The Return Of Yule

Yule is almost upon us and I am getting so excited.  It feels different this year but I have no idea why and all the ponderings as to why are not revealing anything so I guess I just have to go with it.

Yule is the time for the return of the light, the sun and it is the shortest day....at last we can say hello and embrace the sun king in his return, I love the dark evenings but I am always happy to wave them goodbye for another year.

Yule has memories of the Snow Queen, lots of snow, trees that are green covered with the snow, robins and those amazing silvery and blue, grey colours.  I'm planning my altar for Yule and have been busy making some items for it, I ordered some lovely cotton and crocheted a Mandala by Wink.  The Mandala will be the main focus on my altar along with some candles, gems and of course the Sun God himself.  Once my Yule altar is set up I shall write up another blog with photos.

I wrote an article on the Yule Faeries a few years ago, Christibelle and Felixius made an appearance and you can read about them here http://thefaeryenchantress7.blogspot.co.uk/2012/12/yule-faeries.html

Rachel x

A Quick Faery Guide Part 3

In this section we're going to talk about altars and spells.....

**Faery altar

This altar is where you can focus your energy and will become a sacred place for you.  You can connect and work with the Fae anywhere but to have a space dedicated to them and also to the spell work you wish to carry out will keep the energy you want to direct/focus on in one place.

A altar is personal to you, you can dress it up or dress it down, it's all about personal choice.  Sometimes I will lay down a cloth with a corresponding colour to the magick I am going to perform, other items you might want to consider are candles, incense, herbs, faery ornaments, flowers, coloured pebbles, sparkly items, anything that you feel will heighten your spell or if your altar is just for decoration then anything faery.

Again, the layout is totally your decision, you cannot go wrong...why not gather some bits and pieces and have a play about with the layout.

The faery energy surrounding your altar will increase as you raise your faery vibration and soon, you'll feel their energy around you and in lots of places as you become more aware, more attuned to them.

**Faery spells

Spells are personal, that's very important to understand.  There is nothing wrong in using another person's spell but it can have a cold feeling about it and it might not be as powerful as a spell that comes from your soul.

Have a look in Part two and choose a King or Queen you might like to work with...gather your altar items and as you dress your altar, think about what it is you want to ask for, what do you want to bring about in your life...your thoughts and emotions will infuse themselves in the sacred space you are now creating.

You might like to write your spell words down or just speak as they come to you....they can rhyme or not....these are your words so you get to use them as you wish.

Before you work your spell though your altar should be ready, if lighting candles please be careful, accidents do happen! once you are comfortable then you may begin.  Be clear about your intention, be precise, believe the words you speak, the words you have written.  Here is just an example of how to start and finish.

"I call upon the faery queen Caelia" followed by what you are asking and then always finish with some sort of thank you....simple as that.

I blow out my candles, some don't like blowing them but rather snuff them out.

*******before you carry out any spells make sure you ground and protect yourself, see below...

Protection~ 

Imagine a blue bubble around yourself, take a few moments to let it completely cover you.  Make sure you spend a couple of mins protecting yourself, you can call in your guides, angels for extra protection.  

Grounding~

“You are sat comfortably upon the green grass, all around you are many different trees, you have great Oaks, Willow, Birch & Rowan, each tree standing proud. You can smell the moss and the scented Jasmine, Honeysuckle and Bluebells, look around you and take in all that you see.

You notice a small Earth Faery walking towards you, take a good look at your new friend, what do they look like, what clothes are they wearing .......the Earth faery now stands in front of you and the faery turns their face to the side and you follow their stare, you are sat within a circle of various crystals. Each crystal is 1 inch above the ground and they each have a different energy. These energies now start to join together, forging a strong single energy, this powerful energy enters at your crown and you can feel this as it engulfs your entire body. As the energy reaches your feet it will dig deep into Mother Earth, finding a anchor in which to wrap itself around twice before making it's way back up through the soil and into your body. You are now grounded.”

A Quick Faery Guide Part 2

In this guide part two I'm going to talk about faery kings and queens, they are few but ones you have probably heard of and many gods and goddesses have their faery wings.  That's the beauty of magick, if you feel a god or goddess has the power of the fae then go with it because you are never wrong when walking your path.

**Calling the Fae

You might know that Angels love us unconditionally and they have to seek our permission to help or guide us, well, with the fae this is different.  The fae will interfere, meddle, guide, help and all with or without our permission.  They know no boundaries a lot of the time and if for example they hear you curse then chances are off they go to meddle with the curse lol.....always be mindful of what you put out there.  They will listen if you put your foot down quite strongly with them though and withdraw any offerings to them (they love honey,  milk, cake and sparkly things) I don't want to frighten anyone because for the most part, the fae are amazing to work and connect with and will do their best for you, just now and again they might do a little naughtyness.  Once you have fully accepted the fae in to your soul your life will never ever be the same again, the strength you get from them, the love, the friendship will be given freely and all they ask is that you help and do your bit for Mother Earth.  It's quite difficult to explain how they affect you but once that acceptance of their full existence hits you, you'll totally get where I'm coming from.

