Last week (just before the plague hit) I finished woodburning the top of our family altar. A friend made the solid pine piece as a handfasting gift to us. I struggled for a long time with what I wanted on it and I decided in the end that simple was best. The wood still needs to be finished. I am going to do that this summer with tung oil.

Up until last week, I was certain I was going to do my full personal symbol on it. Now I think I am going to leave it as is and engrave the central moon triquetra on that glass disk That will have to wait till after the move though. Tonight we are taking the altar over to our new home and doing a small house blessing ritual, so I am glad I finished it.

Brightly burns our fire tonight.
Magic dances with candlelight.

Hold my hand and join in song.
Raise the Sun King bright and strong!

Dark is giving way to light.
Brightly burns the fire tonight.

Winter Solstice is the shortest day and longest night of the year. It falls around December 21st of each year. It is a festival day in many cultures often calling for bright lights and fires, freshly cut evergreens, feasting with loved ones and singing and dancing. These festivities serve to rekindle the human spirit in the heart of winter.

In many modern Pagan traditions, Winter Solstice, is a celebration of the rebirth of the sun. Many still hold vigils awaiting the dawn, heralding the sun as the God reborn from the sacred womb of the Goddess. In other traditions a great battle is waged between the Oak King and Holly King where the Oak King triumphs returning to the world to longer warmer days.

It is a near certainty that Winter Solstice was of significant importance to ancient people, especially Proto-Celtic tribes. The evidence of this is obvious in the layouts of the stone monuments of New Grange in Ireland and Stonehenge in Britain. Each of these sites was carefully built to line up with the solstice sunrise. It can be suggested that the marking of midwinter was important for ancient communities because the people needed an approximate idea of how long their stored provisions had to last.

The most common alternate name for Winter Solstice is Yule a term originating from ancient Norse and Germanic tribes. It began as a celebration marking a 60 day time beginning at the lunar midwinter, but by the late Viking Age, it had become a great solstitial midwinter festival that amalgamated the traditions of various midwinter celebrations across Europe. On the the eve of Yule a huge log was lit in honor Thor, god of thunder, and feasting would continue until it burned out, which could be up to twelve days! A portion of the log was saved to be used in the lighting of the next year’s log.

Winter Solstice, as with many sabbats, has been incorporated into other religious celebrations. Most notably, it shares it’s place in the wheel of the year with the Christian religious observance of Christmas, which celebrates the birth of Jesus. Many of the traditions common throughout the Christian season correlate to ancient Pagan traditions. There is nothing wrong with this mixing of traditions of course, if anything it reflects how interrelated belief systems can be. Many of the most prevalent traditions celebrated by modern western culture today are echoes of ancient practices.

Santa is an example of a mix of new and old. Many parallels can be seen between Santa and the Germanic god Odin. There are legends that tell of Odin leading a hunting party through the sky on the solstice. He rode upon an eight-legged horse named Sleipnir who could leap great distances, which can be compared to Santa’s reindeer flying through the night. On the eve of the solstice, children would place their boots by the chimney filled with offerings for Sliepnir (carrots, straw or sugar.) In thanks Odin would leave them candy and small gifts.

The tradition of leaving out boots on Yule survived the Christianization of Germanic culture and Odin’s deeds might have become mixed with the legend of Saint Nicholas. Over time These men became Santa and those boots by the chimney became the stockings hanging from the mantle. I have heard that the Goddess Freya rose through the sky in a chariot pulled by stags and gave gifts for the 12 days after the solstice, but I have not been able to find too much information about this. If it is true though, it explains the sleigh with reindeer!

Since a large part of my spiritual practice involves honoring the ancestors I like to take a few moments on the solstice to remember what it must have been like for them. Winter was the season of death, a time for the earth to rest, renewing itself for the birth of Spring. Being in tune with the rhythms of the land, our ancestors would have known that despite the darkness, soon the light would return to the earth, bringing with it life. I can see why the Winter Solstice was so important. It welcomed back the much needed Sun.

To me, Winter Solstice heralds the returning sun as an eternal spirit and light brining. The returning sun reminds us to love our life passionately and to to reawakening our goals that may have been dampened by the long nights. It is a reminder that we too can be light bringers.

Winter Solstice calls us to come together on this longest night and bring with us light in the form of love, peace and joy. This is a light that we can share with each other and send out into the world. The choices that we make every day, as humans, as multi-faceted beings of this universe, should come from open minds and hearts. With this kind of devotion to the betterment of ourselves and each other, I believe we can accomplish anything.

Winter Solstice: in our home

(This is from a page in my BoS where I list family activities, crafts, home and altar decorations and other miscellaneous ideas.)

Activities:

• Cookie Plates for Friends
• Dawn Vigil Ritual
• Decorating Tree
• Gift Exchange
• Holiday Light Drive

Crafts:

• Bread Making
• Cookies
• Gingerbread Houses
• Natural Ornaments
• Paper Snowflakes (flat and 3D)
• Pomanders
• Popcorn garlands

Decorations:

• Bells
• Evergreen
• Lights
• Mistletoe
• Seasonal flowers and foods
• Stockings
• Suns
• Winter Solstice Candles
• Yule Tree

Winter Solstice: the feast

We have a larger gathering at our home every year. Sometimes we have a group ritual, sometimes not, but we always have much fun and laughter. I always make a pot roast, but this year I also made the Layered Vegetarian Casserole that I make at Autumn Equinox for our vegetarian friends. I always try to focus on making my meals as local as possible, as to best honor Old Wild Mama Earth. Sometimes I make more side dishes, sometimes our guests bring them to add to the table. (My friend Andrea helped me with quite a lot of tips, as well as a gravy lesson in this kitchen with year. Thank you!) This year’s meal prayer is a bit of a combination of several wonderful ones I have come across recently.

