Does this apply to everyone? Certainly not, but it has been my experience that no shortage of people do tend to adore the national holiday that transpires around the same time that they entered the world.

In terms of national/secular holidays, Canada Day has long been a firm favourite of mine. Not the top contender (that, as most of you likely know, goes eternally to Halloween / Samhain ), but one that I often rank as my third most beloved (non-Pagan/witchy) holiday.

Both Canada – as the official nation it has been since 1867- and I came into being during the exquisitely warm month of July.

By the time I emerged on the scene in 1984, Canada was a fully established, thriving nation with a strong economy, ever-expanding population, and a magnificent melting pot culture that has, thankfully, only continued to become my diverse with each passing year.

As a youngster, not only did Canada Day serve as the closest holiday to my birthday, but it was the first one to transpire after the school year let out.

In terms of the academic side of things, I usually adored school and was, humbly, a very good student. However, like most youngsters, come late June, the summer break could not get here quickly enough for me.

At the time, where I lived, school wrapped up sometime during the last week of June.

Canada Day returned a few short days later and always felt to me like the true start of the coming two months of school-free enjoyment that stretched out like a glistening ocean embracing the distant horizon.

There was a heady, palpable excitement to both the start of summer and the beginning of our breather from textbooks, teachers, and homework.

Though summer often whizzed by faster than frisbees we threw to one another throughout the roasty-toasty months, when school wrapped up and July began, it felt for a few brief, enchanting moments as though we had an eternity’s worth of time.

Come Canada Day on July 1^st, like many families, mine would usually fire up the barbeque or roast hotdogs, ears of corn, and marshmallows over an outdoor fire pit.

We donned red and white (the colours of the Canadian flag), made our way down to a public park where the town put on festive activities (including providing for free generously sized – and very tasty, as I recall –  slices of frosted vanilla layer cake with the words “Happy Canada Day” piped in red icing on its saccharine surface).

Live music wafted from the mid-century bandstand at that same park. Beachgoers frolicked merrily in the large lake across the street and many a soul, both young and young-at-heart, went in for the free face painting that the town also provided. Patriotic Canadian flags then temporarily emblazed on plenty of cheeks throughout the day.

As night fell, the sultry warmth that is July’s perpetual dance partner enveloped us all.

We would then clamber to find a free patch of sand on the beach or grass at a different park adjacent to that beach and turn our gaze skyward for the beautiful fireworks show that would soon unfold.

This generally happened around 10 pm and the sight of the fireworks being launched high into the air above the warm waters of Okanagan Lake, their multi-coloured hues reflecting with a magical charm on the water’s surface below, was hypnotically wonderful.

Once the fireworks had concluded, many folks leisurely made their way home. Some would carry on to bars, late-night restaurants, friend’s houses, or their own backyards to keep the festivities going.

Others stayed put, stoked small bonfires on the beach and let their cheerful chatter dot the beautiful night every bit as vibrantly as the fireworks we had just witnessed.

Then as now, I love(d) Canada Day.

We here in this country might not always wear our patriotism quite as boldly on our sleeve as those in some other countries are apt to do, but most of us cherish our homeland – or adopted country – something fierce and appreciate that July 1^st gives us an opportunity to let that adoration ring out for at least one day of the year.

Though Tony and I do not have any major plans for it, I am in the mood for Canada Day big time this year (because, let’s face it, as the pandemic lingers on, just about any excuse to celebrate takes on greater meaning and importance than it may ever have done so prior to 2020).

Two years ago I shared a charming shabby chic red, cream and gold Canada Day card that I made.

This time around, we have retained the red (albeit in a different shade) but opted for a different palette. One that nods its head happily to the Victorian and Edwardian eras, but which is more than timeless enough to ensure it is au courant at the same time.

Beautiful rose-filled true north strong and free card

Much like grilled foods, sizzling hot sand, and exuberant fireworks, one of the things that I will forever associate with early summer is roses.

At most of the homes I lived in as a child and teenager, roses grew either on rickety trellises – their paint peeling and aged to shabby chic perfection – or in short, sturdy bushes.

The first roses of the season usually took up the reigns from the local lilacs, emerging at some point in May. Though it was by no means uncommon to see both smiling in the springtime sunshine at the same time.

They often got a second wind around early July, their unmatched aroma fanned by the hot summer breeze.

In my mind, roses and Canada Day are rather synonymous – particularly if those sublimely fragrant blooms are red or burgundy. Their hue a delightful nod to one of our nation’s two national colours.

