolute, the yield of which is about 67% from the concrete.

Most rose absolute is produced in Morocco in the valleys between the High Atlas and Jbel Sarhro mountains east of Marrakech.

Rose absolute is a refined, liquid extraction of fragrant compounds from the fresh blossom. Although absolutes contain essential oil compounds they differ from distilled essential oils. An absolute is a refinement of a concrete, which is a thick, fragrant material extracted from the plant using a hydro-carbon solvent. The concrete contains essential oils, fatty acids and waxes. Absolutes are extracted from concretes with pure alcohol. The alcohol dissolves and absorbs the fragrant material from the concrete. Waxes, fats and other non-aromatic contents precipitate out and are removed by filtering. The alcohol is removed through evaporation. What's left behind is the pure, fragrant absolute - a concentration of aromatic compounds including essential oil constituents.

Some aromatherapists prefer to use only essential oils because they feel that the chemical solvents used in the extraction of an absolute have a negative affect on the properties of the oil. Others believe that the intensity and radiance of botanicals like rose are able to withstand the extensive processing and still yield positive benefits in the absolute.

In aromatherapy rose oil inspires emotional calm and stability without sedative effects. The aroma is powerful and comforting. Its physical actions are mildly astringent and balancing. Rose and lavender facial cream is excellent for sensitive combination skin. Dabbed onto a freshly washed face this cream is a fragrant, toning emollient.

Essential and resin oils are volatile, fragrant materials extracted from the root, bark, wood, seed, fruit, leaf or flower of a single plant. Essential oils contain the odor, taste and medicinal properties of the plant itself, but in very concentrated form, with no base oil, alcohol, water or dilutants added.

Steam distillation and cold pressing are used to extract the essential oil from the plant.

Starwest Essential Oils are guaranteed to be 100% pure and undiluted. The distillation process occurs either at the site where the plants are grown or at a distillery. Each oil is tested for purity and strength using the gas chromatography method.

Packaged in glass amber bottles to preserve the oils, the 1/3 ounce size has a fitted dropper insert and a tamper-evident, child-proof lid. The larger items are in amber glass or PET gallon containers, depending on the product.

Starwest’s pure essential oils are suitable for use in aromatherapy, cosmetic preparation, healing and body care, potpourris and more.

Essential oils are very potent and