Corn Dollies

This is a fun project to do with kids. Take dried-out corn husks and tie them together in the shape of a woman. She’s your visual representation of the harvest. As you work on her, think about what you harvested this year. Give your corn dolly a name, perhaps one of the names of the Grain Goddess or one that symbolizes your personal harvest. Dress her in a skirt, apron, and bonnet and give her a special place in your house. She is all yours till the spring when you will plant her with the new corn, returning to the Earth that which She has given to you.

The Celts celebrate this festival from sunset August 1 until sunset August 2 and call it Lughnasad after the God Lugh. It is the wake of Lugh, the Sun-King, whose light begins to dwindle after the summer solstice. The Saxon holiday of Lammas celebrates the harvesting of the grain. The first sheaf of wheat is ceremonially reaped, threshed, milled and baked into a loaf. The grain dies so that the people might live. Eating this bread, the bread of the Gods, gives us life. If all this sounds vaguely Christian, it is. In the sacrament of Communion, bread is blessed, becomes the body of God and is eaten to nourish the faithful. This Christian Mystery echoes the pagan Mystery of the Grain God.

Grain has always been associated with Gods who are killed and dismembered and then resurrected from the Underworld by the Goddess-Gods like Tammuz, Osiris, and Adonis. The story of Demeter and Persephone is a story about the cycle of death and rebirth associated with grain. Demeter, the fertility Goddess, will not allow anything to grow until she finds her daughter who has been carried off to the Underworld. The Eleusinian Mysteries, celebrated around the Autumn Equinox, culminated in the revelation of a single ear of corn, a symbol to the initiate of the cyclical nature of life, for the corn is both seed and fruit, promise and fulfillment.

In an agrarian culture, the success of the crop is all-important and in Northern Europe, the harvest produce was essential to survival during the winter period. It was the generally held belief that the spirit of the harvest—in this case, the versatile grain crop—resided in the plant, and once the plant was cut down then the spirit effectively became homeless. In order to provide a new home for this spirit, the farmers made a corn dolly from the very last stalks of the crop. The dolly would spend her time indoors over the winter, waiting to be plowed back into the ground at the start of the new season. In places where the corn dolly custom was not established, the last few stalks of corn were violently beaten into the ground, thus driving the spirit back into the Earth.

The dolly was made into the shape of an old woman, representing the Crone aspect of the Harvest Goddess. She was drenched in water as a further propitiation to the Gods and to ensure that plenty of rain would feed the harvest to come. Different areas had different styles of corn dollies.

However, the custom of preserving the spirit of the harvest was not always carried out in such a genteel way. The Phrygians, who lived in central Asia Minor and worshipped the Mother of the Gods, Cybele, carried out a different sort of ceremony. Their “corn dolly” was formed from thickly plaited sheaves of corn formed into a tall column. Any stranger found in the vicinity was captured in the belief that his presence there would mean that the spirit of the harvest had possessed his body and caused him to wander into the area. The hapless stranger was then trapped within this cage of corn and then beheaded in the belief that the blood that fell upon the ground contained the valuable “soul” of the crop.

The making of corn dollies goes back many thousands of years. It was a Pagan custom and evolved from the beliefs of the corn growing people who believed in the Corn Spirit.

What were corn dollies traditionally made from?

Corn dollies were made at Harvest time from the last sheaf of corn cut.

The Corn Spirit was supposed to live or be reborn in the plaited straw ornament or corn doll and was kept until the following spring to ensure a good harvest. The corn dolly often had a place of honour at the harvest banquet table.

The craft was brought to a halt by the advent of mechanization in the 1800s but is now being revived as a fascinating hobby.

Other harvest rituals and ceremonies

In the past .....

Church bells could be heard on each day of the harvest.

The horse, bringing the last cart load, was decorated with garlands of flowers and colourful ribbons.

A magnificent Harvest feast was held at the farmer's house and games played to celebrate the end of the harvest.

The corn dolly has been a traditional feature of rural life since before Christ. Pagans believed (and many still do) that cornfields had spirits and that after the harvest these spirits were made homeless. To protect the spirits, corn dollies were made from the corn and kept in people’s households, giving the spirit a warm home over winter. The dolly was then ploughed into the first furrow of the new season to guarantee a bumper crop. The dollies themselves were named after counties or place names. In Norfolk: The Burton Turf dolly and the Norfolk Lantern. In Suffolk: The Suffolk Bell, Suffolk Horseshoe and The Whip. In Cambridgeshire: The Handbell, and in Essex: The Terret.

