How have you been doing in recent months?

First off, please allow me to extend my deepest and most appreciative heartfelt thanks to all those who reached out to me in the months spanning my post about the sudden end of my nearly 18-year marriage and the present day.

Your soul-touching support, compassion, kindness, empathy, relaying of personal stories involving your own very difficult relationship issues and breakups over the years, and so much more have bolstered + helped me a good deal (and still continue to, for that matter).

Secondly, in the midst of everything that has been transpiring in my life lately, I completely forgot that back in the late spring/early summer, I penned and scheduled some blog posts which were originally intended to go live in either July or August.

In the midst of contending with the unforeseen events of July 2022, I ended up bumping them ahead all the way to December and then promptly (and, I think you will agree, rather understandably!) 110% forgetting that I had done so.

It wasn’t until I saw a flurry of new blog comments suddenly come in recently that I realized these long auto-scheduled posts had unintentionally gone live this month.

My bad all the way!

Not that there is anything wrong with sharing these posts now (or at any point in time). There certainly is not.

It is just that I fully intended for my first post since this past July to be a brief life update, not a project share or other type of entry.

Therefore, I sincerely apologize that things played out how they did. Just as I do to all those readers who I know were wondering why a life update post had not happened before I launched back into more of my usual type of blogging content.

With those points said, please allow me to now give you a little overview of how some things have unfolded for me in recent months.

In the time since the post about the sudden breakdown of my marriage, I was very fortunate to find housing for myself and (my dog) Annie.

After a ton of searching and applying to various rental properties across much of the Okanagan and Lower Shuswap Valleys, I was extremely fortunate to ultimately sign a lease on a lovely little townhouse all to ourselves.

It is located in a larger town roughly 25 minutes away from the small, rural community of Armstrong, BC, where Tony and I had been residing since moving there together in early 2018.

Working largely at the same breakneck speed I had undertaken throughout July and early August to get our entire house packed up, spic-and-span clean, staged for viewings, listed for sale, and so forth, from mid-August to mid-September, I quickly unpacked and set up my new home.

It was – and still is – tremendously strange, sad, and foreign feeling for me to assemble the trappings of each room of a house that is simply for myself (and Annie). Every home from the second half of 2004 onward until this summer was one that Tony and I shared as husband and wife.

As the summer wore on, the initial state of mind-blowing shock, the gargantuan sudden upsets to my life, and the intense feelings of unprecedented blindsidedness began to decrease.

Naturally, though, a vast amount of internal pain, grief, longing, trauma processing, and life rebuilding remain part of my daily world and will no doubt continue to for quite some time still to come.

One does not have the proverbial rug of a marriage they cherished and believed would be eternal – coupled, moreover, with the loss of the person they love/loved, valued, cared about, respected, desired, would have done almost anything for, and trusted more than anybody else in the world – pulled out from under them and magically bounce back with the dexterity of a rubber band.

Far from it.

The thought occurred to me recently that my initial unfathomably brutal heartache and emotional/mental/physical/spiritual pain was/is akin to a very serious acute injury. And, you know, in many ways it is.

However, as time leaps ever forward and the disbelief, marathon cries that often spanned or totaled anywhere from 5 – 14+ hours per day in the initial months (I still continue to cry frequently, though especially long periods of weeping are not, at present, as common for me as they were in the summer and early fall), and the bigger picture of the reality that is my current life all came to be, that pain has gradually morphed into a state that could be looked upon more as a chronic illness of sorts.

(As someone who has been a fighter of over 15 different serious chronic illnesses for more than two decades now, I know from which I speak.)

That does not automatically mean this state of internal health and, likewise, that of my life, in general, will remain entrenched in the deepest, darkest bowels of heartache, grief, longing, and endless reflections on the past for all of time.

And yet, that said, one never fully gets over trauma of this magnitude. A loss this hard-hitting, devastating, and brutally painful.

The experience of witnessing the person I would have gladly taken a bullet for walk out of my/our life in the blink of a tear-filled eye.

The dissipation of a future I firmly believed would be shared and treasured together and the overall pain of an ordeal this earth-shattering will remain with me – at least in part – always.

As, personally, I believe these things (and many others related to this year’s events) should.

In surviving the most hellacious, stressful, hurtful, and challenging periods of our lives, we (hopefully!) learn, grow, and come to see life through wider eyes and with an even more tender heart.

In a ton of different ways, I am a radically different person today than I was before the events of this past July.

Many positive changes have happened organically, others were a conscious decision to approach things in a better, healthier/healing light. And plenty more still were a blend of both organic and conscious efforts.

For, never have I hurt more.

Never have I grown more in the span of just a few brief months.

Never have I longed for anyone (Tony) or anything (our marriage) more in my entire life. Not by the length of the universe.

Never have I so bravely taken hold of the reigns of a profoundly difficult situation and been able to re-establish my basic needs (i.e., safe housing) again as quickly.

Never have I yearned to turn back the hands of time and with the crystal-clear clarity of hindsight alter the past (for the better) more than in the wake of this summer’s crushing events.

Never have I been stronger.

Never have I wished more that an event (the – from my perspective at least – incredibly abrupt end of our beloved, sacred, one-of-kind marriage) in my/our life had not occurred (and that it would never have occurred, in an ideal world).

Never, for months on end, have I consciously had to choose quite as hard to some-inexplicable-how keep going when I was certain that death would hurt (me) infinitely less than what I was enduring in that excruciatingly difficult moment.

Never have I pined for someone even 1/1,000,000,000 as much as I do for Tony.

I wake up every day and continue to expect him to be right there beside me (or at least under the same roof). I experience something comparable to a phantom limb-like sensation of his hand in mind, feel his strong, protective arms around my body and his tender lips upon my own.

I hear his gorgeous Italian voice and his wonderfully infectious laugh. Feel the warmth of his soul reverting joyfully in synch with mine, see the wise and witty twinkle in his deep chocolate-hued eyes, listen to him pull into the driveway, snuggle together as we watch our favourite movies and TV series, face each of life’s challenges and positives alike as a mighty, love fuelled couple.

These things and countless others echo throughout my every breath and heartbeat.

With a few exceptions, though (for example, thankfully the two of us have remained on amicable terms and do interact periodically for various reasons, so I still get to see and hear Tony in person from time to time), I am phenomenally, soul-crushingly aware of the fact that they are no more.

And that, in turn, somehow I must – and already am – find(ing) the ability to exist without them. Without Tony as my darling husband, my lover, my best friend, my rock, my soulmate. Just as I must go on without our shared existence.

Both despite and, I firmly believe, because of the highly challenging difficulties of this year, I’ve actually made massive positive strides on the mental health front.

(I have experienced major depression, various types of anxiety, and some PTSD for much of my entire life. Though, mercifully, at this point in time, I’ve almost entirely healed from the latter. )

As a result, ironically, it could be said, I am currently in a healthier, more stable place on the mental health front than I have been in longer than I can precisely recall (think 10+ years – if not more like 20+ years).

From late September (2022) onward, I have begun to experience days of zero depression (often coupled with a huge reduction in anxiety as well).

Zip, zilch, nil, nada. Not a single iota.

I had all but completely forgotten what a state of being completely free of depression felt like.

It is, in some respects, akin to breathing pure air of the cleanest and freshest variety after decades of existing on bottled oxygen.

Not every day is completely depression free (yet?). However, even when that all-too-familiar state of mental being resurfaces, it almost always does so at a drastically lower level than what had become long become my norm for many years.

Whereas countless periods throughout my life were spent somewhere between 7 – 10 on the depression scale (with ten being the highest possible level), these days when it pops up here and there, it does so in the 1 – 2.5, maybe 3, max, range.  

In fact, it is so drastically reduced that I am finding these sorts of vastly lower levels of depression/melancholy have little to no impact whatsoever as far as I can perceive on my internal state, my day-to-day life, my interactions and relationships with others, and plenty of other things both big and small alike.

I routinely stop and marvel at this previously unimaginable change (sometimes it brings me to the point of shedding tears of happiness and gratitude). This current mental health miracle and the renewed zest for life (relative to everything that has been going on as of late) that it has firmly instilled in me once more.

That said, I am very aware that mental health challenges rarely follow a linear path. Be it in terms of their development or, when possible, their treatment/lessening/remission/healing.

Therefore, I fully accept that there may be (and feel that I am now considerably better prepared to face) potential future spikes in my depression, should they occur going forward from this year.

It is safe to say that there are usually myriad factors that contribute to a person experiencing serious ongoing depression (for me, most of my depression has always been situationally caused). And likely there are just as many – if not more – that must go into its reduction for those who experience this very real, very life-impacting mental health battle.

While, OF COURSE!!!, depression is obviously not something one can turn on or off like a light switch (far from it), I do think that in a fair number of instances there are steps that can be undertaken to help lessen its severity.

Personally, I knew that if I had a snowball’s chance of not only somehow surviving, but in time (I hope and pray with every ounce of my being) thriving again, it would be borderline impossible for me to do so while living on my own if my depression + anxiety were raging out of control.

Without the aid of any harmful substances, risky or self-destructive behaviours, or various other negative choices one could opt for, as I started to gradually piece my world back together again, I reexamined not only my life + myself in general but also my mental state.

In doing so, I began to realize there were quite a few mindsets, approaches to life, thought processes, elements of my daily existence, and so forth that were contributing undesirably to my mental health that I could either part ways with entirely or reduce/alter significantly enough for them to further help improve the innermost workings of my ol’ grey matter.

Recently, I wrote something to my dear sister, which I feel fits perfectly in the course of this post as well. Thus, I am going to share it essentially verbatim with all of you as well.

Every now and then, YouTube suggests a clip from the TV show Hoarders to me and I will sometimes watch it when that occurs.

In one of them I saw somewhat recently, a clinical psychologist they have featured many times over the years (Dr. Robin Zasio) said a line that resonated with me immediately: “I don’t know why people have to get so broken to heal, but that’s what happened with you.”

She spoke these words in relation to the hoarder they were trying to help, but I feel like that statement applies immensely to me as well. 

In what surely stands as the most painfully ironic series of events in my entire life, it would take being shattered into billions upon billions of infinitesimally small pieces and experiencing pain so searing it would make swimming in molten lava feel like doing a polar bear dip by comparison to start healing/improving some of the most challenging aspects of my existence. 

The past 5.5 months have been the absolute worst, most difficult, painful, stressful, and heartbreaking of my entire existence by an enormous mile. Virtually nothing of any importance about them has felt right, familiar, normal, comforting, easy, or complete. 

Sometime around late August, however, a thought occurred to me that I had never really had before. 

Just about every time prior in my entire life when something massive had come along that shattered my/our world (or a shattered a solid chunk of it at least), my gut instinct was to immediately scramble to put the pieces back together as close to the way they had been arranged before that event occurred. 

(One example of this is how in the immediate aftermath of the 2016 arson fire, without even stopping to give it conscious consideration, I instinctually thought that I needed to start building up a vintage/repro wardrobe again without pausing to ask myself if that was actually what my heart most wanted to do at that point in time.)

Objectively, I think that this reaction and approach are innate to most humans and that they are not necessarily bad/negative things in many instances.

The thought that struck me like a million tsunami waves crashing into my mind at the same time was, “What if instead of trying to piece back together everything that is shattered, you held onto the best/most important parts and strove to rearrange, remove, or replace, as applicable, the rest?”.

It was – and is – a concept both plainly simple and extraordinarily challenging. And yet, that is precisely what I have attempted – and will continue to actively do – to the best of my abilities.

~*~*~*~*~*~

I could easily fill a book the size of which would give War and Peace a run for its money discussing elements of this year’s life-altering events.

Sometimes though, it is best to know when to put the breaks on for the present moment and I feel like the above paragraphs are a solid place to do just that.

Now, those two (again) completely unintentionally published project share posts + this one itself aside, you may be wondering about my long-term plans for this blog.

I have not reached a point yet in my healing/trauma processing/life-rebuilding journey that would even begin to facilitate engaging in our wonderful blogging community + posting at my pre-July 2022 level again (which averaged 4 – 6 entries per month).

And though my new dedicated craft space has been set up since this September, I have not created a single paper crafting project since before this summer’s devastating events.

I will not make any promises at the moment regarding my blogging plans/schedule in the near to quasi-near future. That would not be fair to either of us.

However, what I will say is that, if possible, I would like to *try* to post at least one new entry here roughly every 4 – 10ish weeks throughout the initial (and possibly longer than that) months of 2023.

So whether I one day return to a similar pre-marriage-breakdown blog posting level or opt to share entries here somewhat less frequently, in the long run, I do intend to put more new content up on this site. Yay!

That is a welcome thought which makes me smile on a great many levels (as does thinking about the day when my MIA paper crafting mojo returns).

Thank you all again beyond words for your kind, extremely caring support and understanding in recent months.

I am certain that this year would have been notably more challenging for me were it not for your thoughtfulness.

Let me wrap up this post (hey, wait, wasn’t this supposed to be a small life update? Evidently, in true Autumn form, I couldn’t stop at just a tiny handful of paragraphs ) by wishing all of you the sweetest, safest, happiest, healthiest, and most magic(k)al of holiday seasons.

Whatever you celebrate, whatever you hold dear, whatever brings you inner joy this month, may these things and many other positives number more for you than all of the snowflakes that will tumble to the ground across the world this chilly season.

Merriest festive season and nothing but the best and brightest to each of you for 2023!

The post A Big Apology to All of my Readers and a Small Life Update appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

You left me boundaries of pain
Capacious as the sea,
Between eternity and time,
Your consciousness and me.

There are words you think you will never hear and others you believe shall never dare grace your lips or fingertips.

For me, this month has been filled with a cavalcade of both.

On the afternoon of July 4, 2022, seemingly out of the blue, my husband (Tony) left me and ended our marriage.

In a matter of a few sentences, he said that he no longer feels romantic love for me, wants a swift divorce, and that our shared home is to be sold ASAP.

Had a meteorite plummeted from the heavens and fallen on my head, I would have been less surprised.

That at least could have been explained by science.

This… this makes zero sense.

Up until the moment that those life-shattering sentences were uttered, I would have told you with the utmost conviction that our love was deeper and our relationship stronger than ever before.

I have never been unfaithful, and I genuinely believe that Tony has not either.

Like most couples, we have had our ups and downs, disagreements and tiffs over the years, but they were usually few and far between (and were normally quickly resolved or simply moved beyond when they did occur).

As far as I know, (up until now) neither of us wanted to radically overhaul or change our lives, move to a different part of the country/world, switch career paths, or anything substantial like that.

There has never been any abuse whatsoever of any kind perpetrated by either party.

Likewise, neither of us has (or has ever had) a substance abuse, drinking, or gambling problem (or any other serious vice or addiction).

Looking in from an outsider’s perspective, I understand that this situation, therefore, makes little to no sense.

Believe me, as the person on the receiving end of the lightning-fast death blow of my marriage, no one gets that better than I do.

I have only vagaries to go on at present and so am just about as in the dark as everyone else right now.

I loved – and continue to love – Tony with every ounce of my being. We have been together since 2004, marrying a mere seven months after we met in October of that same year (a beautiful love story that I detailed here).

Through countless trials and tribulations, times tougher than a kodiak bear, and moments when the only thing that made our happiness greater was magnifying it off of the other person, we stuck together, always growing closer and stronger as a cohesive unit.

I do not know what exactly changed in Tony and I will not theorize as to such publicly.

No matter what he may do or how profoundly he has altered both of our lives, I hold him dearer to me than words could ever fully convay.

Naturally, I have offered to do just about anything to try and fix us.

Considering that I did not know we were in trouble – let alone broken – I cannot overstate how much I would go to the ends of the earth to make us whole again. To try couples counselling, to attempt a trial separation period, to move homes, anything I can possibly think of, but these are not paths Tony is currently open to venturing down together.

At present, the door to my heart remains wide open to the possibility – however slim – of us reuniting. That said, while I keep that door open, please know that I understand and accept that more likely than not, he may never cross its threshold again.

As you might imagine, my life has been completely turned on its head. On top of the mental and physical agony that I am in at the moment, I have been thrust out into the world on my own for the first time in eighteen years.

In the process working at breakneck speed to handle the legal and myriad pragmatic sides of being jarringly separated from the man I believed I would forever call my husband.

Flipflopping between the worst emotional pain of my life and the continued shock that still teeters on numbness at times, I have been navigating the waters of getting my legal affairs in order, searching for housing that I can somehow afford for myself and our dog (who will be living with me) in Canada’s third most expensive housing market, packing up our current home, and getting ready to list our house for sale this coming week.

Gone in the blink of an eye is living in the home we created together following the arson house fire that we experienced in October 2016. A cozy roof and four walls that held not only our day-to-day existence, but innumerable memories of times past paired with scores of hopes and dreams for the future.

A shared vision for our tomorrow that up until twenty days ago, I believed we would long continue to write together on the pages of history. Our hands holding the metaphorical pen in unison that would do so.

But sometimes the inkwell inexplicably gets tipped over or runs dry and the life you envisioned is now one you must mourn so as to somehow – some unfathomable how – find the ability to carry on when every breath, every heartbeat, every waking second hurts like death itself.

For the end of any serious relationship – be it a marriage or otherwise – is unquestionably a form of death.

Sometimes the end is a long time coming.

In others, such as this, it proves to be the most shocking and unforeseen event that may ever happen to a person.

For me, it is the latter (and I am very much factoring the arson fire into that statement).

Tony wasn’t just my husband, he was my very best friend. My greatest source of comfort and support, my rock, my calm in the perpetual storm that is life, my biggest cheerleader, my reason to smile no matter what life threw our way, my soulmate… my everything.

Just as I am certain in my heart of hearts that I was for him as well. If not for the whole, then for very nearly the entire eighteen magical years we experienced together.

I don’t know where we went wrong, because I truly did not believe anything was seriously amiss – let alone (again) to such a profound degree. Perhaps I will never know – the onus of answers lies squarely on my beloved’s shoulders.

Like many of us, I have weathered my fair share of serious challenges and losses over the years. From becoming a multi-chronic illness fighter in my teens to the aforementioned fire and many others, life has thrown so many curveballs at me that I could probably play in the Major Leagues at this point.

