pot pourri..

now is the time to start gathering flower heads etc for making pot pourri..
Basic Potpourri Recipe
Instructions:


Choosing the botanicals:
Decide on a color scheme. It can be very natural and earthy looking or very brilliant. It can be made with 2 colors or many colors. It can be simple white and gold. Or, if you have a fragrance in mind, you may want to pick colors that seem to go with the fragrance. For example, vanilla Ã?¢ââ??‰â?¬Å? you immediately think of whites and natural colors not bright orange. Or Holiday Spice, reminds you of warm reds, oranges, greens and browns perhaps but not navy blue.

Once you've decided on your colors, you want to decide which color or colors will be most predominant. Pick a botanical or a few botanicals in that color. It helps to pick a variety of sizes or textures. For instance, if you want the base color to be white, you can choose white globe amaranths and white angel wings which are different in size, shape and texture.

Then start choosing botanicals and spices and dried fruits from your other color groups. Remember to pick various shapes and sizes. For instance, if you are choosing browns, you will want to choose from a variety of cones, cinnamon sticks, nuts, pods etc. You may wish to add a highlight to your mix such as gold, or white or black or any other contrasting color. Choose a botanical that is bold and large like pomegranates or orange slices or gold amra nuts. You will only need a few pieces of this item.

Choose an appropriate fragrance (if you started with a fragrance in mind you are ready to start mixing).

Putting it together:
Place your base color botanical in a large mixing container or bucket. If you are using more than one botanical for the predominant color, combine them one at a time, cup by cup, until you are pleased with the overall texture. Make a note of how many cups of each botanical you used so you can adjust the proportions as you go and be able to reproduce the mix again later.

Start adding the botanicals from your other color groups one at a time making sure to record how many cups of each you used. Do not add the highlight botanical pieces yet ( you will want to add these after you have packaged your potpourri so that they stand out). If it seems like you base color got overwhelmed by the colors, go back and add more of the base color botanicals to bring it back in balance. Once you like the proportions of your botanicals you are ready to add the fragrance.

The easiest easy way to add scent to the botanicals is to use a spray bottle and to mix the botanicals as you spray them with essential or fragrance oil.

Allow the oil to soak in. Mix well without crushing the botanicals making sure that there are no pools of oil anywhere. Now you are ready to package your potpourri.

Package your potpourri in cello bags, clear acetate boxes, glass apothecary jars or anything else that will show off the blend. Cello bags are a nice inexpensive way to package potpourri. A wide ribbon in one of your colors can be used to tie off the bag. Cardboard boxes with clear acetate covers are nice too and can be found at most packaging supplies. Ribbons or natural raffia ties are a nice touch. Before sealing the package add the highlight pieces one by one so they stand out where they can be seen against the packaging.