To Make A Dolly

When the last fall grain harvest was gathered in, ancient farmers in Europe (from England to the Baltics) always kept a few sheaves aside to be woven into “corn dollies,” shapes and figures thought to manifest the spirit of grain. Called the corn mother in Northern Europe, the hag in Ireland, and the corn maiden in parts of England, the spirit inhabited the fertile fields, and once the grain was harvested, needed a place to dwell until replanting time in the spring. Those final sheaves kept her spirit alive through the fallow winter.

Despite their name (corn evolved from ‘kern,’ the old English word for grain, and “dolly” is thought to have evolved from “idol”), corn dollies weren’t made of corn and didn’t always resemble the human form. More often, they were interpreted as circles, hearts, loops, goats, and stars that could be displayed in the home during the dormant winter, then plowed back into the earth in spring. When modern mechanical threshers came into use, the art of making corn dollies was almost lost. But in the past few decades, it has experienced a revival, usually under the name of wheat weavings,

Waverly published an article about wheat weaving in this magazine last year. You can also interpret the spirit of the grain in your own way. We chose to make ours look a bit like a proud, wild goddess with a head and hands of seedheads and a corn husk dress. This style is easy to make with older children, although an adult should be present for wire cutting.

Start with a four-ounce bundle of wheat and cut the seedheads off, leaving a little of the stalk intact for a base. Separate the taller seedheads from the shorter ones, then make two piles of short ones for the hands and one pile of big ones for the head. Wire the seedheads into bundles with 22 to 24-gauge wire.

Soak the long stalks for a few hours so that they’re pliable, then cut two piles of stalks: one for the body and one for the arms. Bind off each pile at each end, then wire the ‘hands’ to the end of the arms, the ‘head’ to the top of the body, and the arms to  the body. Hide the wire under raffia. Cut a piece of paper and secure into a cone shape. Anchor body in the cone either by poking wire through the paper and wrapping it around the body stalk or any other method that works for you. Now you can make the dress. We used corn husks and pinned them to the paper cone. This is just one simple way to make a corn dolly without being skilled at wheat weaving. Even without those skills, my daughter and I felt like we were taking part in an ancient tradition as we made our dolly.

The Witch's Cauldron Laura Tempest Zakroff

Off the bat this book is informative. And is part of a series from Llewellyn. You do not need to read or purchase all in the series. I have this one and the one that was written on the broom. It talks about a few different things to start off with like defining a cauldron, basics, and nine uses for it (container and maker). It is not a few lines of information and then a lot of personal information – it is full of information. There is also talks of cauldrons you can go see in the world – at museums mainly in Europe. As well it talks about cauldrons of Ceridewn, Baba Yaga and others – information, story, symbolism and consideration. A good part is about different styles and material of cauldrons so you know what may be right for you. From making your own to purchasing one. But it also talks about reusing products (like a plate for candles and offerings, saucepans and other items) to be use as a cauldron. There is other information surrounding it like decor at sabbats, taking care and safety of a cauldron. Then there is cauldron magic – and a not from the author's husband, a piece of advice 1 take care of yourself 2 take care of others and 3 don't be a jerk. Near the end there is recommended readings and resources.

The Green Witch by Arin Murphy-Hiscock

Discusses what is a green witch and green witchcraft. The book talks about energy centers and has tips to improving your home. There is a page on broom purification – if you have not or are not looking into greater information about brooms. Some exercises are placed in the first few chapters – in smaller font relates to that portion of the chapter. There are meditations and rituals. Part one and two are about learning and living as a green witch. Like the magic of trees and flowers (a brief introduction because I know that there are books that go in depth), stones, and herbs and greens. As well keeping a garden. Creating items/ rituals with items talked about in the chapter – herb related, a broom balm and stepping stones. In the appendix there is the magical associations of natural items – quick and few associations.

Nice look at Green Witchcraft, it is not fully complete but many things into one book which is nice. It is a good introduction. Even with the subtitle does state it is your complete guide. It is pretty complete to the things and ideas of Green Witchcraft. It can be a connection and start for some readers, possibly first book/ introduction to the practice than other books.

“365 Days of Crystal Magic,” Sandra Kynes

Each month is a chapter (chapter two to thirteen, chapter one about preparing and using crystals). The introduction has some history and good information. Does talk about cleaning/cleansing crystals – for those who do not do this or believe it is necessary, it is talked about. Same goes when she talks about charging crystals.

Within each month, the set up is the same. There is a small section of the month. It has a list of birthstone – American, British, Others and European 15^th - 20^th c. It has the months full moon as well. Within the chapters, there are different topics for each day – each that can be categorized into different categories. Like other 365 day books, these categorize would be at the back of the index.

The categories include runic half months, Celtic tree months, sabbats and so on. Some days have quotes/information in italics, or a figure – a rune for the days about runic half months. At the end of each month, there is a page for notes. In the book, there are a number of crystals used, and some used on different days.