Tonight is the night of the Solstice,
the longest night of the year.
The Wheel turns and the days will brighten
Bringing renewed life to the Earth.

May hands will work for peace and justice,
May hands will work to heal the land.

For the food that stays our hunger,
For the rest that brings us ease,
For friends and memories that linger,
We give our thanks for these.

BREAD: Snowflake Pretzels

–

DRINKS

• Egg Nog: I buy this.
• Mulled Cider: To make this, I pour a gallon or two of cider in a big enamel pot on the morning of our gathering. I sprinkle in a healthy amount of spices (I use a mix of cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves) and set the pot on the stove, cover it and and turn the stove on low and just leave it. It makes the house smell sooooo nice all day. You can also add cranberry juice to change things up a bit or make it in the crockpot.
• Wine: We buy ours locally in Greenbluff, we can also get hard cider this time of year. This year we got a white wine infused with cranberry and spices.

–

MAIN DISH: Pot Roast

• 5lb chuck roast (this fed about 9 people with a little leftover)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Italian Seasoning (I make my own mix.)
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 tsp pepper (I love pepper.)
• 1 cup apple cider
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp cornstarch

Heat a cast iron skilled on medium high. Mix together oil, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Rub all over chuck roast. Sear the roast on all sides. Put in 5-6 quart crockpot. (You could put potatoes, carrots or onions under it if you like, I prefer to roast them seperately.) Pour cider and Worcestershire sauce in.

Cover crockpot and cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 5 to 6 hours, until beef is tender. (My current crockpot seems to get warmer and cook faster then my last one, so give yourself some extra time.)

To make gravy: Put some of the broth from the crockpot to a small saucepan over medium heat. In another small bowl whisk together cornstarch with a little broth to get out the lumps. Add to saucepan and whisk until mixture begins to thicken. (I think I remembered how to do that properly…)

Serves 8-10.

–

SIDE DISH: Maple Yams
(Yams are not local, they are the tuber of a tropical vine. Did you know they can grow 7 feet long?! But, well, I adore yams…)

• 5 sweet potatoes (I used yams, not local, but I adore yams…)
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 or 3 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 400F.

Poke some holes in the yams and place them in a shallow roast pan (or lipped cookie sheet.) Roast them until they are very soft (and hour or two.) Yams tend to get really stick when they cook, so line your pan with aluminium foil, it makes cleanup way easier.

When your yams are cool enough to handle you can just peel the skins off with your hands. Put in a dish with butter and maple syrup. Mash together (with a potato masher, or fork, or hands, or mixer, or whatever makes you happy.)

Serves 8-10.

–

DESSERT: Pumpkin Roll
You can totally do this with homemade pumpkin puree.

It is winter.
It is night.

We await the sun.
We await the light.

In this darkness.
In this night.

We await the warmth.
We await the light.

And the Sun, he rises.

My handmade mala beads, stained yellow with turmeric and individually polished with beeswax. A labor of love which I use everyday.

Me in my Green Man costume Mommy made me for trick or treating!

We had so much fun on Samhain. We went trick or treating with Shannon and her daughter Rachelle (who was Hannah Montana.) Mommy made me a Green Man costume. It was really fun to yank on the felt leaves she stuck all over my shirt.

On Saturday we had a bunch of people over for a feast (I tried some carrots for the first time and spit them EVERYWHERE! Ewww, I don’t want solid food yet.) We set a plate of food for the ancestors on the altar. I love crawling across the floor to the altar and trying to pull the cloth off of it.

Oh ya, I am CRAWLING now. I can get across the living room in about 6 minutes, sooo fun but exhausting. I want boob twice as much now that I am burning the baby calories.

On Sunday we made a dreamboard with Mommy and Daddy’s goals and dreams for the next year. I tried to grab the pictures to help place them but Mommy wouldn’t let me, something about me slobbering all over them. Oh well!

Today my Goddessmother is coming over to take care of me while Mommy is in the dentist. I’m excited about seeing her. Mommy doesn’t seem so thrilled about the dentist though.

The Festival of Samhain was an ancient Celtic festival, falling on October 31st. A day which also marks Catholic All-Souls-Day and the secular Halloween, both strongly colored by the Celtic festival. Unlike most of the other sabbats, Samhain is not dictated by astrological events and therefor always falls on October 31st. Beltane is it’s counterpart laying directly opposite to Samhain in the Wheel of the year.

Samhain marks the end of the planted harvest and the beginning of the meat harvest. In days long past this time was vital, with the first snows nearing it was time to cull the herds and preserve their meat for Winter; without which the communities survival would be in question. Our ancestors knew this and so lived in harmony and with intuitive knowledge of the weather and changing seasons.

The Celtic year was split into two parts, and Samhain marks the start of the dark half, or Winter, which will transition into summer at Beltane. Now is the time for Old Wild Mother Earth to slip into a deep slumber, there she will gather strength till the Spring planting. This rest period is important, if not vital, not only for Her but also as a lesson to us. We must all take a break from time to time, as to regain our energy. With our renewed energy, the fruits of our labor will be even better.

