Faded Roses

My husband loves to grow roses for me.  It's truly a labor of love. He cuts them and brings them in to the kitchen and places them in a water glass.  Never a vase- just a water glass.  That's his ritual!
My ritual  is to take them out of the water glass and arrange them in a beautiful container.  The container choice varies depending on my mood.   But no matter what I put them in,  I enjoy them in perfect bloom and love them even more as they begin to fade.  It's hard to throw them away!

Fresh from the garden and arranged in a laboratory beaker.

The chilly days of autumn have arrived and the garden roses will soon be done for the season.

 Perfect petals at their peak-

 

But even when they fade, they are still beautiful.

 The colors seem to deepen as they fade away-

 

 

I save some of the perfectly   dried roses and place them in small cordials on the kitchen table.

 

A French rose scented candle adds the sweet rose smell that the dried roses are missing.

 A fresh rose is iced with sugar and dried in the oven.

 It's a pretty  garnish on blood orange and vanilla breakfast crepes.

Rose scented soap will have to substitute for  the scent of fresh roses this winter.

 



 

The hand painted rose sugar bowl reminds me of our rose garden all winter.

 

Yes, it is getting cold outside and they are fading even faster-

 

I will hurry and sugar a few more roses  before the first frost.

The sugar coated petals are beautiful garnishes and keep a long time in an air tight container.

 

I brushed the petals with a  glue of lightly beaten egg white and a dash of water. Then you dust them with sugar and dry them in the oven at 150 degrees for about 45 minutes.  Make sure they are completely dry before storing in an air tight container.

 

 Faded yes- but still gorgeous!