ancestors and skull beads ...

I just got back home after being away for the last four weeks and as usual, am having a challenge getting back into the groove and the rhythm of making, photographing, editing, blogging, listing.

I may be rambling just a teeny bit, so please be patient.  I'll get there eventually.  Or not.

I know I've written about the ancestors before.  About how shamans live with one foot in ordinary reality and one foot in the world of spirit and energy.  We usually access that unseen world through trance/drug/drumbeat induced journeys.  In some instances when we have been doing a lot of journeying, we flip back and forth - sometimes unexpectedly for some of us less experienced travelers.  It can lead one to doubt her sanity.  The great benefit is that it enlarges our personal definition of "reality".  Quantum physics bears out the shamanic experience again and again.  

But I'm seriously digressing here.  I just wanted to explain my use of the skull as a symbol of the protection of the ancestors.  I use it as an invocation of the spirits and guides who I believe have our backs as we make our way through our lives.  Some traditions say that they are not allowed to help us unless we specifically ask them for it.  I use the skull beads as a reminder that there is more than can be seen with the naked eye - that we do not walk alone.  The bead I used in this necklace is made of pyrite.

See: Properties of pyrite for more information on this powerful stone.

I've also used a couple of vintage coins, one from West Africa with a six-pointed star on the back (the union of the Divine masculine and the Divine Feminine) and one from Nepal with an image of Mt. Kailash, sacred to both Hindu and Buddhist traditions.  Coins are my shorthand for invoking abundance and wealth in all things.  There is a Hamsa for protection; a Thai Buddhist amulet, blessed by monks, again for protection, good luck and wealth; a Chinese jade cicada bead, to remind you that you can always reinvent yourself like the cicada sheds her old skin; a little bronze heart - for love, of course!  An Ethiopian cattle amulet, a quartz crystal point to amplify all the good mojo; some Labradorite beads (supposed to help facilitate self discovery and is a powerful protective stone).

I love the ancient feel that the soft grey/greens give this piece.  It has a powerful presence.

August 2015

I've been working on this piece on and off for a least a month, but at last I think it's where it needs to be and I'm satisfied. For now.  I've had the little mother-of-pearl belt buckle forever. When I first moved to Bay Shore more than 40 years ago, I made friends with two little old ladies who ran the thrift shop for the local hospital and they used to put aside old buttons and such for me. This is probably from that stash. It's such a pretty piece - delicate and iridescent. I wonder where it came from and who wore it ...

And here's a very simple and serene necklace -

Don't let the simplicity fool you though - this necklace packs a potent protective wallop - including a Troll Cross to protect you against (what else?) trolls! Wish I had known about these when I was still working in an office ...  Hanging below the copper wire Troll Cross is a terra cotta Thai Buddhist amulet, a bead from a Buddhist prayer mala and a bone shield/evil eye cattle amulet from Ethiopia.  With the creamy opal beads from Peru, we've covered 4 continents in 2 hemispheres.

This one is a triple tiered necklace that I'm going to test drive a little before I put it on Etsy.  The bottom amulet is a very large (much larger than I expected because I am metrically challenged, as you may remember) Thai amulet made of low fired clay, stamped and gold-leafed.  I sealed it with about a zillion coats of clear acrylic.  I was originally going to make three separate necklaces so any of them could be worn individually or with other pieces, but having three different clasps at the back of the neck felt like it might be uncomfortable.  The three chains come together on one clasp but my concern is that in storage, the necklace may become very very tangled.  I'll have to see how that works out.

And finally, another deer antler tip amulet with a Chinese bronze coin and fancy Bali-style copper beads on a copper rolo chain.  The antler tips are naturally shed and I polish them up a bit and drill the holes in them.  I love the shape and the variations in color and use them to invoke the wild male Green Man energy that puts the Divine Female energy into balance.  We have an abundance of white-tailed deer here on Long Island where I live, although not in my neighborhood.  A number of my friends have to contend with having their gardens devoured by hungry deer so they have mixed feelings about them.  I just get to enjoy their beauty and the wonder of living 45 minutes from one of the biggest cities in the world and still having the experience of driving home from a friend's and having to stop my car for a magnificent stag standing in the middle of the road.

grey skies

Grey skies - too cold to get the peas planted but perfect for photographing my latest pieces outdoors.

I've been home from the Land of Barbeque and Hush Puppies for a week now, missing my grandchildren terribly.  I found out that airport security doesn't seem to care how much wire and beads of all persuasions you've managed to pack into your carryon, as long as you have nothing in a liquid state, they are not interested.  And also - even though you've brought everything you thought you could possibly need, there will be some essential thing that's sitting on your worktable at home.

And then of course, there was this slight distraction:

Here are my latest offerings:

green man amulet necklace

close-up of green man

earth & bone charm bracelet

amethyst peace charm bracelet

the deer shaman's necklace

close-up of deer shaman's necklace

red jasper warrior's amulet necklace

close-up