The line “true north strong and free” is amongst the best known and most beloved from our country’s national anthem.

It reminds Canadians far and wide of how fortunate we are to live in this country and of the sacrifices many have made over the years (including during both World Wars) to help ensure that sentiment remained factual.

These words, cut from a sheet of Photo Play Oh Canada Eh! paper, were the jumping-off point for this Canada Day card.

I also took a colour cue from that same festive paper, composing a somewhat darker, more refined colour palette for this celebratory greeting.

In addition to various hues of grey, I employed teal, pale mint green, aged pine green, white, and deep shades of red worthy of the most magnificent of real summer-grown roses.

A slew of die cut maple leaves upped the festive feel of this handmade Canada Day card, as did an adorable background layer of moose print paper that is just too darling for words!

In addition to maple leaves and moose, another element that is often associated with Canada (in no small part due to lumberjacks and lumberjills) is plaid, so a lovely dose of that also joined the team here.

This is an oversized horizontal slimline card, and much like various other oversized projects of mine (such as the delightful Cottage Spooky Cottage Sign that I shared here earlier this year), it was a bit tricky to photograph in my small, rather basic quality lightbox.

Nevertheless, happily, I managed to get a few usable shots in the end, which you see peppered throughout this post.

I adored making this (if I may say so myself) gorgeous card and, in the process, conjuring up many positive July 1^st memories both from my youth and adult years alike.

If you are keen to make your own version of this elegantly festive Canada Day card, read on for a complete list of the products used on this project plus detailed step-by-step instructions to assist you in doing just that.

And, should you dig the design by not wish to take this paper crafting project in a Canada Day direction, you could easily swap out the sentiment for one that worked for a different occasion. Say as a birthday, anniversary, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, or even Valentine’s Day card.

In addition, you could easily use this card design for things like thinking of you, just because, get well, missing you, and congratulations (very much including congratulations bestowed on those who have, or soon will, achieved Canadian citizenship).

Products use to make a Victorian inspired Canada Day card

-Charcoal grey (or black) cardstock

-Medium grey cardstock

-Light-medium grey cardstock

-Dark red (or burgundy) cardstock

-Light mint (or light aqua) cardstock

-White cardstock

-Canadian national anthem print paper – O Canada True North Paper from Photo Play

-Moose print paper – O Canada Eh! Paper from Photo Play

-Teal plaid paper – the backside of the same moose print paper from Photo Play

-Two different ornate oval frame dies, one larger than the other (they do not have to be the same as one another)

-Scallop edge oval die

-Two sizes of scallop edge circle dies (or punches)

-Larger maple leaf die

-Slightly smaller maple leaf die (for the dark red maple leaf in the middle of the card)

-Corner rounder punch

-Teal ink – Tim Holtz Mermaid Lagoon Distress Ink from Ranger (regular or oxide, as you wish)

-Dark greyish-brown ink – Memento Dew Drop Espresso Truffle Ink from Tsukineko

-Two sizes of dark red (or burgundy) paper roses

-Faceted clear buttons – Modern Avalanche Buttons from Bazzill

-Earthy forest (or olive) green hued seam binding

-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 layered, shabby chic Canada Day card

Begin by making an oversized horizontal slimline card base from dark red cardstock.

Cut a piece of teal plaid paper slightly smaller than the card base. Round both of its bottom corners with a corner punch or corner die, then ink all four sides of this piece with Mermaid Lagoon Distress Ink. Adhere this layer to the card base.

Cut a piece of pale mint (or pale aqua) coloured cardstock a touch smaller than the previous layer. Round both of the bottom corners on this piece and ink all fours sides of it as well, then adhere it to the previous layer.

Next, cut a piece of medium grey coloured cardstock a little smaller the previous layer and round both of its bottom corners, too. Adhere to the previous layer.

Take the moose print paper, cut a piece of it that is (again) a little smaller than the previous layer. Round both of its bottom corners.

Then, cut the moose print paper into a few equal-sized pieces, trimming the pieces down, if needed, to allow a small vertical opening between each piece.

Ink all of the edges on each of the moose print pieces with Espresso Truffle ink. Arrange and adhere them down evenly across the piece of medium grey coloured cardstock.

Using the larger of the two sizes of scalloped circle dies (or a good-sized scalloped circle punch) cut out two circles from white cardstock and two from medium grey cardstock.

Use the smaller-sized scalloped circle die to cut two circles from the “True north strong and free” text print paper.

