My Green Cauldron
Making the world a better place through love, plants, and a little magic.
Mixed Technique Mandala
Ok, this is the last of the Imbolc art that I have done. Mixing the 2 techniques of using salt and using bubbles. It was fun. If you are curious I am following Julie Gibbons Mandala Magic Alignment, which is following the eight-fold year.
while working on this project i was also thinking of our chakras and thought how wonderful if the chakra system could fit into this eight-fold year study. Imbolc feels pretty orange, the energy rising from the root chakra where we have been with the winter solstice. so i am going to follow that rabbit hole for the remaining time i have until spring equinox…..moving into our third chakra.
i also want to talk about the symbols of February before the month is over. It is the shortest month of the year and I often just try to get through it, waiting for the warmer weather and surer signs that spring is here.
How do you feel about the Imbolc season, this transitional time between winter and spring?
Imbolc Tarot Spread
the questions from a previous post provided the inspiration for this spread. i hope you enjoy it as we move from Winter Solistice to the spring equinox. this time of year, Imbolc, seems to be the mix of the two.
Time to review the inner work done over the winter and feel the new tingling of energy of the upcoming spring. the impatient pause before the rush of energy of spring. are you ready?
Imbolc : what if?
the what if aspect of this Imbolc project was a lot of fun to make. i liked using the soap to make bubbles, the unpredictable-ness was fun.
it is time for the energies to start stirring again, shifting from inward to outward. bubbling forth out of the well, overflowing, moving, dancing, laughing. now is the time to put all the work of the winter to good use. what was revealed? what should be released? where should you focus this new well of energy? what does this season hold?
now is the time to dream and plan for the upcoming year (the garden is calling my name). what plans are you making? have you set new goals? not those resolutions made in the middle of the dark winter, but what are you working toward this year with the wellspring of Imbolc energy, what are you growing? it doesn’t need to be a definite plan, it doesn’t have to be clearly in focus. this time of year is for the beginning of the plan taking place. the brain dump of all that could be this year. the time to dream all the dreams before the one path comes into focus.
this is about the overflowing of the well with ideas and plans and dreams. enjoying the rush of “what if?”
i have to admit that i really enjoy watching the videos of artists while they work, this is my attempt at that and hopefully show what the bubble painting process was for me.
Looking into Imbolc
The beginning of spring, the lambing season. everything is pregnant waiting to be brought forth. time to declutter, clean out, organize. the seed planted at winter solstice is starting to grow…..you can’t see it now, the work is all done in the dark, but so, very so, you will see the very beginnings of what is to come. buds grow big, the bird songs increase, the bright bright sun in gorgeous blue skies, the first scent of spring in the air.
i do have to admit that this really isn’t my favorite time. from a young age i felt this time of year was dead, about death. the dirty snow and slush, the cold biting wind, the garbage and road kill uncovered by the melting of the snow. i long for the warm breezes and the small first leaves of growth.
i am exploring those feelings of this time of year and what this time of year brings forth. Funny thing…..beginnings are always messy and dirty…..it is in the beginning mistakes are made. well i am bringing the light of the season into my home. the days are growing longer, i can feel the weight of winter lifting and the excitement of the new season (i MISS my garden! waiting on my seed catalogs). speaking of the garden, it is a time for dreaming! i have many plans for the garden and i can’t wait to get out there in the dirt.
Here in Michigan the weather is reminding us that the cold and snow are not done. That we can dream of spring and summer all we want but we have to find the patience in the weather we are given today. Imbolc feels like a time of patience to me….even more so htan kids waiting for Christmas presents. There is a whisper on the wind, a promise with each new day that spring is coming. That life will begin again.
Well shoot, this was suppose to be about the symbolism of the season, not some brain dump on this time of the year.
onward and upward then…..
This is the time for water, running water, melted water, the flowing nature water has. the great cleansing is coming as the water begins to move again. Released from its frozen state it is able to run free again. the gurgling and dripping adding to the music of the season. using water from a well or fresh running stream to paint with is one way to incorporate the season into your art
in a book i have ( The Green Witch by Arin Murphy-Hiscock) i was reading about the tides of the year, the ebb and flow, the waning and waxing, the inward and the outward, the cycling of the year. The period between the winter solstice to the spring equinox is known as the cleansing tide. Spring Cleaning, out the old, it is the time of year for making space for the growth in the upcoming year. (Think about your cleaners now too. replace the toxic cleaners with friendly ones. for the environment of your home and for the planet).
Trees are rowan, mountain ash(Pyrus aucuparia) gives you the power to do anything, protect home and family and willow (Salix alba) helps release sadness and grief, protect your home, heal body and mind.
herbs coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara) Enfolds your life in peace, promotes tranquility
ginger (Zingiber officinale) brings you great success, protect you and your home.
Story of Flowers
i love this animation! how fun is this? from beginning to end it is the Story of Flowers.
Art for Imbolc
what is/ what if
Winter Solstice: part 2
Here is the other project from Julie Gibbons Alignment, Jewels in the Dark.
it’s sort of a weird winter solstice here in Michigan. our temps have been rather mild (30s-40s) and there has been very little snow.
it is not what i imagine when i talk about hibernating. although the dark hours are longer, there isn’t the layer of insulating snow or the bitter cold that would be the norm for this place.
the nights have been clear and the stars and moon and planets have been beautiful. the morning sunrise feel like they are full of fire yellows, oranges and reds, the bareness of the trees standing stark against the skies.
but no snow to speak of.
i really enjoyed this project. it reminded me very much of drawing as a kid. i did keep coming back to this and made several.
Part of the reason is that i was getting to know the tools i was using. the watercolor pencils didn’t work exactly like Julie’s (i’ll tell you it probably has something to do with quality since i picked up my at the local big box store.) once i got them figured out i really liked the mandala i made (the center one above).
i think i will be doing this again. i liked the free form, no looking part and the color in is very therapeutic, especially on those dark evenings when my mind is being to hibernate….at least for the night.
Winter Solstice: part 1, check out the other project for the Winter Solstice.
Energy Healer
