The Rose Edit
Get ready for Valentine’s Day with Mother Nature’s most romantic bloom
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The Rose Edit
Get ready for Valentine’s Day with Mother Nature’s most romantic bloom
What comes to mind when you hear the word ‘rose’? Maybe it’s Shakespeare’s favourite one liner (“A rose by any other name…”). Or Valentine’s day - a lover waiting in anxious anticipation, clutching a bunch of blooms. Perhaps it’s the age old advice to stop and smell the roses, or the warning that every rose has its thorns. The list of references is endless - from sayings to songs to poetry. But roses also conjure a medicinal history. The flower has been used in beauty products and herbal remedies for many thousands of years, dating as far back as Ancient Egypt, when Cleopatra was said to use rose oil in her baths.
Unlike many industry trends, roses remain central in beauty culture today - both as an ingredient and an inspiration. The sweet, delicate fragrance is nature’s most timeless scent, and the healing properties are myriad. As you might wander through a lush rose garden, below we take a walk around the Liberty Beauty Hall to explore some of the products influenced by the queen of flowers.
Liberty LBTY. Wild Rosinda, £225
The most moody and mysterious of all the Liberty LBTY. fragrances, Wild Rosinda is based on the Decadent Blooms print, which itself was drawn from a painting unearthed in the Liberty archive. Perfumer Honorine Blanc focused on contrasting the intensity of a rose’s scent with its delicate nature, resulting in a fragrance that’s as innately glamorous and beguiling as the flower itself.
Shop nowChantecaille Rose de Mai Eye Lift, £134
National Geographic claims that “the historical figure most associated with rose water is Ibn-i Sina, also known as Avicenna, a groundbreaking physician and a fixture in Persian courts during the 10th century B.C,” who was known to use rose water to treat many different ailments. He would have loved Chantecaille’s Rose de Mai Eye Lift, a gel treatment enriched with a billion imperceptible microcapsules of oil, gently dispersed in rosa centifolia flower water.
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Bamford Rose Body Cream, £43
There’s nothing more indulgent than slathering yourself from top to toe in a rich, fragrant moisturiser - especially one that smells like the queen of flowers. Bamford’s rose body cream is inspired by the flowers growing in the walled garden at Daylesford House, where the brand is based. Containing notes of soothing chamomile and bright citrus, the cream is blended with argan oil and shea butter for a luxurious texture and deeply nourishing effect.
Shop nowLe Labo Rose 31 Eau de Parfum, £234
Another image associated with roses is the abundant flower fields of Grasse, France’s fragrance capital and the place where so many of their finest botanical ingredients are grown. Le Labo’s Rose 31 is based on these flowers, and captures the scent of roses wafting past on a warm Southern French breeze. Whilst florals are often stereotyped as a feminine scent, Rose 31 contains spicy and woody notes to ground the sweetness, making it a unisex fragrance.
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Diptyque Roses Candle, £168
Another French perfume house beloved for their treatment of roses is, of course, Diptyque. Their Roses scented candle comes in a handmade porcelain holder, an elegant addition to any home which can be reused once you’ve burned through the candle inside. Inspired by a bouquet of roses blooming in winter, this candle makes the perfect gift (for yourself, or someone else) as autumn draws near.
Shop nowVyrao Rose Marie Candle, £165
Founded by Yasmin Sewell, a former fashion buyer, Vyrao combines her impeccable taste with her spiritual side. Each fragrance is made from natural ingredients and infused with healing energy. The brand’s Rose Marie scented candle represents love and enlightenment, and incorporates notes of violet leaf (for self-expression), patchouli (for grounding) and guaiac wood (for energy clearing). With 90 hours burn time, this four-wicked candle provides endless hours of fragrant relaxation.
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Aesop Rose Hair and Scalp Moisturising Masque
Turns out your hair loves roses just as much as your skin and your home. Over the years, Australian brand Aesop have become as beloved for their natural, herbaceous skincare as they are for their stylish minimalist packaging. In this product, they’ve created an intensive hydrating masque made from rose petal extract, designed to soothe dry and flaky scalps and leave hair as soft and glossy as Mother Nature intended.
Shop nowDr Sebagh Rose de Vie Hydrating mask, £74
Harness the calming antioxidant properties of rose extract with Dr Sebagh’s hydrating mask. Like a rose, it’s gentle and soft, but also protective - think of the thorns on a rose’s stem, guarding the delicate bloom. The ingredients provide intense, long-lasting hydration, while protecting skin's natural barrier function. Like a freshly flowering rose, your skin will look fresh, luscious and rejuvenated.
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Matiere Premiere Radical Rose, £220
Despite all the rose-related adages, one word that probably doesn’t spring to mind is ‘radical’. Not unless you’re perfumer Aurélien Guichard, who has elevated the rose to new heights with this stunning homage in scent. “My idea was to make a fragrance where you could feel the texture of the Absolute of Rose Centifolia,” he says. Made with the brand’s own organic Absolute, the fragrance is floral, powerful yet modern.
Shop nowAstier de Villate painted rose pitcher, £531
Made in collaboration with decoupage designer John Derian, Astier de Villate’s handmade jug is completely unique - just like the flower that inspired it. Handmade in the brand’s Parisian workshop, the piece is imbued with the same gentle, uplifting energy as the flower itself, thanks to the brand’s romantic ethos. “We ask people to produce with a good spirit so the pieces look almost alive,” say founders Benoît Astier de Villatte and Ivan Pericoli.
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