This book is for those like to incorporate crystals into their life or for those who like 365 days books. There are a few books out there that have the same set up where there is something to do on each day of the year, including February 29. Which means you can use this book in any year you want to use it and for any day you want to use the book. There are different things in this book that are useful. It is a really nice book to have a look at.

“A Year and a Day of Everyday Witchcraft,” Deborah Blake

          This is a book that brings in small ideas to help the reader have a magickal life. Yes there are other books out there but this is another read. For me Deborah Blake is writing books around this idea to have practical ideas and items to add to your life. In this book you do not have to do everyday if it does not resonate with you. Overall, the book is a very nice book and a quick read due to the fact that ninety-nine percent of the days are less than a page. There is an introduction and no conclusion to wrap it up. So that may turn some people off if you like things summed up. If you want you can try and find it at a library or share it with a few friends.

            In the book it has some good ideas, and similar to the Llewellyn Spell-a-Day almanac and other yearly almanacs and datebooks. So if you like that set up, the book is familiar and in this book it is all her content. She brings in different categories and not copy and pastes how to relate to that category. She puts into the book different quotes from other people, colours, goddesses, crystals and a few other topics. With each day, there can be a sense that she has tried to relate many of the topics to that time of year or season. I would recommend this book to get ideas for your day to day life. It is a nice quick read even though you may be looking at the four hundred plus page count. Do not forget that there is an introduction and a categorized index at the back. The index is nice if you want to see or have the topic in one snippet (like recipes, about nature or what goddesses she talked about).

            It is not year specific which is good because you can use this book in 2018, 2019 or 2025. I goes from January first to January first including February twenty ninth because when/if you choose read this book you can use it in a leap year. Within the book she brings in something about the day and activity and put more of the things to do in the “try this” section at the bottom of each page. The “try this” page always relates to the topic above and continues on what she wrote about – like doing rituals, spells or recipes relating to that day. The dates and time of year is connected to the Northern Hemisphere but can be translated to the Southern Hemisphere to your date and time. If you get a physical copy of the book and not an ebook version there is two pages of lined paper at the end of the book. To me, I am not a person that does not write on the pages of a book. I sticky note almost the hell out of some books, which would have likely happened if I had this book physically because there is good ideas that you can adjust if needed to your situation.

Yule Activities, Crafts, Decor(ations)

YULE TREE

Materials:

·         Tree of the traditional seasonal type

·         Decorative materials: Popcorn strings, tinsel, wooden stars, ornaments of any sort, fake snowflakes . . . use your imagination!

Directions:

Simply decorate the tree however you desire. One fun activity is using popcorn strings, which can be created by stringing them together with a needle and thread. (Make sure you get unsalted, unbuttered popcorn!) Little brooms, apples, or stars, and any other symbols of Yule you like, can be placed at strategic intervals all over the greenery.

Ritual use:

Candles or lights can be added to the tree and solemnly lit at a family or solitary ceremony. Gifts can be stored under the tree and joyously given on Yule.

 

Altar-Sized Yule Log

Materials:

  Small altar-sized log

  3 candles (1 white, 1 red, 1 black)

  Bits of artificial holly to decorate with

  Red and green ribbon to be tied in a decorative bow

  Glue gun

 

Directions:

The candles can be short squat ones or longer ones if your willing to drill holes in the

log and insert them.

Just gluing them is fine. The white candle represents the innocent phase of life: it

goes first. The red represents the childbearing phase: it goes in the middle. The black

candle represents maturity and wisdom; it goes last. Arrange the holly around them

show that drill holes or glue gun marks do not show. Tie a bow with the ribbon and

stick on the front.

Ritual Use:

Burn the candles during ritual or any times the Yule darkness threatens to over

power.

 

Crafts

Shaving Cream Snow Painting

The materials required for this activity are foam shaving cream, white glue, construction paper, paint brushes, small bowls and food coloring (optional). Mix even amounts of glue and shaving cream (if you want colour, mix a couple drops of coloring into the glue first). Place each color of snow into individual bowls. Allow children to paint a picture on construction paper. Let the painting dry. When dry the picture will be puffy just like real snow.

 

Homemade Snow Globes

Materials that are needed are: baby food jars with lids, glue gun, small ornaments or trinkets that will fit in the jar, water, glitter and ribbon, if wanted. On the jar lid glue the trinkets onto it. Allow it to dry. While drying fill the jar with water and add glitter into the snow globe. Place lid on jar, and glue around the outside of the lid to seal it. If you want, tie the ribbon around the outside of the jar.