**Faery Queens

Mab~ Call upon Mab for protection, strength, guidance ~colours~blue
Caelia~matters of the heart, pure love, to gain love, to take away love, soul mates, passion, intimancy~colours~pink/red
Argante or Morgan Le Fay~Healing of any kind~colours~green
Morgan Le Fay~Knowledge/Wisdom, exams, learning, spells~colours whatever colour corresponds to your need.

**Faery Kings

Finvarra~Adventure/excitement~travel, hobbies, meeting people etc~colours whatever corresponds to your need.
Oberon~Spiritual~meditation, astral travelling, tarot etc~colours~white or purple
Gwyn Ap Nudd~New/Changes~to bring about any changes that are needed or wanted~colours~whatever colour corresponds to your need.

**Colour Correspondence

WHITE~ Protection, Peace, Purification, Chastity, Happiness, Halting Gossip, Spirituality

GREEN~ Healing, Money, Prosperity, Luck, Fertility, Beauty, Empowerment, Youth

BROWN~ Healing Animals, The Home

PINK~ Emotional Love, Fidelity, Friendships

RED~ Lust, Strength, Courage, Power, Sexual Potency

YELLOW~ Divination, Psychic Powers, Mental Powers, Wisdom, Visions

PURPLE~ Power, Exorcism, Healing

BLUE~ Healing, Sleep, Peace, Protection

ORANGE~ Legal Matters Success

Taken from Scott Cunningham's book The Solitary Witch

And that is part 2, I've tried to cover the basic needs/wants but as a general rule you can just call upon any fae to help or guide you.  I like to connect with specific ones as personally I feel the power is stronger in how they help.  Part 3 tomorrow will be on faery altars and faery spells so the above can be put into practice

Rachel x

A Quick Faery Guide

For those of you who are interested in the Fae whether just starting out or just curious you'll find that there aren't that many books out there on the basics of the Fae and how we can connect to them.  Don't get me wrong, there are one or two faetastic ones but I like to know the nitty gritty stuff so,  I thought why not do a few quick faery guide blog posts for you.  They won't be long but rather a little information on a few topics......I will do a few of these blogs so keep a look out x

**First things first though, walking a faery pathway is different to any other you will walk....the Fae are more personal to you, yes there are general Fae like angels but the Fae energy is felt through our soul and tailors to our needs, wants, desires.....you are unique so are the Fae and your experiences with them.

**Who are the Fae?

The Fae are quite simply beings of nature....pure beings of nature to be exact (they are also known to some as angels of nature) they work for, with and are nature.  Mother Earth needs all the help she can get and these little folk are the ones who assist her.

**What do they look like?

There are a few forms they take on, orbs that are mostly white but there are colour orbs (will talk about this at a later date) a streak that flashes past you, a contained mist that is located in one area only such as by a herb patch in your garden or as themselves complete with ears yes.  I won't go into great detail about the way they look because you will know when you see one in it's Fae form and I do not want to take that away from you......besides, you probably already have a picture in your mind of how one looks and you are not wrong, don't ever let anyone tell you what you imagine one to look like is wrong.

**Where to find them

At the bottom of your garden, the woodlands, mountains, your home....... anywhere really but they have their favourite places and where there are trees, plants, water you are certain to feel the Fae energy there.  There are times throughout the day such as when dawn or dusk comes forth that the Fae energy is strong, you are more likely to catch that glimpse.  The Fae can be found if you believe in them and the magick.

**Faery rings and doorways

A faery ring consists of an object that forms a ring so for example, you are walking in the woods and come across a load of mushrooms and they form a circle, should you venture inside this circle for the next 7 years you will spend your time in the land of fae, laughing, dancing and drinking! be wary lol.

A doorway is found upon a tree, you've probably already seen a few and it just looks like the bark of the tree has been carved into a doorway.  It's a portal to the realm, I have tried squeezing through but I think a glug of Alice's drink me potion is required! to fit lol......they do look and feel magikal though and you can sit quietly beside one and lap up that energy.

I don't want to bombard you all at once so for now I will end my post but I will be adding more.

Rachel x

Mabon/Autumn Equinox & The Faeries

Autumn is finally here! my favourite season.  The faeries as you might already know work alongside Mother Earth and at the end of each season the key to the new season is handed over.  The Summer fae have just handed over that key to the Autumn fae, just imagine the most beautiful key, gold, intricate with symbols of the fae, the Summer fae lock the door on their season and the Autumn fae open their door to welcome in the new season.

You might have already noticed some small changes such as the smell of Autumn in the air and the chill, the nights are drawing in and alot of the lush trees and flowers are retreating.  This is all down to the fae and they have a very busy job to do.  We of course can help and do our bit.

