R is for.....

Hi everyone. Hope you all had a very good Bank Holiday. I certainly did, it was my birthday and I was taken to London where I saw Phantom of the Opera one night with my youngest daughter as we very nearly share birth dates and then dear hubby joined me and took me to Les Miserables! Woohoo, who was spoilt rotten? I absolutely had the time of my life. Managed to make my tag on my return and chose Rose essential oil, as it makes you feel so feminine and happy which suits my mood exactly, even if there is another year on my age!

Rose oil is very expensive as it is an absolute and the oil is taken from the petals like Neroli and Jasmine that came earlier in my tags. It is invaluable for all types of gynaecological problems, menstrual and menopausal problems, good for reducing and fading spider veins, lovely at times of emotional or physical upheaval and balances negative emotions such as fear and anxiety. In Bulgaria the rose Rosa damascena begins to bloom around the third week of May for about three to four weeks and the petals are collected usually by hand around sunrise when the oil yield will be highest. Doesn't that conjour up a lovely picture! 4,000 kilos of petals will usually yield about a kilo of oil, hence the price. I have tried to make my tag as feminine as possible to reflect the qualities of the oil.



I used distress paint in pinks and gold for the background and then  embossed it with tiny roses and added a rose border at the bottom and a cut out R. The paper roses were coloured with vaious pink inks and I die cut a swirl in green. The image of the lady I had in my stash and I framed her in a Tim Holtz metal wotsit, (I never can remember what he calls them) that I distressed with more paint. Then I dyed a piece of lace to finish the bottom and tied pieces of sari ribbon with some threaded beads at the top. I shall go and enjoy your lovely tags asap, hope you are all having a creative week, love Barb. x