July 22nd, 2016

I've spent the last week working on a bit of a sewing project. Last summer, I made myself a weighted blanket (which you may or may not remember from this post); I love it, and so does my girlfriend, so I offered to make her one of her own at the next opportunity. Last Friday, I was able to go pick up supplies, and I finished it this morning.

As I did last year, I selected four little crystal chips and added one along with the poly-pellets in each corner. I chose two Quartz, one which I think is Moonstone, and a black one I couldn't identify but which I figured would still pick up on protective, grounding energies by virtue of its color. I cleansed them all, and empowered them to instill the blanket's user with comfort and peace. As that is sort of the point of a weighted blanket anyway, I liked the idea for reinforcing the blanket's purpose.

Here's the finished blanket. Blue is her favorite color, and the fabric has a really fun, soft texture. The grey backing fabric has a much more subtle pattern, but it's also a pile fabric, which makes it soft. It was important to me to be listening to videos that exhibit a positive energy while I worked, because it is my belief that when sewing, knitting, or otherwise making textile crafts, it is possible to weave one's thoughts and energies into the piece itself that can then affect the user.

I'm very happy with how it came out. It also took me a lot less time to make this than my green one from last summer, which was a bonus, and in general it just ended up looking neater now that I have more practice.

With Lughnasadh coming up soon, this is a great time of year for arts and crafts of all kinds, as Lugh is a god of artisans and the season can tend towards that direction. As it is, I always enjoy making gifts, and I especially like to add little bits and pieces of magick to the things I make.

Weighted blankets are wonderful tools for people like myself who find the feeling of gentle pressure to be soothing. Autism, ADHD, and other forms of neurodiversity can affect sensory input, which may make the sensation of pressure more appealing, although I am sure there are also neurotypical people who would enjoy a weighted blanket as well. For anyone interested, these instructions are the ones which I followed, and I liked them a lot.

August 11th, 2015

Oh look, it's my 400th post. I don't have anything particularly spectacular for the occasion, but it's been a productive morning. I spent several hours finishing off my weighted blanket this morning. Ta da!

It weighs about nine pounds, and I got my four little crystals in the corners for some extra soothing energy.

Then I sat and did some further research on Athena, and specifically Her festivals. I found some rather interesting information; first, that Her birthday is celebrated monthly on the third day. Of course, the Greeks followed the Attic calendar rather than our Gregorian one, and the Attic calendar corresponded to the lunar cycles, so the third day of their month actually falls two days after the new moon. For those working with Athena, a new moon ritual this day would be an appropriate way to honor Her. One could incorporate Her worship into an Esbat, or one could opt for a more Reconstructionist approach and honor her with a specifically Hellenic ritual format.

Personally, I think that for now at least, I will continue my Esbat ceremonies only on the full moon, and on Her festival I will give Her offerings in a format more traditionally Hellenic.

Athena also has the festival of Plynteria, which falls on the 22nd - 25th of Thargelion. The month of Thargelion begins on what we would today know as the first new moon of May, and may continue into June. Plynteria honored Her as Athena Polias, or Athena of the City. In this aspect, She is the protector of Athens. At this time, her temples were ritually cleaned, and it was recommended that one avoid new ventures as Athena was resting and would not be available to bless one's efforts.

Blanket Crystals

My readers may or may not recall that I've been working on a bit of a weighted blanket project the last week or two. I'm very excited to see it done (although if JoAnn's doesn't restock their poly pellets soon that may be a while), but thought you all might be interested in a little enhancement I'm adding to it.

I'm always trying to come up with ways to more neatly integrate my magickal life with my mundane one, and it occurred to me that I could add little crystal chips in with the weight beads.

I chose four little pieces, one for each corner of the blanket. I found an Amethyst, Tiger's Eye, clear Quartz, and a blue-black chip of what might be Slate. I'll be empowering them for qualities like comfort, genuineness, relaxation, and similar - in essence, the same qualities which a weighted blanket is intended to provide.

These little chips are tumbled, of course, so they shouldn't damage the fabric, and I'm mixing them in with the beads as I pour those in. If anyone is interested in making a weighted blanket, with or without crystals, this is the tutorial I have been following here.

August 3rd, 2015

It's probably a good thing I took today off work. I was so exhausted from walking around all weekend that I could barely sit up this morning. A shower seemed to take the edge off, though, so that was good. And after taking today for just me, I feel almost completely re-energized.

This morning, I worked more on a weighted blanket project while watching CharmingPixieFlora's YouTube videos. I would recommend them to anyone, but especially to those practicing Wicca or eclectic Paganism. Some of her videos contain more 101-type information, and others delve into greater detail, but even as someone who now considers herself to be pretty experienced in the Craft, I still find it helpful to refresh myself on basic information every now and then, or to listen to a different viewpoint. Besides, she's so bubbly that you can't help but feel happier listening to her talk.

After I got to a solid stopping point, I moved on to researching the crystals I bought this weekend. Expect posts on their properties over the course of the next week or so.

