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Petaling the House
The Art of Growing Roses
By Verna Gates
es through full bloom. Pick the petals before they wilt. Shake the petals gently to let any lady bugs fly away home. Eight to 12 blooms will make 4 cups of rose petals. (Use as many cups of petals as possible to make more beads. Just add a tablespoon of water for every cup of petals.)
Put your rose petals in the sink, and spray them gently with water to clean them. Shake off excess water.
Place 2 inches of petals in the bottom of a blender. Pour in 1/4 cup of water, more if your blender has trouble chopping. Blend well. Stop the blender and add another cup of petals and a tablespoon of water. Blend. Repeat until all the petals are thoroughly blended. It should take 1/2 cup of water for 4 cups of petals. If your blender has trouble blending, add extra water by the tablespoon. The less water, the better.
Try adding one color of flower at a time and watch the mixture change colors. In the end, it will probably be a pinkish color the texture of corn meal. It may be a little watery.
Spread the petal mixture into an iron skillet. Watch for a chemical reaction as the iron turns the mixture black. A new skillet will turn the mixture black quickly; older ones take longer. Store in a cool, dry place, out of sunlight.
For three days, refine the mixture. Pour it into the blender and mix for about three minutes. If necessary to blend, add a tablespoon of water, but try to avoid adding more water. Pour back into the skillet.
For the next seven days, the mixture needs to dry and thicken. Do not let mold form on your petal mixture – stir twice a day at least.
Starting on the seventh day, test for thickness. Take a palm-sized amount, and try to roll it into a ball. When the ball holds firm, you are ready to make beads. Your dough should be a rich black.
Soak straight pins in baby or cooking oil. Set out a cardboard "pincushion" to hold your beads. Use the rest of the cardboard for a rolling mat. The black dough will come off on your hands and clothes! So be careful.
Now create! Roll round beads or oblongs. Form squares or triangles, or make figures. Remember, as your beads dry, they will shrink to about half their original size.
Take greased pins and press them through your beads where you want the stringing holes to go. Stick the loaded pins into the cardboard. Let the beads dry for three to five days. The pins should slip off easily. String with thread or stringing wire.
Mix your black rose beads with colorful beads or pearls. Use gold or silver caps for elegance. The rose scent will stay for about five years. A drop of rose oil will bring that lovely aroma right back.
