advertisement

Follow Mint Lounge

Latest Issue

Home > Fashion> Trends > Creating scents of a spring breeze

Creating scents of a spring breeze

In the latest DIY Upcycle Project, florist Nazneen Jehangir tells us how to convert dried flowers into a linen spray

Nazneen Jehangir, founder of Mumbai’s luxury floral boutique Libellule Florals.
Nazneen Jehangir, founder of Mumbai’s luxury floral boutique Libellule Florals. (Libellule Florals)

Nazneen Jehangir grew up watching her grandmother wake up every morning and boil flowers with water and cinnamon. Once the mixture reduced to a quarter, she would pour a few drops in the water used for ironing clothes. “There was always a little bottle next to the ironing table filled with all kinds of flowers. She learnt the spray trick from her sister,” recalls Jehangir, founder of Mumbai’s luxury floral boutique Libellule Florals.

Jehangir continued the family tradition, experimenting with flowers to create her own linen spray. Her current favourite includes mint-infused water with a dash of lemon zest and some lavender. Stuck in Alibaug, Maharashtra, for eight months during the pandemic, the 46-year-old started experimenting with the perennial flowers she found during her morning runs. “I started fiddling around, drying bougainvillea, lantana,” she says. That’s when she discovered the power of wild flowers.

Now, her decade-old brand offers a wide range of dried flower bouquets—think cockscomb, casuarina, lantana berries. “They are now our hot-selling products because of the wow factor, as well as from the sustainability perspective,” explains Jehangir. “People want to be green in every aspect of their lives, even when gifting flowers.”

She adds that the use of dried flowers, wild or not, is not just restricted to bouquets. She has experimented enough with them for her personal linen sprays to encourage others to use flowers for more than just decoration.


A mist for your clothes

Step 1
Step 1

Step 1: Take half a handful of any dried or half-dried flower petals and infuse them in three-fourths cup of hot water

Step 2.
Step 2.

Step 2: Add grapefruit and lime peel for a soft citrusy fragrance and leave it overnight

Step 3.
Step 3.

Step 3: The next day, remove the petals/peels and place the liquid in your spritzer bottle with cool water

Step 4.
Step 4.

Step 4: Add a splash of vodka or two tablespoons of real vanilla extract and five drops of your preferred essential oil and give it a good shake (the vodka/vanilla extract help combine all the elements so the water and oils don’t separate).

Your linen spray is ready.

Next Story