Historically Samhain was an important festival celebrated for three days in the royal court in Tara (in modern day Ireland.) All hearth fires were extinguished and a ritual fire was started on the Hill of Tara, signaling people to gathered on hilltops all across Ireland and light community bonfires. Sometimes two bonfires were lit and people and livestock passed between then in a purification and protection rite. At the end of the Samhain celebrations a burning ember was taken home by each family to relight their own hearth fires. This was a common flame binding together the entire community.

Beyond being associated with the harvest, Samhain was a sacred time to the Celts. In their lore, on Samhain eve the veil between the worlds grows especially thin. This was a particularly powerful time for the spirits of the dead could interact with the living. Because of this many forms of divination were often done on this night and of course a variety of rituals were done to appease or welcome one’s ancestors. Burial cairns were often opened in villages and torches were used to light the path out so the dead could safely navigate their way into the world of the living. Candles are set in the windows to guide spirits safely to the house. The dumb supper was another common tradition, this is when an extra place is set at the table in honor of one’s ancestors and more recent deceased loved ones. Sometimes apples were buried in the Earth to nourish those who have died but chosen not to rise.

The origin of the Jack-O-Lantern comes from these days long past as well (though back then it was a turnip) it was a light to guide the beloved dead, the scary face was later added to frighten off any spirits will bad intentions. Masks and costumes were also used to hide identities from these malevolent spirits. Of course in the modern day these are harmless traditions times incorporated into Halloween, having mostly lost their meaning to non-Pagans.

In my own path, I celebrate both Halloween and Samhain. Halloween being about fun and family and Samhain having a more somber, but equally family oriented feel. Tonight the veil between the worlds lifts, and the spirits will walk amongst us once again. Be they family, friends or foes, they come into our realm to share whatever weighs on their souls. In my West window a candle burns brightly, guiding my beloved ancestors as they travel. Perhaps they will come in and take a seat at our table, as I have set a place for them, so that they may join us as we share stories, both tall and small, about them.

Honoring the ancestors is an important facet in my personal beliefs and something I do all year around. Samhain however always feels especially significant for paying those respects and sharing their stories, perhaps because I know that there are so many others out their sending their respects to the own beloved dead on this night.

On this eve give thanks to the lessons that the past year has revealed to me and honor its teachings in its death. On the dawn the wheel will turn once again and the new year will rise. May the good come to pass and the bad be cast aside. So mote it be.

Samhain: in our home

(This is from a page in my BoS where I list family activities, crafts, home and altar decorations and other miscellaneous ideas.)

Activities:

• Ancestors Ritual
• Divination
• Make Dreamboards
• Nature Hike
• Picking Pumpkins
• Trick or Treat

Crafts:

• Carving Pumpkins
• Bread Making
• Mask/Costume Making
• Pine Cone Bird Feeders
• Samhain Candles

Decorations:

• Acorns, Maple Keys, Pinecones
• Autumn Leaves
• Burial Cairns
• Gourds, Pumpkins, Squash
• Scythe, Bolline
• Seasonal flowers and foods

Samhain: feast

We are having a potluck this year and our vegetarian friends will be coming, hence the meatless meal. I alway try to focus on making my meals as local as possible, as to best honor Old Wild Mama Earth.

We stand now on the eve of the New Year,
I give thanks to the lessons this year has revealed to me and honor its teachings.
On the dawn the wheel will turn once again and the new year will rise.
The Spirits of the Ancestors are here, shinning, and we send our love to them.
Dark are the days ahead but bright are the fires in our souls.
In this coming year may the good come to pass and the bad be cast aside.
May our home be guarded against the cold and our pantries sustain us.
So mote it be.

BREAD: Sweet Potato Biscuits
(I’m using yams this year because I want the biscuits to be orange.)

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup cornmeal
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 cup sweet potato, mashed
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tbsp maple syrup

Cook and mash sweet potatoes. Chill.

Preheat oven to 400F. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Cut in cold butter until the mixture resembles a coarse meal. Stir in sweet potatoes, milk and maple syrup. Pat into 9″ square and cut into 16 squares.

Place on baking sheet and bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Cook on wire rack.

–

MAIN DISH: Smashed Potato Soup

• 3 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 bell pepper
• 1 1/2 teaspoons roasted garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 4-1/2 cups chicken broth (vegetable broth today)
• 1/2 cup sour cream (you can use whipping cream or half and half too)
• 4 oz shredded pepperjack (or cheddar)
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions

In a 4 to 6 quart slow cooker, combine potatoes, sweet pepper, garlic, and black pepper. Pour broth in. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 8 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours.

Mash potatoes slightly with a potato masher. Stir in sour cream, cheese, and the 1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions.

Serves 8.

–

DESSERT: Aunt Ruth’s Pumpkin Pie
I found this recipe on my Aunt Ruth ’s cooking blog from last year. If you don’t know how to make pumpkin filling from scratch, go here.

I hope you all have a most blessed and joyful Samhain (or Halloween!) Autumn is drawing to a close, so enjoy these last days before the wheel turns to the white softness of Winter.

I am chewing and slobbering on everything lately. Dr Kincaid says I am very close to having my first teeth breaking through. I love my teething ring but much prefer the wooden spoons mommy uses in the kitchen. I know I have been a little cranky lately. I think chewing on mommy while I eat makes her a little cranky too, but she is very understanding. I am working on not doing that so much.

Mommy is making me a Green Man costume for Halloween. Hopefully we will be able to get Andrea to take photos of me in it, I love seeing her and her boyfriend Peter. An opportunity to make more people fall in love with me!

(My craft workspace, in the corner of the nursery.)

