The Beauty of the Sola Flower
The Sola flower is a staple at Aronica. You may be wondering why did Aronica choose Sola flowers above all others as their signature diffuser? The short answer is that it is one of the most effective diffusers. The longer (and better) answer is that due to its history, impeccable craftsmanship and natural properties it is one of the best diffusers on the market.
The sola flower is made of the sola pith plant, which is typically found in South Asia. Countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan boast some of the largest populations of this plant. The scientific name of the shola plant is Aeschynomene Aspera and it thrives in warm, swampy areas. It grows about six-feet tall when mature. It is a very leafy plant but only the stalk of this is used to make paper products.
Originally the Solapith was seen as a weed depriving rice paddies from the moisture they need. However, the citizens who lived around the swamps soon discovered the woody stem of sola was perfect to create artistic pieces. They started creating Hindu idols and artistic objects like the Bengali Topor traditionally worn at weddings (see below). In West Bengal artisans who use the Sholapith plant are known as “Malakar” because of the garland flowers they make with the stem.
Solapith sculpture of Ganathi, a Hindu God (left) Tolor Wedding Headpiece (right)
To create the Sola flower the Sholapith plant first has to be harvested and then left in the sun to cry for 3-4 days. Once dry and slightly brittle it is ready to be cut and shaped into a floral design. The dry paper is rolled several times over and then cut and shape. Click here to see a video of sola flower making. It was not long before the rest of the world discovered the beauty of the Sola plant. It was used to make hats, statues, wedding bouquets and of course became the star of the flower diffuser.
The petals of the Sola flower are effective in fragrance diffusion by providing a greater evaporation surface than other diffusing materials like reed sticks. Even a small sola flower diffuser can comfortably cover a larger space. You can control the level of fragrance diffusion by adding or removing sola flowers and/or reeds.
The Sola flowers will rapidly absorb the fragrance from the container until it is soaked which may appear to be running fast. Then, the petals will diffuse fragrance into the air through evaporation. The speed of evaporation depends on environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity. Since the wooden petals can hold the fragrance, you can still enjoy the fragrance for some time after the bottle becomes empty.
We have worked hard to employ a simple and effective diffuser to our products and most importantly a high-quality diffuser. Check out the video below on how to set up your Aronica Diffuser.
CREDITS
Sholapith Craft Documentation by Sahaj Khetrapal, link https://issuu.com/sahajkhetrapal/docs/upload
Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sholapith
Useful Tropical Plants http://tropical.theferns.info/viewtropical.php?id=Aeschynomene+aspera