I also finally took some time to reorganize my closet. I consolidated boxes and got everything straightened out, which had the ultimate effect of freeing up a lot of stagnant energy and giving me an extra crate to contain my books when I return to school so that I don't have to disturb the one currently holding up my shrine.

While I was at it, I went ahead and sorted through the things I bought at Fairy Fest.

From left to right, I purchased a piece of Kyanite, a piece of Amethyst Spirit Quartz, a tiny chest with a brass pentacle on top, a little turtle dragon, a Ruby, and a drawstring bag embroidered with the image of Athena and an owl. I also got two little pouches for the Kyanite and the Ruby.

The straw mat the things are sitting on top of is actually a miniature tatami mat that I made in a class while in Japan last summer. I've been trying to figure out what to do with it for ages, and it finally just occurred to me - I can take it with me to school and use it as a tiny altar! I feel like that will be much energetically neater than setting things on the old dressers or desks that the university provides. 

The turtle dragon's name is Frederick. I adopted him from the Dragon Lady at Fest (see more of her work here), and when I told a little girl he didn't have a name yet, she suggested Freddie. He seemed to really like that idea, so I ran with it.

I got the Athena bag not only because it is lovely but also because I think I'd like to start working with her, and it seemed like it could make for a great introductory offering.

I also got this wonderful headdress that my bunny is modelling for me. I love the little horns on it! 

July 27th, 2015

I finished my cross stitch last night, and just got it all ironed!

The design was already pre-printed, and all I did was come in and add the glittery embellishment stitching, but it was still a pretty involved project, and I'm happy with how it came out. I will need to get a frame for it eventually, but right now I may just set it on my altar, so as to honor Lugh the Master Craftsman.

Just a little bit of mystical artwork for you all this afternoon.

Also: Wow! Hello to all my readers! I haven't had this many page-views since December of 2012, so I'm not sure what's up with that, but it's great to have you all, and I hope you're enjoying my blog.

July 22nd, 2015

I had such a productive day today! I found some shell shards while cleaning the other day, so I set them outside with some bread and honey as an offering (and a thank you for keeping me safe from wild drivers yesterday!).

I also got a lot done on my unicorn and fairy cross stitch, and then Destiny came over after dinner. She's going to go to Fairy Fest with me! Whoo hoo!

July 10th, 2015

My spell from yesterday manifested, so now I'm happy to share it with you all. I made a lot of it up on the fly, but it worked out even better than I had hoped! This was my first time trying a poppet spell, but I had read a lot about them and felt comfortable with the idea.

This spell was specifically geared towards helping my girlfriend get her hair cut how she wanted it, but could be easily adapted to any spell where the desire is to manifest a physical change in one's appearance. As such, it is not a glamour spell - this one is to change your appearance, not to change other people's perception of it. You can do it for yourself or for others, but the instructions here are written in the style of doing it for another person.

Because poppets are a particularly potent form of magick, I was careful to fully cleanse and consecrate my work space before even casting a circle. If you are experienced in poppet magick, then feel free to work at your own discretion. If you, like me, are new to the concept, cleansing the surrounding area with the elements is a good place to start. Without further ado...

~~~~~
Hummingbird's "Changing Your Look" Poppet Spell

Materials: 

• Fabric scrap
• Should represent the person in some way; it could be their skin color, favorite color, a scrap from an old shirt of theirs, or etc.
• Marker
• Gingerbread cookie cutter (optional)
• Needle
• Black thread
• Stuffing material
• Cotton balls work well for this
• Lavender (optional)
• Slip of paper
• Scissors
• Something to represent how the person looks now and how they want to look
• In my case, this was brown yarn for hair. 
• A picture of the person

Cast a circle. If you so choose, you can invoke a deity or deities at this time. Fold the fabric scrap in half and draw the poppet shape on it, either by outlining the cookie cutter or by free-handing a basic human figure. Sew about 3/4 of the way along the outline, leaving the last section open. As you do so, you might recite a chant of your choice. I used Starhawk's classic Kore Chant, since it is literally about changes. 

Carefully cut out around the poppet shape and turn it right-side out. Stuff it with cotton, and if you wish, add some lavender to ease any frustration or anxiety associated with making the change. Also, write the individual's name on the slip of paper and stick it inside the poppet*. Then, finish sewing the remainder of the poppet closed and tie off the thread.

At this point, you should add whatever decoration you're using to represent the person's current appearance. In my case, I sewed on several lengths of yarn to show my girlfriend's hair at its original length. Then, stating your intent out loud, ritualistically alter the appearance of the poppet to show the desired look. I did this by cutting the yarn into the hairstyle she wanted.

Finish up by tying the poppet to the image of the person and stating out loud that they are now bound together.

Thank any deities or spirits you have called, and release the circle.

To dispose of the poppet after the spell manifests, see this post.

*In this case, the paper is the taglock. Therefore, you're best off using the person's full name. Alternatives include adding a lock of hair, fingernail clippings, or etc. but unless you are doing the spell for yourself, these can be hard to come by. A second, small photo of the person would also suffice.