Oracle Card Review: The Avalonian Oracle

I have been more than a little obsessed with the Avalonian Tradition and its philosophy lately. I have engrossed myself in learning as much as I can about the Celtic goddesses and reading about the mysterious and mystic island of Avalon. So when this new oracle deck,The Avalonian Oracle, showed up at my local store I was so excited to pick up a set!

This gorgeous deck comes in a beautiful hard box with a book and cards enclosed inside. The book is written by Jhenah Telyndru who is also the founder of The Sisterhood of Avalon. She is the author of Avalon Within: A Sacred Journey of Myth, Mystery and Inner Wisdom and several other books. 

I especially love the inspiring artwork by Emily Brunner. The cards are well thought out with loads of symbolism and Celtic imagery that will transport you to the holy isle of Avalon and back. 

And the well written book is chock full of the mythology of Avalon and tools for empowering your own inner wisdom. You will learn about 5 different Celtic goddesses and what they represent when you pull that card. The cards are separated by 7 different cycles or they can be read individually as well. 

Unlike Tarot Cards, Oracle Decks do not use a set system of symbology. Oracle decks can vary greatly from one deck to the next. What is important when using oracle decks is to focus in on your intuition for what the card means to you personally. For that reason I find oracle decks can really be hit or miss for me. I absolutely love the imagery used in this deck. They have a very comforting feel to them. They feel as if I have always owned this deck. 

Here is my first spread using the deck:

I drew The Five Seeds of Wisdom, The Three Cauldrons, and a goddess card Branwen. They are beautiful cards and really seem to speak to me on a deeper level. The cards I drew today just reaffirm that I am on the right path right now. I also picked up Jhenah Telyndru's book a few weeks ago. I have yet to finish it but I am enjoying it immensely so far. 

If you are interested in picking up a set of oracle cards for yourself you can get them at The Hive and Grove in Kitchener, Ontario or on Amazon.com. 

Waiting for my ship to come in.

For some time now I have been stuck in a holding pattern. Waiting. Just Waiting. But what exactly I have been waiting for, I am not entirely sure about. With this month's new moon I have been contemplating the reason why I am always waiting on the dock. When will this wait be over? My motto for this month's new moon was to do only those things that I wanted to do. To honour my own hopes and desires instead of everyone else's. To honour my boundaries in a healthy way.

For most of my adult life I have been putting my own wants or needs on the back burner in order to take care of my husband, my son, or even friends. I used to think well, it's only temporary. I'm only temporarily waiting to start my own business or to go back to school because my son was little or my husband's career was more important than my own. My son starts University in September this year so the waiting will have to hold on for at least another four years. This is an important four years for my son and my whole family so the wait is worth it. 

As for my career, I've created this holding pattern all on my own. I could have started a new career or went back to school at any time. Sure it would have taken longer to go back to college while my son was little but does that really matter in the long run? I once read an inspirational article a long time ago about an 80 year old woman that went back to university for her doctorate. When she was asked why she did so at that age she said "well, I was going to turn 80 years old anyway whether I went back to school or not!"  So I guess 47 really isn't that old to start over after all. I am still thinking about going back to school lately. I'm just not sure what field to go into or where to put my all my energy next. It's a big decision that will cost a ton of money if I do go forward with it. 

In the past I have always put all my energy and talent into other people's businesses. When I worked in retail, I put all my time and energy into selling or merchandising for huge companies. When I wrote movie reviews, I did it for a larger website instead of my own at first. And even recently I put my sewing talent to use for someone else's business. That's enough of that! It's time for me to start doing things for myself. If I only put in half that energy on my own business as I did for all those other people I would be very successful by now. Why is it so much easier for me to do things for other people instead of myself?

It's time to stop waiting on my ship to just show up. If I want it, I have to go and get it. It's time to step into my own life fully. To enjoy everything that comes along. To jump in with both feet so I'm not waiting and wanting something else. Something bigger and better will come if I just step up to the task! 

How to plant a Fairy garden!

