keskiviikko 8. elokuuta 2018

A for Augury Witch

Augury Witch: Similar to a shaman in practice, the augury witch will help to direct those on a spiritual quest by interpreting the signs and symbols the traveler encounters. The term derives from the official Roman augurs, whose function was not to foretell the future but to discover whether or not the gods approved of a proposed course of action by interpreting signs or omen such as the appearance of animals sacred to the gods. It is important to note that augury witches are not "fortune tellers", as their gifts are of prophecy and not divination. In the context of prophecy, in his Scottish play Shakespeare's witches appear as augury witches.

Time to continue my Types of witches- series!
When I started to plan this post I had this huge idea for pictures with this shaman kind lady and snakes. My friend have snakes so I asked her if we could do a photoshoot with them and she said yes. Unfortunately snakes want to do what they want and the pictures ended up not happening.. But atleast I got this picture with amazing head piece made by Mhelin.

And what comes with Augury witches.. I never had even heard the term before, so this was a huge opportunity to learn something new. The info was really hard to find and there was very little. I really enjoy the idea of these prophecy witches. I would have wanted to make something more with this but I guess this is it. Enjoy!



The Roman term ‘augurs’ stands for someone whose task is to find out whether the gods approve of a particular course of action taken by an individual. These witches can find this out by interpreting sacred signs and omens that the individual has encountered on their spiritual journey. An Augury Witch can thus check whether the traveller is on the ‘right path.’ It’s important to distinguish an Augury Witch from a Witch who performs divination and tells prophecies – an Augury Witch is an interpreter between the mysterious cosmic forces and a person on a spiritual quest.



Usually, it was performed using the movements of birds and other animals or the direction of thunder or lightening.  The main purpose of augury was not to predict the future but to determine whether the gods approved certain actions.  Therefore, it is similar to divination but different in that it doesn’t predict the future, rather it is done to advise an individual on a spiritual journey.

Augurs were advised in important decisions regarding commerce, trade, and religion.  Their opinions were highly valued so much so that they were consulted before matters of war and peace.  It appears that some augurs (augures publici) dealt with only public and state matters.  Unfortunately, the exact rites the augurs used was kept in extreme secret at the time, and therefore records of their exact methods are unknown today.




A witch who focuses on signs from the gods (especially the appearances and behaviors of sacred animals) could identify as an augur.  Also, a modern augur could provide a unique system for developing prophecy through interpreting symbols and omens.  This might best suit a witch who takes pleasure in giving advice to others and helping people formulate plans of action.  Perhaps, a witch who is looking to branch out from divination might enjoy to develop a system of augury..

During a storm, sit quietly and think of an important action you intend to take.  If thunder or lightening appears to come from your left, it is an omen that the gods support the action.  If the storm hits on the right: beware!

Read more:
https://newworldwitchery.com/tag/augury/
https://ivi-maud.tumblr.com/post/169800381705/augury-witchcraft


Blessed be!

tiistai 7. elokuuta 2018

Lughnasadh 2018

Lughnasadh, also known as Lúnasa, Lùnastal, Luanistyn or Lammas, is a Gaelic festival of the first harvest, which also corresponds with other European early harvest festivals. It is held on the 1st of August, halfway between the Summer Solstice (Litha) and the Autumn Equinox (Mabon).

The festival is named after the Celtic god Lugh, and part of the festival is often offering some of the first harvest’s bounty in gratitude, and feasting or athletic competitions. Historically, journeys to sacred wells or holy shrines, or climbing mountains or hills have been popular, and in some places are still observed. Lugh is often seen as a personification of the first harvest, or the corn itself, and he is sometimes recast as folkloric figures such as John Barleycorn.

 Lughnasadh colours: gold, orange, yellow, green, light brown


Today´s outfit:
All thrifted except the knee socks, they are from H&M
Everything here is my actual favorites at the moment.

This Lughnasadh was super special to me. Week early I planned what to eat and we cook together, it was so homey. I also wanted to have special outfit, make my altar, clean the whole house and do stuff that I planned. I also read a lot of info that I even didn´t know and now I want to share them with you. Some reason, in many years I haven´t celebrated this Sabbath but I guess, now I am taking it back, and more! I am planning to celebrate the whole month and until Mabon. I have baked 3 breads, cleaned everyday (this still seems endless because I have so much stuff) and I have obsession about my closet, I need to declutter it this autumn so I can have piece of mind.. and I can make a closet tour. Finally.