This, however, is the swiftest, hardest, and most difficult thus far in my 38 years on earth.

That said, no matter how much the mere act of existing hurts at a cellular level right now, I believe I will find a way to keep going. To start over once again.

Doing so without a penny or an asset to my name, and – due to the severity of my chronic health problems – with, at best, sporadic self-employment. (Note, as per our separation agreement, I will be receiving monthly alimony payments for a number of years provided Tony remains employed, but will still be doing everything in my power to generate additional income so as to meet my most important basic daily living and medical expenses.)

My marriage is over, and I am in the throes of grief unlike any I have ever known. Yet dawn follows even the darkest eve and surely, somehow, I will get through this living nightmare and the indescribable heartache that accompanies it.

Due to the massive number of serious challenges I am facing and tackling at present, it is impossible for me to keep publishing fresh content here right now.

As such, from today onward, I am putting this blog (Witchcrafted Life) on what I hope beyond hope will be a temporary – not permanent – hiatus as I deal with everything that the abrupt and wholly unforeseen end of a marriage entails.

Whether to return (be it at my usual posting pace or a more reduced one) or to simply provide you with an update on how things are going in my life, I will do my best to post here at some point in the coming fall months (potentially October or November).

Much as I will not be creating new blog content (or craft projects for that matter), I cannot realistically see staying abreast of + commenting on other peoples’ sites in the near future. My heartfelt apologies about that to those whose blogs I regularly visit.

As I have told Tony in the wake of this devastating situation, over the course of the past eighteen years we were blessed to share together, all I have ever wanted – and still want – is for him to be happy, healthy, content/fulfilled, and loved.  

Until July 4^th of this year, I believed those things would continue to happen in no small part through our life together.

If Tony thinks he is able to do so to a greater degree in a new life that he creates for himself, then with genuine love in my heart – no matter how much it pains me to say goodbye – I hope that he experiences each of those things all the more and is able to find whatever it is he felt/feels our marriage was no longer providing him with at this point in time.

For every tear that has fallen from my exhausted eyes over the past three weeks (they feel as though they must number in the millions by now), I will forever have the gift of an infinitely larger number of cherished, happy, soulful memories from the course our marriage to look back on with the deepest of gratitude and affection.

There is nothing in existence that I would trade for the years we shared, the unforgettable times we experienced, and those very memories that were forged in the fires of our love.

Thank you, sweet friends, for allowing me to share a few humble paragraphs about this situation with each of you.

Until we connect again, please know that you will be fiercely missed, always appreciated, and wished a joyful summer-into-fall (or winter-into-spring if you are south of the equator).

Abundant love,

Autumn

The post My Marriage Abruptly Ended – Putting Witchcrafted Life on Hiatus appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

Though I’ve mentioned my birthday in passing sometime around its date in each of the previous two years Witchcrafted Life has been online, I have not yet devoted a post to the subject.

Having decided by early June that I wanted to do so this time around, I began brainstorming a slew of possible topics to write about on this front.

Various ideas stuck in my mind for a few days at a time and, I have no doubt, each would make for a lovely entry unto itself.

However, the concept at the heart of today’s post is the one that soared above the rest and as a result, is what I am sharing with each of you on this, my 38^th (GF) cake day.

While in the most literal of senses, the word “truth” is precisely that. The factual actuality of a situation, event, statement, and so forth.

Yet, we each have our own truths as well. Many are likewise factual, but in a way, when dealing with the subject of personal truths, the word “truth” can almost become synonymous with others such as “lessons”, “experiences”, or even “battles”.

To my mind, certain truths are indesputable. The earth is round, we 100% went to the moon, death is inevitable, and Halloween is the best holiday of all time!

Okay, maybe that last one is more of a personal opinion, but you can see where I am going with this all the same.

The following list is not an exhaustive one and I delight in thinking that come five, fifteen, or (if I am immensely fortunate) fifty years from now, it would be both longer and contain other lessons/truths that I have yet to encounter or which are being learned as we speak.

I am not saying that these entries apply to everyone and completely understand that some of them might not jive with your own outlook on life. That is completely okay!

After all, we often differ in varying ways from one another and this is amongst the most beautiful and inspiring aspects of the human experience.

After a profoundly difficult and very long labour that very nearly claimed both of our lives, on a sizzling hot July night in 1984 my mother brought me into this world. A few hours later, a powerful summer thunderstorm raged outside the hospital windows as a first-time mom and her early – but not quite premie – infant snuggled together. Exhausted, elated, and bonded more closely than two adjacent atoms from that moment onward.

Like many of us, at this point in my life, I could easily pen a multi-volume autobiography of my life (the last decade alone could probably fill an entire library shelf! ). This post is not the Reader’s Digest version of that.

No, it is a list of some of the most important, meaningful, impactful, and valuable things I have come to call my own truths + life lessons thus far after nearly four decades of calling this ol’ spinning rock of ours home.

And while I could, likewise, speak at substantial length about each of the following points, given that birthdays should generally be lighthearted times of mirth and merriment, I didn’t want to delve too exhaustedly.

Most, if not all, of these statements speak for themselves so the addition of just a few more words or lines to expand on them feels right to me at present.

Take what you wish from them, agree or disagree, and remember that the rapidly perishing art of civility is one that we can all do our part to keep from giving up the ghost entirely.

38 of The Most Important Truths I Have Learned in My 38 Years of Life

1. Always do the right thing, even when no one is looking. In fact, it is all the more important to do the right thing when you are not being watched. It is often easy to act in front of others in the way(s) we believe they want us to, but the true measure of a person’s character comes from what they do when there are few, if any, eyes (or cameras, for that matter) on them.

2. It is okay to help someone carry their baggage, but remember that you are no one’s porter but your own. Often in life, what starts out as innocently aiding another person with their troubles can quickly spiral into you getting trapped under the weight of someone else’s problems, stresses, or hardships.

There is rarely anything wrong with being helpful. However, it is vital to always remember you are not here to hold up the weight of the entire world for anyone else (especially, fellow adults) – no matter how much you love and care about them.

3. Sometimes failing is vastly more beneficial than succeeding. Winning or achieving our goals is fantastic, but there are time when far greater lessons lie in not being the first to cross the proverbial finish line – or, in some cases, ever crossing it at all.

Lick your wounds, if applicable, study what went off the rails or could have been done differently, and instead of wallowing in defeat or failure, use what you learned to propel you forward as a stronger, wiser human being.

4. We miss 100% of the shots we don’t take. This line comes from hockey legend (and fellow Canadian) Wayne Gretzky and, goodness gracious, is it true.

It can be scary (if not downright terrifying sometimes) to push ourselves outside of our comfort zones, to wander even a metre beyond the border of familiarity, or to risk failing spectacularly (see the above point).

Yet, at the same time, the possibility of a positive outcome lies with each shot we take in life and while it is wise to be cautious at times, we do ourselves a profound disservice by not taking a leap of faith and trying the unknown/new/scary sometimes.

5. You are going to get hurt. Likely many, many times. This is normal. While I am not suggesting anyone be a glutton for punishment, trying to hide from situations that may cause us emotional/mental/spiritual pain is like trying to avoid getting wet when you’re caught outside in an open field sans an umbrella during a rainstorm.

It is simply not going to happen.

6. Never depend on another person for your happiness. Early on in life, as I lived through a childhood of immeasurable disfunction and a litany of abuse, I innately discovered (in part due to watching many adults in my life fail to understand this important point about themselves) that I am the one who is most responsible for my own happiness.

Right then and there, before I had even hit a double-digit age, I pledged to consciously choose happiness whenever possible and to remember that I am the person who most powerfully fans the flame of my own inner joy.

That does not mean being pollyannish or naïve, embracing toxic positivity, hiding from difficulty or putting on a false emotional front 24/7, rather that because I do not expect anyone else to make me happy, I owe it to myself all the more to generate my own sense of happiness from deep within my very being.

7. Good manners – as well as kind words – go a very long way. Simple as that.

8. Healthy, loving, respectful relationships take work, but if you constantly feel exhausted/stressed out by them, they are likely not any of those things.

Great relationships are rather like well-oiled and operating machines. Sure, they need tune-ups, inspections, and general maintenance periodically, but they should not require you to work on them 24/7 in order to barely keep them chugging along.

Hard as it can be, sometimes in order to save yourself and return a greater sense of stability/wellness/freedom to your life, you will have to end (or greatly alter the dynamics of) certain relationships.

In the long run, you will almost always thank yourself as you look back marvelling over how long you endured a situation that truly was not working.

9. Learn to laugh at yourself. As someone who is extremely shy, introverted, self-conscious, and prone to anxiety, this has been a tough one for me at times over the years. However, that has only made me more determined to laugh at myself when the situation calls for it.

We all make mistakes and blunders, do silly things unintentionally, find ourselves in embarrassing situations, say the wrong words, and get egg on our face from time to time. So what!

There are far worse things in this world and berating ourselves, lashing out at others, hiding in shame, or fixating on what happened doesn’t change the past, so why fret when you could simply laugh and move on!

10. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again – but also know when to throw in the towel. Ask anyone who knows me well in real life and chances are one of the first words they will use to describe me is tenacious.

Tony even goes so far as to lovingly say I am as stubborn as a bulldog.

And you know what? I will happily take that as the compliment I know he intends it to be.

I will push myself to the extreme, fight tooth and nail to make things that matter to me come to fruition, and not back down easily.

However, at the same time, I have come to learn the value that resides in knowing when to admit that something is just not working out as it should.

There is no shame in that admission. At the end of the day, it usually far better and beneficial to give up trying to fix something that is seriously broken and instead start on a new build that might work out this time around.

11. No one is perfect. Not me, not you, not any mortal being that has ever walked the face of the earth. We all make mistakes, have bad days, say and do things we regret, make poor choices, forget important things, and hurt others (whether we intend to do so or not).

The sooner in life you embrace that, the happier, less stressful, and more easygoing the rest of your existence will be.

While it is fine to hold certain standards in terms of what you hope for/expect from others, remember that we are all just human, all learning, and that in many cases, deserving of a second (or third, etc) chance.

In recent years this point has all been thrown out of the societal window and we are doing nothing but harming ourselves as a species in the process. So, in some instances at least, let’s cut people a bit more slack, remember that the times when we ourselves have fallen short, and don’t be harsher on others for their shortcomings or mistakes than is legitimately warranted.

12. The little things matter a lot. Sure, we might remember the big events, the fabulous vacations, and the annual holidays we observe more than some random Thursday in February, but at the end of the day most peoples’ lives are filled with far more small, often meaningful experiences and joys than mammoth ones.

Value, take note of, share, and try to be thankful for the little things. They are, in fact, far bigger and more important than we often realize in the moment and help to make up the backbone of our existence.

13. Wear whatever you want! This is the 21^st century and, in many parts of the world at least, most people are free to sport anything they choose. As much as I do believe that some attire is better suited to certain settings/occasions than others, I am an even bigger proponent of marching to the beat of one’s own sartorial drum.

This was something I reiterated time and time again when I ran a vintage fashion blog for nearly a decade. This concept holds no less true for me – or anyone else – today than it did back in those delightfully fun 1940s and 50s clothing-filled days.

It can take guts to step out of the current fashion status quo and, yes, you might get some flack, unwanted comments, strange looks, or curious questions, but that is usually no reason to not dress however your heart pleases and your budget permits.

I learned a long time ago that the more I dressed in tune with the style(s) my own heart most adored at the time, the happier and less stressed I was. In speaking to others with unique styles, they have said much the same thing and I animatedly believe it rings true for a good deal of us the world over.

14. Hurt people hurt people. As touched on point #5 on this list, we all experience hurt, pain, sorrow, and negative experiences throughout the course of our lives.

However, the more a person suffers without knowing and/or having the proper outlets to help them cope, heal, process their trauma, speak about their ordeals, and (if applicable) rebuild their lives again, the more likely they are to lash out at others. Using their misplaced pain as a weapon of false power/control and/or way to temporarily block out some of their own suffering

We see this generational trauma, in those who come home from war, in bullying, in survivors of abuse, and countless others.

Some scars may never heal entirely. However, the short-lived, misguided sense of power or emotional pacification we may receive from directing our own pain unjustly at others is never the best route to healing for us and only stands to lengthen the journey for both ourselves and our unwitting victims in the process.

15. Eat ice cream for dinner. Remember when you were a kid and you used to say that when you grew up you would eat ice cream (or candy, chocolate bars, French fries, pizza, etc) morning, noon, and night?

And that you would stay up until 2 am, play video games (or whatever else your young self adored doing for fun) daily, and spend a bunch of time with your friends?

Umm, yeah, so how did those plans turn out?

Somewhere along the line, “adulting” (to use the parlance of the day) entered our lives and in the process, we forgot that a lot of the time, we have the ability to just let loose and embrace fun.

Whether that does in fact involve sitting down to a tub of Cookies and Cream for dinner or not, it is painfully easy to lose sight of the fact that as adults, we often have vastly more autonomy over our own lives than we tend to realize and that there is much to be said for keeping our inner child content no matter how many birthdays we experience.

16. Let it go. Long before Frozen made this wise piece of advice into a saccharine earworm, the principle existed and is no less true today than at any point in human history.

Seriously. Just let it go.

I know, it can hard or frightening to drop our pain, to forgive others (remember that forgiveness does not equate to forgetting and that in the act of forgiving another, we free ourselves further from the grasp of what they did to us), and to let sleeping dogs lie.

And that is all the more reason why we should try to do so. Life wasn’t meant to be easy all the time, but we can often make the road we trod a less difficult one by dropping a lot of unnecessary baggage along the way and mindfully choosing not to let the negatives/challenges/hardship/pain in our life fully define who we are.

17. We need so much less than we think/believe we do to be genuinely happy. Look, I’m not a minimalist and I certainly adore most of what I own.

That said, I can tell you having experienced multiple times in my life when all of my worldly goods fit into just one or two suitcase – and an instance when I had virtually nothing at all – that while material goods can bring us a measure of happiness and have their rightful place in our lives, at the end of the day, we cannot carry any of what we own with us when we cross over to the other side.

Be grateful for what you have. Take stock in the fact that the items you may desire exist in the world and that alone their presence is a wonderful thing unto itself whether you ever obtain them or not, and try not to fill your life with scads of possessions that you don’t actually need or love (and which *may* be transference for other things that are lacking or missing entirely from your world).

18. It is never too late to have a happy childhood. Let’s face it, not that many of us had idyllic youths – and, sadly, some of us scarcely got to experience a sense of childhood point blank.

Yet as American author Tom Robbins astutely reminds us, it is never (or at least rarely) too late to create a sense of the kind of joyful, stable childhood we wish we had later on in our in ourlife.

In the process, I have come to learn, we often do a great deal of inner healing from the difficulties of our early years.

19. Make things for the sake of making them. Not for praise, not to sell, not to flaunt online, not to try and one-up anybody, and, just as importantly, regardless of if you currently excel on a particular creative front or not.

Creating something that was not there before we spun it into being is one of the most rewarding, meaningful, and even cathartic experiences we can have.

Not everything we make will be a winner and that is completely fine. Having fun, letting your creativity take flight, and losing yourself in the moment are each worth far more than even the most valuable painting in the world could fetch at auction.

20. Listen. Really, really listen. Not because you are counting down the milliseconds until it is your turn to talk next, but because you value what the other person is saying (regardless of if you agree with it or not) and respect their right to speak.

There is often just as much – if not more – to be learned from hearing what someone with differing views of life experiences from your own has to say.

It is easy to talk, harder (for many at least) to listen. Hone and actively practise this skill. It will take you far.

21. Get the thing(s) you least want to do out of the way first. Our parents often told us that if we wanted dessert, we had to eat our vegetables first (though, I don’t recall hearing this myself very often as I was that odd kid out who would have happily traded a second helping of carrots for a slice of carrot cake ).

That is an important life lesson that extends far beyond the dinner table.

Instead of putting off or flat out avoiding the difficult elements of your day/week/month, try to tackle them as soon as you possibly can.

The sense of freedom, serenity, and happiness that comes from knowing that they are no longer looming over your head will help you succeed all the more in the other, likely preferable, tasks that lay ahead of you (plus, potentially lift a decent sized weight off of your shoulders in the process).

22. There are (usually) far worse things in life than being offended. Lest Twitter implode at the mere thought, we are going to get offended sometimes. It happens, it is normal, and it does not necessarily mean that someone has actually done anything genuinely wrong towards/against you.

An important part of being a well-adjusted adult is accepting this fact, opting to not make a big deal out of things that do not warrant it, and simply moving on.

23. Spend your money on experiences, not just things. I remember hearing grownups say this when I was little and while I understood and could appreciate the sentiment, it would not be until I was old enough to vote, have a mortgage and all those fun things that hitting the age of 18+ entails that I would fully come to realize just how profoundly right they were.

If you have the means, try to allocate some of your budget for experiences. That doesn’t have to mean lavish vacations, huge parties, or front-row seats at a concert.

It can be taking your aging father on a road trip to his boyhood town (possibly for the last time), attending classes for a skill or area of study you have always wanted to pick up, going out to that incredible restaurant you keep hearing about, or countless other scenarios where the experience you have and the memories you make trump just about any physical item(s) you could have spent that same time and money on.

24. Almost nothing truly worthwhile comes easy. Goals take hard work and time. Success takes failure and perseverance, and excelling in a given area requires dedication coupled with frustration, times when you feel like giving up, and plenty of trial and error along the way.

Good.

More often than not, the harder we work, the sweeter and more meaningful reaching (or even exceeding) our target feels when it does eventually happen.

As the classic adage says, Rome was not built in day, so why should we expect our own lofty undertakings to be any different?

25. Value your elders. Once, not so long ago in the course of human history, it was extremely common + normal for multiple generations of a family to live together under the same roof.

And while, of course, this does still happen in some cases, in some parts of the world at least, it is no longer the norm.

I believe there is often great benefit to surrounding ourselves with those of generations other than our own – very much including those who have been blessed to reach their golden years.