It's that time of year again! It's time to garden again. It was so hot today but there I was in my big black gardening hat pulling weeds and digging in the dirt. There is just something so satisfying about digging in the dirt with your bare hands! I started with the weeding and had to move around a few flowers and transplant some runaway Bee Balm to some containers in my backyard. 

After all the weeding was finished I sent a message to a good friend who is a gardening expert about what plants I should plant in my tiny front garden and she responded with "why not plant a fairy garden there?" Of course! Why not plant a fairy garden?! And off I went to the local nursery to purchase lots of purple flowers. 

 

Believe it or not, I had this little ceramic cottage and gnome at home already. They were both thrift store finds from a while ago. The cottage reminded me of Hagrid's cottage when I bought it. All I had to add was the flowers. I am really happy about how it turned out. So happy that I think I should plan another fairy garden in the back yard! And wouldn't it be fun to do a haunted fairy house next time? Hmmm...

Happy World Goth Day!

I spent World Goth Day (eve) the same way I have for the past three years. We are lucky enough in Toronto to have an annual event hosted by Liisa Ladouceur every year. We spend the evening watching beautiful Gothic movies on the big screen at The Royal Cinema in TO. This year's movie selection was Interview With The Vampire. What a treat it was to see this movie once again on the big screen! Every time I watch this movie I feel like doing a marathon reading all those vampire books again. If only I had more hours in the day to read everything I wanted to. Sigh.

It's funny how seeing a movie like Interview With The Vampire, which I have seen about a 1000 times before, can look so different in large scale on the big screen. You notice all the little details of the costumes and set design that you might have missed before. This movie has spectacular costumes. All the lace and silk is so beautiful on Louie and Lestat! 

Mmmm... Antonio. 

Of course since this was a special outing I donned my best Vampire outfit for the occasion. Yes, Vampires do go to the movies! Here's proof. 

I would like to say a special thanks to Liisa Ladouceur for organizing this fun event every year. She is a very talented writer of both the Encyclopedia Gothica and How to Kill a Vampire. She debuted a short film she made on the 40 years of Goth Fashion last night as well. I'm sure it will be released very soon. Here is the teaser for it. She even put together some Vampire Hunter kits for the evening!

Happy World Goth Day! 

How much does social media influence you?

While reading through the blogs I follow I came across an interesting post by Diary of a Sewing Fanatic. She posed the question "Does social media affect what you sew?" The reader responses were really interesting to read through. I follow a lot of sewing blogs regularly but I'm not usually influenced by them because my personal style is so different from the norm. Even though I might not wear what everyone else is making I still enjoy reading through the sewing blogs. I can appreciate their style even though it's different from my own. And they usually have sewing tips that are good to know.

This also got me thinking that I would really love to hear from other Gothic Bloggers how they think about how social media influences them. So I'm posing my own question to you! "How does social media influence you?"  What blogs do you follow regularly? Who's style influences you the most? Are you inspired by Pinterest or maybe someone on YouTube? Are there blogs you follow on a regular basis even though their taste is completely different from your own? Are you influenced to try out a different style that you ordinarily wouldn't wear because it looks great on a another blogger? 

Here are just a few of my favourite social media haunts lately: 

Pinterest- This is the black hole of the Internet. I can spend loads of time on there everyday pinning away! My latest obsession is Dark Mori , Strega Fashion, and Witch Fashion and Boho/Witchy Decor 

YouTube- I follow mostly Tarot readers, Pagans, Mystics, and Occult podcasts on YouTube. Joey Morris and Rune Soup are some of my favourites. As for gothic youtubers, I love The Goblin Queen  (who is also mystical and a tarot reader) and Black Friday because she is cute and funny. 

Instagram- My good friend Madame Absinthe has a new Instagram account. She really is that fashionable and beautiful all the time. 

Blogs- you will find a list of blogs below that I follow regularly. Bloggers do influence me in some ways. But I think we all influence each other. The way we all get excited when the Halloween displays show up in August is just one way. I love that time of year!

So please tell me how social media influences you?

*image above is from Pinterest 

Are you a Witch?