 

Beaded Snowflakes

These beautiful snowflakes can be used to decorate the home. Materials needed are pipe cleaners, beads (make sure the opening is wide enough to thread a pipe cleaner through) and narrow ribbon. Use three six inch long pipe cleaners. Twist the pipe cleaners together to create six arms of the snowflake. Bead the pipe cleaners with the beads however you would like. Finish by wrapping pipe cleaner under last bead and through the next to last bead to keep beads from falling off. Tie ribbon through one arm for hanging the snowflake.

 

Make paper snowflakes. Have the children fold up white sheets of paper. Then have them cut small pieces out all along the edges. Unfold . hang up in windows.

Make snow pictures using cotton balls, glue, glitter, and crayons. Children can color any scene they want, then glue down cotton balls to make the snow. They can glue glitter onto the cotton balls to make the snow sparkle.

Have your child draw a snowman on a heavy piece of paper. Have them paint glue on the snowman. Then they can sprinkle coconut over the glue. Shake off excess coconut.

Make tissue paper wreaths. Take a paper plate and cut out the middle. Give your child small squares of green tissue paper. Then have them ball up the tissue paper and glue it onto the plate. Then they can decorate it with other colors of tissue paper and a big bow.

Make Ivory Soap Flakes pictures. Mix 1 cup of Ivory Snow Powder (in the laundry section,) with 1/2 cup warm water. Have the child use a craft stick to "paint" it on paper to look like snow.

Make a reindeer hat. First make a construction paper band to fit around the child's head. Staple it together. Then trace the childs hands on brown construction paper. Cut out the hands, and staple to the head band as antlers.

Make paper plate suns. Have the children paint a paper plate yellow. Have them tape strips of yellow streamers all around the edges on the back. You can have a parade around the house or yard carrying the suns.

Have the children make a wreath. Trace around their hands on green construction paper. Cut several of these hands out. Glue together in a circle. add a red bow.

Make apple candle holders. Core apples. Carve whatever symbols or designs you want. Dip in lemon juice. Put in candle. These will only last a day. You may also add some cloves if you wish.

 

Activities

Red and green (God and Goddess respectively) are the colors of Yule, as are gold and silver (God/Goddess). Hot foods representing the return of the sun are very much appropriate, like ginger (gingerbread), cinnamon, cloves, and—out here in the Southwest—hot peppers! Of course pine, cedar, and evergreens are an important incorporation of the Sabbat, representing the eternal soul.

 

For prosperity in the coming year, burn Ash Wood.

 

Watch the sunrise

It was amazing and magickal. Watching the sun breech the horizon is truly like watching a birth. It's innate and raw and deeply spiritual. Wherever you choose to watch the sunrise, you won't be disappointed!

 

Light a Yule candle

Nothing says Yule like a Yule log. Traditionally, carving wishes and spells into a Yule log and then burning it is a meaningful and simple way to cast and celebrate Yule.

Carve in your wishes for the New Year and light that bad boy up! If you're super in-tuned with fire, you may even try your hand at divination!

 

Bake gingerbread

We all know gingerbread men are a huge part of Christmas. And without getting into a big debate, that tradition stems from Yule. The reason they're gingerbread men is because they are representing the God.

 

So whether you bake some men or get creative and make gingerbread suns, anything incorporating ginger and cinnamon is most definitely a Yuletide-appropriate treat! Make your home smell amazing, make your belly happy, and treat yourself to some holiday music while you bake!

 

Listen to the silence

Winter is a pretty quiet time in nature. Most animals have migrated or are hibernating. Even people seem to stay inside after dark. One of the ways I love to relish the winter solitude is to simply go outside and listen to the silence, especially at night. There's a magickal quality to the quiet, a certain hum of energy that can't be felt any other time of year. Maybe it's the impending renewal. Maybe it's the promise of possibility. Whatever it is, it's tranquil and serene.

Bundle up, bring some tea, and sit outside for a few minutes in the silence. Star gaze. Watch the snow fall. Take the cool night air deep into your lungs. Enjoy the quiet whisper of the wind cutting through the trees. Breathe in the season. Winter, after all, is a magickal one!

 

Many people have a Yule tree, a Yule log, or both. The Yule Tree is often lit up with candles on Yule, and the log is decorated and later burned. It is customary to exchange Yule gifts and to make wreaths, and to hang mistletoe over doorways. The altar and other areas of the house can be decorated with holly, mistletoe, evergreen, pine cones, ivy, berries, and ribbons. Also, holly and mistletoe represent different things: Holly is representative of the "holly king," the king of the waning or old year, and the mistletoe is representative of the "oak king," the king of the waxing or new year.

 

Make a Yule Log

Since the celebrating and parties would last for as long as the log burned, people would choose the biggest log they could find. Sometimes the log would be so large that it required a team of horses to drag it home! Then the families would decorate it, pour wine over it and sing songs around it. The Yule log represents Good Luck in the coming year.