Chances are they’ve learned a thing or two in their time that you could benefit from hearing or being taught how to do.

Sure, you might cringe over some of what your great-grandma says or want to roll your eyes when you aging mom tells you the same story about something that happened when you were a little kid for the 50^th time, but these things are often a small price to pay for the wisdom, love, and life experience that the elderly frequently have to impart to us.

Cherish the older individuals in your life and make sure to let them know just how much they mean to you before it too late.

26. Embrace change. This is a concept that sends a cold shudder down many a spin. I get it, truly I do. However, change accompanies death as one of the only certainties in each of our existences.

You can either exhaust yourself to bone swimming against the current of change, or do your best to float in the direction that it is flowing.

I find it helpful to shift the focus from what may be disappearing or being altered when change occurs and instead on the positives (or, as the case may be, seemingly hidden silver linings) that might soon enter my life.

Plus, what fun would life be if stayed the same day in and day? Change is important, necessarily, and a great opportunity for personal growth.

27. Don’t punish your current romantic interest for the sins, so to speak, of past partners.

This is a toughie. Nearly everyone who has had one or more difficult/abusive/stressful/etc romantic relationships tends to act and respond in certain ways in their next relationship(s) as a result of what befell them in the past.

Yet, it is vital that we give people a chance to show their own true colours before we jump to any conclusions or jeopardize a great thing before it has scarcely got of the ground because of what we experienced with prior partners.

Talk to the person (or people) you are with now, be open about what you’ve gone through and the lasting impacts that/those experiences have had on you (and likewise, give them ample time to share the same with you, if applicable).

You can even ask them to help you further your healing journey and in turn, offer to be a part of theirs. The bond that can stem from this kind of mutual desire to work towards the healthiest, safest, most respectful, and happiest relationship you can realistically share with someone is often worth more than its weight in gold.

28. An eye for an eye only leaves two people partially blind. It is woefully normal to feel the need for retaliation when someone has wronged or deeply hurt you, yet that is rarely (outside of situations where the law should be involved, of course) the best or wisest approach.

Instead of giving into knee-jerk reactions or scheming about how you can get even, remember that hurting someone else to make yourself feel better is about as smart an idea as building a house on quicksand.

It might look good for a moment, but chances are nothing of lasting worth will come of it in the end.

Instead, depending on the situation, it is often far better to speak to the offending party, remove yourself from the situation, or choose to take the highroad and let what they did roll off your back.

29. You can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make them drink. Most of us are familiar with this classic expression and there’s a reason for that: it is very true!

No matter how much you may try to help, support, provide for, or otherwise attempt to present a person with what they may need, at the end of the day, they will only learn/change/grow if they want to do so.

Learn how to recognize when you’ve done a reasonable amount and yet nothing seems to be working. Step back at that point and wait to see if the horse gets thirsty or not in the end.

You cannot – and should not! – forcibly change people, so why drive yourself around the bend trying to accomplish the impossible?

30. Always have something to look forward to. It does not have to be big or break bank, but do everything in your power to always have at least one thing that you will enjoy doing/be happy about to look forward to in life.

This was something that was drilled home for me immensely in the years immediately following when (in my teens) I suddenly became a multi-severe chronic illness fighter and so much of my life was turned completely upside down.

For me, no matter what, Halloween / Samhain is something that I look forward to immensely the whole year through.

If I am blessed to have other things to eagerly anticipate throughout a given year, I consider myself very fortunate and lean as much as I can into the sense of hope and positivity that these lovely upcoming events stand to house.

Try to find one or two things that you can look forward to annually and to pepper others that (may) change from year to year into the mix as well.

Knowing that something positive is coming down the pipeline can do an immeasurable amount of good for our psyches, motivation levels, and general day-to-day mood alike.

31. You are going to look back on your younger self and cringe. Likely A LOT.

Whether it was your Flock of Seagulls haircut in the 1980s, the cheesy love poems you wrote in junior high, some of the romantic partners you chose, or a trillion other things, if you have grown and matured further even a little bit over the years, chances are you will wince when you reflect back on some of things you used to do.

That is great. No, seriously, it is! You want to keep developing as a person, honing your skills, making wiser choices, and progressing in life.

And chances are, by much the same token, there will also be points from years past that you look back on and feel immensely proud of yourself for doing.

Think of it as a bit of nostalgic yaying and naying, if you will.

32. Go outside. Often. Really often. Really, really often.

I sincerely understand that access to the great outdoors is easier to come by for some of us than others and, likewise, that not everyone is keen to do their best Bear Grylls impression.

Nor do you have to! Science backs up the immense importance of spending even just small pockets of time outside and the value that doing so imparts to our overall well-being.

Whether nature looks like sitting out on the deck of your 15th-floor big city apartment, walking your kids to school along a rural road, enjoying a good book on the beach, or any other positive scenario, try to spend time outside on a regular basis.

It can do wonders for your mood, provide inspiration, stir up old memories and create new ones, bolster your spirituality, and help to remind you of the vital link between humanity and the natural world that quite literally keeps us alive.

(Note: Exceptions to this point are, of course, made in cases where spending time outdoors is either limited or simply not possible due to things such as medical reasons or being incarcerated.)

33. Try to do at least one thing daily that will make your future better. This doesn’t have to be something massive by any means, but the impact such actions may have on the bigger picture of your life can be.

Countless options fall under this broad header. It could entail setting aside 15 minutes for daily mindful meditation, giving yourself an evening of self-care each week, getting up an hour earlier to exercise before starting the work day, breaking away from toxic people in your life, forgiving yourself (and/or others), doing volunteer work, finally tackling a project you’ve been procrastinating over, writing 1,000 words of your novel each night before bed, or anything else that stands to help make your future brighter, healthier, and/or more enjoyable.  

34. Do not lose sight of a person’s intentions. Tony (my husband) has, as many of us do, certain wise statements that he says periodically. One of which is that a person’s intentions often matter as much (or more) as their words.

While it is entirely possible for someone to try and whitewash manipulation, gaslighting, deception, or other negative actions behind claiming that they had good intentions, it can often be quite easy to lose sight of the bigger picture and not value or understand when someone was genuinely doing something kind/caring/thoughtful with no malintent behind it.

Even when someone’s actions or words may seem (or be) negative, at times there can still be a kernel of positivity or goodness behind them. Not always, of course, but sometimes for sure.

Try to look at the situation through their eyes, not just your own. Assess the bigger picture of what led them to do or say what they did, and remember that almost no one will treat you the way you want every single time you engage with them.

35. Take pride in an honest day’s work. I do not care if you are a housekeeper, a brain surgeon, a kindergarten teacher, or the president of a Fortune 500 company. A hard, honest day’s worth is something to be proud of.

Respect your own work and, every bit as much so, that of other people. Someone’s worth is in no way measured primarily by their pay cheque or job title, and the moment you start believing that it is, you need to have a serious heart-to-heart with yourself and check that mindset pronto!

36. We are, as Ram Dass wisely said, all just walking each other home. In other words, go easy on your fellow human beings, try not to sweat the small stuff, and remember that everyone is fighting their own battles.

Most are trying and doing the best that they can with the skills, resources, knowledge, and abilities they presently possess. Be kind and civil, and never forget that death finds us all sooner or later.

37. It is not so much what happens to us in life, as how we respond to it that matters most. Exceedingly rare is the life lived without heartache, trauma, stress, challenges, or even the unthinkable occurring.

And while it can be scarily easy to get stuck in a state of victimhood or to use something unfortunate as an excuse to not move ahead in life, that is no way to live.

Vent, process grief, try to heal, learn from hardship, and embrace the remarkable resilience that is innate in just about all of us.

Believe me when I say that you can get through almost anything, no matter how dark the moment may seem, and that you never know just how strong you can be until difficult circumstances push you to the extreme.

38. Love.

Love often. Love hard. Love freely. Love wisely. Love for all the right reasons and none of the wrong. Love not because you expect it (or anything else) in return. Love when it is easy and, especially (circumstantially speaking, naturally) when it is hard.

Love because tomorrow is in no way guaranteed. Love for those times when you longed for it but came up empty or lacking.

Love because there is so much pain and hate in the world that could, if we finally collectively got our act together and smartened up, be greatly lessened by an abundance of love.

Love as an example to others. Love in remembrance of those who have loved you but are now gone. Love because it is free.

Love because it makes your life better. Love to help and to heal. Love for the ways in which it inspires both yourself and others.

Love who you are – or, if you cannot do so at present, vow to work at it until doing so comes as naturally as breathing air.

Love when times are good and when the going gets tough. Love for the joy it imparts and the way it makes both you and the receiver feel.

Love your interests, love places, love pets, love learning, love sharing, love the first crocus of spring and the last jewel-toned leaf of fall. Find so many things to love that you quickly lose track of them all.

Love because, for all we know, it might very well be the meaning of life. Or at the very least, a profound way to add meaning, worth, and beauty to our lives and those we bestow our love upon.

I look forward to many more truths yet to come

The moment I stop learning or stop growing as a person is the moment I should pack it all in right then and there.

The universe houses an infinite amount to be learned and experienced and none of us, no matter if we live to fifty, eighty, or a hundred and ten, can ever do more than lightly graze the merest of surfaces on those fronts.

And so it should be. Life is not forever – though our souls or the energy we are comprised of may be.

Like the title and main verse of the 1977 song We’re Here For a Good Time (Not a Long Time) by the Canadian rock band Trooper reminds us, our time on this planet is far too short not to try and make the best of things when can.

Embrace the positives, acknowledge and process the negatives, and try your darnedest to routinely have a good time on this wild ride called life.

And on that note, my sweet friends, I will wrap up here for now. The electric mixer is calling my name and before I can heed its beckoning, I have an annual birthday tarot/oracle card spread to lay out in front of my now 38-year-old eyes.

I will indeed be striving for a good time today and encourage you all to do the same, no matter how close or far away you currently are from your own birthday.

Thank you for being here with me and for the 2.5+ awesome years of blogging we have already shared together. I can hardly wait to experience the next year of my life with all of you as well.

Okay, it is time to go pull some cards, bake a scrumptious dessert, and bask in the glow of a rather sizable number of birthday candles.

The post 38 of The Most Important Truths I Have Learned in My 38 Years of Life (Shared on My 38th Birthday) appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

He knows not his own strength who hath not met adversity. – William Samuel Johnson

Since launching this quarterly blog post series in 2020, I have often begun my “Magick, Crafty Makes, and Me” entries with a quote pertaining to the forthcoming season.

There is no shortage of excellent quotes to be had about this revitalizing time of the year. However, while we are technically two short days away from the start of springtime, a different season, so to speak, has fallen upon the earth once again: that of profoundly devastating war.

I know and am the first to acknowledge that, heartbreakingly, there have been wars in one part of the world or another pretty much continually since time immemorial. The preceding (and present) years of the 21^st century fully included.

No serious conflict is without suffering, loss, injustice, hardship, sacrifice, and long-lasting devastation. Yet few wars since the final days of WW2 have, mercifully, brought with them the imminent possibility of another large-scale global war.

That is until the world’s biggest country (geographically speaking) decided to wage battle against a peaceful neighbouring nation for absolutely no good – or moreover, even remotely justifiable – reason.

Generally speaking, I go out of my way to avoid the news (especially as an HSP and an empath), knowing that if something is big or important enough, I will surely find out about it one way or another.

However, like a great deal of us, I have been glued to news reports regarding the horrific conflict in Ukraine.

Tears fall from my eyes like shrapnel of the soul. They are shed in unison with the millions that tumble from the exhausted, frightened, and utterly perplexed eyes of countless Ukrainians. To say nothing of the rest of the world, too.

As with most tragedies, there is a powerful sense of the surreal to what is happening in Eastern Europe right now.

Surely, we will all wake up tomorrow or the next day or the day after that and realize that the past three (going on four) weeks have been a hellacious nightmare.

Yet, as is so often the case, the very worst nightmares stem not from our sleeping minds, but from the atrocities that are carried out by certain individuals, groups, or nations when we are acutely awake.

I need only climb a few short branches back in time on my family tree to quickly come face-to-face with ancestors who hailed both from Russia and what is present-day Ukraine + Moldova. Some of whom immigrated to Canada as recently as the 1930s.

I knew and loved a few of these people firsthand before their respective passings during the early years of my childhood.

They were not far-off relations from centuries-long past. They were amongst my grandparents, great-grandparents, and great aunts + uncles. They embraced their new homeland with gusto but never lost sight of the culture, traditions, and memories they had grown up experiencing on the other side of the world.

As is the case for most people, it should go without saying that I am 100% on the side of Ukraine (and that of the Russian citizens who are strongly opposed to this incredibly brutal conflict).

It would be unconscionable in my books not to be.

This is not the first time in their nation’s long and fascinating history that Ukraine has come under siege or been unfathomably brutalized in other ways. For example, (WARNING: the following link includes graphic subject matter and images that may be difficult/disturbing for some viewers – especially younger ones) the Holodomor that occurred under the tyrannical reign of Joseph Stalin.

I have no doubt that many people in Ukraine knew prior to this war’s onset that they were strong, proud, capable individuals.

However, both inside and all the more so outside of the country itself, it is safe to say that few could have imagined just how incredibly strong and resilient 21st-century Ukrainians would prove to be.

The quote that begins this post stems from one of America’s founding fathers, William Samuel Johnson. It is no less true today than it was in the 18^th century. If anything, it may in fact hold even more weight nowadays.

Of course, though this colonial-era quote houses male pronouns, it is safe to say that Ukrainians of all genders are showing amazing fortitude and bravery in the face of their nation literally being razed to the ground.

So long as nuclear and biological weapons are not introduced into the fold, I continue to believe that Ukraine has a very real chance of winning this sham of a war.

Not a sham in the sense of it being make-believe (sadly, nothing could be further from the truth), but rather a sham because of its senseless and unprovoked nature.

As many of us keep a watchful eye on news updates viewed on TV, cell phone, tablet, and computer screens, the ravages of war growing ever more horrendous with each passing minute, it can be hard to shift our focus to lighter matters.

For not the first time in my life, tragedy drives home an intensely strong sense of what, at the end of the day, really matters and what can at times seem rather trivial and/or happy-go-lucky by comparison.

Just as it is doing for countless other souls across the globe right now as well.

We go on though, our hearts heavy with emotions such as grief, anger, and fear. We keep trying to live the lives that we are immeasurably blessed to have to the best of our abilities.

Ukraine is never far from our minds – nor is the looming threat of global war – as we do so. We have been starkly reminded of how, objectively, any of our own countries could theoretically find itself in the same sort of situation.

Thousands of miles away from Eastern Europe, snow still dots the landscape around our corner of British Columbia.

Springtime has phoned and made reservations, but it has not checked into its suite just yet.

It is coming through. The ever-earlier arrival of sunlight each morning, the orchestra of bird songs that have begun to fill the air once again, and the first brave crocuses that proudly stretch their necks above the frozen ground all assure us that spring will be here before we know it.

With just two days to go until the official start of spring in the Western Hemisphere, it is time for a fresh new edition of this reoccurring post series.

As usual, the Winter 2022 Edition of Magick, Crafty Makes, and Me is a link love post featuring online content that caught my eye during the past three months, coupled with a peek into what has been transpiring lately in my own life.

Magick, Witchcraft, Paganism, and Spirituality

–Advice for the Beginner Witch: It is scarcely a secret that witchery has seen a massive rise in popularity both over the past few decades and all the more so in recent years.

Naturally, this has led to the presence of a good deal more newbie witches and/or those who may have flirted with the craft previously, but never dedicated themselves to it and now feel a calling to do just that.

It can be – especially in this day and age of social media – challenging to start out as a new witch. It seems like there is so much to know and do and learn. Getting overwhelming or feeling like you must keep up with the witchy Joneses (many of whom have been practicing for ten, twenty-five, forty – you name it – years at this point) can easily happen.

Go easy on yourself, dear witchling, and find both advice and encouragement from this lovely post that guides new witches through some very useful approaches to beginning your beautiful journey into witchhood.

–Cute Witch Art Projects for Kids: Save for our six-year-old nephew (who lives in Italy), there are currently no young kids in our immediate family. If there were (and they lived nearby), I would love to spend a fun-filled afternoon with them making the simple, budget-friendly witch-related art projects that are featured in this charming post from Moody Moons.  

(Another recent post from Moody Moons that really resonated with me is her terrific tutorial on how to make DIY Green Witch’s Runes with Wood Rounds.)

–50 Signs that You’re an Old Soul: In my experience, many old souls inherently know that they are precisely that. However, sometimes a person may not be aware of their beautifully aged soul or, if they are, they might like to learn more about the subject. Finding, in the process, shared traits and experiences with plenty of their fellow old souls.

If you consider yourself to be one – or know somebody who does – be sure to pop on by Other Worldly Oracle’s excellent look at 50 ways to tell that you are an old soul.

–How to Make a Lovely Herb Drying Rack: Now, granted, this link could have gone in the more generic crafty column above. However, given how many witchy/Pagan folks are deeply interested in herbology, I figured that this link would be at squarely home in this section, too.

While most herbs (especially those grown outdoors) have not rebloomed again yet this year, in due course they will. If you have been itching to find an effective way to dry more of them yourself, this lovely tutorial on how to make a hanging herb drying rack has your back all the way.

–Make a Tiered Herb Planter with Dollar Store Buckets: And carrying on with the herb growing theme – because, if you can’t go all out on gardening-related topics in the spring, when can you? – this fantastic and very wallet-friendly approach to making a tiered herb planter with inexpensive buckets from the dollar store is a great approach for those on a budget or anyone looking to save some green (see what I did there? ) on the herb growing front.

–7 Reasons Why Self-Love is Spiritually Empowering: These days, most of us are familiar with the concepts of self-care and self-love. Ideally, we try our best to successfully make time in our busy lives to focus on these important areas. In doing so, however, have you ever stopped to think about the connections that can (and often do) exist between self-love and your spirituality?

This great post from Reroot Your Life explores that very subject and offers up seven excellent reasons why self-love is spiritually empowering.