So it happened yet again. I met a new girl at work just a few days ago. The first thing she said to me was "Hello". The second thing was "Are you a Witch?". Considering I have been asked this question over and over again my entire life, I just naturally answer yes now. I was not wearing my pentagram necklace that day so I asked her "what makes you ask that?" She answered "your eyes". Technically she is right, I identify as Pagan so I do consider myself a witch. But my coworker who was standing nearby was shocked at her question. She thought it was incredibly rude to just blurt out a question like that. Basically she was asking a very personal question. I normally wouldn't have thought twice about her asking that, but my coworkers reaction to the question made me think it over a little more closely. 

You see, I have been asked that question so many times over my life that I have started to think it's normal. I do realize that the way I dress has a huge effect on people, however in this case it really was a form of discrimination. I have naturally red hair and green eyes. Throughout history redheads with green eyes were thought to be either witches or vampires or both. If I were born 200 years ago I might have been burned at the stake for having red hair. Considering it is 2016 now, it's downright shocking how many people still think that way. Not only have I been asked multiple times if I'm a witch but I can also remember one guy many years ago asking me if I was a Vampire. He said this with a completely straight face. He was serious. As a child, my best friend growing up was terrified of Vampires. She slept with a crucifix above her bed. She actually confessed to me one night at a sleep over that she was worried I was a Vampire and that the crucifix would keep her safe. We were 10 years old! 

So when this new girl blurted out "Are you a Witch?" It didn't shock me. I'm used to it! Unfortunately for her, she had a disaster of a first day at work. She went on to insult at least three other people that day. This is definitely a no-no on your first day at work so she didn't last long at all. In my case, I think she was just excited because she had a pentagram tattoo that she flashed at me also. This meant she was interested in learning the craft. She was definitely a beginner so I gave her a few suggestions of books to read to get her started. 

Did this situation bring back long lost childhood memories that I buried long ago? Yes it did. But! The biggest difference now is that I am comfortable in my own skin. I am proud to be a redhead with green eyes. There aren't that many of us. It means I have Scottish or Irish heritage and that's all. Now that I am older, I own it, I put on my witch hat proudly. Go ahead and ask me if I'm a witch. You might be surprised at the answer! 

*images above were found on Pinterest. 

Upcycled Labyrinth Tee Dress

I am sure I am not the only one with a large collection of graphic tees! I have every type of graphic tee from bands to movie characters to just weird or funny sayings. Of course some tees wear out and develop wholes over time from washing and wear. Some of these end up being relegated to just "around the house" tees. But how many around the house tees do I actually need? Ugh. 

It always fun to upcycle the tees that are in bad shape instead. Turn them into something more useful for a second life.  Sometimes I turn old tees into pillows or quilted blankets. The designs can be cut out and used as patches on jackets or shirts also. Or they can be turned into something completely new like a t-shirt dress! 

This Labyrinth tee has seen better days. I bought it ages ago at a horror movie convention. Unfortunately the fabric was very unstable and the shirt started to disintegrate in the wash very quickly.  I loved the design because well, it's Bowie!, so I thought I would try and save it by using the front as fabric in a dress. 

The first thing I did was cut the top apart. Normally I use the back of the tee also but in this case the material was so bad I only recycled the front part with the design.  

Next I cut out a back, sleeves, and skirt out of new fabric. My blacks do not match perfectly but when do they ever match perfectly? I used one of my own patterns. A design I use over and over again so it's tried and true. 

I serged the pieces together in the usual way using a 4 thread overlock stitch. 

The neck step was to add some trim. I chose a sparkly silver ruffle for the neck and a silver and black lace for the hem and zig zagged it on. A little bit of sparkle seems appropriate on a Bowie tee doesn't it? 

Unfortunately there was a small hole on the front of the tee also. So I needed to add some trim to cover that hole. I decided to make it seem like it was supposed to be there all along by adding rows of lace and a small fabric rosette. To make a rosette just pleat and gather trim as you zig zag. I then take the gathered trim and roll it into a rosette.  The rosette is just zig zagged on top of the other trim on the tee by the neckline. 

And here is the finished dress! I'm going to be careful washing this dress from now on by using cold water and hanging it up to dry so that hopefully it doesn't continue to disintegrate.