Arrange the circles starting with the white, then the grey, then the text print layer, so that some of each layer is visible. Adhere the layers together and then (one grouping apiece) to each side of the center of the card, as shown.

We are going to get extra Canadian here next. Die cut two maples apiece from the white, mint green/pale aqua, light-medium grey, and dark red cardstock.

Create two layered stacks of maple leaves starting with mint green/light aqua, dark red, white, and light-medium grey. Splay the layers out a bit so that each of the colours of maple leaves is visible.

Attach the layers to each other and then place one maple leaf stack on the lower portion of the scalloped circles on the lefthand side of the card. Adhere.

Repeat with the other stack of maple leaves, however, this time, you’re adhering them down on the upper right-hand side of the other group of scalloped circle pieces.

Die cut an ornate oval frame from dark grey, charcoal, or black cardstock (I used charcoal cardstock here).

Die cut a slightly smaller scalloped edge oval from medium grey cardstock. Adhere it to the ornate charcoal grey circle.

Next, die cut a decorative border-edged oval piece from white cardstock. Back that oval with a piece of mint green/light aqua cardstock so that the green/aqua cardstock shows through the openings on the edges of the white cardstock oval, but does not extend out past them at any point.

Adhere that piece to the previous oval.

Die cut a scalloped edge circle from light-medium grey cardstock with the larger of the two scallop circle dies. Adhere it to the previous (oval) layer.

Then die cut a smaller scalloped edge circle from the “True north strong and free print paper”. Adhere to the previous (circle layer).

Die cut a single maple leaf from dark red cardstock and adhere it to the centre of the last circle layer that you created.

Use the small banner/label shaped die to cut out a banner from white cardstock.

Fussy cut out a portion of the text print paper (used throughout this project) so that you have a small strip of paper that says, “True north strong and free”.

Ink all four sides of this piece with Espresso Truffle ink and adhere it to the white banner/label piece.

Gently bend the white banner/label piece so that it bows upward a little in the middle. This creates a greater sense of depth and visual appeal for the sentiment area of this Canada Day card.

Adhere both sides of the white banner/label down across the bottom of the central oval and circle layers, as shown.

Using a medium to dark shade of earthy pine (or olive) green seam binding or ribbon (I used seam binding here), make two slightly larger single layer bows and two single-layer slightly smaller sized bows.

Adhere the larger seam binding/ribbon bows to the outer edges of the center of the moose print paper, so that one larger bow appears on each side of the card design.

Repeat the process with the smaller bows, on this time, center them right beside the central ornate charcoal grey oval piece.

Take two small and two somewhat larger dark red (or burgundy) paper roses. Attach one small rose in the center of each of the larger seam binding bows.

Repeat the process by placing the two larger dark red paper roses in the middle of the smaller-sized green seam binding bows.

Lastly, place and adhere four clear faceted buttons around the smaller green seam binding bows, as shown.

And there you have it, one sophisticated, beautiful, and thoroughly festive Canada Day card for you to use as part of your celebratory décor or give to someone special before/on July 1^st.

O Canada! Our home and native land!

While patriotic music has been penned and sung on the soil of this nation for over two centuries now, the Canadian anthem that is familiar to those of recent generations is actually somewhat new.

The national anthem of this country is called “O Canada” and it begins with the same words that I used for the header above.

It was written by a French-Canadian-American chap named Calixa Lavallée in 1880. However, it would not be until 1980 that an Act of Parliament declared it as the country’s sole national anthem (as since 1939, the country had had two different national songs; the other was “God Save The Queen/King”).

Oh Canada was in use from at least the 1930s onward though, so those of both my parent’s and grandparent’s generations, along with my own, grew up memorizing and singing its stoically beautiful words.

The line “true north strong and free” is perhaps my favourite element of Canada’s national anthem, as I know it for many others as well.

Freedom is not something any of us should ever take for granted, no matter where we live in the world. We need only look to this planet’s history to see countless examples of times when peace was shattered and freedom either stolen or greatly jeopardized.

Much like at Mabon, Thanksgiving, and various other points in the year, I use Canada Day as a time to reflect on how lucky I am to call the world’s second-largest country, geographically speaking, home and to live in a land that is, in a lot of respects at least, quite free and respectful of its citizens’ rights.

No country is perfect – Canada included, of course – but at the end of the day, it is objectively a great nation overall and one that I am truly grateful to call my own, eh!