–The Ethics of Divining World Events: It is human nature to look for answers, insight and (ideally) comfort when times get not only tough, but downright brutal.

For those who engage in various forms of divination, it can likewise come naturally to us to seek (possible!!!) answers with the cards, runes, or most other methods of divining.

This thought-provoking post from esteemed witchery/Paganism blogger + author John Beckett (I cannot recommend his book The Path of Paganism highly enough) delves into the pros and cons, ethically speaking, of doing just for major world events.

No matter which side of the fence you fall on when it comes to this subject, John’s fairhanded article is well worth reading during these tremendously uncertain times.

Cardmaking, Scrapbooking, Paper Crafting, and Other Crafts

–A Simple Lavender Wreath to Celebrate Spring: While “simple” in terms of the number of products required and ease of creation, rest assured that this elegant spring wreath is a head-turningly beautiful way to add extra seasonal pizzazz to any door (or wall) in your home.

–Cuddly Pompom Easter Bunny Tutorial: If you are in the mood for a melt-your-heart adorable springtime craft that is both easy and fabulously festive (not to mention a great gift idea), allow me to suggest this delightful pompom Easter (or Ostara) Bunny tutorial.

(For more awesome spring, Ostara, and Easter craft ideas, be sure to check out my post 35 Wonderful Ostara Crafts, DIY Projects, and Décor Ideas for The Spring Equinox.)

–DIY Flower Butterfly Wings: In my latest project share post (Delightful Butterfly-Themed Happy Ostara Shaker Card for the Spring Equinox) I discussed how butterflies are a harbinger of spring’s return that I – like many of us – can never get enough of.

If you have ever wanted to make a pair of your very own wearable butterfly wings, this photo-filled DIY project post will guide you through how to do just that.

The inclusion of dried flowers/leaves makes these wings especially enchanting. Not to mention more than lovely enough to proudly display, when not being worn, in your home as the work of magical art that they are.

(I cannot help but think how fantastic this project would also look with jewel-toned fall leaves, should you wish to make different seasonal versions of wearable butterfly wings.)

–DIY Gold Foil Vintage Bee Birthday Cards: Much like butterflies, bees are another winged friend that helps to signal spring’s return and who does so much to help keep nature in bloom year after year.

If you are in the mood to celebrate bees in papercrafting form during the upcoming season (or anytime), this gorgeous gold foil card project from Diana at Dreams Factory is a stunning way to do just that.

(If you do not happen to have the tools, such as a laminator, that she uses here, I suspect a somewhat similar look could be achieved by using a good-sized bee stamp, clear embossing ink, and a rich metallic gold embossing powder such as Princess Gold from Ranger.)

And from the same blog, I adore this post on How to Make DIY Spray Inks in Any Colour.

–Four Ways to Organize Your Sticker Addiction: This post is a few years old, but I just hit upon it this winter and felt that it would be right at home in the next edition of this link love series.

Sticker storage can often be a challenge for those of us who cannot get enough of this charming craft product. Yet finding effective ways to store our beloved stickers is often considerably trickier than amassing them in the first place.

In this post, the author weighs the pros and cons of four different approaches for storing planner-related stickers. However, these same ideas can easily translate into just about any kind of sticker your heart desires.

–Oh Romeo Mini Quilt: As I have mentioned a time or two before, I am not a quilter. However, I adore this awesome fabric craft all the same.

I find there are numerous similarities between quilting and papercrafting and am continually inspired by many different types of quilted projects.

Case in point, this fabulously creative “Oh Romeo Mini Quilt” is an enchanting fabric art ode to one of Shakespeare’s most beloved plays.  

–3-D Paper Eggs: Where would spring be without a bevy of eggs and all manner of craft + décor items depicting them?

Whether you are keen to ditch dyed eggs or would like a fun project to accompany that classic springtime act, this super easy-to-replicate tutorial guides you through how to make three-dimensional paper eggs that can be hung around your home for an extra sweet dose of seasonal cheer.

What’s Shaking in My Life and On My Radar

This winter passed, as they pretty much always do around these parts, in a flurry of snowflakes, bone-chilling temps, parkas, and warm woollen mittens.

Three cold snaps punctuated the already frozen air, though none saw the mercury drop below -30C/-22F.

Believe me when I say that by Canadian standards, that really isn’t too bad.

As I mentioned here a few blog posts ago, my sister contracted Covid this winter. Thankfully, she did not become extremely ill and/or require hospitalization. While she is still in the process of healing and regaining energy, I am grateful beyond measure to report that she is doing a fair bit better these days.

None of our other loved ones came down with Covid this winter (nor did Tony or I), which we are also endlessly thankful about. One can only speculate as to if that same statement can be made in another three months – let alone at the end of the year.

Also a few weeks ago, Tony and I received our booster shots (aka, our third vaccinations) and will continue to be the first in line for any future Covid vaccines that may be offered to the Canadian public.

Even though I personally think it is too soon to do so, earlier this week the BC provincial government rescinded the law mandating that masks be worn in most types of businesses and other enclosed public spaces.

I am starkly aware of the fact that a huge percentage of the population will, if not toss their masks away outright, then at least banish them to the back of the closet.

It is very easy to understand why and just as I have maintained since the get-go with the pandemic, to each their own when it comes to navigating the challenging waters of the Coronavirus.

Personally, however, as someone who is immune-compromised, I will continue to sport a mask to all the same types of places I have been doing so for the past couple of years. Far better to be safe than sorry.

With so much uncertainty in the world right now – and with the pandemic still going strong – we have not made much in the way of plans yet for the coming spring and summer months.

And after the especially brutal wildfire season that ravaged BC last year (it stands as one of the all-time worst on record here), we are already feeling a bit of trepidation regarding what the coming sizzling hot months may hold in store for our province this year.

Much as I wish with all my might that I could state the polar opposite, I do not have any positive updates regarding the serious and incredibly perplexing “new” medical issues that I have been battling since 2020.

Diagnoses are still proving wildly elusive, as is anything even approaching the degree of health care that I should be receiving to help get to the bottom of what on earth is impacting me.

I am no stranger (far from it!) to fighting tirelessly for diagnoses and the overall state of my health. I have been doing that for twenty, going on twenty-one years straight now.

Not, however, let me clarify, for most of these latest health issues themselves, but rather for just about all of my other chronic illnesses that preceded them.

Ever since these new medical challenges entered my life, at the start of each new season I find myself looking towards the end of it, hoping beyond measure that there will be some form of positive health-related changes by then. Some desperately needed help. Some sign that instead of continuing to worsen, things are stabilizing – or perhaps even showing a flicker of improvement.

And though my body and overall state of health continue to deteriorate and weaken further with each passing week, I am resolute in my hope and in my unceasing drive to get the medical answers, help, and treatment(s) that I NEED no matter how long I must battle for each one of those vital things.

On a far more upbeat note, the Spring Equinox is just two days away!

That day is when I will personally be observing the heart of the Ostara season. And while (as is often the case) I will do so in the company of lingering wintertime snow and ice, I am wonderfully excited to celebrate the newness, positivity, rebirth, and fresh possibilities that spring houses.

Then, come the first week of April, we will celebrate my mother’s birthday. I am hopeful that – after two years of not being able to safely do so – we can spend in person with her (just as we were able to do for my own b-day last summer).

I have said it before, but I will happily say it again: my mom’s birthday is akin to a second start of spring for me and always heralds the return of bloom, baby chick, and rainbow season all the more.

And speaking of my birthday, it is now less than four months away. A fact which I can scarcely believe!

First, though, we get to experience the beauty and wonder of spring, as the natural world breaks free of its lengthy wintertime hibernation and brightens our days both literally and figuratively in many enjoyable ways.

I have a lot of ideas for fun, informative, and inspiring blog posts here in the coming months – including, all things willing, a brand-new edition of the Cemetery Journeys post series that I launched here last year.

A number of you have emailed to ask me when that would be happening, so I am striving as hard as I can to get the next exciting journey up this spring.

And now, sweet dears, on with a smattering of assorted links that leapt out at me over the course of these past three snow-covered months.

–Emily Brontes’ Lost Second Novel: It is safe to say that Wuthering Heights stands as one of the best known and most beloved novels ever published.

Tragically, its author died young at the age of just thirty years old. Leaving, at the time, an unpublished second manuscript that we know with a good degree of certainty existed at one point, but which has sadly been long lost to the hands of time (or perhaps, as some strongly suspect destroyed by one of her sisters).

This engaging article takes a gander at Emily’s iconic inaugural novel, while also digging into the mystery surrounding what her second book may have been about as well as what fate might have befallen that now (presumably) long-lost second manuscript.

–11 Ways to Wear a Bat Bow: Whether you would only rock a bat bow in October or could easily – and gleefully – do so the whole year round, this charming post suggests eleven fun ways to inject some sartorial bat-themed goodness into your attire as often as your heart desires.  

–Goth Fast Fashion and Why It Isn’t Always a Good Thing: Regardless of your preferred personal style(s), this post – from Gothic Charm School author Jillian Venters – poses some insightful and important points that apply to a sizable percentage of clothing consumers in many parts of the world.

Fast fashion may be de rigueur in the sphere of 21st-century attire, but as Jillian wisely argues, it is often far from the choice we should be making – at least on a regular basis.

–Lost Women of Science Podcast: This recently launched podcast series (from New York Times reporter Katie Hafner) is on a mission to shine the very well-deserved spotlight on female scientists whose work, and in many cases, names, are little known despite the important contributions they made not only to the field, but to life on earth, point-blank.

The first scientist to be featured is Dorothy Andersen, a physician and pathologist who forever changed the lives of many people around the world when, in 1938, she discovered and defined cystic fibrosis.

As a passionate lover of science (and staunch advocate for women in STEM), I eagerly looking forward to seeing what other women will be featured in future editions of this much-needed podcast.  

–Metal Pens Pre-17^th Century: Much like the link pertaining to sticker organization shared above, this post has a few years under its belt.

It remains a gem all the same and, being a lifelong writer myself, I could not help but share it here – especially since the concept of metal pens is not something many of us associate with times preceding the Victorian era (let alone prior to the 1600s!).

As this article clearly demonstrates, however, they are invention that stretches centuries back in time prior to that point and which have been evolving for hundreds of years now.

–The Top Ten Strangest Snakes in The World: If you happen to have ophidiophobia, please be advised that chances are this link is not for you.

If, on the other hand, you are not afraid of snakes and would like to learn more about some of the most unique and (often) rarest of our slithering reptile friends, read on a very cool selection of ten unforgettable types of serpents.

–Metal Pens Pre-17^th Century: Much like the link pertaining to sticker organization shared above, this post has a few years under its belt.

It remains a gem all the same, and as a writer myself, I could not help but share it here – especially since the concept of metal pens is not something many of us associate with times preceding the Victorian era (let alone prior to the 1600s!).

As this article clearly demonstrates, however, they are an invention that stretches centuries back in time prior to that point and which has been evolving for hundreds of years now.

–Toronto Based Startup is Combatting Deforestation with Tree Planting Drones: There is no denying the profound importance of reforestation in the battle against the ever more alarming climate crisis that our planet is besieged with these days.

While there are various ways to plant and grow new trees, few are as innovative or original as that from Canadian Flash Forest, which is using drones to plant new trees.

How many trees, you may ask? At the time this article was written last year, no less than 300,000 seed pods had been dropped across specific parts of Canada.

One can only wonder how high that total will continue to climb – and hope, all the while, that this clever technique rapidly catches on around the globe.

Bonus link: Last October I shared a post here called 13 Awesome Cemetery Focused Blogs Every Taphophile Should Be Following.

In that post, one of the blogs that I featured was of renowned author Loren Rhodes, whose work spans both the fiction and nonfiction spheres.

Those who enjoy books pertaining to taphophilia-related topics may be familiar with Rhodes’ work, including her wonderful books 199 Cemeteries to See Before Your Die and This Morbid Life: Essays.

Thanks to that post, Loren and I connected for the first time ever and have remained in touch since (which is the coolest thing in – pun fully intended – my books, as I have been a big fan of her work for quite some time now).

Loren emailed me a few days ago to share that she would be launching a Kickstarter campaign (which is now live) to help back her newest release: Death’s Garden Revisited: Relationships with Cemeteries.

The title brings together personal reflections from numerous people around the world who have strong connections (for a myriad of different reasons) to cemeteries.

As a passionate taphophile who finds few experiences in life more enjoyable, spiritually fulfilling, and inspiring than visiting cemeteries, you can imagine how delighted I was to learn about Loren’s latest writing project.

Whether you enjoy genealogy, history, the art and design of cemeteries, or just about anything else pertaining to burial grounds, this book is apt to be right up your alley.

If you would like to help bring Death’s Garden Revisited to the point of publication, I encourage you to please consider donating to Loren’s Kickstarter campaign.

Hold Fast to Dreams

Though it has only been three short months since the Autumn 2021 edition of this post series appeared, for reasons both global and personal, it feels more like two years have elapsed between now and when we said farewell to fall.

Exceedingly few amongst us could have predicted when this winter began that less than a single season later, the world would be rocked once again by an unthinkable tragedy of epic proportion.

That is what has happened though and as with everything that leaves a stamp in indelible ink upon human history, we as a species will be forever impacted by the war in Ukraine.

Assuming, that is, that our species is able to keep going beyond the current generation.

I am nothing if not an optimist, but I am also the poster child for realists everywhere.

Since my early youth, I have studied the first two world wars to a degree that I cannot even begin to measure.

My eyes have taken in hundreds, if not thousands, of books and hours of programming alike pertaining to these world-altering conflicts – especially WW2 and the holocaust.

Beyond those two massive conflicts, I have been drawn to studying and trying to make sense of war, famine, genocide and other forms of the worst possible things human beings can do to one another for as far back as I can recall.

Everything that I have learned, viewed through lenses both philosophical and pragmatic, and laid awake at night thinking about, currently braces me for even more brutal days ahead.

Just like the citizens of Ukraine and countless others around the globe, I hold tight to the belief that the guns will be silenced, the bombs returned to their hiding places, and that the carnage and devastation will end before we as a collective whole do things from which there is no coming back.

As a young girl, one of the first pieces of poetry that I remember learning by heart in school was Dreams by the wonderful American poet, Langston Hughes. It goes as follows:

Hold fast to dreams 
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly.

Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.

Some thirty years on from when I committed those poignant and powerful lines to memory, they remain with me verbatim.

As I lay my head down to sleep each night and again when that ever-brighter dawn wrestles me from slumber, I find Hughes’s words echoing through my thoughts.

They live in my heart and will remain there for as long as it continues to beat.

The dream, in this instance, is one of unwavering hope for an end to the war in Ukraine, the suffering on both sides, and the ability for the survivors to be able to one day piece their shattered lives back together again.

Their futures will not be the same ones that lay before them a few agonizingly short weeks ago, but there is still hope and the prospect of some sort of stability again.

We, as a planet, did in 1918 and again in 1945. Now, before WW3 truly does erupt, let’s stop this madness and do it again in the spring of 2022.

The very fate of the world may be riding on it.

As we look towards the coming season – be it spring on this side of the equator of my beloved autumn for those south of it – there are not words enough to convey how much I hope that you are able to have a safe season wherever you call home.

My deepest wishes for wellness, happiness, and peace to each of you, cherished friends – and to everyone who calls this remarkable planet of ours home.

The post Winter 2022 Edition of Magick, Crafty Makes, and Me appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

This is not the first time I have been queried on this point (or similar variants of it) – nor, I’m sure, will it be the last.

The wording of this question always catches my eye. The person is not directly asking me why I am a witch, but rather why I would willingly associate with a word that, more often than not in their eyes, holds strongly negative or even “evil” connotations.

Ask ten, three hundred, or five thousand witches this same question and chances are you will receive nearly as many different replies as to why they have decided to call themselves witches.

I cannot, and would not, speak for anyone else on this matter. I can only reply as to why I proudly choose to call myself a witch.

Why I call myself a witch

I call myself a witch because as a very young child, before I even fully understood in a spiritual or real-world context what that word and the practice of witchcraft entailed, a voice deep in the furthest reaches of my being told me that I was a witch.

Witchcraft came as naturally to me as drawing air, but it was a path that I made darn sure I was willing to take on the full complexities of and in doing so, to face the potential backlash, persecution, intolerance, ostracization, and even hatred that the label of witch and the act of witchcraft can carry with them.

I call myself a witch because I entered this world with a soul so old it feels as though it was already well-aged when the Big Bang occurred.

In the word witch I seek and see, find and cherish the past, the present, and the future.

I call myself a witch because I am willing, able and honoured to stand up for those impacted by the staggering hardship and trauma, crime and oppression that has been perpetuated over the course of human history – the Burning Times wholly included.

I call myself a witch because it elevates my autonomy. It gives me strength and power, the ability to stand as tall and proud as the lightest oak and to remain true to my innermost beliefs at all times.

I call myself a witch because I have devoted myself and my life, my spirit and soul, heart, body and mind to the study of witchcraft, magick, and Paganism.

I did not don the word “witch” on a whim, to follow a trend or because (as much as I do madly adore it) I’m a huge fan of Halloween.

I read hundreds of books on scores of religions and spiritual belief systems from around the world before I even dared to considered describing myself a witch to others. I have read far more since and each one has helped in its own way to add credence to my choice to become a witch.

I call myself a witch because I believe that there is a spirit or soul in everything – animals, rocks, plants, locations, etc – the world over.

This concept, animism, is a core tenant of my existence, how I engage with others, and why I would only knowingly hurt another living being as a last resort means of necessitated self-defence.

It is why I’ve heard the trees sing to each other, felt Gaia’s pulse beat in tandem with mine as I lay on the verdant grass of a warm June evening, drawn the moon and sun both down and experienced their life forces mingle with my own.

I call myself a witch because I am an empath. The feelings, concerns, stresses, joys, and (sometimes) even thoughts of others are something that I feel and understand as deeply. Perhaps, at times, even more so than my own.

I call myself a witch because I am a perpetual knowledge seeker. For the entirety of my life, I have been madly in love with learning. With following the path of understanding, with the fact that learning one thing can open up a pandora’s box of questions, all of which hold the potential to learn more and in doing so, to potentially grow further as a human being.