To connect to the Autumn fae why not first start with a Autumn altar for the home.  All you need is a small space to create your altar, place a lovely cloth down and add candles, dried fruit, crystals, deities of your choice with all autumn colours in the mix.

Decorate your home with woodland animals, bunting in lovely reds, yellows, golds....bring in twigs and arrange in a jug, place upon the mantle piece and adorn with autumn ornaments.

Make a start on the garden, it will need to be cleared up of Summer stuff and this includes cutting back all those dead or dying flowers, weeding and prepare for sowing those bulbs.

How about making a colourless garden full of colour....take a few pebbles and paint them colourful colours, you could even paint your terracotta plant pots ready for next year....plant a Holly tree.

The Autumn faeries can be called upon for helping us release/let go of what no longer serves us, people, situations etc that are stale and cannot remain in our life.  Write what you want to release on a piece of paper, ask the fae to release you from the person/situation and then rips the paper in to as many pieces as you can, leave the pieces of paper ina covered jar of water until the ink starts to fade...take the water and paper filled jar and dig a small hole in the soil, place the whole contents into the hole and fill.........

The Autumn fae are lovely to connect with, just remember to wrap up warm on those walks in the woods or park and as you walk along take note of the trees that are changing their leaf colour or the hard frost on the ground, the way the streams get stronger and flow faster, the smell in the air....you might even catch the glimpse of a faery too xx

Faery Sightings

**To see a faery requires a few things, a belief in magick, a soul filled with love and the eyes of innocence (connect to your inner child).....there are certain times of the day when we are more likely to catch glimpses of the fae and these moments are twilight, dawn, midnight, noon,  for these times are very powerful, they are on the cusp of another time that awaits eagerly.

If you sit silently enough then you should be blessed to see the fae folk, try to sit yourself out in mother nature such as your garden.....look around you, take in your surroundings and open your heart to the beauty of Mother Earth so that you begin to connect to her and in turn the fae.

Don't be disheartened if you do not witness the fae at first, keep trying for soon you will see a coloured mist, a beautiful rounded orb or a pair or fluttering wings in the distance and once you catch that first glimpse your heart will forever be open to receiving a connection with the faery folk x

Let's Work Some Faery Magic

Working with the faeries as part of your spell work can be both rewarding and entertaining, they never fail to amaze me with their sense of humour, power and magick.  Their energies will be different from any other energy you might have worked with before and believe me you will be connect once and will open your soul to them.

I want to introduce you to the Flower faeries as they are a little more gentler and who doesn't love the beautifully coloured and variety of bloom.  This spell will help you to connect on a more deep level with the fae and it will open the doorway between you and their realm, the realm of the Flower fae only.

This spell works to help bring in a little happiness, fond memories and wishes that can be made.  It's also a basic faery spell and you won't need all the fuss of a huge altar.  So, this is what you will need....

A vase filled with water
A few Daisies
A few Dandelions
A few Dandelion Clocks (the ones you can blow and the watch the seeds carry on the breeze)
A few items that hold special memories for you

Put the flowers in a vase filled with water and place upon your altar (your altar can be anywhere you choose), rearrange them in the vase and let your mind wander to where you are drawn too.....can you feel the energies around you starting to change? your memorable items are placed around the vase (please don't worry if you haven't any to hand, you can still perform this spell without them)

Next, sit or stand comfortably in front of your altar and take a few deep breaths and relax.....let's call upon the Flower fae.

"Faery of Daisy of childhood past, faery of Dandelion of feelings present, faery of Dandelion Clocks of wishes future, I gently call to you to hear my soul......the power of three I ask you to bless me, happiness, memories and wishes I request,  to fill my heart and nurture my soul, come hither to me this moment in time"

You can repeat the spell as many times as you desire but take the time to focus on the happiness, the memories, the wishes and leave them wash all over your body, enter your mind and settle there...take as much or as little time as you want.  Once you feel you have finished the spell then simply thank the FLower fae for drawing close and leave the vase on the altar for this is where both your energies and that of the fae are now strongest.  Return the flowers to Mother Earth within a few days.

Time For Me

I went into town today and picked up 3 books, all different books and it made me wonder if these books could tell people what kind of a person I was....

It also got me thinking that most of us work hard most days and it might be that you work and have a family and home to look after like I do so it is important that as hard as I work I must remember that it is important to take time out and do things I love to do, to embrace my creative side which I do passionately.

Firstly, I've always loved psychology and the way society works, I took a As level course last year in psychology and it was a real eye opener, at the moment I am also doing a CBT diploma course but downtime has always played a big part in my life even if I only get 5 minutes to pick up my hook and crochet or as I discovered today going back to my childhood and my love of colouring....do what you love everyone, it helps to refuel your soul and can help you to appreciate the small and free things in life.