My Latest Crafty Chick Creation ~ Let Them Eat Cake

I made this little Marie Antoinette inspired digital collage.
I'm calling it... what else?, but...

"Let Them Eat Cake"

~Danae <(:o) aka 'Crafty'

My Latest Crafty Chick Creation ~ Butterfly Wings For Baby Dana

I made this sweet little digital collage for my Mother.

I used one of her super adorable baby pictures (c1951);

along with new & vintage baby ephemera.

I apologize for the logo across the picture-

but I plan on selling this as cards, tags & prints in my ETSY shop.

I hope you like it as much as I do! :)

~Danae <(:o) aka 'Crafty'

Lammas Present / Lammas Past

Lammas, also called Lughnasadh, marks the beginning of the harvest season for us Pagans in the Northern Hemisphere. The Summer is waning, the produce in the feilds and gardens are abundant now. Apples are ready and grain is beginning to ripen.

Lammas/Lughnasadh is a day for honoring Lugh, the Celtic craftsman god. Traditionaly, the begining of August is the time for Arts, Crafts & Barter Faires. It was also the time when the people came to town to bring in their harvest, make trades & purchases for the upoming winter; and a time of renegotiating contracts.
This is the time to celebrate the first of the three Pagan harvest holidays, Lammas/Lughnasadh, Mabon/the Autumn Equinox, and Samahin/Halloween.

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One of my favorite ways to decorate my home & altar for Lammas, and really for any Sabbat; is to use natural symbols of the season. In this case- apples, breads, corn, grapes and other late summer produce. I usually keep it pretty simple for this particular holiday- (because it is still summer, and I am not really ready yet to turn my thoughts to Autumn!) Also, many times we are on vacation at this time.

I prepare a simple table, or shelf altar; do some baking, and some sabbat crafting - both for myself & the children. In past years I have baked braided bread, created corn dollies and other weavings, garlic braids, witch bottles, besoms, pomanders, potourris, incenses and various apple crafts, such as apple wreaths and candleholders. Here are a couple of photos of my table last year. We were on vacation in Catalina durng the week of Lammas- so I celebrated there, outdoors. It was very simple, and lovely. I even slept outside, on the deck of the small boat we were on, out under the full moon. I did have a funny thought about those three nights I spent doing that. ~Usually, I lay my crystals out in a bowl of salt water, to soak up the energy from the full moon. Instead... that time I was the crystal soaking in the energy- and instead of a bowl of salt water- I was on a boat in the sea! Pretty cool, huh?

I haven't yet made any plans for this years sabbat- but I will be sure to share with you whatever we end up doing. :) And, as always- I love to see & hear what all of you are doing to celebrate.

Happy Lammas! ~Danae <(:o) aka 'Crafty'

A New Digital Scrapbook Project To Share

This is a digital scrapbook that I made recently for my Mom's birthday.

It is of my children, my Mom, and myself.

Lammastide Is Upon Us ~ Lammas Correspondences & Celebration Ideas

Hello there to my friends in the blogosphere, and a Happy Lughnassadh to you all!

*This is one of the Lammas posts I wrote last year. I thought it would make a good repost to start off my Lammas/Lughnassadh series of posts for this year' Sabbat. Enjoy :)

I hope you are all having a nice Summer. It's a bit hard to believe that Lammastide is upon us again, after all, it seems as if the Summer just started; instead of time to get ready for it's big Grand Finale! But, of course, that is how it always goes.

For those of you who are marking your first turn of the Wheel as a Pagan or a Witch; there can be much to learn about this fascinating Holy Day (actually month!), and why we celebrate it.

And for those of us who have danced this Wheel many times; this is still an exciting time. We are busily making our preparations for the Sabbat; reveling in the beauty of the Season with old favorites, and adding new traditions to our repetoire as well.

Possibly harvesting our Summer Gardens, or gathering our crafts to go to one of the many Craft Faires and Festivals that mark the end of Summer. Admidst all of this hustle and bustle, the nights are getting a bit longer, and the thoughts begin to turn to the early Autumn Days ahead.

Lammas, or Lughnassadh, is the first of the Three Harvest Festivals of the Year, First Fruits, and a time to celebrate the bounty of the Harvest Mother; and a time to mourn the waning power of the God, as He is sacrificed along with the harvest.

It is a time to pay homage to Lugh, the Craftsman God of Light, as well as the Sacrificial Oak King. Also, a time to honor his Foster Mother, Tailtiu with outdoor games of skill. She was origionally a Spirit of the Land, most likely, who died after clearing the forrests of Ireland to prepare for planting.