I seem to have developed a fixation for scrapbooking lately, or more particularly scrapbooking my Book of Shadows (for my non-Pagan readers that is a book that I keep all my spiritual research, essays and notes in, it is not a book for me, but a D-ring binder.)

I have always loved scrapbooking but it was a hobby I swore I would never get into because of the apparent staggering cost scrapbooking can reach. I was in Joanns today and some papers sell for $5 a piece! (Considering I only had $7 to spend, that paper was out of the question, no matter how glorious it was.) Not to mention the cost of all the cool types of stamps, scissors, punches, stickers, embellishments galore which, well, are enough to make this crafter drool and frugally cringe at the same time.

Luckily I have superhuman powers of restraint (or I am just an anally frugal b…witch) and only spent $6.59. I bought a #2 x-acto knife (using a 40% off coupon), a 3/4″ stencil brush, and a 4-pack of stencil blanks (these are plastic sheets you use to make your own stencils.) Now I can make some border stencils for my Book of Shadows pages! Yay, scrapbooking!

But, wait! What about my aforementioned promise to myself about not scrapbooking?!

That promise apparently broke itself without my conscious knowledge a few weeks ago, all because I I decided that I needed to organize my craft supply closet. (This might seem like an odd way to find a new hobby, but trust me, it is not was weird as it sounds, at least, not in my world.) While organizing, I found some leftover fabric from my apron as well as a bag of glass stones. Somehow that discovery ended up distracting me for a couple hours as I made a gloriously orange and blue cover for my Book of Shadows binder. (In my defense, the plain plastic cover was abhorrent to my crafty-sense, when I saw the fabric I “knew” in my mind what it must be used for, I had not choice but to obey said crafty-sense.) The next day upon admiring my bright new orange and blue Book of Shadows, I settled down and flipped it open and nearly screamed in crafter terror.

All the pages in it were so… plain…

Random typed up bits, some handwritten stuff, some torn out pages from magazines and newspapers, all stuffed in sheet protectors in no particular order. Unlike the cover, the guts of my binder did not reflect who I was (yes I am trying to justify the scrapbooking urge here.) I riffled through the pages in despair looking for something that could redeem me when I found a page with an Ojibway poem that I had decorated. I put that in the front of the binder. Beyond that though, there was nothing, just blah pages, so uninspiring I could hardly read them. (Can you tell that I am one of those people who like picture books?)

Instead of wallowing in self-despair (at least after pulling myself out of a couple good hours of it) I decided I rewrite the page about Bealtaine. I got some of the pretty paper from my craft closet (yes, I did end up finishing organizing it) and embellish it with a balsamroot arrowleaf flower I created out of some other pretty paper. That page went in second. I was on a mission now, no doubt sent to me straight from the Goddess.

Poking through My “bits and ends” drawer I then found stickers! These led me to redoing a couple more pages. Scrounging in the drawer some more I found some flower borders I had designed and transfered them to some more pretty paper and redid some gardening pages. Then I found myself up late at night in bed designing a Celtic knot border and redoing the Apple page. Then I…

You can see where this is going right? I found myself unwittingly scrapbooking. It didn’t occur to me till yesterday that is was in fact what I was doing, which made me pause and consider my vow before discarding it. The reason for my vow to not scrapbook was now moot as I have discovered, quite by accident, that it was not a high cost hobby when you do it all yourself (and having an expansive bits and ends drawer helps.) In fact, the way I was approaching it required no money down (until I took my $7 to Joanns today at least. And I can deal with the occasional purchase.)

Ultimately doing it almost all myself is infinitely more rewarding anyhow. I like scrapbooking, it is something completely for me and not dictated by customer deadlines.

(Click the image for a bigger picture – 1024×768.)

This is how my birthing necklace looks so far (if I receive more beads, it will grow in length of course.) I really like how it has turned out too. I know not all the donated beads are red, but some people have difficulty following directions (I love you grandma and mom.) I find I really don’t mind though, the beads they sent were justified with special meanings which, in this case, were more important than color.

As always, Windigo had to get his adorable little face in my craft picture too. I usually crop him out but I thought he looked exceptional cute here.

This is a picture of my living room altar at the moment. A friend made it for us as a handfasting gift, it is gorgeous solid pine with lots of storage space and very sturdy. I am slowly working on wood burning my sun into the top of it (hence the cloth covering up that particular work in progress.) I do most of my spiritual arts and crafts at this altar because I have a tall chair that is the perfect height for me to sit comfortable in front of it.

That is my birthing necklace on it (and some tools to work on it too) if you are curious. You can click the photo for a larger one if you wish. Some people have emailed me about wishing to donate a bead. I didn’t realize so many people read my blog! Thank you! The criteria for bead is as follows:

• It must be red.
• It cannot be plastic.
• Any shape is allowed but I would rather they not to be much larger then a dime.
• I will need it before May 15th.

You can send the bead to:

Michael and Jaspenelle Stewart
3129 E 29th Ave B
Spokane, WA 99223

I started working on the necklace today (realizing I had enough beads to do that was a wonderful feeling.) So far so good! Many thanks to Neserit, who shared the rosary tutorial with me. I am using that technique to connect the beads. It was a little tricky at first but I seem to have gotten the hang of it (thank goodness for spare eye pins though…)

I’ve paused working on it for now, I have lots of spare beads but I know there are still some beads coming in the mail and I don’t want to rush this, though it obviously has to be done before I go into labor! I also want to do a ritual with it on the next full moon (on May 19th) as that will probably be my last before the baby comes! Hows that for a life transitions…

These are a few of the beads I have gathered or that people have given me for my birthing necklace. The only criteria I have for it is that donated beads must be red (representing the umbilical cord) and that I would rather they not be plastic. Since all the red beads are from others you can probably tell which ones I added to the lot! Most of our baby’s things are celestial themed, which is why I chose the blue lampwork moon as the focal point and the golden star spacer beads. I am hoping to have it done by May 19th so I can bless it under the full moon ritual.