Decorating the log is so much fun and there are so many ways you can do it!

Tie pine and holly to it with a bright red ribbon. Glue on Pine Cones, berries and even dried flowers. Color and cut out little paper suns and glue them to ribbons that can dangle down. Sprinkle the whole log with glitter from a craft store. Each member of the family can even write little wishes for the coming year on bits of paper then roll the paper up like scrolls and tuck them under the ribbons.

If you don’t have a fireplace you can just "glue" a candle on the top of the log with a bit of melted wax!

 

For Yule Blessings
Hang a Yule wreath on the front door, yhang mistletoe indoors, make food and clothing donations, place bird seed outdoors for the birds that stay near your home ion the winter, ring bells on the Solctice morning to greet it, and perform magick for a peaceful planet.

 

Decor/decorations

Colors: Red and green are the classic colors of life in deep midwinter, as combined in holly berries and leaves. White and silver stand for snow, purity, and daylight. Deep blue is the color of midnight. Gold represents the sun and abundance.
Plants: Greenery is more apt for the season than flowers; evergreen boughs are ubiquitous. Holly and ivy are also used to make wreaths and garlands. Mistletoe is tied in small bunches to hang. Pinecones may be hung as ornaments or stacked in bowls. Most of these are masculine symbols. The poinsettia and Christmas cactus are more feminine; bright red ones can stand for the fire of the sun, while white ones represent the purity of the Goddess.
Incense: Frankincense and myrrh give an intense, spicy fragrance with a long tradition. Cinnamon, clove, and orange are popular fruity-spicy choices. Pine and bayberry are more resinous and woodsy. Consider the woodsy-musky oakmoss if you’re honoring the Oak King.
Music: The primary music of Yule is vocal, so collect some Yule carols for people to sing. Favorite holiday instruments include bells, flute, harp, lute, and piano or synthesizer keyboard. Play some seasonal music such as Firedance: Songs for Winter Solstice, Yule, and Beautiful Darkness: Celebrating the Winter Solstice.
Altar Tools: Candles, candle holders, and candle snuffers appear in most Yule rituals. You may also want a mirror or other shiny things, sun symbols, animals to honor the deities, divine icons, etc. Cakes and ale are often presented on elaborate dishware: a platter of gold or silver metal or glass, or ceramic made to resemble an evergreen tree or poinsettia flower; and a chalice of silver, gold, or crystal. (You can get these things on sale for a few dollars between Christmas and New Year.)
Yule Log: This comes in at least four types. The traditional Yule log is a giant hunk of wood left burning in a fireplace for a whole festival lasting several days. A modern variation is a small log sliced flat on the bottom and drilled for several candleholders on top. Then of course there is the Yule log cake.
Bells: A rope or strap of bells, either round sleigh bells or trumpet bells, is a traditional holiday decoration. Bells produce a cheerful sound that lifts the spirits and drives away malicious influences.
Snow: Decorate with artificial snowflakes, glitter, or other materials that mimic snow. If there is snow on the ground, you may wish to build snow gods and goddesses, or snow lanterns.
Lights: Holiday lights are a modern alternative to open flames. They come in all colors so you can choose them to match your theme. The new LED lights use much less energy and are very beautiful.

 

Decorating Yule Tree, Gifts in Memory of Deceased, Storytelling

Decorate a yule tree. For ornaments use natural items such as pine cones, acrons, string popcorn or berries, or suns and cresent moons.
String popcorn or cranberries for outdoor trees.
Decorate pine cones with glue and glitter as symbols of the fairies and put them on the Yule tree.
Hang little bells on the Yule tree to call good spirits.
Remove the caps from acrons, insert the middle of a long string, glue the cap back on, and, after it has dried, hang on the Yule tree.

Have the children make a paper chain loop to decorate the tree.

 

Dough Art Decorations

Materials:
4 cups flour, 2 cups water, 1 cup salt, Cookie Cutters, Wire Ornament Hangers, Acrylic Paints.

Combine flour, salt, and water in a large bowl. Dough should kneed easily but not be sticky, if so, add more flour. On a flat surface, lay down some waxed paper. Take a handful of the dough and roll out with a rolling pin. Cut dough into shapes with the cookie cutters. Make a hole in top of "cookie" for wire hanger. Place on ungreased cookie sheet and put in oven at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until *slightly* brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool thoroughly. Paint with acrylic paints. Allow to dry, place hanger in hole and adorn tree, packages, or hang in windows. (Allow children to make-up Yule stories to go along with each decoration they are making.)

 

Salt Dough Ornaments

  

Use salt dough and cookie cutters to make your own Yule ornaments.