To all those observing Canada Day this year, may you have a splendidly enjoyable, safe, and festive July 1^st – and to everyone else, may the same hold true for the start of the year’s seventh month on your end, too.

Does your country have a national holiday to celebrate its founding? If it does, do you enjoy making craft projects for that special day?

The post Beautiful Rose-Filled True North Strong and Free Canada Day Card appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

I’ve always felt a strong kinship to Canada Day and to the history of the land into which I was born. A history that stretches back substantially farther than 1867, when the Canadian Confederation unified various Eastern parts of the country to create the backbone of a nation that would, in less than a century encompass, the entirety of the landmass that we know today as Canada.

In a few days my own birthday will transpire once again. Another year – a truly unforgettable year in terms of what befell the earth and its people – of experiencing the unparalleled magnificence of existence, with all of its highs, lows, smiles, tears, and magickal happenings will be added to timeline of my existence.

The proximity of the two days – Canada Day and my birthday – has always delighted me. And as I grew up and began to research my genealogy with great vigour and intensity, I found it was a chapter of the year that often brought forth an abundance of thoughts about, and connections to, my ancestors.

For without them, I – like each of us and our respective lineages – would not be here today.

I was born in Canada, as we both of my parents and three of my four grandparents (my maternal grandfather was born in a part of what was then German Russia called Bessarabia; today this area is comprised by areas of Moldova and Ukraine).

If we start digging further back in time, fewer and fewer of my ancestors were born, let alone lived for any portion of their life, in Canada, though some certainly were and did.

The oldest bloodline that I can lay claim to in this country is that of the French Canadian ancestry, which comes by way of my maternal grandmother’s parents and stretches back to at least the 1600s.

Like all non-First Nations Peoples of this country, however, my Canadian lineage is relatively new when viewed through the lens of human history.

Ultimately, if we go far enough back in time, all modern humans share the same ancestor – a Mitochondrial Eve – as she is often referred to in scientific circles.

In the approximately 100,000 – 200,000 years since then, our DNA has branched out further, creating something rather akin to a genetic fingerprint that both differentiates us from, and concurrently connects us to, one other as a global species.

While it is commonly believed that in the 1950s, biologist James Watson and physicist Francis Crick discovered DNA, they were not, in fact, the first to do so. Though their discoveries and advancements in the field of DNA research were ground-breaking and have impacted the world in innumerable ways since then.

This distinction does to Friedrich Miescher, a Swiss chemist, who in 1869 – just two years, incidentally, after Canada officially became a nation – first identified what would later go on to be called deoxyribonucleic acid, commonly called DNA, inside the nuclei of white blood cells.

In the nearly a century between this extraordinary discovery and the Watson and Crick’s 1953 finding that DNA molecules exist in three-dimensional double helix form, a number of other scientists focused on the study of DNA before they even fully knew what it was or to just what extent it shaped life as we know it on this planet.

The discoveries these pioneering genetic scientists and all those who continue to follow in their footsteps has truly revolutionized our world.

From helping to solve crimes to aiding in a better understanding of human evolution to allowing us to test for a litany of different medical conditions, the importance of the discovery and subsequent advancements in the understanding of DNA cannot be overstated.

In today’s post, we’re going to look at ancestral DNA testing in a different light than it is generally viewed.

We’ll explore some of the ways in which DNA testing can help you to better understand yourself and your ancestors and how that knowledge can be applied to your life as a witch, Wiccan and/or Pagan in the 21^st century.

What is ancestral DNA testing?

Genetic ancestry testing, ancestral DNA testing, or genetic genealogy, as it is sometimes called, is a scientific way for us to discover more about our ancestors than historical facts and records, photos and family lore (important as these thing all are!) could ever tell us.

When one’s DNA is tested for genetic ancestry, we can usually discover more about where they came from and what population(s) their ancestors belonged to. Generally speaking, the more closely related two people, families or populations are, the more likely they are to share various DNA markers.

There are three type of genetic testing that are commonly used for ancestral and genealogical related purposes. They are as follows:

-Y Chromosome testing: As Y chromosomes are passed down exclusively from fathers to sons, this form of genetic testing is not available to woman (because females do not possess a Y chromosome). If you wish to know more about this type of genetic testing as it pertains to your own family, your best bet is to get a close biological male relative, such as a brother or your father, to take an ancestral DNA test and share his results with you.

-Mitochondrial DNA testing: Unlike Y chromosomes, mitochondrial DNA is passed down from mother to child and is present in both males and females, thus providing valuable information about a person’s direct female ancestral line.