I was originally going to make the birthing necklace on my own but when one of my friend’s found out I was making it and offered me a red bead to add to it, that idea seemed to hold more power. Now I am receiving more and more beads from people for it. I cannot put into words how blessed that makes me feel! My mother and grandmother are even going to send me a few heirloom ones and I admit, that offer made me cry…

If you are wondering what exactly a birthing necklace is simply a necklace that I will wear or have near me while I am in labor. I didn’t even know there was a term for the idea until I talked to my friend! When our baby is old enough to understand it’s meaning I plan on reworking the necklace into a mala for him.

(Windigo shown for scale… or cuteness… or because he wouldn’t get off the speakers… Click the thumbnail for a larger image.)

I love recycling, yes I sort my plastics from tin cans but that is not what I mean. I like taking old things and making them new and funky things. Not all my endeavors in this direction turn out right but that doesn’t really ever stop me since the interspersed successes make it all worthwhile. Besides I think reusing old things for new purposes is ultimately more “green” then buying new green products.

So with that said I want to talk about my need for a couple of indoor plant stands and two old stereo speakers Michael has.

When I moved in with Michael these two particular speakers were functional but at some point during one of our three moves they have lost their wires and one is now missing its little speaker. According to Michael is brother made/altered the speakers at some point, which is why one of the speakers is pointing into its box (which seems to be filled with quilting batting? – Justin, why is that?) After they lost their wires they became nightstands for our bed in our last place. In this place, since we now have different nightstands, the speakers just lay on their side in front of our closet doors to prevent Aos from getting in there (also need to find a better solution for that…)

Anyhow, long story longer, I now want to make the speakers into plant stands for the living room. Most of me wants to keep the speaker gadgetry visible because I think it looks cool, but I want to cover the veneer boxes somehow. The veneer is chipped and just yucky, and since the speakers going downstairs, the don’t match the pine wood furniture and a shades of green theme going on.

I was thinking about maybe painting the boxes green, the veneer is not peeling so I feel fairly confident in just painting over it. I am a firm believer in sanding but I admit I have never sanded down veneer, what horrors lie beneath? (My father sugguested I use liquid stripper instead, I’m a little afraid of the harsh chemicals while pregnant though.) Maybe after I get the speakers painted green I will do some kind of fabric decoupage thing to it, but beyond those basic ideas I am rudderless.

So I am asking for your ideas because you guys are an awesome creative force that inspires me.

I have four wooden kitchen chairs (like this one) and I love them very much (not only are they pretty, they were free!) However they are not the most comfortable things for extended sitting, and since I sit at the kitchen table when I use my laptop, I do more extended sitting then I care to admit.

I want to make cushions for them that are like this. I can’t seem to find a tutorial online that gives me basic information on doing that. (I don’t want to buy cushions when I can make them for cheap and have them match my kitchen.) I am thinking of just tracing the seat of the chair, allowing a bit for seam allowance, then cutting two pieces that size, sew together, stuff, add buttons and voila, cute seat cushion?

Am I on the right track here?

(If they play Love Song by Sara Bareilles on the radio one more time… Can we say over played? Not even the baby likes it anymore, when it comes on he kicks so hard my whole belly moves! He likes Red Hot Chili Peppers though.)

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(More of these 6-inch altar wreaths are available on my website.)

Winter is an etching,
Spring a watercolor,
Summer an oil painting,
And autumn is a mosaic of them all.
~ Stanley Horowitz

With the arrival of Autumn, I feel the change of the seasons deep in my bones. The nights are getting longer and cooler, the fields are ripe or nearly ripe, and the leaves are changing to beautiful tones reds, yellows and browns. I find inner peace in this season but am also motivated by it. Maybe it is an ancient instinct telling me to prepare for the Winter.

I have felt under the weather for a few days but the Autumnal energy has been helping me get some stuff done. Spiritually, Autumn seems to have the ability to peal back layers on the heart and show us new, sometimes painful, things about ourselves and others.

Beyond packing for the move, I have been canning beets and apples lately. I have made apple pie the other day (lots of apples, can you tell?!) and today we are having apple yam casserole and broccoli with cheese for supper.

I normally have a ton of seasonal decorations up right now but as we are moving this weekend, they are all in a box. It is a near certainty that that box will be one of the first unpacked.

Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth seeking the successive autumns.
~ George Eliot

Autumn is here and I love it.

Click for a larger image.

I actually finished this last night, but I had to wait till the sun was up today to photograph it. I have been making this plaque on and off since I got my new toy – a woodburner! I drew out the design and transfered it to the wood plaque and kind of winged it from there.

So be nice! It was my first try at wood burning!

Around the pentacle (which was made by a local Pagan artisan) are eight virtues that Michael and I hold dear, as well as the triple moon. The blessing below it is one that I love; I am not sure where I picked it up though. Someone recently told me it is Kemetic. Can anyone confirm that?

When I finished burning it, I rubbed it with one of my green votives, which gave it that green tint (which looks a little too bright in this photo.) Then I attached the pentacle and a hanging bar to the back.

It is going to hang inside the front door of our new townhouse, which means it is in a box right now. The first box that we will move in, since it has everything to do the house blessing ritual in it.