Lughnasadh foods: Bread, corn, soup, root vegetables, berries, mead, rice, barely, nuts, seasonal fruits, roasted meats, honey, beer



Blueberry pie

"Similar to the Roman god Mercury, Lugh is known as a god of both skill and the distribution of talent.  He is a patron of the arts and a skilled warrior.
The Book of Invasions tells us that Lugh came to be associated with grain in Celtic mythology after he held a harvest fair in honor of his foster mother, Tailtiu. This day became August 1, and that date ties in with the first grain harvest in agricultural societies in the Northern Hemisphere. In fact, in Irish Gaelic, the word for August is lunasa. Lugh is honored with corn, grains, bread, and other symbols of the harvest. This holiday was called Lughnasadh (pronounced Loo-NA-sah). Later, in Christian England the date was called Lammas, after the Saxon phrase hlaf maesse, or “loaf mass.“"



"Lughnasadh is a festival called by many names as it is celebrated throughout the Pan-Celtic cultures. One of the names that has been documented in Ireland is Brón Trogaill, from Tochmarc Emire. Máire MacNeill in her book The Festival of Lughnasa tells us that  Brón Trogaill is understood to mean “Earth’s sorrows” giving the strong implication of a woman in childbirth.  Brón is a word with the meaning of “sorrow, grief, grieving, lamentation; distress, burden” and is also used in phrases like ro and brónbríg, “ weakened sorrows’ force” and brón déisi ag dathaghadh,  “harvest’s gloom.”  In  Tochmarc Emire Trogam is said to mean “earth” and on eDIL it is defined as “body” and the root of the word Trog is defined as “parturition or offspring”"



"The most well known story associated with the festival is that of Lugh’s foster mother Tailtiu. We’re told in Lebor Gabála Érenn, “the Book of the Taking of Ireland,” that Tailtiu was the daughter of a king of Spain and the wife of Eochaidh mac Eric, who was the last Fir Bolg king in Ireland. After the battles between the Fir Bolg and Tuatha Dé Danann she survived and went on to foster Lugh. We know very little about her as a person but she was honored by her foster son with the funeral games, Áenach Tailteann, after she died in a noble sacrifice to clear the plains of Ireland for agricultural purposes.

These funeral games are what we enjoy now. People would come together for everything from; horse racing, feats of strength, reciting poetry, marriage ceremonies, trading, feasting, judgments, divorces, etc. The whole community would be under a truce while the festival was carried out, it likely lasted about a week."



"By Lughnasadh, The Sun God has already begun his downward journey, facing now toward the dark frosts of Winter. The Goddess, however, never wanes. She simply changes appearance. At Lughnasadh, She wears a face of exquisite abundance.

During the season of high Summer the bounty of our planet is in full swing. We reap the benefits of fresh fruits, vegetables, and herbs. This is a time when most of us experience exceptionally good health and robust living.

Lughnasadh marks the last heyday of the Sun God. Beneath the Barley Moon and Summer stars we, too, enjoy the expiring passions of the season. Marriages are often entered into at Lughnasadh as well as at Midsummer, and as Robert Burns tells us, it is a “happy night” that he spends among the cornfields with his lover. Lughnasadh is a tome when the symbolic aspects of the life-sustaining elements of grain spill over into every part of life."

Magical Herbs 

"Lughnasadh marks a turning point in the Earth’s life cycle. Although Summer is hot and bountiful, more visible signs of the Sun’s waning strength lie just around the corner in Autumn’s fallen leaves. During this time of year, Witches use herbs to bring good fortune and abundance in their cooking, healing, potions, and spellwork. All grains, seeds, herbs, and flowers gathered now can be dried for later use during Winter or for decorating the altars of future Sabbats. Like herbs, grains are considered sacred and should be harvested with a magically charged “golden” sickle."



"In many regions in the northern hemisphere, Lughnasadh is berry-picking time. In the British Isles, bilberries are particularly plentiful. Gathering bilberries at Lughnasadh is an ancient ritual that has bearing upon the Summertime harvest as a whole. If the bilberries are bountiful, the crops will be plentiful. Just about every herb, flower, and grain reaches its peak of color, flavor, and magical potency in Summer. Garlic is a particularly versatile herb that is used for protection against negative energy and to cleanse and purify the body. Marigold helps us to communicate with Faeries and increase psychic ability. Moss is for financial gain, and at Lughnasadh vervain is used for wealth as well as protection.

During this season of marriages, yarrow is a common ingredient in wedding gift philtres and oils for love and union. Hops, used in flavoring beer and ale, favorite Lughnasadh beverages, are also good for sleeping and healing. Witches make healing compresses and teas from comfrey to enhance the healing of broken bones, scrapes, and bruises."