I am an impassioned believer in science and reason, but I also know, in my heart of hearts, that there is infinitely more at work in the universe that we do not (yet) know, fully understand, or even conceptualize than what humans presently place under these ever-expanding and shifting headers.

I call myself a witch because I honour nature and do everything that I realistically can to help, heal, nurture and support the planet and all living things that inhabit our world.

I call myself a witch because living in harmony with the Wheel of the Year brings me profound happiness, closeness to the universe, and strengthens my bonds to the ancestors.

As a child, I often questioned why there were not more holidays, especially ones that marked the start of each season. In discovering, as I grew older and began studying Paganism, that humankind had been honouring these points in the year since time immemorial and that some people still continue to do so, I felt a piece of my innermost self click immediately into place.

I call myself a witch because of the profound degree of comfort and acceptance coupled with the immense lack of fear that I have regarding death. I have traversed the veil, I work with my ancestors on a regular basis, I am more at home in a quiet cemetery than almost any public place that the living hang out in.

Death is a state I understand and appreciate. It ends much, but starts much as well. In death, our essential energy is transferred to another form. It does not vanish. Nothing is truly lost in the universe. It just materializes differently with each new iteration.

I call myself a witch because I know that I have the ability to manifest and help to create the outcomes that I desire in my life. I can face any situation and find ways to ensure that, if so desired, it is bolstered, bettered, assisted, protected, or otherwise aided or empowered by the actions that I take and changes set into motion via the witchcraft that I create.

I call myself a witch because I do not depend on others to save me or support me. I am strong and far from helpless. I am a woman, a human, who knows her worth and has learned, through no shortage of challenges and pain, to never let anyone diminish my validity.

I call myself a witch because doing so is right for me and my existence. In the process, I give space and respect to all those who opt to take on this word themselves, too – just as I do those who are not witches.

I have no agenda, no dogma, no disdain for or fear of others whose spiritual path differs from my own. I do not believe that there is “one true path” or religion that has a monopoly over all other spiritual journeys.

I call myself a witch because I can sense and feel things that go deeper than logic can explain. I converse and actively work with spirit allies, my ancestors, deities, the fae (who first presented themselves to me when I was a young child of just two or three), and creatures both of this world and outside of it.

These beings, energies and essences are not foreign or (usually!) frightening to me. They are as much a part of my world as the living humans and animals that I engage with every day.

I call myself a witch because I am proud to not fit into conventional moulds, but instead to march to the beat of my own drum. I have no desire to conform or go with the flock. I am the wolf howling at the moon in the hills overlooking the sheep farm below. I am free as a flowing river, ancient as the earth it traverses, and able to bend and flow as needed just as nimbly as the Nile.

I call myself a witch because incorporating and weaving magick, connection to the ancestors and nature into countless areas of my existence comes as easily and intrinsically as breathing in and out.

I call myself a witch because in my darkest hours, when I literally had nothing to my name, when I was abused or bullied or hurt, when chronic illness became (and remained) a huge part of my daily existence, when my depression took me to places so dark blackholes looked like the face of the sun by comparison, I reached deep down inside myself and using the strength of every last speck of stardust that aligned to create me, I dug in my heels, refused to give up, and never once lowered myself to the level of those who perpetrated these cruel acts against me.

I call myself a witch because, personally, it would be unfathomable for me to ever lord my beliefs over others, to see those who thought or believed differently as sinners simply because of those differences, or to feel that I had a mission to save their souls. We each save, if we so choose, our own souls, in the ways and manners that work best for our unique life paths.

I call myself a witch because I ascribe to no religion. I am a wild spirit, a free thinker, an impassioned believer in a great many things, but I am not – and have never been at any point in my life – religious.

I call myself a witch because my craft is so not driven by aesthetics or vanity. It is not a power trip or way for me to feel superior. It is honest and raw, refined and real. A continual learning process and source of joy, hope, introspection, growth, love, peace and pleasure.

I call myself a witch because I am as certain as anyone could ever be that I have lived past lives. The memories I possess from some of them are as vivid and real as many from this lifetime. I think/believe that a good many – if not all – humans live multiple lives across the universe.

I call myself a witch, because I embrace the duality and interconnectedness of light and dark, that each one exists because of the other and that these two polarities are to be found in every person, every bit as much as they are in the realm of nature and the cosmos.

I call myself a witch because I am the master and keeper of my own mind, body and spirit. This is not up for debate. Autonomy and independence are indescribably important to me and I will fight for them, if need be, with every ounce of energy I possess.

I call myself a witch because I was born a healer, a comforter, a nurturer. I do not want anyone, any animal, any being, or our planet to suffer or feel pain – and when they do, I feel drawn to help and comfort, support and bolster them to the best of my witchy abilities.

I call myself a witch because my intuition guides me to do so. I have an indescribably close bond + profound reverence for my intuition, which you can bet your bottom dollar, I follow and heed.  

I call myself a witch because I am 100% responsible for my actions, my choices in life, my inner happiness, my sense of self-worth, my ability to be do the right thing in every possible situation, and to own my mistakes when they occur.

I call myself a witch because I am willing to stand behind this title and what it means both broadly, and in the realm of my own life, in the 21^st century. I see and experience incredible beauty, meaning, conviction, strength, hope, history, sovereignty, independence, reliance, creativity, humility and power alike in the world witch.

I call myself a witch because there is nothing else I want to be called more. Nothing that feels truer, more right, more natural, or more aligned with every molecule in my being, each breath I draw.

I call myself a witch because I am a witch

The reasons above are by no means the only ones that explain why I call myself a witch. Others exist at present and I’m certain more will blossom into being the longer that I’m a witch. And this, unto itself, is yet another reason why I call myself a witch.

As you may have surmised, the very reasons why I call myself a witch are one in the same with why I am a witch.

Most anybody can be a witch, if they truly want to be one. This word and its domain are not beyond the grasp of those who are willing to embrace, live, and honour it.

I do not feel that being a witch makes me inherently special and I certainly am not a witch to garner attention, flaunt my witchiness around, or tell anyone else how to explicitly be a witch themselves.

Questioning why you are a witch is important

Granted most of us probably don’t want to be asked why we are a witch or why we call ourselves a witch around the clock, but this question doesn’t have to inherently get your guard up unless there is just cause for such.

Some people will ask with an agenda – possibly to try to proselytize, mock, shame, belittle or otherwise insult you – others will be genuinely curious (perhaps they themselves are having witchy stirrings and want to learn more).

In most settings, you do not need to respond in detail and can simply say that you would prefer not to answer that question. The call is yours. As always, I urge you to use your intuition and best judgement.

Beyond being asked why we call ourselves witches by other people, I feel that it is very important that we examine this question on a personal level, exploring and defining why we choose to apply the label of “witch” to ourselves.

Your answers are apt to be highly personalized. They may share points in common with my own and those of others, or they might be substantially different.

The fact that we are able to set forth our own personal definition of what being a witch means and why we call ourselves witches is, unto itself, another reason why I am a witch.

The beautiful, liberating autonomy and freedom to follow a spiritual path that makes sense to, and works well for, us on our own terms is a fantastic and hugely empowering thing.

You might think that this post was penned because the aforementioned woman’s question upset, hurt or bothered me. It did none of those things.

What it did do, was give me the lovely opportunity to stop and once again reflect on what being a witch means to me, why I place this title upon myself, and how profoundly grateful I am to be a witch.

And for that – much like her question itself – I sincerely thank her.

In closing, I would like to leave you with these supportive reminders, from one witch to another.

Do not be afraid to call yourself a witch. Privately, publicly or both, the choice is yours. However, if you do use this word, stand behind it with pride and passion.

Do not let anyone – EVER! – tell you that you’re not a witch if, in fact, you are one.

Don’t feel you have to justify being a witch to anyone other than yourself.

Do embrace your unique, wonderful witchiness.

Do continue to grow, evolve and strengthen your knowledge + abilities as a witch

Do witch on your own terms.

Do know and understand why you are a witch and what being one means to, and for, you.

The post Why I call myself a witch appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

Though young at the time (to paraphrase what Mary Sanderson says to her sister Winifred in the movie Hocus Pocus, I was a mere sping of a girl, clocking in at just 19 years old), I had already been involved in a couple of serious relationships and done some general dating by that point in my life.

One of those relationships was a horrific, abuse-filled multi-year nightmare from which I was genuinely lucky to escape with my life (and after which that ex stalked me for years).

I vowed that I would never allow anyone to treat me like that again – especially as I knew all along that what he was doing was stupendously wrong and that I did not deserve to be treated in such a deplorable manner.

No one, regardless of gender or any other factor, should ever be treated in any of the ways this person inflicted abuse and literal torture on me.

Thankfully, the ensuing relationships I would have were infinitely healthier, happier, and filled with respect. They did not pan out in the long run for various reasons, but even when I cared deeply for the other person, that didn’t phase me too much.

I saw so much of my life before me still, I was very focused on coping with the fact that in my late teens my health took a massive nosedive as I rapidly developed one severe chronic illness after another (I fully believe the abusive relationship I was in coupled with a severely traumatic, stressful, and also abusive childhood played a notable role in the swift decline of my health at such a young age), and honestly revelled in being single.

As a shy, extremely introverted person who had so much to heal to and move forward from before I’d even hit my 20^th birthday, finding Mr. Right – or even Mr. Right Now was lightyears away from the top of my priority list.

And yet…

Sometimes, no matter what we may think we do or do not need, the universe in its infinite wisdom has other plans.

In March 2004, as I was recovering at home mere days after a pretty substantial surgery for one of my medical conditions, my husband and I met online.

A lifelong fascination with and pull towards the Emerland Isle coupled with the fact I’m a passionate snail mail writer, led me to search for online pen pal websites in Ireland.

One such site was a combination pen pal and dating site (with members free to focus on one or both of those areas, as they desired).

Though a native son of Italy, the man who I would go on to marry (aka, Tony), had come to Ireland a few months prior to that point in time for a job in Dublin.

A naturally outgoing (he’s a total ambivert), friendly type and a huge romantic, Tony had joined the very same website as well and it wasn’t long before our paths crossed there.

As I like to say, it was pretty much love at first email.

We corresponded through online messages, which quickly progressed to phone calls and Skyping (this being long before services like Zoom entered the picture), and then to me boarding a plane to visit Tony in Ireland for nearly two months during the summer of 2004.

We hit it off all the more in person; our love deepening, our awareness and appreciation for one another expanding by the day, and our connection fusing with each beat of our young hearts. (Tony, I should note, was 23 at the time.)

Tony proposed to me during our visit and even though we knew that from an immigration standpoint things would be tricky for us once we wed, that did not deter us from setting our big date.

We were both broke as all get out, neither of us came from families with financial means, and we didn’t feel like we needed a big wedding at all. The latter point helped with the first two a good deal, let me tell you!

Given that we were living on opposite sides of the Atlantic, we planned to wed within a matter of months and to do so here on Canadian soil.

Come October 2004, we did just that when we tied the knot in a very small civil ceremony wedding that was held in the living room of the house my mom and (now) ex-step-dad were living at the time.

Blissfully in love and excited to start our lives together, and having determined that it would be vastly easier for us initially if I moved to Ireland (instead of Tony moving to Canada at the time) that is exactly what I did.

I sold or gave away nearly all of my worldly goods, taking just what could fit in two average-sized suitcases, my purse, and a camera bag.

We remained in Ireland for a couple of years before a true stroke-of-luck job offer led Tony to a position with one of the Canadian branches of an international IT company. The good fortune involved there is something that I still frequently think about and give immense thanks for to this day.

In the years that would follow, we went through the lengthy and, at times, very stressful immigration process that would eventually lead to Tony becoming a Canadian citizen in June 2012.

Now, you may be wondering why I’m telling you all of them at the start of a project share post.

The reason, dear friends, is that tomorrow is my and Tony’s 17^th wedding anniversary and the card featured herein is the one that I made for him to celebrate this joyful event.

Enchanting Blackbird, Full Moon, and Flower Wreath “I Thank My Lucky Stars For You” Anniversary Card

Tony, a fellow lover of autumn, and I both big fans of nighttime, just as we are birds (and animals) in general.

Partner that with the colour palette of dark blues and blacks that I’m vibing on big time this fall (as mentioned in my recent Chicly Spooky Multi-Window Halloween Ghost Shaker Card post), plus the fact that I had been champing at the bit to use this cute-than-cute bird die that came as a free gift with an issue of Cardmaking & Paper Craft magazine, and it wasn’t long before the design for this card materialized.

While we didn’t exchange wedding vows on the 31^st of this month, the fact that we were married little more than a couple of weeks before Halloween has always linked the two events closely in our minds.

I wanted to channel this point as well and opted for a card design that while not as overtly All Hallows’ Eve-ish as, say, a gaggle of ghosts or field of grinning jack-o-lanterns, could easily have been a Halloween card if the sentiment was changed to one that suited October 31^st.

Objectively, even as it stands now, this could be a Halloween card. There are numerous people that I would happily express this same sentiment to during the spookiest chapter of the year.

To highlight the card’s heart-touching sentiment, I used two different night sky print papers (one from Echo Park, the other from Ella & Viv), as well as a charming star flourish die that I madly adore.

A number of gorgeous, whip-smart ravens call the evergreen trees in our backyard home and we both delight in seeing these corvid friends all year round.

Thus, I went with a black-coloured bird for the sweet avian that I included on this greeting. It might look more like a blackbird, but I’m calling it a raven.

I used a pair of my beloved decorative edge scissors here to give some layers here the look of a postage stamp. This was a nod to the humble email and snail mail beginnings of my and Tony’s relationship.

(Even with all the awesome advancements over the years with paper punches and die cutting machines, I still adore and frequently used decorative edge scissors. Are you a fan as well?)

A wreath of pleated ribbon, tiny velvet flowers, and more star flourishes encircles the precious birdie as it branches on a slender grey branch.

This wreath symbolizes both the unity of our love and commitment to one another, as well as our wedding rings themselves.

I am elated with how this anniversary card for my darling husband turned out and hope that Tony will love it as well.

If you’d like to make a similar greeting for someone in your life that you are especially grateful for or if you wish to adapt the design for another reason/occasion, read on for the materials and how-to steps involved with this charming evening sky filled card.

Products used to make an enchantingly elegant blackbird, starry sky, and full moon card

-White and yellow cardstock

-Medium and medium-dark grey cardstock

-Pale greyish-aqua and dark grey cardstock – Cool Neutrals 12”x12” cardstock pack from Craft Smith (Michael’s brand)

-Matte black mirror cardstock – Black Velvet Mirror Cardstock from Tonic Studio

-Multi-colour star print paper – Summer Adventure Count The Stars paper from Echo Park

-Full moon print paper – Full Moon Night Sky paper from Ella & Viv

-Circle die

-Star flourish/shooting star die

-Small-sized bow die

-Bird die and branch die (both from) – Little Birdies stamp and die set (gift) from Issue 216 of Simply Cards & Papercraft magazine

-Decorative edge scissor – Mini Pinking Paper Edgers Scissors from Fiskars

-“I Thank My Lucky Stars For You” sentiment stamp – Stargazing Stamp Set from Stampin’ Up!

-Black ink pad – Jet Black Archival Ink from Ranger

-White gel pen – Uniball White Gel Pen from Signo

-Black pen – Pigma Micron 0.35mm Black Pen from Sakura

-Mini black and grey velvet ribbon flowers with white pearl centers (I got these quite a while ago; possibly on Etsy)

-Mini red ribbon flowers with clear rhinestone centers (from Ali Express)

-Ruffled black ribbon trim

-Glue gun and glue sticks

-Dimensional foam, pop dots, or similar to elevate some of your layers

-Adhesive, such as a tape runner, of your choice (I often use my Scotch Tape Glider)

How to make a cute blackbird and night sky themed card

Begin by making a white card base. Cut a piece of medium-dark grey cardstock slightly smaller than the card base. Trim all edges of this piece with the Mini Pinking decorative edge scissors (or any pinking scissors/shears of your choice) and adhere to the card base.

Cut a piece of pale greyish-aqua coloured cardstock slightly smaller than the previous layer and adhere to the medium-dark grey layer.

Next, cut a piece of Summer Adventure Count The Stars paper from Echo Park slightly smaller than the previous layer and adhere it to the greyish-aqua cardstock.

Using a basic circle die (or a circle stencil; you could also trace a circle around the bottom of an object, such as a small plate or a vase) cut out the portion of the Full Moon Night Sky paper from Ella & Viv that includes the glowing full moon.

Using black ink, stamp the -“I Thank My Lucky Stars For You” sentiment stamp from Stampin’ Up!’s Stargazing stamp set on top of the full moon portion of the Ella and Viv paper.

Die cut a circle of greyish-aqua paper and a slightly larger circle of dark grey cardstock. Adhere these two layers together, then top with (adhere) the full moon print circle of paper on top of these layers.

Adhere a border of black ruffled trim on the back of the dark grey cardstock base layer.

Next, adhere this sentiment layer stack to your card base using foam/dimensional adhesive (or hot glue).

Die cut four yellow star flourishes, two black mirror cardstock star flourishes, and two dark grey star flourishes.

Layer and adhere two yellow and two black star flourishes together in pairs, as shown. Adhere diagonally in the upper left and lower righthand sides of the card.

Layer and adhere two yellow and dark grey star flourishes together. Arrange and adhere on the “wreath” of black ruffled ribbon surrounding the sentiment piece.

Adhere (using hot glue or another suitable strong adhesive) two grey, two black, and one red mini ribbon flower to the same wreath area of the design.

Die cut two bows from black mirror card, using grey-ish aqua cardstock for the knot-shaped portion of the bows.

Assemble the bows and adhere them on the top and bottom of the wreath, as shown in the photos.

Die cut a branch-shaped piece from light grey cardstock. Adhere on the righthand side of the wreath, as shown.

