Hydrosols have been gaining importance in skincare, haircare and aromatherapy a lot as people are getting more and more into plant based beauty and wellness rituals. We have received numerous questions from customers asking “What is a Hydrosol” so I am finally writing down this detailed article which will explain you what are hydrosols, how are they made, multiple uses of hydrosols and how to spot fake hydrosols in the market.
How are hydrosols made?
Let’s quickly go through the step by step process of the making of hydrosols.
- Pure water is placed in the still
- The plant material is placed in the water (hydro-distillation), above the water (steam distillation), or both (combo hydro/steam distillation)
- The water boils, heats the plant material, the secretory sacs break open in the botanical
- The steam then carries the essential oil molecules up and into the condenser
- In the condenser coils, the steam is cooled back to the water state and out comes the distillate
- The distillate is collected in a separate jar where you get both essential oil and hydrosol. The essential oil floats on the and the water below is the hydrosol- which sometimes can have few essential oil droplets dispersed in it.
Isn’t it magical that the distillation process transforms fresh plant material into a “botanical” water that contains the water-soluble therapeutic properties of the plant that are not present in the essential oil. In earlier days, people used to throw away the hydrosol after making the essential oil. Even the farmer from whom we get our Lemongrass hydrosol used to do that. Now, we buy the hydrosol from him and make this pure botanical water reach to you guys.