Following is a list of herbs to use in your magic during the Lughnasadh season:

Golden rod, nasturtium, clover blossom, yarrow, heliotrope, boneset, vervain, Queen Anne’s Lace, myrtle, rose, peony, sunflower, poppy, milkweed, Irish moss, mushroom, wheat, corn, rye, oat, barley, rice, garlic, onion, basil, mint, aloe, acacia, meadowsweet, apple leaf, raspberry leaf, strawberry leaf, bilberry leaf, blueberry leaf, mugwort, hops, holly, comfrey, marigold, grape vine, ivy, hazelnut, black thorn, elder, bee pollen, Magical Stones


"Our imaginations can easily be taken in by the magical charms of stones. They are simple enough in themselves, yet we watch and touch and remember, sometimes brooding upon their eternal composition. Witches believe that stones, despite their seeming lack of animation, are objects of wisdom and great positive energy and, like water, are one of the purest of all of Nature’s forms. For untold centuries we have paid attention to the effect of light on form. The geometric forms of crystals reveal fresh new perspectives that aid us in preparing for the future.

At Lughnasadh, as at all the Sabbats, we affirm the time-honored importance of stones as our friends. In addition to prosperity and growth, we seek confidence to face what lies ahead and a strengthening of our bond with Nature. The constancy of each individual stone on Earth centers on a mystical kind of compressed raw energy. Stones contain dynamic qualities and to us they exhibit a magical sensibility seemingly at odds with their concreteness. Within the core of each lies imprisoned, like the Young God himself, the concentrated, exquisite spirit of energy and light. Realizing these truths about about the magic of stones is particularly helpful during this turning point on the Wheel of the Year, when we straddle Lughnasadh’s amazing paradox of abundance and loss."

Following is a list of stones to use in your Lughnasadh magic:

Cat’s-eye, golden topaz, obsidian, moss agate, rhodochrosite, clearquartz, marble, slate, granite, lodestone, amber, citrine, aventurine, peridot

Ideas for Lughnasadh celebrations:

-Bake bread! Baking bread is one of the most traditional ways of celebrating this festival, and the first of the grains have been harvested. Consider baking different types of loaves, experiment with plaiting the dough or drawing designs on the top. Add seasonal berries, nuts or seeds to the dough to add flavour and interest. I make different kind of bread every time, I am trying to find the perfect way to make bread.


-Have a picnic with friends and family – with lots of bread! I went a picnic with Anna, it was awesome.


-Just go outside and enjoy the nature.


-Play games with friends or family
-Make a donation of food to your local food bank or donate money to a charity
-Hold your own Lughnasnadh ritual, light a fire and offer some food to the god Lugh and thank him for your harvest, and feel gratitude in knowing that all your efforts are coming to fruition
-Make corn dollies, instructions for lots of interesting designs can be found online, or make sculptures and decorations out of salt dough
-Light a candle and make a list of all that you are thankful for, and meditate upon this
-Go on a foraging trip, look for early apples, plums, berries and edible fungi (ensure you are certain of what you are harvesting before you eat it!)
-Dress to impress!
-As summer winds to a close and autumn approaches, make crafts and decorations for your home that celebrate the outdoors and the gifts of nature.
-A unique wearable craft would be a harvested wheat crown!
-The season from late summer to the middle of fall is often a season of heightened energy for those who identify with the warrior soul.  Meditations focusing on courage, physical strength, dexterity, and valor would be a great way to honor your inner warrior.
-Clean and change your bed sheets. It´s amazing feeling to sleep and smell clean sheets.

For all the info: I found from Tumblr from here here and here

Blessed be!

maanantai 6. elokuuta 2018

July favorites


-July started with a haul lookbook about new colorful clothings. At midsummer festival we decided to be in our summerhouse and there was so much Jani´s mom old clothing she said we can throw away or keep. I took a bag full of new autumn goodies with me. This pumped me up with colorful clothing. I don´t even mind some of the clothes are broken, I patch them up or keep them as they are. Some reason I like the fray and torn up look. Now I am in love with all of the fall colors: red, orange, yellow, green and brown. I after many years, I am not afraid of using color in my outfits. Finally, they make me happy, like clothing should do.



-I started a challenge to draw or paint for 31 days, but this lasted only 8 days until I forgot to do it. Damn it. But I made many paintings that I really like and I think I improved my skills a bit. I really love the girl with the moon and sun jacket, I used my golden pen for it, it shines so lovely.

-I found new Youtube channels, mainly Van life based. I started obsessing about it. Now I have dream to have my own van and travel across Finland and maybe even in other countries.

-I made my first sketchbook tour, this was so exiting thing to do. I have 2 other ones coming up.



-I was in a party at our workplace. It was such a fun night. So much dancing.


-I was at the friends wedding. It was epic day. Again, so much dancing, drinking and oh so much fun. Best wedding I have ever been. I also had a fake fur jacket which I used the whole night. I got questions like: "Are you goth?" and "Are you a witch? Aren´t witches bad?" But I had my game face on.

