Medieval lotions and handcreams. recipes.
NOTE: See also the files: Handcream-art, perfumes-msg, cosmetics-msg, soap-msg, hair-msg, jewelry-msg, p-medicine-msg, gloves-msg, bathing-msg, mirrors-msg.
peels and clover, and add other essential oils as per your own desires.
Balsam,M.S. and Sagarin,Edward,eds. "Cosmetics:Science and Technology"
Corson,Richard "Fashions in Makeup,from Ancient to Modern Times"
It was actually pretty easy, although the stirring takes a long time.
At last, a question I know I can answer!
the oil is steeped in fresh roses, and rosewater is used to "whiten"
and mix the oil and wax together.
loose crockery lid, for a week, or place the jar in a pan of hot water.
and a little white vinegar.
To make Oyl of roses.
making Oyl of all other Herbs.
20s and have your skin still look good 50 years later?
smooth skin which I'm not planning to try!
I was taught this recipe orally by Jeannine Vannais, who used to run the herbal programs and gardens at Pennsbury Manor. This is the recreation of William Penn's country home in Bucks County, Pa., dating from the late 1680s. I believe this recipe came from Hannah Penn's receipt book, which Pennsbury has copies of (I think the original is kept at the state historical society in Pittsburgh).
To create the infused oil, take fresh roses, of the more fragranced variety (damask, Tudor, apothecary roses, or even a really fragrant tea rose). Take your roses, put a layer in a ceramic crock, cover with mild almond or olive oil, add more roses, cover with more oil, etc., until the crock is full. Sit the crock out in the sun for a few days to a week. Then strain the glop through a linen bag; suspend the bag from a hook above a bowl, and once it stops dripping, squeeze it to get the last of the oil out. This is messy, but leaves your hands nice and soft <g>.
You'll get a fairly large amount of oil out of this; put it in brown glass bottles and if you're not using it right away, stick it in your refrigerator.
Take about a cup of the oil, and set it to warm in a double boiler. Use an enameled pot rather than steel or aluminum. Put in the oil 2 ounces or so of beeswax. White refined beeswax gives a whiter cream, but the yellow beeswax smells better, in my opinion, plus it's more period. Keep the heat on the double boiler low, you don't want the oil to bubble or scorch. Keep in mind the more beeswax you use, the stiffer your cream will be. I found about two-three ounces works pretty well. Once the beeswax has just melted into the oil, take the mixture and pour it into a metal or ceramic bowl whose bottom is set into another bowl partly filled with cold water. Then take your rosewater and pour it in a steady stream into the oil/wax mixture, mixing it briskly with a whisk or a small rubber spatula. The cream will solidify and turn whitish as the rosewater is added to it. When the cream is the thickness or thinness you desire, stop adding rosewater.
Add your essential oils to taste, mixing thoroughly. I added five drops of lavender oil, three drops of rosemary, and 13 drops of orange blossom. If you were to use it on your face, I would use rosemary and thyme, or leave it unscented. When I did this with Jeannine, we left it unscented.
Store this cream in a cool place, in brown glass jars or ceramic jars; I have some at work in a little jar on my desk.
> I would love to see those recipes you used! They sound heavenly!
<<< I'm looking for a period citation or recipes of beeswax/oil/rosewater creams. I just made up a batch from a 17th century recipe (with addition scents of lavender, rosemary, and orange blossom essential oils). I used yellow beeswax, olive oil I had steeped with Tudor and damask roses, and Turkish rosewater. I now have two jars of cream that I probably would have had to pay Burt's Bees $20 each, LOL Now that I've figured out how easy it is to do this, I am making my own stuff from now on!