I’ve been busy finishing boxes for spell and ritual supply kits for the Botanica. The first is for a Spirit Work Kit made from a reclaimed antique Cedar sewing box that is beautifully made and beautifully lined with fabric, but just needed some love and exterior refinishing. The wood turned out gorgeous after I sanded it, oiled it, and gave it a good coat of beeswax with my homemade wood balm. I pyrographed the lid with a memento mori design inspired by old tombstones – the negative black space is all pyrographed making the white images raised. The box is filled with four of my incenses for working with spirits, charcoals for burning the incenses, Ancestor and Divination Oils, and Spirit Body Wash to cleanse oneself after working with spirits of the dead so they don’t attach to you.
I also made a box for a Pacific Northwest Shaman’s Tool Kit using a three-sided triangular wooden box on which I pyrographed a design of the World Tree with each of the five sides representing the earth, sea, sky, upperworld, and underworld. I painted the pyrographed illustrations with eco-friendly coloured woodstains and then finished it with linseed oil and wood balm so it smells deliciously of cedar oil. The box contains two handcrafted cedar and sage smudge wands, an abalone shell to catch the ashes, Reversal Smudge for reversing spells and curses, Devil’s Club for a tea drunk while fasting in order to commune with nature spirits, Red Ritual Face Paint for various shamanic rituals, and also my Earth-Sea-Sky elemental oil to open the door to the otherworlds for ritual.
I also made a smaller box to store the herbs for this Weather Witch Herb Collection. The box is made with thin pliable wood and is almost like a leather satchel. I pyrographed the back with an original design of four forces of weather – sun, rain, wind, and lightning. The contents include fern leaves and heather to cause rain, lightning-struck oak wood to cause a lightning storm, broom to stir up winds, and lobelia to stop or prevent a storm. Weather witchcraft is become forgotten lore as some think it is either unethical or impossible. I’ve had quite good rainmaking results during droughts however – my forest needs its rain and the streams need to swell for the salmon to return each year. It used to be the duty of the local shaman or witch to ensure the natural patterns of weather when needed.
What an awesome work Sarah!!! Can’t choose a favourite, but the weather herbs really catch this Witch… I completely agree with you; weather magic is being forgotten and it’s so sad. I know from experience that this magic works and shouldn’t be left behind.
I would really love to know more about the face paint… do you sell it separately? Would you trade some from anything in my shop? I’m a fool for body art and, having both hubby and I been tattooers, can’t help to be interested hehe…
Thank you very much Carolina!
I do sell the facepaint separately – I have black and red available in the Botanica and I’m planning on making green, white, and blue ones in the near future. I would actually be up for a trade and I could put the paint in the parcel I’m supposed to have sent you! There is something I’ve had my eye on but I can’t find it in your shop or your sales – it was the Pan bookplates, the digital file? I would use him as bookplates for all my witchy books. Do you still have that file available?
Blessings to you and yours!
Sarah
Ohhh this post reminds me that I need to pay you for the red paint-I can’t wait to get it, AND it provides the perfect excuse to drop by and pick it up!
Love the new goodies~
N
Lol, and if you happened to drop by before Friday afternoon and happened to bring a certain drum with you… I’d be the happiest woman in the world as my ritual group’s outdoor campover Beltane is this weekend!
Glad you like the new goodies! There’s a jar of facepaint here with your name on it!
Slainte mhor!
Sarah
Jeebus. SO COOL. man. I hardly know what to say dear. Just drooling over here.
I do have one question. Are your wood boxes found items like at thrift stores or do you have a source.
Also, if you’ve been doing weather work, I thank you for the spring rains and the cooler temperatures. We now have a snow pack, not so worried about August…
Beautiful Work! Can you recommend some good reading on weather magic?
Love the Aves shapeshifting onitment! I got it the next day after your email
Thanks very much!
I will send you the bookplate file right now
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Wow well done *___* They look so pretty.
my favorite is the raven box.
I love reading your blog! Your work looks amazing.
Your picture of the world tree looks so much like one I drew once, its bizarre! : http://lolita-shards.deviantart.com/art/Genesis-122153765
Thanks hun! I wouldn’t say that bizarre, lol, they both look like trees. Thanks for sharing the lovely image!