Salt dough is one of the easiest things in the world to make, and you can create just about anything from it. Use it with cookie cutters to make your own Sabbat ornaments.

You'll need:

·      4 Cups flour

·      1 Cup salt

·      1 ½ Cups hot water

·      1 tsp vegetable oil

Combine the salt and flour, then add the water until the dough becomes elastic. Add the oil at this time and knead the dough (if it's too sticky, add more flour). Once it's a good consistency, make your decorations with cookie cutters. Bake ornaments at 200* until hard (about 20 - 30 minutes). Once they've cooled, paint them with designs and symbols, and seal with clear varnish.

If you're planning to hang them, poke a hole through the ornament BEFORE baking them. Then, after you've varnished them, run a ribbon or thread through the hole.

 

Scented Ornaments:
1 cup cinnamon,
3/4 cup applesauce,
1/4 cup white school glue
Mix ingredients together, roll out on a lightly floured surface. Cut out with cookie cutters. Punch a hole in the top of each oramnet with a drinking straw. Dry for at least 48 hours. Tie a string or a ribbon through the hole, and hang on the tree. Do not eat!

 

Cinnamon Stick Garland
Thread some dental floss or embroider floss, or quilting thread onto a needle. String cinnamon sticks through the long hole in the middle of the stick onto the thread. You can add whatever else you want in between the cinnamon sticks (cranberries, popcorn, etc.)

 

Yule Log
When Yule comes around, celebrate by creating a Yule log. Take a walk in the park or near your home if you live in a rural area. Look for the perfect log to burn in your fireplace. Remember to try and choose a log that has already fallen instead of cutting one from a living tree. Driftwood is also good to use. Collect items to decorate your log with. These can be:

holly leaves and/or berries
oak leaves
winter flowers
pine cones
pine needles
corn or corn husks
mistletoe
evergreen sprigs
gold string or bows
apple cider

Decorate the Yule log in the fireplace before starting the fire. Traditionally, the Yule log was supposed to burn for 12 days. Today, however, few people are able to have a fireplace or log to size. Save a piece of the log to use to light the next year's log.

 

Cinnamon Stick Bundles - Bundle a few short cinnamon sticks together using a bit of slender ribbon and tie a bow and a loop at the top. Then glue on little sprigs of holly, pine or dried flowers like rose buds, marigolds or baby’s breath, tucking the stems under the bow.

 

Bay Balls - Take some Bay leaves. Fresh is best but if all you have is dried, then soak them overnight in warm water to make them pliable (that means you can bend them more easily without breaking them). The next morning, pat them dry. Next, take a Styrofoam ball and use Tacky Glue to cover it with bay leaves. Start at the bottom of the ball and work your way toward the top so they overlap a bit. Some of the leaves you may have to hold in place while the glue dries so they don’t pop up. Cloves or rosebuds stuck through the leaves into the ball will help hold the leaves in place and look pretty besides. A very pretty effect is to “dust” your finished ball with a light spray of gold paint. Pin a pretty loop of ribbon or gold cording to the top to hang it by.

 

Pinecone Ornaments - If you have pine trees in your area, collect the fallen cones. If not, you can buy the cones in a craft store. Cover the very edges of the pinecone with glue and sprinkle glitter over the glue. It will look like the cones are tipped with frost – very pretty! You can also simply spray paint the cones gold or silver and then immediately sprinkle them all over with iridescent glitter.
Pinecones are light enough to just tuck into the tree’s branches or you can glue on a ribbon loop to hang it with or twist a loop of wire around the base.

 

Cinnamon Stick Pentagrams – (this project uses hot glue, so parents might wish to help younger children) Soak 5 cinnamon sticks (each about the same length) overnight in warm water. In the morning, pat them dry and form them into a pentagram. The soaking will make them pliable so that as you overlap them, they will bend more easily. Hot glue the ends together and then wrap the ends also with twine or raffia and tie it off. Use extra raffia to create a loop at the top for hanging.

 

Yule Sachets - Take about a 4 inch square of lace or fabric (if you’re going for a very “organic”, natural look for your tree, then burlap works well) In the center, put a tablespoon of Yule sachet mixture, bring the ends of the fabric up and tie ribbon or twine around the top making a little pouch with the herbal mixture inside. Tuck a sprig of holly, mistletoe or little birch pinecones into the ribbon. If you can find a rubber stamp at the craft store with a sun, star or moon on it, you can stamp the outside of the fabric with a picture before adding your herbs.

 

Yule Sachet Mixture - 2 parts fragrant pine leaves, 1 part rosemary, 1 part cinnamon, 1 part cloves, 1 part dried orange peel broken into little pieces. Add a bit of cinnamon oil; stir it up good and let it sit for a few days in a closed jar.