This is a wand I made on commission.

Click for a larger image.

This was the first time I tipped a wand with something other then a natural crystal. I like the change. This one has a black opal cabochon. The photo doesn’t really do the stone justice, but they never do when it comes to opals. This one looks like black fire trapped under water. Black opals are said to help amplify magick.

In the grounding end of the wand is a polished emerald. Obviously not A quality, but there was a budget to hold to and personally I prefer it like this. I find it more to look more organic. Emerald is the birthstone of the commissioner.

The wand is made of willow wood and 13 inches long. I choose chocolate colored leather to wrap it because I liked the contrast and it felt most right when thinking about the commissioner.

It was a bit of a daunting order at first because of my perceived cost of the material needed (opal and emerald) but in the end it was really fun to do. I’m a bit sad to see this one go but I know it’s destination is good and true.

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In a brief bought of other news, the consuming power of facebook has finally dragged me in and I have an account (and a plant too I believe…) So if you are on that empire of evilness, search Jaspenelle and I am sure you will find me. And add me of course. You know you want to.

I have spoke before about selling candles and crafts but I wanted to let you all know that I finally have my website up!

Graceful Symmetry – a little light in the darkness

My favorite product? This one:

Duality Pillars in Palm Wax

I do local delivery and special orders with all my products. I just launched the site last night so any feedback (or orders of course) would be awesome!

PS: This is only a toothpick holder, I proooomise…

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EDIT:

The second one is too big for LiveJournal…

This is a small wreath perfect for an altar or just to welcome some Spring into your home. The base is a woven grape vine circle which I embellished with faux leaves and flowers as well as little fuzzy chicks. The star in the center as well as that which wraps the circle is made with pastel colored chain crocheted yarn.

Mine is hanging from a suction cup on my balcony door.

For Yule in 2006, I hand painted raspberries on some bottles for each of my friends and filled it with homemade raspberry vinegar. This is an example of one of the bottles. The bottles are 1.5″x1.5″x4″ and made of heavy glass with a cork. The glass paint I used on these bottles is food and dishwasher safe.

These will take 21 days to cure to full hardness. I could heat them in the oven but since they are glass spice bottles and did not come with any heating instructions I don’t want them to explode. I am still debating whether I want to painted “Raspberry Vinegar” in that blank space under the raspberries.

Commissioned by a husband and wife for one of their friends. As usual I am not listing the prayer they wrote, but know that it is completely beautiful.

The pendant is 1.5″ long and made with a clam shell (with the nautical star painted on it in blue and silver) and a tusk shell (which contains the prayer.) The handwoven blue and white chain is accented with two white wood beads and is 26″ long (I am wearing it at a shorter length for the purpose of the photo, but it would hang over someone’s heart in actuality.)

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In other news I am completely and utterly sick with something, I think it is the plague, in hindsight working a 14 hour day and feeling like this yesterday was probably not the best idea. I get to go to Planned Parenthood for my annual this afternoon too (fun…) For now though, I just need to get to the post office (I wish they would pick up things I needed to ship, that would make life easier.)

I have put my Peacock Choker up for sale for anyone interested.

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The Snow that never drifts –
The transient, fragrant snow
That comes a single time a Year
Is softly driving now –
– Emily Dickinson –

5×5 prints available on my website.

I am really happy with how this photograph turned out, it was inspired by the first snow which fell here recently. It made me to pick up my camera for the first time in awhile and try to create something inspired by that magical event, Today there is only rain, a special blessing of its own, but the smell of freshness the snow brought still lingers.

Yule is just around the corner.

I only do dreamcatchers by request lately, which was this case with this one, it was my part of a barter exchange. It measures just 2 inches across and is 8 inches long. A black pearl hangs in the center of the web and a quail feather dangles from the circle. If you would like one, it would probably be priced somewhere between $8 and $12.

This isn’t something that is going in my portfolio because it is just for Michael and my door but I think I will be making something like it for sale soon.

This whole thing started over the fake owl (or as Michael and I say “life-impaired”.) I saw the owl on a shelf 50% off and I just bought it. Which is actually odd for me as I am not an impulse buyer normally. Herbert (the owl) was sitting on the bookshelf for awhile, until Windigo (my cat) got a hold of him and ruffled his feathers; then the owl moved to my monitor but Aos (my other cat) zoned in on him and some feathers once again flew; then I set him up on the wall in Michael and my winter wreath and that is where he has stayed (perhaps partly because he is firmly wired and glued in place.)

I am quite pleased with how this wreath turned out though I still want to incorporate one of those battery powered light packs into it. The wreath is 18″ across and has burgundy glass berries, red berries, two kinds of evergreen (one with glitter and one without), silver leaves, the crochet star in the center (the yarn is glittery too) and of course Herbert.

Click here for a detailed view.

The nautical stars were originally used by sailors to help guide their way as they sailed through the night. They relied upon the stars to protect them and bring them home safely. It is a symbol strongly connected with the ocean as well as a symbol of guidances and protection.

While the nautical star is traditionally done in red and black, this one is painted in black, silver and gold and incorporated into a stylized pentacle design. The apple wood pendant is 1/2″ across and hangs from an 18″ gold plated chain.

I can’t decide if I want to price this at $20 or $15…

I know some may groan that I am posting “Christmas stuff” already but that is exactly what this is not. In many traditions, the witches’ winter starts after Samhain (November 1st) and this is a wreath to celebrate the winter season. Of course this little 6″ altar wreath would look good even in a non-Pagan household .

