Artist, Shelly Mortensen of "Flower Essence Watercolors" was kind enough to contribute her artistic research with three rose flower essences: Rosa 'Evelyn', Rosa 'Tiffany', and Rosa 'Y'ves Piaget'. She took the essences herself and also added the essences to her watercolor pigments with wonderful results. Enjoy as you view her beautiful watercolor paintings and read her comments below. The comments have been lightly edited. To read her full comments and view more of her beautiful paintings, visit her website: Flower Essence Art Rosaflora™ Flower Essence Research Project (Originally done under the auspices of Crystal Radiance)  Flower Essence Watercolor Impressions   'Evelyn' Rose Flower Essence: Immediately I began to notice a tell tale rose fragrance at certain locations. I started to look for the source. I checked all kinds of places. I smelled the essence bottle, I sniffed over by my orchids on the kicthen window sill, I pulled my top out and sniffed down it. No order of the rose there. Yet, it was there and very strong. Then I knew. It was coming from inside of me. Not the outside, like sweat of garlic order. But really just inside of me. It was the essence in my nose, brain, memory and my heart. I could feel it. Grace.  I have done a watercolor with Evelyn. There is a melancholy quality about it. Rich, deep and somewhat saddened, like bitter-sweet chocolate. Not a negative think, just present. Something to be acknowledged. It adds to its definitive beauty, like a blue moon. I have found Evelyn to be primarily about grace, quiet strength and acceptance. It teaches you discrimination where excesses are reviewed in a very calm, undisturbed but gentle way. It gives you the opportunity to gather yourself together... The color dulls out with Evelyn. It is not florescent coloring like some other essences. The orient, jewel colors came into mind, like an old oriental carpet. Nothing else would do, but ageless, timeless colors that lend comfort to the process.

'Tiffany' Rose Flower Essence: Tiffany is the first rose essence that has not dulled out or over-saturated the watercolor paper. Her color is about as true as any of the essences I have worked with so far. She allows you complete control and is very disciplined in her application. Because of the depiction I choose to use Tiffany for, I had to paint on a vertical plane, like any oil painter. The problem with that is water runs. This is why watercolorists work on a flat plane. Tiffany allowed this vertical work with no problems. The level on concentration and focus was more intense than anything I had ever experienced. Some times I can get away with a little daydreaming while working a painting but not with Tiffany on the scene. She wanted your full, complete, and dedicated concentration. It wore me out, but I was extremely satisfied with the results of the effort... The fact that I was painting, pleine aire, at The Lakes, which is Morris Grave’s Private Studio on his estate that he left as a Foundation in 2000 for artists, may have had something to do with it. I don’t know. I only know it was there for me and I consider this to be the culmination of all I have learned about watercolor work to date. The Panels, as I call them, are my masterpiece work.

'Y’ves Piaget' Rose Flower Essence One expects to be betrayed by a lover or a friend, but when a child betrays you, it really hurts. Maybe you deserved it, maybe you didn’t. Just trying to reconcile it is a killer. My heart is broken and can not be mended. Mothers and Sons..Damn the perfect Universe that brought me Y’ves Piaget rose essence. It is about releasing past grievances and grief. It is the clearinghouse of that which you wish to deny.   Bears!!! Why did I keep on having actual Bear sightings and encounters? Sure I live in bear country but I never saw four different bears in 30 days or heard about bear encounters from so many others. I was on the trail again for surely, this was a sign of the Divine. It was time to connect the dots.  I went to the Trinity Tribal Stomp in isolated Hayfork, Ca. I felt, instinctually, that in order to solve the mystery of the bears, I needed mountains, sunsets and three days of music, dancing and more dancing. This festival had it all.  The first night sunset was okay but did not produce any connections for me. As I watched the sky darken on the second night I realized that it was not the sunset but the stars I was interested in. I saw the Big Dipper and felt a truth. As soon as I got home I looked up Ursa Major. It was the Great Mother BEAR!!   Ursa Major includes the Big Dipper; the only constellation I can recognize in the sky as it is the best-known group of stars. When Zeus fell in love with Callisto, his jealous wife changed Callisto into a bear. Ursa Minor is the little bear. Callisto and Zeus had a son, whom Zeus changed into a bear and put in the sky. Ursa Minor is also called the Little Dipper. It includes Polaris, the North Star.  Well, there could be no doubt now. I had to paint this image and deal with my betrayed mommy stuff. All those stars are my 1,000 tears that fell on the paper as I worked. I have to wash away the grief and sorrow and move ahead in my relationship with my son. Seeing my love for my son in long strides instead of short terms. After all, he is just a huMAN and I will forever and always be his mom.  ABOUT THE ARTIST: Shelly Mortensen resides at Stone Lagoon in Humboldt County. She is one of the California Redwood Coast's leading watercolorists and a Certified Rosaflora Flower Essence Practitioner. See her website, www.floweressenceart.com Contact her at shellart95570@yahoo.com. Rosaflora Flower Essences Rosaflora Botanicals P.O. Box 91104 Pittsburgh, PA 15221 412.244.7788 info@rosaflora.net