Jasmine Enfleurage and Lotus

Good morning Kinfolk,

I have made a beautiful pot of Moroccan Mint Tea infused with Fresh Jasmine Petals just to sit down and write here about my day so far. I took a picture so you can get a feel for how wonderful tea time is! Drinking this wonderful tea as I write is such a gift! and to think I gave it to myself. This tea I decided to make a little differently than usual. I usually use the Chinese Green Gunpowder tea with lots of fresh mint, but decided instead to use the Persian Blend since that tea alone has wonderful flavor. And I added fresh jasmine blossoms. The Mint is the primary flavor and I plucked plenty from the garden, about what is considered a ''bunch''. I wish I could offer you some! LOL 

I learned how to make the Moroccan Mint tea here . It was truly the best way. When I had done it the way shown, that was when I understood how this tea thrives throughout the centuries! The Moroccan Pot is also very much worth the expense....for there must be beauty in utility otherwise it is a mundane chore instead of a gift of exquisite elegance. And I am!....getting the delicate floral essence of Jasmine flavor in my tea! sigh.....

There is the Moroccan Tea Pot, the Moroccan Tea Glass lined with real 24K gold, fresh mint from the garden and I added pineapple mint too, jasmine petals in the small wooden bowl, organic turbinado sugar and Persian Tea Blend.  Please do not mind the year date on the pics, every year it goes back in time instead of forward. LOL!

But I wanted to talk about my day so far today. I did not know how to create a day of beauty. I was not feeling well. I slept alot and calmly last night for which I am immensely grateful, but was a bit sad about finding myself with a day I did not know what to do with. It is far too hot to be outside and inside there is not much to do. Today did not look promising to my mind.

I forget how to create sometimes. And in this state I am not happy.

But nature has her ways for those who love her, and who can take in the sights, sounds, smells and textures of Herself on a given day and who can live in the moment.

I wandered outside as always first thing in the morning, and the smell hit me....Jasmine! sublime jasmine! If only I could give you the scent through these words! I was enlivened a bit, and felt a little dance within, and knew only that my next move was to put some jasmine in my hair so I can smell it with every move I make during the day. It is truly sublime. There were not too many blooms so I only took 3 small pieces for my hair and added some greenery too. Then I put on my abalone shell earrings bought in Jamaica about 20 years ago as they have a bit of the green of the leaves. It is nice to appear coordinated.

Back outside I saw some clouds and realized that the rains coming would pound the jasmine flowers and they'd wind up on the ground so I decided to cut what I could find on the bush and put them in vases around the home. I got the ladder to get to the roof of the house and the top of the jasmine bush was at the corner and lo and behold all the fat blossoms were all there at the top! As I climb I'm thinking of what else I could do with the blossoms. I cut what I could reach and had enough for 3 simple projects.
The tiny vase pitcher filled with blooms is already scenting my room as I type and my hair is happy with what it has.

I collect and save glass containers just for purposes like these for example, when white scented petals of jasmine need a beautiful glass container. I looked around for a small one and found one. I filled it with jasmine petals, and closed the jar. Jasmine Tea Petals for tea is done.

Next is Jasmine Infused Oil for perfume. I found another small glass jar with a cork lid to add flowers and oil for enfleurage. For the oil I chose Rice Bran Oil since others have too much of a scent and I wanted something clean and light with no scent, and I find Rice Bran Oil beautiful for this. My skin also loves it. So I filled the glass jar with the flower petals and topped it with the oil. I will have to keep changing out the flowers every 3 days until the oil is scented strongly enough. The Jasmine bush blooms as long as it rains alot.We are entering rainy season :D

I read about Jasmine Infused White Wine and I thought how lovely that would be! And I happened to have white wine and a beautiful glass jar with a glass topper and filled that with white wine and added some jasmine flowers. That will be some really divine wine to drink! I've made flower infused wines before and they are heavenly! 

On the left is the Jasmine Enfleurage, next is the Jasmine Infused Wine, the small vase of blossoms, and the tiny jar of Jasmine Petals for tea.

So there are my creations with Jasmine today. 

The day is still young, but I already feel so much better having worked with Jasmine, who enticed me with his scent to play....for Jasmine is known to be the King of Flowers.

To simply share some more beauty........my Lotus in the pond in my back garden. It is sooooo beautiful. I took pictures in her various states bloom. She changes from a pink to a cream color within the 3 days of her being in blossom. I love her. The entire Lotus plant is medicinal as well as beautiful to behold, a balm for the soul. I drank some tisane of lotus several days ago specifically for the summer heat syndrome it is said to be good for and I do believe it helped. Here are her pictures.

This particular bloom was over 3 feet tall. Now it is a seed pod and when it is dry I shall collect the seeds, since they are very medicinal too. There are now 2 other blossoms in various stages of blooming. The leaves and flower stamens fall to the water and land on the lotus leaves, and I collect them too. 

The day is still young. 

I seek inspiration, but I hope it finds me first.