The base is a woven grape vine wreath which I embellishs with faux evergreen, berries, bells (the whole wreath jingles!), a small cardinal, and glittered gold and silver foliage. The star in the center is made of white and silver chain crocheted yarn.

I am going to the Inland Northwest Witches Ball this October 28th and it is a formal occassion. My dress is very simple (perhaps you will get pictures of it when I finish altering it) and made of black velvet, so I wanted a really nice piece of jewelry to offset its simplicity. This is what I came up with.

The concept for the choker was inspired by reading about Yemaya and her sacred animal, the peacock. The dolphins came from a beautiful bracelet of mine that broke recently. I intergrated a couple links into this piece as the children of Yemaya are said to be the fish.

Long overdue for posting this I was waiting for a sunny day. this is part of my art trade with the awesome Zyleeth who drew Michael and I this. If I ever sell glass art again I will have to find a better what to photograph it, this photo does not do it credit.

I was using a new kind of glass paint for this but inspite of that I like how it turned out. Sorry Zyleeth, I look at your dragon and see a hippy dancing with flowers. I don’t know why… I really like how the fins turned out. My complaint? The flowers look like amoeba to me…

Flower power!

Three new items this time.

This gold and black dragonfly is painted on a piece of old growth applewood (with a story to tell I assure you) for a lovely lady who, like me, loves dragonflies. What could a better commission be – painting dragonflies on apple wood for someone I care about!

This was also commissioned from the same lady as who commissioned the dragonfly above, for her grandson. The prayer within it is a bible quote:
Be brave and steadfast; have no fear or dread of them, for it is the Lord, your God, who marches with you; he will never fail you or forsake you.

Detailed views here.This is my first try at handbinding a book (in this case a little blank journal.) I didn’t have bookcloth so I glued normal cloth to cardboard and embellished it some peacock feather bits and a little seashell. The paper within is just printer paper as it was my first try and I didn’t want to wreck any beautiful paper – it has 24 pages. I will be filling this one with information and little sketches about Yemaya. This was really fun to do. I love time consuming hobbies (woe is me… ) I might have to make more.

This is a little gift for a friend of mine in need. She wants to become a forest ranger eventually so I painted a little tree on it showing it pumped little tree arms (no one ever accused us of having a normal sense of humur.) She is Christian so the prayer inside says:

“Be brave and steadfast; have no fear or dread of them, for it is the Lord, your God, who marches with you; he will never fail you or forsake you.”

(Took me ages to find that passage because my biblical skills are rusty at the least – thank you Google!) I was trying to make it look old so I sanded the paint a little after I finished painting it. It is about 3/4 inch long and painted on pine.

This is a 14″ wreath I made for our apartment door to celebrate Autumn and the coming equinox. The base is a woven grape vine circle which I embellished with faux autumn leaves, fruit and flowers, pinecones, and the butterfly, bird and little heart hidden in the leaves. rose quarts, black feathers and cork. I chain crocheted yarn for the star in the center. — I am not sure if I will offer ones this large for sale or not yet.

These are some detailed views of different embellishments on the wreath. I made the little heart one ages ago. Finally found a use for it. I love autumn…

A prayer pendant I made for my husband. The blessing inside says:

If I had a star for ever time you made me smile I would be holding the nigh sky in my hands… Michael, I love you.

The pendant is made of blue pine and approx 1 1/4″ long. I handwove the chain, accenting it with two small antler beads. I might paint a small tree on the pendant I am unsure and well, the choice is up to Michael.

This is a six inch mini wreath I crafted. The base is a woven grape vine circle which I embellished with faux autumn leaves, berries, rose quarts, black feathers and cork. The star in the center as well as that which wraps the circle is made of chain crocheted yarn.

Inspired by the Autumn season, maybe it could be used to decorating a small seasonal altar or hang somewhere in a home?

A prayer pendant for my father, what is written in it is for him so you won’t find it here online.

The blessing is written on a tiny piece of parchment contained in the small tusk shell which is capped and sealed with a tiny clam shell. I accented the pendant with black and gold paint to compliment the 24″ beaded chain I made for it to hang by. Hopefully when my father gets it he will give me a photo with him wearing it that I can share.

I blessed this one myself during and after creating since it is for my father but I can make them unblessed (or blessed if you wish) with whichever inscription you wish within it.

I made this box, which now sits beside our home altar to hold my various divination supplies.

As for the construction info? Well it is the first box I have built. A friend cut me the six 9×9 plywood panels I needed for it though since I can’t do that in an apartment. It has a brass hinge and catch clasp. That slightly puffy look it has is because I put a layer of quilt batting under the black cotton fabric (except on the outside bottom.) I made a very cushy pillow for the bottom inside of the box for Michael and my scrying bowls to rest on. It is decorated with bronze ribbon and sailboat rope, the inside rope serves a dual function as I left some loose to make a holder for my tarot cards. There is also a pocket on inside of the lid to hold the box which holds my pendulum.

Let me know what you think .

A pendulum is a divination device which consisting of a string attached to a heavy object (a bob), like a crystals, or in this case a seashell. The user asks questions which are then divined by noting the motion of the pendulum. In general is a rotating movement means “yes” or positive energy and a back and forth swing means “no” or negative energy.

This pendulum is 13 inches long and hangs very straight despite the shell’s shape. I want to say the shells is a Murex Pectin (or Venus Comb) but I might be quite off on that one.