In many agrarian cultures, it was, and in some places still is common to bring the first harvest to be blessed at the Lughnassadh Celebration, or by the Parish Preist. In addition to honoring the Spirit of the Grain by keeping the last sheath of wheat, or ear of corn, it is common to craft a Corn Mother effigy, to be sown into the feilds at the start of the next planting season.

Here are some of the correspondences of Lammas; followed by some ideas for celebrating the Sabbat, and this time of year in general. LAMMAS/LUGHNASSADH CORRESPONDENCES

ACTIVITIES & RITUALS: Giving Thanks for the Harvest of both physical and spiritual gains; The time of reaping what one has sown; Giving thanks to the Mother for her bounty upon the Earth; Marking and mourning the 'death' of the God, and the Spirit of the grain; Rituals of Releasing and Sacrificing what one wants to get rid of; Harvesting & Baking Breads; Offerings of the Produce and Grain Harvest being blessed and/or thrown into the fire; Grains being woven and braided into Goddess symbols; Corn Dollys and Grain Mothers; Doing Rituals and Spell Workings for Prosperity, Protection and the continued Fruition of Goals.

DEITIES:

GODS> Lugh, The Sun God, The Oak/Holly King, Adonis, Dionysus, Tammuz,

GODDESSES> Demeter/Ceres, Persephone, Habadonia, Sif, Hathor, Cerridwen

FOODS: All Grains, Breads, Corn, Apples (Sacred to Lugh), Early Summer Fruits and Vegetables, Summer Squash, Ciders, Ales & Wines, Berries, Grapes, Plums, Pommegranites (Pesephone), Preserves, Jams, Tarts and Pies, Honey

COLORS: Red, Yellow, Orange, Gold, Copper, Bronze, Brown, Tan- the colors of the Sun, and of Grain

SYMBOLS & DECORATIONS: Corn Dollys, Grain mothers, Braided Grains, Wheat Stalks, Corn, Threshing Tools, Scythe, Sickle, Summer Vegetables and Squashes, Dried Herbs and Flowers, Candles, Cornicopias,

TOOLS: The Athame

TAROT: Pentacles

STONES: Carnelian, Amber, Citrine, Tourmaline, Tiger's Eye, Brown Agate, Desert Rose, Red, Brown, Rutilated and Lepordskin Jasper,

INCENSE: Sandalwood, Frankincense, Patchouli, Musk, Rose,

HERBS: Acacia, Rosemary, Sage, Thyme, Cumin, Curry, Fenugreek, Cinnamon, Myrrh,

FLOWERS: Sunflowers, Zinnias, Marigolds, Daisies, Heather, Rose, Chammomile, Passionflower, Hollyhock,

TREES: Oak, Mistletoe, Cedar, Mytle, Rosewood, Madrone

IDEAS FOR CELEBRATING LAMMAS

Harvest fruits and vegetables from your garden, or pay a visit to a Farmer's Market

Make Jams, Sauces or Wines

Harvest herbs for use in charms and rituals

Make a Grain Weaving or a Corn Dolly

Kindle a Lammas fire with sacred woods and herbs

Sacrifice bad habits and unwanted things from your life by throwing them into the Sabbat fire.

Bake an Apple Pie or Berry Cobbler

Visit a Craft or Barter Faire or simply have an afternoon of crafting, by yourself or with friends, in honor of Lugh, the Master Craftsman God.

Attend an early Harvest Festival

Go Wine Tasting or host your own by having each of your friends come over for a Pot Luck Dinner and Wine Tasting

Try a new recipe for cooking your favorite summer vegetables- or try a new vegetable

Make a Sabbat Altar indoors or out

Try a new recipe for a Sabbat Oil or Incense

Go to a farm to pick apples or berries

Take a drive into the countryside to enjoy the last of summer, and the change of the seasons

Spend a clear evening outdoors observing the early autumn night sky and constellations (with or without a telescope)

Go Camping...even in your own backyard!

Take some time to observe the different species of trees, herbs and flowers that grow locally in your area this time of year.

Pay attention to which animals and birds are spending time in your area at this time of year.

Study some of the folklore that surrounds this holiday.

Learn about some of the Gods and Goddesses that are honored this time of year; read their myths.

Perform a Releasing Ritual, an Offering, or a Thanksgiving Ritual.

Make magickal Charms or Talismans to be blessed on Lammas.

**************************************************************************** ~Danae

My Latest Crafty Time Wasters...er, 'Creations' :)

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I have been having all sorts of fun with this Smilebox photo editing program.