 

Pomanders - Tie a loop in a length of ribbon leaving the ends long enough to wrap around a small orange, lime or lemon. Wrap it around the fruit and then tie it at the bottom. If you want you can cut the ends off, let them dangle or even add a tassel.
Then, poke large cloves all over into the fruit. You can use a nail, wooden skewer or even an old crochet hook to get the holes started if you want. Completely cover the fruit with the cloves or create a pattern with some of the fruit showing through.

 

Gilded Acorns - Often, when you find acorns on the ground, their little caps have come off. If that’s the case, then collect both caps and bases. If not, then remove the caps yourself when you get home. Paint both halves with spray paint or craft paint using either gold or silver. Then cut a slender ribbon about 3 inches long and glue each end to the inside of the cap so that it forms a loop. Then glue the cap back on to the base of the acorn. When it’s done, you can paint the cap with watered down white glue and dust it with glitter.

Cinnamon Ornaments – Put about a cup of applesauce in a strainer and let it sit & drip for a few hours. Then combine1 cup cinnamon with one tablespoon each of cloves and nutmeg. Add 2 tablespoons of white glue and ¾ cup of drained applesauce.
For a more intense fragrance, you can add about ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon and/or apple oil. Mix it all up with your hands until its a smooth ball, all mixed up. (be careful to wash your hands after handling the oils. You don’t want to accidentally get any in your mouth or eyes)
Roll it out about ¼ inch thick and either cut shapes out with cookie cutters or use the templates below. Use a straw to poke a hole in the top. Let them sit out to dry for a few days, turning them over once or twice a day so they don’t curl up. Then, poke a ribbon through the hole to hang them with.

 

Yule Spell Ornament

 

As Yule approaches, the opportunities for spellwork are seemingly endless. If you have a holiday tree this year, why not use ornaments as a way of directing your magical energies? Make a spell ornament to bring prosperity, love, health, or creativity into your life.

You'll need the following:

·      Clear plastic fillable ornament

·      Filler material associated with your purpose: herbs, small stones, colored paper or glitter, etc.

·      Colored ribbon

·      Fill the plastic halves of the ornament with items that are associated with your purpose. Try a couple of the following, or come up with your own combinations:

·      For a money spell, add shredded bits of play money, Bay leaf, basil, chamomile, clover, cinquefoil, tonka bean, Buckeye, pennyroyal; stones such as turquoise and amethyst; bits of green, silver or gold glitter.

·      For love magic, use Allspice, apple blossom, bleeding heart, catnip, lavender, periwinkle, peppermint, tulip, violet, daffodil; crystals such as rose quartz or emerald, coral; small heart-shaped cutouts, bits of pink or red glitter.

·      For workings related to creativity and inspiration, add feathers, sage, tobacco leaf, hazelwood or birch, symbols of artistry such as paintbrush tips, crayons, or colored thread. Add diamonds, quartz crystals, also consider colors like yellow and gold.

·      If you're doing healing magic, use Apple blossom, lavender, barley, comfrey, eucalyptus, fennel, chamomile, allspice, olive, rosemary, rue, sandalwood, wintergreen, peppermint.

As you're filling your ornament, focus on your intent. Think about what your purpose is in creating such a working. For some people, it helps to chant a small incantation while they work - if you're one of those folks, you might want to try something like this:

Magic shall come as I order today,
bringing prosperity blessings my way.
Magic to hang on a green Yule tree;
as I will, so it shall be.

Once you've filled your ornament, place the two halves together. Tie a colored ribbonaround the center to keep the halves from separating (you may need to add a dab of craft glue for stability) and then hang your ornament in a place where you can see it during the Yule season.

Gift-giving tip: Make a whole box of these with different purposes, and share them with your friends at the holidays!

 

Easy Pipecleaner Pentacle Ornaments

Use chenille stems in your favorite color to create one of these. They're easy, and your kids can do it once you show them how to bend the stems. You'll need three pipe cleaners, or chenille stems, for each pentacle.

Bend the first stem into a circle, and overlap the ends by about an inch, so you can twist them closed.

Take the second stem, and create three arms of the star inside the circle. Be sure to twist it around the circle as you make the points, because this will keep it from sliding apart.Take the last stem and create the final two arms of the star. Use the remaining length of stem (don't snip it off) to twist into a loop so you can hang your ornament.

 

Cinnamon Spell Ornaments

 

Will you be decorating a tree this year for your Yule celebrations? There are all kinds of things you can hang on it! Try making a batch of cinnamon spell ornaments as a fun and magical holiday project.