Die cut a bird from black mirror cardstock, using yellow cardstock for its beak and light or medium grey cardstock for its legs. Assemble and adhere the bird together. Back the bird’s eye area with white or light grey cardstock

Use a white gel pen to add highlights here and there on the blackbird, if desired. Use a tiny tipped black pen or marker to make a tiny pupil on the bird’s eye.

Adhere the bird atop the die cut branch using foam/dimensional adhesive.

And there you have it, one seriously cute blackbird and night sky-themed card is now ready to give to anyone in your life that you thank your own lucky stars for.

Two radically different anniversaries

Twelve years into our life together, on the literal eve of our 12^th wedding anniversary (October 13, 2016), Tony and I experienced the biggest challenge we have ever come up against as a couple: The loss of our home, belongings, and beloved cat (Stella) in an arson house fire.

(If you would like to read more about that profoundly challenging event, you can do so in this Get to Know Me post and in a recent entry here about some of My Favourite Pre-fire Halloween Scrapbook Pages and Cards.)

I did not know back in early 2004 that before the year was over, I would not only met the man I was destined to spend my life with, but marry him a few short months later.

Who could have imagined that a combination of the universe and the internet would bring us together? (Especially since online dating was still something of a new and even eyebrow-raising topic at the time.)

This point and the gratitude that I hold in my heart for the elements that led our paths to cross is what inspired me to use the sentiment that I did on this year’s wedding anniversary card for Tony.  

Likewise, not a single day has passed since the fire when I (we) have not been immeasurably grateful to, and for, everyone who has supported, helped, encouraged, loved, cared about, grieved with, and otherwise been there for us since that fateful night exactly five years ago.

Words could never fully do justice to the gratitude that we have for each person who expressed kindness to us in any form.

It was, really and truly, the bedrock upon which we were able to begin piecing our world together again.

Tony and I grew even closer, our relationship strengthened all the more, and we became each other’s rocks in greater ways than ever in the face of this life-changing tragedy.

When we had virtually nothing material left in the world, when we were homeless, when we went through a series of stressful short-term housing arrangements, when we cried and mourned, and when we began to heal, we were there for each other.

Something like this could have easily torn some couples asunder. Mercifully, that was not the case for us.

There were brutally tough times, of course, and very little in our world was sunshine and roses in the first couple of years post-fire. We were committed though both to one another and to rebuilding our lives again from the ground up.

It wasn’t easy, but the job was made lighter by sharing the work and emotions involved between two people.

These days, while we continue to feel the ramifications of the fire in various ways and are still recovering + rebuilding on certain fronts, we have come an incredibly long way from where we were half a decade ago.

No one has the ability to know what tomorrow holds in store. I never imagined I would find true love at 19 or that, at age 32, I would stand there and watch as the home we had worked so hard to achieve and thrive in burnt to the ground.

I cannot predict tomorrow or what other challenges we may face, but I know – I absolutely know in the furthest reaches of my soul – that so long as Tony and I are each drawing breath, we will tackle them together.

Hand in hand, heart in heart.

And for that, and so much more, I thank my lucky stars every day.

The post Enchanting Blackbird, Full Moon, and Flower Wreath “I Thank My Lucky Stars For You” Anniversary Card appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

The wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves. We have had our summer evenings; now for October eves! – Humbert Wolfe

As last year drew to a close, the internet was rife with memes pertaining to how 2020 was “one heck of a decade” (language softened as I generally strive to keep things family-friendly around here).

Zero arguments about that on this end.

In much the same vein, the season that just wrapped up, summer 2021, felt like a whole year crammed into just three months.

However, even with a plethora of different challenges and stresses, this summer held a certain unmistakable charm.

Yes, we experienced heatwaves (our town hit at least 47C in early July, with the hottest temperature ever recorded in Canada occurring in a tiny community called Lytton, which is about a three-hour drive from our house; heartbreaking, a wildfire would utterly decimate Lytton mere days later), drought conditions, serious medical issues, the sudden passing of a family member on my paternal side, an ongoing surge in Covid-19 numbers in our region, and multiple forest fire evacuation alerts, but summer was still summer.

Sizzlingly hot, thrillingly gorgeous, and highly unforgettable.

Amidst the challenging elements of this summer, there was hope, positivity, and abundant loveliness (to say nothing of inspiration) as well.

My Summerween birthday back in July stands out as my favourite experience + memory from the season that just was.

What was your favourite part of summer (or winter, if you’re south of the equator) 2021?

As much as I love autumn with every fibre of my being, I do not generally wish summer a speedy demise (especially since I am not exactly in a mad rush to experience another 6 – 7 months of snowy weather again ).

This time around, however, pragmatism held that fall’s return would greatly benefit the brutal provincewide wildfire situation.

Thus, as August took its final breath and September arrived, I found myself grateful to start parting ways with summer.

And here we are, a few brief days in this exquisitely lovely chapter of the year. When leaves sunburned from summer’s pulsating heat drift like autumnal fairies to the ground, pumpkins grin from porches near and far, and the season of the witch is upon us.

I am ready. So incredibly, appreciatively, excitedly ready for October and all of autumn.

No matter what transpires in each of our lives, the annual cycle of the seasons is fundamentally unchanging.

Seasons come and go, painting our lives with new memories and the gift of treasured traditions alike. They are a rare constant in a world that has quite the penchant for changing on a dime.

In one final nod to the latest season to conclude, I present to you, sweet friends, the Summer 2021 Edition of Magick, Crafty Makes, and Me.

A link love post featuring online content that caught my eye during the past three months, coupled with a peek into what has been transpiring in my own life lately.

Magick, Witchcraft, Paganism, and Spirituality

–DIY Crescent Moon Wreath: The sky is the limit when it comes to the creative ways in which one can make a wreath.

To my mind, few versions are as enchantingly gorgeous as this breathtaking DIY crescent moon wreath.

Naturally, one need not be of a witchy or Pagan persuasion to whip up a beautiful crescent moon wreath of their own. This is a craft project that can easily be enjoyed by one and all, and which would make for a phenomenal gift to bestow upon someone special in your life.

(And speaking of wreaths, I am really digging the same blogger’s (Debbie’s) creative Dollar Tree Placemat Wreath project idea as well.)

–How to Use the Tarot to Get Through Hard Times: Whether you are new to card slinging, have been working with tarot for years or decades now, or have yet to do a single spread, this handy, thoughtful list of dos and don’ts is a great way to help use your cards during life’s rougher patches.

–How to Use Witchcraft to Help Your Loved Ones: While it is natural for many of us to focus some (or even all) of our witchy workings and energy on our own needs/desires/purposes, it can be hugely beneficial to extend our practice to helping others in our lives as well.

This post lays out a handful of practical, useful ways to do just that. And it may, in the process, inspire you to come up with other approaches that would suit both your own witchery and the needs of your loved ones.

(From the same blog, as we embrace autumn’s return, I highly recommend their recipe for the Witchiest Pumpkin Spice (Blend) Ever.)

–Pagan Music: Our Top 25 Pagan and Witchy Songs for Rituals, Spells, and More: Like many of us, I adore a wide range of music and am always keen to discover new-to-me artists and groups whose tunes jive with my musical tastes.

I am also continually on the lookout for excellent Pagan and witchery-related music, so was tickled pink to see a terrific roundup of 25 songs that fall under that header appear on Other Worldly Oracle this summer.

If witchy/Pagan tunes are your cup of tea, swing on by and savour the beautiful, inspiring music on this instant playlist.

(Another post on the same site that stood out for me as of late is their wonderful Beginner’s Guide to Using Oracle Cards.)

–Spellcasting Series: Basics of Spellcrafting: In-depth, informative, and immensely helpful for new witches/Wiccans or those looking to further/expand their spellcrafting skills, this stellar post from Willow at The Flying Hedge is a must-read for anyone who involves spellwork in their witchery practices.

–The Ultimate Guide To Self Care (From a Witch): One of many lessons/reminders that the pandemic has driven home all the more for a lot of us is just how vitally important self care is.

I am a huge advocate of self-care and while, admittedly, I don’t always excel at practicing what I preach, I have gotten somewhat better at prioritizing self-care in recent years.

The insight and advice on self-care laid out in this in-depth exploration of the topic by none other than the Penniless Pagan is a must-read for witches, Wiccans, and Pagans everywhere.

And, objectively, a good degree of what the author covers in this helpful post is applicable to non-witchy/Pagan folks as well (as self-care is 100% for everyone on earth!).

–Why “Good Vibes Only” Culture is Toxic: While I tend to naturally lean on the optimistic side of things, I am also a stark realist who has been through her fair share of tough times and knows all too well that life is not always a bed of roses.

As a result, I have long seen the concept of “good vibes only” as being one that (sincerely well-intentioned as it may be at times) misses the mark. And which, in some instances, invalidates the broader spectrum of experiences/emotions/pain/trauma/healing inherent to being a multifaceted human being.

Thus, I was especially happy to see one of my all-time favourite websites, Loner Wolf, explore some of the reasons why focusing solely on good vibes is not actually as beneficial or helpful (to ourselves or others) as it may seem at first glance.

Card making, Scrapbooking, Paper Crafting, and Other Crafts

–Crafts to Use Up Leftover Yarn: Even those crafters who do not knit or crochet often find that yarn makes it way into some of their projects. If you have leftover yarn that you would like to use up hanging around your crafty space, why not bring it to life all the more with one of these delightful project ideas?

–15 Tips and Tricks that Will Help You Creatively Organize Your Craft Supplies: Useful, implementable ideas abound in this example-filled post that is here to aid you in organizing your craft space + supplies all the more.

In doing so, you can spend less time shifting piles or hunting for what you need and more time creating awesome new works of art.

–50+ Fall Saying for Crafters and DIY Projects: Whether you are looking for card sentiments, scrapbook layout titles, messages to stitch, prints to design, home decoration projects, captions for your social media shares, or myriad other creative purposes, this handy list of 50+ charming fall sayings is well worth bookmarking and returning to autumn after autumn.

–How to Make Shooting Star Favour Pouches: Ideal for birthdays, graduation, Halloween, Hanukkah, Christmas, New Year’s, St. Patrick’s Day, baby showers, weddings, anniversary, the Pagan sabbats, stargazing or meteorite shower watching parties, and many other occasions, these eye-catchingly fantastic favour pouches are sure to delight those lucky folks who receive one.

–Loaded Envelope Tutorial (from Graphic 45): Loaded envelopes are an awesome way to expand your paper crafting routine, creating in the process a gorgeous work of art to display in your home or give as a gift (including for holidays such as Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas).

The sky is the limit in terms of themes, embellishments, uses, etc for loaded envelopes (and the similar type of project known as loaded pockets).

If you would like to try your hand a making one (or are simply looking for some fab inspiration for your next loaded envelope) this lovely tutorial from the Graphic 45 blog has you covered.

–Ten Ways to Use Washi Tape: The uses for washi tape are just about limitless! With so many gorgeous, fun, and unique designs out there, it is easy to see why over the past several years washi has both grow in global popularity and become a common part of many crafter’s stashes.

If you are hunting for some cool ways to use washi that goes beyond “just” including it on cards, layouts, tags and the like, this post from Bottle Branch delivers ten clever ideas that are apt to appeal to crafters and non-crafters alike (as anyone can, of course, use and enjoy washi tape).

–30 Fall-Inspired Embroidery Patterns and Kits to Get You into the Autumnal Spirit: Earlier this month I shared a selection of 50 Awesome Mabon Crafts, DIY Projects, and Décor Ideas for the Fall Equinox and have been delighting in seeing other peoples’ seasonal craft project roundup posts as well.

One in particular that recently nabbed my attention is Sara’s list of swoon-worthy fall embroidery patterns and kits that you can currently purchase from various online sellers.

If you are an autumn adoring needleworker, then this post is sure to set your heart aflutter and may just lead to your next stitchery project.

What’s Shaking in My Life and On My Radar

Alrighty, we have covered some of the less-than-ideal elements of summer 2021 earlier in this post, so let’s take a gander now at a few of the more positive things that transpired this time around on my end between Litha and Mabon.

Firstly, I just have to say how much I enjoyed the topics that I blogged about here this summer.

Even though some weeks I honestly did not think that my health would accommodate creating a new post, somehow, even if it meant writing until nearly midnight on Sunday evening (our weeks start on Monday here in Canada).

It was an act of love, self-care, and defiance (of my body) all rolled into one.

In exactly the same way that the handful of days when crafting was possible for me were as well.

With fall looming, I upped my usual autumn/harvest season sabbats/Thanksgiving/Halloween crafting levels and revelled in every cardstock, ink, and hot glue-filled moment of it!

This is, after all, the ultimate season for #MakeHalloween365 and I can scarcely wait to share even more of my latest seasonal makes here with all of you.

The nanosecond I began eligible to do so, I received my second Covid-19 vaccine.

This transpired in August and while I did feel a touch rougher than with my first shot (think a mild two-day-long flu with a low-grade fever), that was an infinitesimally small price to pay for the blessing of being as vaccinated as one can be at present here in this country.

And moreover, to do what I personally believe is the socially and ethically responsible thing in terms of helping to try and stamp out Covid-19.

Even though Tony and I are both fully vaccinated now, we continue to enact every possible safety measure in the face of the ongoing global pandemic and will keep doing so for as long as this devastating illness persists.

Please note: If your views about C-19 vaccinations differ from mine, I respect that point and ask that you please do the same with my views and not come at me in the comments. We each have to approach and handle these incredibly challenging times in the ways that align most with our beliefs, health, and personal values. For me, getting fully vaccinated does that. For you, it may not. We are all different.

As my mom is fully vaccinated as well, we were able to share a number of fantastic visits with her this summer.

Indeed, she remains the only relative so far that I have been able to interact with in person since prior to when the pandemic took hold in a major way (aka, March 2020) here in Canada.

She was the sole guest at our house on both mine and Tony’s birthdays this summer, and was able to provide immense help to us during the long, uncertain weeks when the very real threat of a wildfire reaching our neighbourhood loomed over our heads.

Mercifully, that did not happen.

I will not soon forget, however, the sizzling hot days my mom and I spent hosing down the house and yard, as falling wildfire ash tumbled down from the sky to the point that it looked like a heavy snowfall.

Setting our sights now on the autumn months, we hope to spend lots more time with my mom and the three of us are counting down the seconds until Halloween returns (we plan to celebrate it together, as per usual ).

This summer was not easy, but it could, of course, have been a lot harder or more heartbreaking.

I thank every star in the universe that such was not the case and remain realistically optimistic that certain areas of our lives will improve over the course of the final months of this year.

After all, hope is free and limitless. So why not, I figure, throw it around like confetti?

And now, on with a handful of assorted links from across the good, ol’ interwebz that stood out for me this summer.

–Apparently the Brontës All Died So Early Because They Spent Their Lives Drinking Graveyard Water: Talk about an attention-grabbing headline – especially if you’re a fellow taphophile or fan of these immensely talented ladies.

This article details a potential cause (or at least a notable contributing factor) in the deaths not only of the Brontë sisters, but of their brother, Patrick, as well.

The explanation of contaminated water from a local graveyard (and possibly from privies in the area, too) is wholly plausible. And is nothing if not in keeping with the death-centred sentiments of the Brontës and the era they briefly called their own.

–Can the Garden Save Us? How the Power of Nature Can Change Life As We Know It: While not, for all intents, a gardener myself (a point, I find, that often surprises people to learn), I am a keen student and ceaseless lover + respecter of nature.

As such, the points put forth in this insightful article from Veranda really resonated with me. For they tap into the collective connection to cultivating green life that is inherent to our survival as a species – and as a planet.

–Free Hocus Pocus Printable Quote Prints: No other Halloween movie – and, if we’re being frank, few movies in general – holds such a special or beloved spot in my heart as Hocus Pocus.

I watch Hocus Pocus multiple times and year and always keep an eye open (subtle nod to “Book” intended) for Hocus Pocus-related items. Most, naturally, have a price tag attached to them, but a handful are available for free online.

I just about started jumping around alla Sarah Sanderson upon recently discovering this post that houses a fantastic series of free Hocus Pocus quote prints that you can download and display all October (or, if you’re HP obsessed like me, all year) long.

–How to Cook Corn on the Cob in the Oven: For many of us, few vegetables are more intertwined with late summer and early fall than freshly harvested corn on the cob.

Whether you pick ears of sweetcorn yourself or snap them up from a local produce stand, farmer’s market, or grocery store, if you adore this versatile yellow veggie, you are definitely going to want to give oven roasting your corn on the cob a try. The end results are spectacularly tasty!

–How to Make Dandelion Lotion Bars with Dandelion Oil: Though dandelion season has come to close in many areas, for those who are still experiencing the presence of this lovely sunshine hued plant and are keen to utilize them in a fresh, practical way, homemade dandelion lotion bars may just be the answer.

(Note: While not an overly common allergy, some people are indeed allergic to dandelions. Therefore, you will want to proceed with caution and do a small skin exposure test on an area such as the inside of your wrist if you are unsure how your skin will react to dandelions.)

–Mary Simon Named as Canada’s First Indigenous Governor General: This summer witnessed a historic milestone here in Canada when Mary Simon was appointed as our country’s first Indigenous Governor General.

Simon is Canada’s 30^th Governor General to date, stepping into the position after many years in politics, including an appointment in the 1990s as Canada’s first Inuk ambassador (she was ambassador to Denmark) and being involved with the creation of Nunavut during the same decade.

I am thrilled that a First Nations person is currently holding this important position in our country and hope that Mary will be the first of many others who follow in her trailblazing footsteps.

–Oldest Living Ranger in the National Parks Service Celebrates Her 100^th Birthday: Relatively few of us are blessed to make it to our 100^th year and fewer still have yet to retire by that age.

Not so for the venerable Betty Reid Soskin, who joined the US National Parks Service just fifteen years ago, at the age of 85.

An inspiration to all of us the world over for many reasons (including her work with the Civil Rights Movement), Betty is proof that for some lucky individuals, age may indeed be just a number!  

It’s fall, y’all!

Admittedly, not too many Canadians tend to say the classic Southern contraction of “y’all”. I hope you will permit me the use of it here, however, given how well “y’all” partners with the word “fall” and how fun they are to say together.