These are just my first couple of creations, - and with so many photos at hand, and the countless options and projects available...I know that I will be creating many, many more! The collage (above) is of my daughter Makayla...just some photos from earlier this Spring.

And the greeting below is one I made for a very good friend that I recently reconnected with. Many more are in the works! :)

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~Danae <(:o) ...lovin' my crafty life... :)

Midsummer Herb Gathering ~ Part1

I had a lovely morning gathering herbs to craft my Midsummer projects with, and to burn on the Sabbat fire. Everything came from my garden; and was used for making Talismans, Spells & to decorate the Solstice Altar.

I always enjoy the gathering, admiring, arranging, photographing and wrapping of the flowers and herbs. It always reminds me of the flower shops I used to work in. Then I have the added bonus of working them into my crafting.

Here is what was used:

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LavendarRosemary

Thyme (broad leafed)
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Thyme (common)

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Basil

Geraniums (red, light & bright pink)

White Jasmine (night blooming)

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Mint

Pink Jasmine Dandelion (Blossoms, Greens & Seed Puffs)

White Roses

Purple Blossoms (unknown species)

Dustyy Miller

Midsummer Herb Gathering ~ Part 2

9 Bundles of Herbs For The Sabbat Fire

Here are the little blessing bundles I made for burning in the Sabbat fire.
I charged them with their purposes; and after they dried out a bit
-we burned them on the night of the Solstice.
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Jasmine, Lavendar, Mint

Thyme (common) & (broad leaf)

Basil

RosemaryDusty Miller Rose Petals

Our Midsummer Crafting - Solstice Wands

Here are the photos from our Midsmmer Solstice Wand crafting project.

As you can see- we had lot of fun!

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This particular project was done by my daughter, my son and their friend, Angela.

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The kids started out by going outside and searching for the perfect branches with which to make their wands from. Somewhere along the way- my son decided that he wanted to make 2 Sabbat projects; and that these 2 would not be Solstice wands. No, he wanted to make a Solstice staff and a spear! (Boys!) The girls stuck to the origional plan with the wands. Look at my sassy little Witchy daughter! She loves hamming it up for the camera...and for you guys.

After the perfect branches were found, I showed the children how to measure them from the tips of their fingers to their elbows (for the wands); and the proper length for a staff (for my son). JD decided that he liked his staff all 'branchy' on the end, so he left it au natural. Then he 'sharpened' the tip of his spear with another stick.

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After that, we set about decorating them. I got out a few different types of embellishments- both natural & manmade; and in the end they all chose to use cheap, but colorful, gift wrapping ribbon. I was a little dissapointed- but then grateful that my good supplies were spared!

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The girls both used curly ribbon to wind along the length of their wands. I explained to them the various symbolism of the color choices- and they picked their colors based on that.

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Jeremiah wanted to keep it simple- and chose a golden bow for his staff, the color of the Sun; and a dark green one for his spear, for the colors of the forest God.

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Unfortunately I did not remember to get any photos of JD getting crafty- because he had me helping him attach the bows. But here are a few pics of the girls hard at work, wrapping their wands.

While the girls were finishing up- Jeremiah & I went outside to test out his staff & spear. He stood proudly with his Solar Staff for a couple of pictures. (Check out his new mohawk. He thinks he is cooler than cool now!)

Then he demonstrated to me how well he could maneuver his spear. He had so much fun playing with that stick! He even had me take a video of him running around the yard in mock combat.

I used that oppourtunity to remind him of the mythic and metaphoric battle between the Oak & Holly Kings- and how our ancestors would celebrate this holiday with the same mock battles, games & other similar sports. He liked that. He took that oppourtunity to teach Mom about the weaponry of the Vikings & Celts. (He loves Deadliest Warrior!) All in all- great fun.

Then the girls finished up their wands & came outside to show them off.

Here is Makayla's...

Our friend Angela's...

A few cute girly poses for the camera.And then it was time to charm the cats! Our furry familiars had been doing their best to get in on the fun- after all- what cat can resist curly ribbon? Certainly not mine!

This top photo is Sadie (the Mama cat- and my baby); and the lower photos are of our smallest kitten, 8 month old Tootsie.
Tootsie had taken off with a few peices of the ribbon while the girls were crafting the wands... and soon after she tired of chasing the ribbon wands- she went back to attacking her own ribbon buddies. (Lazy cat!)

We all had a nice Midsummer's Eve afternoon with this. Then, we had some more Midsummer fun later. I have more photos coming in the next post.

~Danae <(:o)

PS~ I hope that all of my American readers are having a real nice Fourth of July. (And that everyone else is having a lovely weekend as well!)