Disa

-Lumous. Again, an amazing experience. Best time I have had in this year and I got to have my best friends with me.


- I had an awesome hike.



-I got bucket full of flowers from my friend. Our bedroom smelled like a flower shop for a week. I even decorated my altar (you can see the old altar in the picture) in totally new one because the flowers.


-And here is my new altar with all the stuff I got from pagan market at Tampere I went with Laura.



-I went for a date. Sadly I didn´t take picture of the food or my outfit, both looked awesome btw. But my outfit will probably be in my upcoming lookbook of my summer style.

-For our 6th wedding anniversary, we went to our summerhouse and had oh so much good food, drink, sauna and because I have a thing for cleaning at the moment, I did some cleaning too.

Before and after

Best dinner in our summer house ever

I have started to collect some light blue, turquoise and light green items in our summerhouse. I really love those colors, but now at home. This is awesome way to show my colorful side and enjoy it in a place where I am so happy.

Pillow case from IKEA, picnic planket is from my friend Anna

Plate and the mug are from IKEA
Music I listened:



Tv- show I watched:


My month was awesome, really can´t wait what happens in August.

sunnuntai 5. elokuuta 2018

lauantai 4. elokuuta 2018

IN or OUT (aka summer wishlist EMP)

So, what is happening at the moment is, I have huge fashion inspiration going on. Everything is about style: clothes, styling, shoes, bags, accessories. So let´s see what my favorite shops are selling for this summer (which is still going hot hot hot!) and see if you would agree with me or not, is these items in or out? Also, it is fun to do old post series that I have been almost forgetting. Fashion is so big part of me that I think I need to get better with this blogging again! This is not sponsored. 
Ps. If you like these kind of posts, do you want me to do men´s wear too?

Tops:

 

Tassels, crop tops with braidings and high lows. I am in love, are you?

Skirts:







Everyone needs a leather skirt in their closet. I own many, short and long ones, but this is one that I have been watching since it came out. I think I need to buy it some day, it is just so lovely with the studs and all. Studs just never go out of style.

This Hufflepuff skirt is all the things I love at the moment, it´s super cute, it´s yellow (how suprising I love yellow, again one thing after childhood I started to like again, I used to hate color yellow) and it´s Harry Potter. And some reason, again, after childhood and high school, I would really love to own a tartan skirt again. They just add some color with the outfit so easily.


Same thing with with the red tartan skirt. Except I love the straps. I don´t own any skirt in this style, plus this would be a Gryffindor style on point. You would rock with this in any color and even without it being a tartan, plain black is always a good choice. You would add any kind of shirt under it, depending on your mood, but I would style it probably with crop top or black/white (depending on the color of the skirt) putton up shirt.


Bikinis:






I normally use bikinis and not one piece swimsuits. I really like all the Supernatural merch and with the Gothicana you never go wrong either. I wish I could go and swim today, it´s so hot. I have lost my favorite bikini, I think I need to invest on new ones...

Bags:

Let´s talk about bags. This summer I have been wanting little backpacks, leather, pvc or velvet. Also colorful and holographic bags are a statement pieces that I would like to have. More in my normal everyday life I would like to use these 2 cool graphic bags, just look how cool they are! I just need that cat bag.

Shoes:



Galaxy shoes or glitter shoes would be super awesome with the galaxy dress below. I just need to get that look in my closet. So, shoes are important for the whole outfit to come together. You could be casual with the sneakers, have edge with some boots. I normally use wedges in the summer too but I wanted to include something that is more comfy in the heat.

Dresses:






I tried to gather some different kind of dresses I would like to wear end of this summer. To me, maxi dresses with bold big prints are super in, same with the skater dresses (which are the most wearable and comfy dresses I know at the moment, I just love them). Also some reason I have a thing for fringe clothing and bags. I never knew I would start to like them again, after my childhood.






I really love occultic prints in black and white. 
Also I come really late in this fashion trend (like I normally do, I start liking stuff when other people start to forget the whole thing), but galaxy prints, oh my dear Goddess. The colors and the galactic view.. it just speaks to me. I want dresses, shirts, leggins, bags.. everything! But now days it´s harder to find because like I said, the galaxy phase is fading away.

Jawbreaker is a brand that I don´t own anything yet, but I really would like to. The Moonstone skater dress absolutely gorgeous and I am getting that in my closet soon.

These were my summer wants and things I have been liking this summer. I can´t wait for next post because I have so many stores to go trough with you and so many styling post ideas!

So, was there any hits or misses? What would you wear? What are your summer closet essentials, tell me in the comments! 

Love you darklings, remember to drink a lot of water!