Perfumed Waters. — A substitute for rose water and other distilled waters may be quickly prepared by dropping the essential oil or attar of rose or other substances into distilled boiling water. The water should be taken off the fire at a boil, the oil dropped in, and stirred vigorously while cooling.
Rose Water.—Dissolve 1 dram of attar of rose, or a proportionate quantity of other essential oils, in 1 pint of rectified spirits; while hot place in a 2-gallon jug and add 1/ gallons of pure distilled water, heated, but not quite to the boiling point—say 190°. Cork the jug and shake, cautiously at first but thor oughly afterwards, until cold. This form of rose water will be found equal to the commercial article.
Or drop 12 drops of attar of rose on a half ounce of cube sugar. Add 2 drams of carbonate of magnesia. Put in a fruit jar and pour in gradu ally 1 quart of water, stirring brisk ly. Add 2 ounces of rectified spirits. Place a funnel of filtering paper in another fruit jar, and pour through the funnel to filter. The effect of the magnesia is to break up the oil glob ules and assist 114 forming an emul sion with water. The magnesia is removed by filtering. Other per fumed waters may be prepared in a similar manner.
Violet Water.—Put 1 pint of alco hol or proof spirits in a quart fruit jar. Add 1 pound of orris root, cover, and shake. Let stand on the dregs for a week or 10 days. Filter through filter paper to remove the orris root.
Or mix deodorized alcohol, 15 ounces; rose water, 2 ounces; extract of cassia, 1 ounce; and extract of violet, 0 ounces. Mix, shake, and filter.
Or mix 1 pint of alcohol and 1 ounce each of neroli and essence of violets.
Lavender Water.—A favorite arti cle for the toilet is the oil of lavender diluted with rectified alcohol, to which various other perfumes may be added according to taste. To pre pare lavender water, it is only neces sary to first mix the oil of lavender and other essential oils (if any) with a little of the alcohol; then add the remaining alcohol in a thin stream, stirring constantly. Finally stir in the other ingredients. The whole should be placed in a glass fruit jar with rubber rings, or other closely stoppered vessel, and allowed to stand for several months before using. It should be shaken frequently. The longer it can be allowed to stand before being opened the better the quality will be. The English oil of lavender is the best.
Other perfumed toilet waters may be prepared by substituting any of the essential oils, according to taste, in the following table.
Perfumed Toilet Waters. — The number of possible combinations of perfumes diluted with distilled or soft water, which form the perfumed toilet waters of commerce, is, of course, unlimited. The following ex amples illustrate the method of com bining these, and may be recom mended to be as desirable as any: Put in a pint glass bottle or fruit jar ounce of oil of rosemary and 1 dram of essence of ambergris; add 1 pint of 95 per cent alcohol. Shake
well, remove the cork, and let stand 04 hours. Then cork tightly and let stand a month or 6 weeks, shaking frequently, after which put in a tightly stoppered bottle until ready for use. This is the well-known " Hungary water." Or put in a 2-quart fruit jar 1 ounce of oil of bergamot, ounce of tincture of benzoin, 1 dram of oil of cinnamon, and cover with 1 quart of 95 per cent alcohol. Let stand a month or 6 weeks, shake frequently, filter, and put in a tightly stoppered glass bottle. This is a standard recipe for " Florida water." Or, for a cheaper grade of " Flor ida water," put in a 2-quart fruit jar / ounce of oil of bergamot, ounce of lavender. Cover this with 1 pint of oil of lemon, and / ounce of oil of 95 per cent alcohol. Shake well and add dram each of oil of cloves and oil of cinnamon. Let stand 24 hours, add 1 quart of pure soft or distilled water, filter, and bottle for use.
Or, for a simple " Florida water," put in a corked fruit jar / ounce of oil of bergamot, / ounce of tincture of benzoin, and / pint of 95 per cent alcohol. Dilute with pure soft or distilled water to the extent desired.
Or, to illustrate the great variety of ingredients that may be employed in this manner, the following recipes will be stated without comment. Any of these, while more expensive than the above, will be found to be of most excellent quality.
Mix pint of tincture of cedar wood, / pint of tincture of myrrh, and / pint of tincture of krameria, and add 6 drops of oil of rose.
Or put in a glass fruit jar 1 dram each of oils of lemon, lavender, and bergamot, dram of oil of neroli, dram of tincture of turmeric, 16 drops of oil of balm, and 6 drops of attar of rose. Cover with 1 pint of pure alcohol and let stand a week or 10 days, shaking frequently.
Or mix pint each of the essence of rose, jasmine, orange flower, and clove gillyflower. Add 1 pint of de odorized alcohol, I ounce each of es sence of vanilla and musk, i ounce of red sanderswood, and pint each of orange-flower water and rose water.
Or put in a 2-quart fruit jar / ounce each of essence of cloves and balsam of Peru, ounce each of musk and bergamot, / ounce each of essence of neroli and thyme, and / pint of orange-flower water, and pour over all 1 quart of deodorized 95 per cent alcohol. This is the so called " balsam of a thousand flow ers." Or mix 2 ounces each of extract of violet, orange flower, and tuberose, I ounce of tincture of musk, 1 dram of essence of cedrat, 6 drops of attar of rose, / dram of oil of bitter alm onds, and 1 ounce each of rose wa ter and orange-flower water. Cover all with 1 pints of deodorized 95 per cent alcohol, and let stand a week or 10 days, shaking frequently, after which filter and preserve in tightly stoppered bottles.