Here stands the Creator goddess, in her hands she holds the moon, a feminine symbol of receptive power. In ancient times it was thought by some peoples that conception was brought about by the moonlight hence within her grows the solar god, her equal and later to be her lover. Around her lay the stars, connected in their own way; Pleiades, Virgo, Orion, Gemini, the constellations.

The first god is said to emerge from a creator goddess, from Mother Earth. Throughout our history many myths of the creation often swirl around this common thread. The God is representing the sun who passes on each winter to be reborn with the spring. The masculine and feminine energies of creation go in a cycle just as the four seasons do, just as do life, death and rebirth do. It is within this story lays the lessons to be learned.

The idea for this piece came to me in a sudden rush. I painted it on a piece of fir bark that is sturdy. It easily stands on its own at 14 inches tall.

Click thumbnails for larger images.

Starting with the left one; my father saw my previous nautical pentacle and liked it so much I though I would make him one. This one is on a cowrie shell and hangs on a 20″ handbraided cord accented with two wooden beads. I was going for a more masculine look them mine. Hopefully when my father gets it he will give me a photo with him wearing it that I can share.

The right one is a prayer pendant. Inside there is a tiny piece of parchment which reads:

“May the Goddess shelter you, may the God protect you and may you always be cherished by the moon and stars.”

After I wrote the blessing I capped and sealed the tush shell with a tiny clam shell and made the 20″ silver and glass beaded chain it is hanging from.

I blessed this one myself during and after creating it so chances are it will stay with me or go to a friend, but I will make them unblessed (or blessed if you wish) with whichever inscription you wish within it. Though I chose to leave this one its natural colours I can paint them.

I hope you like them.

I had a moment of… well a moment of something, something crazy? Or maybe one of those moment when you have no clue what to do with your broken shells? Anyhow I have perhaps made one of the most odd looking things thus far in my artistic endeavors, almost hideous. And yet… I like it, this odd shell ornament.

It didn’t occur to me till after I finished it the skewer running through it might be permanently attached to the base, thankfully it wasn’t. I need to find a hook to hang it by though I might use some organic type ribbon. To bad it isn’t Yuletide for awhile because you know everyone should have a shell ornament for their tree.

Just something I made today, thought I would post it before I went off to bed.

Click for a larger image.

Something for myself because my last stone pentacle I made never felt quite right. Why? Perhaps because I attune most strongly with the ocean, I have always been fond of nautical stars, it just seemed natural for me to make a pentacle out of one.

Let me know what you think!

The piece I mentioned earlier.

Click thumbnail for larger image.

This is a cross stitch piece I made to hang for above Michael and my altar for Bealtaine. I do not claim the poem as my own since I was inspired by several poems in the making of this one. The aida fabric is really a paler yellow then since, it just seems to have scan a bit darker, I lightened it a little but didn’t want to modify it too much. Fabric doesn’t seem to scan too well.

It took me the better part of two twelve hour work days just to do the blue part of the border to give you an idea of how long this took, but I have a slow job so it is nice to have something time consuming on hand. This is the first piece I’ve done I completely designed myself (referencing another border pattern) and I am really happy with how it came out. I hope you like it.

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As for a general art announcement, to kind of following in the paw prints of WatergazerWolf here and using her recent dA journal entry as reference. Well I suppose these terms of use have always been there but I just want everyone to know about them officially.

You are free to use my art in non-commercial ways (unless otherwise noted on the piece). Save it on your computers, print it on whatever, use it for forum sigs, webpages, avatars etc. I am honoured when you like my art enough to use it for such. When it comes to my paintings, I ask (except for avatars where you have to crop the image most of the time) that you leave my work intact since I do sign them. A link to my page is always nice but not necessarily. If you are not sure about something, I am only a note or email away and I don’t bite often.

Sometime people ask me why I don’t watermark my work? The answer is simple, I don’t like to distract from the thing I worked so hard on, the art, by slapping a distracting glyph/text/image all over it. I want you to see the art, so look around a watermark. That said, all my paintings are signed in some way though my full signature is on the back of them.

That said, you cannot resell my art ever though. I want to make it very clear that I will use legal action if I need to. I ask you don’t claim my art as your own, but if you want to use any of my pieces for reference feel free. If you trace them, it’s tacky, but oh well.

Now that that is out of the way, I love when you commission me, I am an email or a note away for you to get a price list. I soon hope to be selling prints of my work outside of dA (as soon as I replace my printer or find a place that will do high quality prints.)

Anyhow, just wanted to let everyone know. Peace.

Click for larger image.

That image works now…

This is an applewood wand I recently finished for my husband. It is 17″ long and has a small quartz crystal in the tip and hematite beads at the other end. The handle is deerskin which I handstitched on. I didn’t orginally start this with the intention on making it for Michael, he was just drawn to it and became attached. He picked the hematite beads for the end.

I have lots more applewood so you can be expecting some more stuff from time to time.

Making ginger stirfry for dinner, yum!

Browns, golds and whites,
You capture the glowing light,
Even that within me…

Made with agate, bone and wood beads strung on leather cording.

This is the completed first stage of my spirit pouch which is made of rabbit fur and a grey fox face. It is a basic drawstring pouch with a closing flap.

There is a little left to do with this pouch, starting with a little bit of beading on the leather drawstrings and maybe a couple feathers. I have to look though my stuff and see what calls out to me to be used first though. I had to shave around where the drawstrings are so the rabbit fur would quit clogging the holes. The pouch attaches to my belt with a simple leather loop.

It should be noted of course, because I am sure some people will wonder; while I am not against the use of animal products, I am strongly against animal cruelty which includes fur and leather unlawfully and cruelly gotten.