Bulgarian Roses and Rose Oil

“And the Soul of the Rose went into my Blood”

Since moving to Bulgaria I have become enamoured by the various rose oil products that are made here. I have particularly sensitive skin, and so it’s a real joy to find products that are so pure. The products are made locally using oil from the roses that grow in my valley.

We have become increasingly aware over this past decade that the purity of what we apply to our skin is as important as the purity of what we eat. The skin is our largest organ, and everything is ultimately absorbed into our blood stream. I find it very comforting, therefore, to know that the products I am applying to my skin are derived from the roses which grow in the fields surrounding my village. In English, the roses are known as Damask Roses, in Bulgarian, Damascena.

Rose Gold

Roses are perhaps the main economy in this part of Bulgaria. Pound for pound, the rose oil is more expensive than gold! It takes approximately 1500 roses to make just one milligram of oil – hence it is known as liquid gold. The roses have a fascinating history.

The roses are unlike anything we have in England (most of which have lost their scent in my experience). Not so here! In late May and early June the road leading to our village is heady with their scent. The villagers arise early to capture their aroma before the sun reaches it’s height. I am reliably informed that significantly more rose oil can be extracted before the sun is at full strength. The sacks are then taken by truck to a local distillation factory where the scent is extracted to produce both rose oil and rose water.

The Festival of the Roses

This is a yearly event which takes place in our nearest town of Karlovo. The celebrations bring visitors from as far away as Japan. The festival normally takes place the first weekend in June or the last weekend in May. It is a colourful, dynamic celebration of tradition, history, and the importance of the roses to our valley. It is a uniquely Bulgarian folk celebration!

Village celebrations

Closer to my heart, however, is our own smaller celebration which takes place in our village each year when the rose harvest ends. The field on the outskirts of the village hosts music, dancing, and a delicious barbecue.

The villagers gather for the celebration and all join hands to form an enormous ring. The speed of the dance accelerates as the night wineds on – until it becomes a frenzy of fast steps that baffle myself and my husband! And then come the fireworks! It is such a joy to be part of such a close knit community where no one feels left out or alone.

But, as I have mentioned elsewhere, this is not an isolated incident! Music and dancing are a big part of village life and take place most evenings in the summer months.

Products and Gifts

If you are visiting the area and looking for gifts, then you can’t do better than visiting the Rose Shop in the old part of Karlovo. I regularly purchase both day and night cream (the night cream costs less than four Euros) and is of a high quality. I also love the rose water, which is amazing for removing any residues of makeup. The hand cream in particular makes a great gift with the beautiful scent of roses for under one Euro.

The store also sells essential oil, not just of roses but other scents also. I have purchased a small diffuser which I use daily in the evenings to give our bedroom a lovely aroma of lavender before we retire. The lavender is also grown locally. We feel so blessed to live in such a wonderful region.

If you wish to sample products, then this is one of our local suppliers:

http://bulgarianrose.bg

Damascena Center

Not far from our home is an ethnographic center where one can not only sample the various rose products but also learn about the history of this region.

We visited on a crisp winters day with a real ‘nip’ in the air. We were greeted by a very enthusiastic and animated gateman who began to explain in avid detail the alluring history of the Thracian people who had settled here. This is a whole other post for another day, but the relevance to today’s post is that this site now also houses a rose oil distillery.

The roses grown here are Damascena roses. There are various stories relating to their arrival in Bulgaria .

Other Uses for Roses

The center comprises a very interesting open air museum; exotic wildlife; an amphitheater where various events take place; a collection of beautiful images and artefacts; the distillery itself,; and an amazing shop with all manner of rose oil products. There is also a brilliant restaurant where we purchased rose salad and rose cake – both delicious! You can also purchase rose tea 😊

Yes, in addition to providing amazing perfumes and cosmetics, roses provide a very delicious flavouring to food products! Who doesn’t remember the allure of the Turkish Delight in the Chronicles of Narnia? Inspired by our recent trip to the Damascena Centre, and armed with two large bottles of this elixir, I decided to try my own hand at this! Much nicer than store bought!

You can also buy rose tea – but we make our own. We have a couple of the prized rosebushes in our own garden and simply dry out the petals after washing them. This is just one of the teas that we preserve from our garden that remind us of summertime in winter 😊