On this side of the equator, fall is here and I am as giddy as a kitty in a field of catnip over that fact.

Both online and off, I will be immersing myself in my favourite season with limitless gusto and glee.

I hope that if you are a fan of autumn time as well, you will join me in doing the same. And that, even if this chapter of the year isn’t your personal fave, it will still house plenty of enjoyable, terrific times for you as well.

Little more than a month now stands between us and Halloween + Samhain. I will be blogging up a storm throughout October, most of which will relate to those two events (and/or fall in general).

It is such a special, meaningful joy to savour the year’s third act with all of you.

Thank you so much for being here and on social media (Instagram very much included) with me.

I cherish each of you and as Canadian Thanksgiving returns on the second Monday in October, you will be amongst the blessings I count with unending gratitude.

Have an awesome tail end of September, everyone – and be sure to tune in here on October 1^st, as I will be sharing a delightful ghost-themed Halloween project to help kick off the spookiest and most enchantingly wonderful month of the year.

Which of the links highlighted above leapt out at you? What elements of October’s return are filling your own heart with happiness?

The post Summer 2021 Edition of Magick, Crafty Makes, and Me appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

I knew at once that this was what I wanted to share here for the second week of September.

As you may be aware, in the fall of 2016, my husband and I lost our home, very nearly everything we owned, and infinitely most devastating, our beloved cat (Stella) in an arson fire.

This is a subject I discussed in greater depth here and which, while it does surface from time to time on this site, I generally do not wish to put at the forefront of most of my Witchcrafted Life posts.

However, the fifth anniversary of the life-changing date is fast approaching.

It will arrive on October 13^th, bringing with it half a decade of existence since our world was turned on its head faster than you can dial 9-1-1.

If I lived until the last flicker of light in the universe burned out, I will never forget that fateful day, nor the extraordinary challenges, changes, redirections, and outpouring of kindness that followed in the aftermath.

In the house that we lived in at the time of the fire, my crafting space was in the basement in a room that served both as a craft corner, photo studio, packaging centre for the items I was selling via my (then) Etsy vintage shop, and sundry other uses.

On top of the flames that tore through the entire structure, our home was further damaged by the substantial volume of water that pumped onto/into it to keep the fire from quickly spreading to other closely situated homes.

Of course, that was a smart move and did a lot to help prevent the fire from leaping to additional houses.

However, multiple feet of water sat in the basement of our burned-out house for weeks on end (as the fire department, police, and insurance companies each did their own thorough investigations of the structure), quickly causing mould to grow and rodents to set up camp.

Even if that hadn’t been the case though, the flames alone would have caused nearly as much damage and virtually everything in my craft room – as with the rest of the house – would have been obliterated.

When people find out that we experienced an arson house fire and that I’m a paper crafter, they often ask me how I decided if I wanted to keep crafting or not.

There was never a shadow of doubt in my mind that as soon as I possibly could, I would begin paper crafting again.

Far from deterring me from picking up this beloved part of my life, the fire drove home all the more how phenomenally important it is (for me) to document and celebrate our life together, my childhood and family, trips we take, holidays we celebrate and so much more.

Just as the staggering outpouring of compassion, support, and generosity we received from friends, relatives, and complete strangers alike served as a reminder of how vital it is for me to create and give handmade cards (and other projects) to a wide range of people in my life.

As a naturally tenacious and highly driven person, even when the chips were down and I had quite literally nothing but the clothes on my back, I knew I would paper craft again.

And so, awesomely, joyfully, and blessedly, I have. My current craft space is a lot smaller – as is the stash of products it houses.

It wasn’t economically possible for us to replace most of what was lost and, by and large, I have not tried to do so. The goal is not to replicate what was, but rather to create a safe, happy here and now that is conducive to who we are and what we love doing in the present.

With the fifth anniversary of the fire just over a month away, I wanted to take a little while to stop and reconnect with some of the pre-fire Halloween projects I made that I most adored.

The blaze destroyed not only all of my completed projects (save, of course, for those that had been given to others as gifts over the years), but all of my craft supplies, as well as our computers and external hard drives.

This means that, in terms of my pre-fire craft projects, I only have photos of those makes that had been shared online pre-fire (and which were still online at the time of the fire).

As a result, without photos of some of my creations, numerous projects will forever exist simply in memory form for me.

Thankfully, however, care of various internet sources, I’ve been able to gather up images of some of the paper crafting projects that I made between 2010 (when I began scrapbooking and card making) and 2016, the year of the fire.

Join me then, won’t you, as we revisit some of the pre-fire Halloween projects that I adored the most and which continue to inspire my current makes to this day.

A handful of my very favourite pre-fire Halloween scrapbook page and cards

Note: As the lists of supplies used to make these projects were kept in notebooks and lost in the fire, I cannot detail all of the items used to create them. Many of which are, objectively, long out of stock/production at this point anyhow.

That said, if you have any questions about the materials or techniques used on this Halloween makes, please don’t hesitate to ask and I will gladly do my very best to deliver a helpful reply your way.

As well, please bear in mind that these photos, while digital, are several years old and that they are downloaded copies of the originals (thus the image quality may have been compressed or otherwise altered by whatever site/platform they were/are hosted on).

Also, both cell phone and DSLR image quality have improved considerably since then – as have my skills behind the lens . Plus, at the time these pics were taken, I was really into somewhat overexposing my project share photos – something that is generally not my approach at present.

Halloween (1985) scrapbook page: In this distressed, shabby chic orange and black page we hop back to the mid-1980s with a glimpse of me and my mama enjoying All Hallows’ Eve together (check out this recent project share post for a layout featuring the two of us on my very first October 31st).

My talented mom made the adorable ghost costume that I’m sporting here. Aww!

To date, this layout stands as one of my favourites that I have ever created.

Double, Double, Cuteness & Trouble scrapbook page: I wish the image quality was better for this page, as it was such a cute, fun one. Hopefully, you can still get a sense of it here all the same.

In this layout, we progress ahead another year or two as this was me on either my 3rd or 4th Halloween – naturally, I went as a witch.

Again, my sweet mom made my festive outfit. A few years on (as we will see in a later scrapbook layout detailed below), my little sister would sport the same darling witch costume.

When Witches Go Riding Halloween card: An eye-catching and somewhat unexpected colour palette of classic orange, black and white partner with shades such as pale lavender, teal, and turquoise in this chic bow bedecked Halloween greeting.

Halloween Princesses scrapbook page: This sweetly spooky page celebrated the fact that, a few years apart, my sister and I wore the same pretty pink (store-bought) princess costume.

I adore the pre-made die cut jack-o-lantern paper that played a starring role on this layout and would love to see a company release something similar again today.

Pumpkins (Bear’s Fruit Stand) scrapbook page: Growing up, my family had a wonderful tradition of vising some of the local produce stands and farmer’s markets in our area each autumn.

In this circa 1993 photo, my siblings and I are sitting on a mountain of beautiful pumpkins at our family’s very favourite fruit stand, called Bear’s, located in the tiny South Okanagan community of Keremeos.

Hope Your Halloween is Crawling with Fun Halloween card: A classic colour palette and Halloween critter – the spooky spider – take the lead on this rhinestone and glittery black arachnid-filled card.

Halloween Helper Kitty scrapbook page: Two photos – one in black and white, the other in colour – accompany journaling about the fact that our beloved late cat, Stella, who usually left our spooky season decor in peace, had a real penchant for playing with this particular pumpkin decoration.

All Hallows’ Eve Costumed Kids scrapbook page: Another layout that I really wish I had a better quality image of. Still, anything is certainly better than nothing when it comes to documenting lost paper crafting projects.

This fun Halloween layout shines the spotlight on what my brother, sister, and I wore for a fun-filled night of trick-or-treating in the mid-1990s (note, as mentioned above, my sister is rocking the same adorable witch costume that I had worn around the same age).

I madly adore the 3D beaded bats peppered around this layout. If memory serves me right they *may* have been from either Prima or the Michael’s house brand, Recollections.

If anyone ever sees similar bat embellishments for sale online at a site that ships to Canada or in person here on Canadian soil, please do not hesitate to let me know (TY!).

Wishing You a Very Happy Halloween card: Border punched layers, pretty flourishes, and glitter-adorned pumpkins galore call this teal and earth-toned card home.

Swap out the sentiment and this lovely greeting could easily work for other fall time happenings as well, such as Mabon and Thanksgiving.

She’s Got Halloween Spirit scrapbook page: While my sister’s favourite holiday is Christmas, much as with my mom and me, she adores October 31st as well.

This sweet photo of my sis as a toddler shows her helping to scoop the guts out of a pumpkin that would soon be carved in our family’s grinning jack-o-lantern that year.

Trick or Treat scrapbook page: A bevy of embellishments, cheesecloth (that I hand-dyed), and spiders collide on this shabby chic Halloween layout that shows what my siblings and I wore for Halloween 1991.

The inspiration for this layout’s colour palette stems directly from the costumes that the three of us sported that night (note the Unicef box – who else remembers collecting for this important charity on Halloween night as a youngster?).

This scrapbook page is another that rests firmly amongst the ranks of my all-time favourite that I have ever made.

Have a Bewitching Halloween card: Distressed and border punched edges, elegant rhinestone trim, harlequin print paper, and an eye-catching black coloured witch silhouette sticker add up to a fun meets classic Halloween card that I’d happily replicate again today, if I still had the same supplies.

I might give it a go with similar, but different items, for a 2020s take on this greeting that was made close to a decade ago now.

Which of these festively fun, spookily sweet, and marvellously macabre paper crafting projects is your favourite?

Looking back, looking ahead

Far from causing me pain or tearing open wounds that have, mercifully, done a pretty good job of healing, looking back at these projects brings me a lot of joy.

I love being reminded of my past creative makes, what elements of my paper crafting style have stayed the same and which have changed/evolved/improved since then, the stories these projects tell, and the happiness – both in myself and, when applicable, in others – that the end results delivered.

As we head towards the official start of fall and all throughout my favourite chapter of the year, I will be sharing numerous freshly made autumn, Thanksgiving, and Halloween/Samhain related paper crafting projects here with you.

This point also delivers a bevy of joy my way and I can hardly wait to unveil my fall 2021 crop of crafty makes.

Each project that a creative soul brings into being is shaped in some way – be it tiny or large – by what they’ve previously created.

As crafters and artists, we don’t need to stand on the shoulders of giants, we are our own giants and muses.

The projects highlighted in this post each helped to hone and further develop my skills and style, the very things that I love to share here with you via my project posts all year round.

For September 2021, the pre-fire projects shared here are my latest entry for #MakeHalloween365.

Save for some of the cards and other items that were given as gifts, all of these projects are long gone in corporal form, living on instead in spirit and digital photos.

They did not get a chance to appear in the moment as part of #MakeHalloween365, as I just created this fun Halloween project share hashtag earlier this year.

They get the opportunity to do so now, however, and I hope that while they are not the newest of makes, they are able to inspire you and embody the heart of this hashtag all the same.

I may not make the fire the centre of many of my blog posts, but when I do, I generally want there to be a positive element to the end message of such entries.

In this instance, for me, that is one of hope and perseverance, of not letting the unthinkable rob you of your passions, and of finding a way back to the light of positivity even on the darkest of nights.

Thank you, cherished friends, for being here with me on this site and on social media, and for experiencing the poignant journey that is my post-fire paper crafting and life in general.

There will never, not in all the languages of the universe, be enough words for me to convey just how much that means to – and motivates – me.

If I could, I would make fall and Halloween themed cards for each of you, but as that isn’t possible, I hope that you will look upon the projects I post online as a way of conveying my heartfelt gratitude to each of you.

Here’s to the magnificence, inspiration, nostalgia, and, in turn, present-day happiness of pumpkin spice, crunchy leaf, and grinning ghost season – may it be as kind to you as you, sweet souls, are to me.

The post A Handful of My Very Favourite Pre-fire Halloween Scrapbook Pages and Cards appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

In turn, give or take a few days, there is about a month before the next edition of my quarterly blog post series, Magick, Crafty Makes, and Me.

I tend to save the majority of my life updates and accounts of recent happening for those posts. Sometimes, however, I want or need to speak about topical happenings in the moment.

Before we launch into the #MakeHalloween365 project share that is at the heart of today’s post (sneak peek above), I am going to do just that for a little while.

The local BC wildfire situation here in the North Okanagan

There are certain things in life, including some that are far from ideal, which become part and parcel to our years.

For those in various corners of the world, one of those is an annual forest fire season.

Typically beginning in earnest come May or June and running until September or even October here in our area, this season isn’t exactly one to get excited about.

We live in Canada’s most westerly province of British Columbia, a portion of the country that is often amongst (if not “the”) hardest hit each year by wildfires in this nation.

The wildfire season of 2021 has been especially brutal. Record smashing temperatures, exceedingly little rainfall in many parts of the province, and other climate change-related impacts have brought about one of the worst summers BC has ever experienced from a forest fire perspective.

As I shared in my Instagram Stories a few days ago, Tony and I have, at times as of late, been put on wildfire evacuation alert.

Mercifully, however, we have not actually had to evacuate our home yet, nor has our property/neighbourhood come under immediate threat of likely destruction.

That isn’t to say things haven’t been tense or stressful at points. They certainly have been.

The first evacuation alert we received came on Tony’s birthday (August 6^th) – what are the odds! – and lasted for about three days. During which time a hailstorm of falling ash pummelled our area and the skies took on a deep brownish-orange hue, as seen in the photo above.

The second evacuation alert arrived the following Saturday and lasted well into the week that is currently wrapping up.

At its beginning, we saw skies so red and chocked with smoke and ash it would not be unreasonable to describe the sight as apocalyptic. Or, as my mom astutely observed, perhaps what the skies of Mars might look like if you were standing on that planet and gazing skyward.

In both cases, the alerts were largely the result of the substantially sized nearby White Rock Lake Wildfire. Though this blaze was not the sole reason for the smoke, ash, and eerie colours in the sky, as scores of other forest fires are burning both near and further afield to our area of British Columbia.

Presently, the White Rock Lake Wildfire (also known as both the White Lake Fire and Monte Lake Fire) is sitting at a touch over 80,000 hectares in size, and continues to remain as being classified as out of control.

In recent years, Tony and I have been keeping well-stocked go/bugout bags at the ready for all manner of potential disasters that could arise at any time.

The moment the first alert came in on the evening of his birthday, we packed up our most important essential items (vital documents, computers, cameras, health necessities, etc) and created a “go pile” near our door, to be loaded – along with our bugout bags – into the trunk of our car immediately if word came that we needed to evacuate.

Of course, our own lives and that our cherished dog, Annie, always come first, but if there is time to save some important items during an emergency, it behooves us to be ready to do just that.

Having lost our home and virtually everything we owned at the time to an arson fire almost five years ago now, we know firsthand the damage and devastation that a serious blaze can cause, and want to be as prepared as we realistically can be should a forest fire ever get close enough to envelop our home.

On the worst days thus far, we’ve heavily drenched our property and house with the hose and used sprinklers to help keep the ground and structure wet (these measures can sometimes help to lessen risks such as live falling embers).

Currently, we have four different plans in place regarding where we would most likely stay should we get evacuated. We are keeping our gas tank full around the clock so that we can not only flee town if need be, but be able to get by for several hours if traffic slowed to a crawl on the highway or we had to enact one of our plans that involves staying at a location outside of our region of the province.

As I type these words, we are not currently on evacuation order. Save for our laptops (which can be grabbed in mere seconds), we have not unpacked, however, and will not be doing so until the local wildfire situation is much less of an imminent threat.

Evacuation orders, dangerously bad air quality, and the risk of having to get out of Dodge, if you will, aren’t fun. They are small potatoes though, of course, compared to what those who have been/currently are evacuated and/or who have suffered property damage from any of this year’s wildfires have been dealing with.

We count our blessings, but do so with a heavy and immensely understanding heart for everyone – both in BC and elsewhere in the world (including Greece) – who has been experiencing the wrath of forest fires throughout 2021.

Zero pun intended, but we are far from out of the woods at this stage on the wildfire front. It will likely take a few more weeks and hopefully quite a bit of desperately needed rain before that state returns.

Having been born, raised, and later returning in my late 20s to BC, I am intimately acquainted with wildfires and the risks they pose.

Yet, for all the fires that have torn through British Columbia over the years – including the Garnet Fire of 1994 that ravaged parts of Penticton, where my family was living at the time – this summer is the first time that we have personally been put on evacuation alert.

While stressful at times, no two ways about it, we are holding up well, and are immensely grateful that thus far neither ourselves nor any of our loved ones in this province have lost their home to the unforgiving siege that is wildfire season.  

This is certainly not the August we had envision or planned for, but it is not altogether surprising either given BC’s annual battle against forest fires of all sizes.

As you might imagine, our usual routine has been disrupted somewhat by everything this month, and I wasn’t sure that I would be able to get another project share posted before August drew to a close.

Happily, however, a little earlier in the year (before the recent short-term e-commerce website building job – mentioned here – for a local business that consumed the bulk of my and Tony’s available time between May and the start of August) I had a chance to make a heartwarming Halloween themed scrapbook page.

As I have not been crafting much in recent weeks and needed a spooky season-themed project for August’s #MakeHalloween365 entry, now is the ideal time to share it.

Born Halloween lover scrapbook layout

If there is a Halloween loving gene, I am certain that I was born with it. For as far back as I have memories – and as photos like this one of me as a costume-clad babe in my mother’s arms attest – prior still to that point, I have adored Halloween.

Much like the season of autumn itself, no other day of the year fills my heart with as much glee, excitement, contentment, spiritual connection, creativity, or inspiration as October 31^st.

This off-the-charts passion was a big driving force in the launch, earlier this year, of my #MakeHalloween365 hashtag for fellow Halloween adoring souls around the world.

Just as Halloween has been the inspiration springboard for countless other things throughout my life.

As a Pagan witch, I choose to celebrate this date as both Halloween and Samhain. To my mind and own spiritual path, the two are inseparably interwoven and I can scarcely fathom observing the end of October any other way.