For starters, let’s be clear about one thing – these ornaments may be made with cinnamon, but they are NOT edible, so make sure you hang them out of reach of hungry pets or roaming bands of feral toddlers.

Let’s talk a little bit about cinnamon. It smells good, sure, and it tastes delicious… but what else is it good for? Cinnamon has been used in a variety of ways for thousands of years. The Romans burned it in funeral ceremonies, believing that the aroma was sacred and pleasing to the gods. Because it was hard to come by, during the Middle Ages, wealthy Europeans made sure to serve cinnamon at feasts so their guests would know that no expense had been spared. Now, fortunately for us, you can buy powdered cinnamon in bulk just about anywhere.

Here’s what you’ll need:

·      1 Cup cinnamon

·      ¾ Cup applesauce

·      1 Tbs. nutmeg

·      1 Tbs. ground cloves

·      1 Tbs. allspice

·      2 Tbs. plain white glue

This recipe makes about a dozen ornaments, depending on the size of your cutouts.

Mix all of your ingredients in a bowl. You can start out stirring them with a fork or spoon, but as the mixture gets thick and dough-like, just give in and use your hands to mush it all together. Squash it around until you can form a nice big sticky ball of dough – if it seems like it may be too dry, you can always add a little more applesauce, or a teaspoon of water.

As you’re blending the dough together with your hands, think about your intent. What is the purpose of the ornaments you’re about to craft? Are they for protection? To bring well-being and health? For financial prosperity and abundance? Think about the goal, and send those intentions through your hands into the dough as you mix it.

Sprinkle a clean surface – if you have a baker’s mat for rolling, use it – with cinnamon, and roll out the dough until it’s about ¼” thick, and use your favorite magical cookie cutters to cut out the dough. You can choose random holiday shapes, or drag out those old gingerbread man cookie cutters to make little people for your ornaments. Cut out house shapes for ornaments that focus on security and family stability. Use hearts for love, and so forth.

Make a hole in the top of each ornament – use a toothpick or skewer –so you can hang it up after it’s been baked.

Now, here’s where you get to make some additional magic. Remember how you focused your intent into the dough as you blended it? We’re also going to add magical symbols to it. On each ornament, use a toothpick or small paring knife to inscribe a symbol of your intent. You can use any kind of symbol at all that’s meaningful to you, but here are a few ideas to get you started:

·      Financial prosperity: dollar signs

·      Protection: an ankh, a horseshoe, a gate

·      Security and stability: pentacles, earth symbols

·      Passion and love: hearts, fire symbols

·      Wisdom and intuition: moons, yin-yangs

Once you’ve inscribed your ornaments with symbols, place them on a baking sheet in the oven. Leave them in there on a low temperature, around 200, for several hours – the goal is not to bake them so much as just dry them out completely. Once they’re dry, let them cool all the way down.

Finally, thin a little bit of white glue with some water, and brush a light layer over the top surface of each ornament, to give it a nice glaze. Once the glaze has dried completely, thread a string or ribbon through the hole, and hang it on your holiday tree – or give it as a gift to someone you care about!

Tip: Another option, rather than inscribing the ornaments with a symbol, is to use icing piped into place. Use your favorite decorative piping tip to create sigils on your ornament AFTER you’ve dried and cooled them. Once your icing has dried completely, apply the coating of thinned glue for a glaze.

 

Scented Pine Cone Ornaments

If you want to keep an earth-friendly theme to your Yule decorating, one way to do so is to use the elements found in nature as part of your decor. This is a project that you may have made before if you have a Girl Scout -- simple things such as seeds, acorns, feathers, and other found items are easy to make into ornaments and other decorations.

For this simple project, you'll need the following:

·      Pinecones, of any shape or size

·      Equal amounts ginger, nutmeg and allspice, blended

·      A 1:1 mixture of water and craft glue

·      Glitter

·      Ribbon

·      A small paintbrush

To prepare the pinecones, rinse them under running water and then spread them out on a baking sheet. Bake at 250 for about 20 minutes -- this will make them open up, and also get rid of any trace amounts of bacteria that might remain on them. Don't worry if there's sap on them - it will harden into a shiny glaze and look pretty. If you bought your pinecones from a craft store, they're probably open already, so you can skip the rinsing altogether.

Once the pinecones have cooled, use the small paintbrush to apply the glue to the cones (I'd recommend spreading out some newspaper ahead of time). You can either cover the entire cone, or just the outer tips of the petals for a more "frosted" look.

Add the spices and glitter to a zip-loc bag. Drop the pine cones in, and shake until coated with spices and glitter. Allow to dry thoroughly, and then tie a ribbon around the end so you can hang it up.

Add a few springs of greenery if you like. Use it on a holiday tree, or place them in a bowl to scent your room.