Fresh or dried, roses can be enjoyed in your home every day - and not just in flower arrangements. The following suggestions will start you thinking of creative ways to make your own life a little “rosier”.

*Make a rose potpourri:
Blend dried petals and/or buds of various colors, using all roses or complementing them with other blooms, petals, and even spices.
The edition of a fixative, such as powdered orrisroot or ground gum benzoin, will give the mixture more staying power. Try the following recipe for a floral-spice potpourri:
½ pint rose buds
½ pint rose petals
1 ounce lavender
2 cinnamon sticks
strips of orange zest from one orange
1 ounce orrisroot powder

Lay the cinnamon sticks parallel or in an X shape in the container and arrange the other ingredients around them. Optional: Add a few drops of rose essential oil to intensify or refresh the rose fragrance.

*Add roses to your recipes:
Petals from roses that have never been treated with chemicals are edible and can be used in their dried form to flavor foods. Fresh rose petals can be used to make jam.
To create a beautiful sugared rose petal garnish for desserts, use a pastry brush to paint individual petals with a thin film of beaten eggs white.
Coat each petal with a light sprinkling of granulated sugar and set on a plate dusted with sugar until dry.

*Use roses in your beauty regimen:
Rose water, a mild astringent, has been used as a skin toner for centuries.
You can make your own by adding ten drops of rose essential oil to half a pint of vodka.
Put the mixture into a glass bottle and seal it with a cork.

*Take roses into the bathtub:
Make a relaxing and romantic rose bath by adding several drops of rose oil to a tub of warm water (do so just before you step in so that the essential oil won’t have time to evaporate) or by filling a small muslin bag with two ounces of dried rose petals and suspending it from the faucet so the water runs through it as the tub fills.
Make your rose bath even more luxurious by scattering fresh petals over the water’s surface.
You can also concoct a rose foaming bath oil by adding a tablespoon each of rose oil and unscented shampoo to a couple of ounces of vegetable oil and mixing well.

*Infuse your wardrobe with roses:
Sachets placed in dresser drawers and in closets will lend their scent to your clothing.
To make a simple rose sachet, follow the directions for rose potpourri, fill a small cloth bag with an ounce or two of potpourri, and fortify the scent by adding a few drops of rose oil.
Tie the sachet with a ribbon.