While I have felt I was a witch since childhood, I was not raised in a house with Paganism, witchery, or Wicca, so in those early days, October 31^st was Halloween pure and simple for me and my siblings.

Like genes in general, I am convinced that I got my gene for loving Halloween from my sweet mama.

She adores Halloween herself and has always done everything she could to not only help make All Hallows’ Eve a fun-filled event for her kids, but she has also helped to support my passion for October 31^st in countless ways throughout my entire life.

I am grateful beyond measure for this point and wanted to create a scrapbook page that not only celebrated my adoration of Halloween itself, but also the love and appreciation I have for my fellow spooky season-loving mom.

Enter this layout, which stars a mid-1980s photo of me dressed in a cute white cat costume and my mom, who, while not in costume, did rock a great witch themed button on her pretty yellow top.

And speaking of yellow things, this photo (a scan taken from a photograph that had been stored for decades in various non-archivally safe albums) shows its age and storage methods a bit. Instead of seeing that as any type of determent, I leaned into this image’s colour palette for the rest of my scrapbook page itself.

The end result is a classic colour palette of cream, yellow, orange, brown, and gold that is as much at home for fall and Halloween as it was for plenty of interiors during the 1970s and 80s.

The metallic cardstock on this page – and indeed, this layout as a whole – was a bit tricky to capture on camera in our relatively low (interior) light setting, I hope that this gist of this page comes across in the project share photos throughout this post all the same though.

I added several of my favourite scrapbooking techniques and elements to this Halloween layout. There’s plenty of paper tearing, inking, punched edges, handwritten journaling, layers, (faux) stitching, and embellishments – not to mention a cozy fall colour palette.

Plus, the charming Pebbles brads that I included here are just so sweet and festively fun!

I led off on the lefthand side of the page with a classic Halloween witch themed brad in a nod to the fact that the little girl shown in this photo would one day grow up to a passionate October 31^st adoring real life witch. (As well as that the witch on that brad very much resembles the one in the button my mom was wearing in the photo. )

I’m wild about how this Halloween scrapbook page came together and look forward to sharing it in person with my mom herself come the return of All Hallows’ Eve season.

Now, let’s take a gander at the supplies and steps involved if you would like to whip up a similar October 31^st scrapbook page of your own.

Products used to make this shabby chic Halloween scrapbook page

-Cream, sandy brown, warm medium brown, dark brown, and black cardstock

-Gold metallic cardstock – from Recollections (Michael’s brand)

-Orange metallic cardstock – from Recollections (Michael’s brand)

-Elegantly shaped tag die (or tag die/punch or premade tags of your choosing)

-Fall leaf and orange striped patterned papers (both from) – Pumpkin Spice 12 x 12-inch paper pad from Craft Smart (Michael’s brand)

-Vintage handwriting print paper

-Halloween words cut-apart paper – After Dark Spellbound paper from Crate Paper

-Doily edge border punch – Lace Doily Border Punch from Martha Stewart

-Dark orangey-red ink – Dew Drop Ink in Morocco from Memento

-Golden yellow-orange ink – Dew Drop Ink in Cantaloupe from Memento

-Brown ink pen – EnerGel Liquid Gel Ink 07 Pen from Pentel

-White gel ink pen – Uni-Ball White Gel Pen from Signo

-Orange and white polka dot letter stickers – Julie Nuting Bootiful Alpha Stickers from Photo Play

-Black glitter letter stickers (I received these as a gift without their original packaging; I suspect they are from Martha Stewart’s product range)

-Thin cream and black yarn, twine, or embroidery floss/thread (the thin yard used here is from the dollar store “Craft” brand)

-Fall coloured and patterned chipboard flourishes – Autumn Song Chipboard Pieces from Bo Bunny

-Set of Halloween brads – from the brand Pebbles (no product name was specified on the packaging)

-Dimensional foam, pop dots, or similar to elevate some of your layers

-Adhesive, such as a tape runner, of your choice (I often use my Scotch Tape Glider)

How to make a fun tag filled Halloween memories scrapbook page

This festive Halloween scrapbook page begins with a sheet of 12×12-inch cardstock. As this cardstock is completely covered by the next layer of paper, it can be any colour you wish.

Take a piece of fall leaf print paper from the Craft Smart Pumpkin Spice pad and ink it on all four sides with Memento Dew Drop Morocco Ink. Adhere to your base layer of cardstock.

Next, rip all four edges of a piece of sandy brown coloured cardstock so that the final size of this piece is a little smaller than the leaf print layer. If your cardstock has a white core, embrace that and let it shine on the ripped areas. Adhere this piece of cardstock to your previous layers.

Repeat the same process with a cream (or light yellow) coloured piece of cardstock, inking, in this instance, all four edges with Memento Dew Drop Cantaloup Ink. Adhere to your previous layers.

Cut a piece of dark brown cardstock and top this piece of cardstock with a slightly smaller sized piece of orange striped paper (from the Craft Smart Pumpkin Spice paper pad).

Hand draw faux stitching with a brown ink pen or fine tipped marker around the sides of the orange striped paper, then ink the edges of that piece with Morocco Ink. Adhere those two layers to your previous layers.

Using brown cardstock and orange leaf print paper (from the Pumpkin Spice paper pad), create various layers with border punched edges (using the Martha Stewart Doily Lace border punch). Ink the edges of the orange leaf print layers.

Rip the edges of some pieces of sandy brown cardstock and vintage handwriting print paper, and arrange both these layers and the ones you just made above in the center of your layout, as shown.

Mat your photo with a layer of cream cardstock, a layer of dark brown cardstock, and a layer of orange leaf print paper. Adhere layers together, but do not adhere the matted photo to the layout itself just yet.

Next, create two blocks of cardstock, one in warm medium brown. Write your journaling, in white gel ink pen, on these blocks and adhere them to your layout.

Once your journaling is complete (and dry – especially important when using white gel ink), attach these blocks to your layout, then adhere your photo to the left of your journaling.

Next, using orange and gold metallic cardstock, die cut five tags (I opted for three gold and two orange metallic cardstock tags here, alternating the colour order that I adhered them down).

Cut out the Halloween words, mat each one on a piece of dark brown cardstock, and draw faux stitching with brown ink on each of the word pieces. Adhere one matted word per metallic cardstock tag.

Loop black (or brown, if desired) and cream (or white) yard/twine/floss to the top of each metallic cardstock tag, alternating colours as you go.

Adhere your completed tags along the left-hand side of the layout using foam dots or other dimensional adhesives.

Intersperse four of the Halloween design Pebbles brand brads amongst the tags.

Note that you may find it easier to do so if you use wire cutters or small tin snips to remove the prongs on the back of the brads first, though this step isn’t strictly required.

Adhere brads using hot glue or another very sturdy adhesive of your choice.

Use letter stickers to create the title of your layout.

Arrange Bo Bunny chipboard flourishes so that one pokes out from behind the photo and the other from the righthand side of the layout.

Place two additional Pebbles Halloween brads around the larger of the two chipboard flourishes.

And there you have it, your “Born Halloween Lover” scrapbook page is now complete.

As a fun alternative to a Halloween layout, this same colour palette and design (perhaps with different brads or other embellishments in place of them) would be great for a Thanksgiving or other fall related page as well.

And the general design of this scrapbook layout could be utilized for countless other types of pages, too – including those for winter holiday season projects.

(The journaling on this layout says: From my earliest of days, I have loved Halloween beyond measure. I am immensely grateful to my mom (pictured here with baby me in the mid-1980s) for always supporting and sharing in this adoration of October 31^st. )

The very real risk of losing everything again

As a paper crafter who has already lost all of their supplies, scrapbook albums and other completed projects once, I am keenly aware that living in a part of the world that deals with serious wildfires annually means that I could easily lose everything in a blaze for a second time.

This might, understandably, cause one to wonder why I would risk putting myself through that heartache again by continuing to papercraft. (Or to live here – though moving away is neither presently desired nor very feasible for us.)

Valid though this question is, to me the positives and joys, the blessings, creativity, and fun of papercrafting far outweigh the pain and challenges that losing my work and supplies for a second time would cause.

Experiencing that (be it due to fire or any other reason) would be horrible, of course, and I hope with all my might it never happens. However, having lived through it once, I know that rebuilding and connecting again with your greatest passions in life is possible.

Not necessarily easy, straightforward, or inexpensive, but certainly doable in many instances.

And in my heart of hearts I know that, much like my undying love for Halloween, darn near nothing could shake my adoration for paper crafting to the point where I would willingly drop it from my life for good.

Naturally, I hope and pray we that never find ourselves standing amongst the ashes of our home again. If we do though, I will take strength and solace in the fact that we pieced our world back together again once and could surely do so – with time, strength, and perseverance in spades – again, if need be.

For just as I’m a born Halloween lover, I am also a very tenacious born fighter and be it fire, my health, or any other challenge life throws my/our way, I will go on fighting tooth and nail until the very end.

Hopefully, within a few weeks, this year’s wildfire season will have finally calmed down and we can embrace autumn’s return (the second now since the Covid-19 pandemic began) in high spirits and with no shortage of jubilation for what is both mine and Tony’s very favourite chapter of the year.

From fires to floods, Covid to earthquakes and much more, 2021 has been another year of immense challenges for the inhabitants of this world.

Know that whatever you and/or your loved ones may be going through this year, my thoughts, support, and uplifting energy are with you – and that I’m always just an email away if you never want or need to chat with someone about anything that you’re going through.

As I began this entry by saying, there is just one brief month left to go until fall comes calling again. Whatever life may throw our way between then and now, that fact alone will help to bolster my spirits and keep a smile on this perpetual Halloween lover’s face.

Has your area been impacted by wildfires, flooding, or any other natural disasters this summer? Do you consider yourself a die-hard born Halloween (and/or Samhain) fan as well?

The post Local BC Wildfire Situation Update + Born Halloween Lover Tag Filled Scrapbook Layout appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

That much is public knowledge, but what wasn’t shared online back then is that I spent much of January 1, 2020 at the ER of our nearest hospital. My husband’s kidney issues were flaring fiercely at the time and he required emergency care.

In the coming weeks, he would undergo two surgeries, one at that same hospital, the other in Vancouver.

At the time, I was struck by what an unforgettable way to begin the year that was and wondered if it foreshadowed a sense of what 2020 held in-store for us.

Suffice it to say, it did.

There were challenges and stresses, health concerns, our collective new normal, self-isolating, social distancing, and both losing and finding ourselves in myriad ways across the span of a year that felt more like twenty.

As much as I could talk at length about the year that just was, honestly, I think it serves both myself and my readers better if we look ahead.

That said, before we proceed further, I want to take a moment to offer my deepest sympathies to anyone who experienced loss or pain, trauma, heartache, stress, impacts on their health (mental health very much included), struggled in ways they never could have foreseen, or otherwise took a punch in the gut from 2020.

It was brutal and real, flawed and frightening, and utterly, profoundly unforgettable.

If you’re blessed to have made it this far, you were stronger and tougher than 2020. You did incredibly!

It wasn’t easy – isn’t easy still. It wasn’t straightforward or simple, nor was it like anything most of us had ever experienced.

You tried, hoped, held on, cried, lost, and managed to keep going.

In short, you did your best, gave it your all, coped however you could, and held tight as the roller coaster that was 2020 took on a ride that will impact us for the rest of our lives.

I am proud of you. And, moreover, you should be proud of yourself, you warrior, you!

Witchcrafted Life’s 1^st birthday

There is something rather profound and meaningful in a blog reaching its first birthday.

It is proof of concept come to life.

The knowledge that while your site might not be the oldest or most famous or highest trafficked in all the land, it is no longer a brand new babe-in-arms either.

In the tree truck that is a website’s life, you’ve earned your first ring.

Through each difficulty and challenge, tough day and tougher night of 2020, this blog was a rock for me.

There were times, I won’t lie, when I wondered if I could keep going with it.

When my health hit me extra hard, when stress pushed down upon my world, when I was as drained as an empty Olympic swimming pool.

I never questioned the decision to start Witchcrafted Life. I did wonder at times though, if it would live to see its first birthday. And for that matter, if I would either.

Yet, the more the storms of life raged on, the tighter my grip held firm. I let the waves crash over me and accepted when the bad days put me out of commission.

Whether I wrote 6,000 words a day (which I did multiple times) or was lucky to squeeze in 1,000 into a given week, I was, and am, grateful and happy and more than a little bit in love with running this website.

Your supportive comments, both here and on Instagram fuelled me on.

Each new season and sabbat, fuelled me on.

Every craft project I made and shared fuelled me on.

The sense that this was only just the beginning of something even more wonderful (for this blog/my life/my future) fuelled me on.

As did each fresh post idea, email I received from a reader, and spark of inspiration that came my way.

I knew when I began WitchcraftedLife.com that I needed blogging in my world again. What I could never have foreseen one year ago to the day, however, was just how much I would not only needed, but wanted it as well.

And, clearly, as you can see, I didn’t toss in the towel, didn’t let my the roughest present moments rob me of the potential that lies in all of my tomorrows.

I’ve long learned that one rarely knows how long a given blog or website will be online, nor what might cause its eventual conclusion.

It would be foolheartedly to say outright that I plan to run this site for the next ten, twenty, or more years. There is simply no way of knowing if that will be the case

As 2020 drove home more so than ever, all we have in the moment and hope for those that lie ahead.

I am fully committed to this site. Even when, at times, I may question my ability to keep going with it, I am devoted to Witchcrafted Life to the best of my abilities.

It fills me with tremendous joy to reach Witchcrafted Life’s first blogging anniversary. To toast to a year of life under its proverbial belt, and to look forward to what I hope will be an awesome second year of blogging.

Seven things I plan to do for Witchcrafted Life in 2021

1. Keep up my posting frequency of at least 1 new entry per week. I did so every week of 2020, and while I’m accepting that sometimes circumstances (or the conscious choice – such as a mini blogging break, holiday, etc) may prevent that from playing out, my aim is to hit that target as often as possible.

2. Take craft project photos that I’m happier with. If you have been here for a while, you’ve likely heard me gripe a bit about (what I consider to be) the subpar photo quality of my most of my project images.

To date, I’ve been taking my photos with a cell phone camera, usually at night, and using basic (tungsten) overhead lighting in our dimly lit house. Not a winning combo in this instance, let me tell you.

The photos I’ve taken and posted aren’t, IMO, terrible, they’re just not at the level I want them to be.

We (my husband is also a passionate – and very talented – photographer) lost a lifetime’s worth of photography equipment in the arson fire we experienced, and have not been in a position yet to replace most of it.

Little by little though, I’m going to purchase or make (e.g., reflectors, backdrops, etc) what I can in 2021 and beyond, and hope that within a matter of months, I can start sharing project photos here that I’m a lot happier with the quality of (fingers crossed!).

3. Continue to expand the diversity of topics that I cover here. From Graveyard Snow Magick to Ancestral DNA Testing, The Ultimate List of Things to Put in Shaker Cards to 31 Ways to Celebrate Halloween All Year, we definitely covered a wide range of subjects during Witchcrafted Life’s first year.

I hope/plan to bring you even more topic diversity this year and beyond, and am always open to suggestions if there’s anything you’d be interested in seeing me write about here.

4. Make more projects that aren’t “just” cards and scrapbook pages. Like many a paper crafter, these are my top two favourite and most commonly made types of projects.

However, I really enjoy things like tags, mini albums, canvases, handmade gift wrapping, party décor, and much more that falls under the broad header of paper crafting.

In particular, mini albums have been calling my name something fierce lately, so I’m hoping to create some new ones in the coming year.

5. Use photos that I did not take in some of my posts. When I began this blog, I thought it would be both fun and challenging to create the photos for every post (or at least very nearly so) that I publish.

It was, and is. However, I’ve come to realize that sometimes a post might be served just as well, or better, by included images from other people, too.

Always, of course, using public domain, copywrite free, purchased stock, or otherwise legally permissible images, of course.

In doing so, I hope that I can help to provide even more applicable and appealing visuals for the content that I write.

That said, I still plan to create the photos and/or graphics for many (if not most) of my blog posts – especially since I like to have an original photo of my own that I can share on Instagram when discussing a given blog post there.

6. Share more about myself here. I think that, perhaps more than ever these days, a lot of bloggers put a major emphasis on creating evergreen content.

This is understandable and there is nothing wrong with doing so. I too strive to create a fair number of posts that will remain helpful and relevant for ages to come, and which are apt to be well indexed in search engines.

However, I feel that it is important for bloggers to let their personalities and certain facets of their lives shine through in (at least) some of their posts as well.

I’ve done that at times on WCL, and want to keep opening up about who I am and what my life is like here with you even more as this blog embraces its second year of life.

7. Share further content aimed at new witches. Like many a witch who puts themselves out there in the public sphere, I get a lot of emails and DMs from beginner witches or those who are looking to expand their practice.

A number of the same types of questions surface time and time again, so I’m planning to turn some of them into detailed posts that can both help those who are Googling for these subjects and individuals who contact me directly about about a particular topic.

Again, if there’s anything you’d be keen to see a post about, please don’t hesitate to let me know in the comments below (or anytime via email).

Here’s to everything that 2021 holds in store for us

In his beautiful poem “Dreams” the American poet Langston Hughes included the moving words, “Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken-winged bird that cannot fly”.

As much as last year turned many of our lives on their heads, as we bravely step into the fresh new year that is 2021, I encourage you to hold fast to your hopes and dreams.

Be kind and patient with yourself and others. Be safe and try to employ common sense at every turn. Know that while tomorrow is a mystery in some senses, even in the darkest of times, certain universal principles apply to our existence.

Take comfort in the familiar, in the good that remains (and which you can generate), allow yourself to grieve and heal for as long as your soul needs; and remain realistically optimistic that there may be good things waiting in store for us over the next twelve months.

And know that, barring the truly unforeseen, I have every intention to be here, same place, same date, next year for Witchcrafted Life’s 2^nd birthday.

Let’s make 2021 the best, safest, and happiest year that we can.

Together, we’ve got this.

The post Happy 1st birthday, Witchcrafted Life – plus 7 things I’m planning for this blog in 2021 appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.