-Single nucleotide polymorphism testing: This form of genetic testing looks at a person’s entire genome, commonly comparing it to those who have taken the same types of tests to help provide a clear(er) picture of a person’s ethnic background. While not foolproof in this respect, of course, again, it can help to provide a good deal of information regarding whereabouts in the world a person’s ancestors may have come from.

Whereas mitochondrial and Y chromosome testing can tell us about our direct ancestral lines, they do not paint as broad a picture of one’s full ethnic background, which is where single nucleotide polymorphism testing shines.

It is important to keep in mind that throughout human history, countless populations have migrated, mingled, and mated.

This often means that genetic DNA testing can lead to some surprising results – or, conversely, that it may confirm things that were either stated as gospel loudly and proudly or said in hushed whispers within families or communities for many a year.

Where can I get ancestral DNA testing?

These days, most ancestral DNA testing is done via paid online services such as 23andMe, Circle DNA, Ancestry DNA, Cri Genetics, National Geographic’s Geno 2.0, and Living DNA.

Other consumer genetic testing services exist, some catering to specific areas such as medical data, and chances are more will emerge as time goes on and further advances and discoveries are made in the fascinating field of genetics.

The cost varies from ancestral genetic testing service to service, as does the data reports that you’re presented with.

Several years ago now, when it was relatively new to the world, my husband and I availed of a sale 23andMe.com was holding so as to test our respective DNA.

As an avid hobbyist genealogist (and someone for whom science, health and history are all immense passions as well), I couldn’t jump at the chance to do so quickly enough!

While some of the medical aspects that the testing indicated I may or may be prone to developing/having hit the mark and others were way off base, the more concrete ancestral data was of little surprise to me and helped to further confirm many years of my own genealogical research.

The fact that 23andMe continues to provide users with additional data as time goes on and additional tests are included in their offerings has only further helped to make the cost of this service more than worth it for me personally. (This post is not sponsored by 23andMe or any other website or company.)

If you’re looking to avail of genetic ancestral testing yourself and want to score a good deal, too, I suggest waiting for sales. Many of these reputable testing websites hold sales each year, especially around (very logically) Mother’s Day and Father’s Day, as well as Christmastime.

However, prices have, generally speaking, either dropped or stayed fairly stable over the years and most online ancestral DNA testing services are not inordinately pricey.

I would be remiss if I did not address the fact that, obviously, in order to receive this kind of testing, you must submit your own DNA (usually in the form of saliva).

As such, technically, your DNA is housed in a database and while there is (and I cannot stress this point highly enough) no reason to believe that any of these companies are using that information for unethical or otherwise nefarious purposes, at the end of the day, we have a right to know who has access to our DNA and what it could, no matter how hypothetically, be used for.

For a wide range of highly understandable reasons, not all individuals or group of people are comfortable with scientists having their genetic material – a point that the Atlantic highlighted in a piece regarding Genetic Testing and Tribal Identity, for example.

If you’re down with genetic DNA testing, as many of us are, then you’re likely in for a delightful world of information that has been encoded in your cells your whole life, but which you might never have known about were it not for this astonishing branch of science.

5 Reasons why ancestral DNA testing can benefit your witchcraft

There is almost no limit to why genetic testing appeals to various people, what it can tell us about ourselves and our ancestors, and why it matters for the collective whole of humanity.

If you identify as a witch, Wiccan and/or Pagan of any sort, have you ever stopped to ask yourself how genetic testing might be able to deepen, enhance and even better your spiritual journey?

What about, if applicable, your witchcraft? How about the patron deities or the pantheon that you may work with? The types of foods you leave as offerings or utilize when holding a dumb supper? What you place on your altar in relation to your ancestors?

Could it come into play for you in regards to things like hedgeriding, visualizations, shadow work, healing generational trauma, strengthening your psychic abilities, kitchen or green witchery, or the divination methods you use?

Yes to all of the above and plenty, more including the five different ways that genealogical testing can help your witchery that we’ll explore in greater detail below.

1. It may be able to help you find the witchy path that is best for you: While there are more ways to witch than there will ever be witches themselves, for those who feel the need to belong follow a specific type of witchy/Wiccan path or who wish to do so in the ways that are truest to their generic ancestry, DNA testing can help point you in the right direction.

I do not personally believe that one must only work, as some are quick to state, with the systems of Paganism, gods and goddesses or cultural traditions of their own direct ancestors and/or culture.

That said, for a lot of us, the desire to do comes naturally or develops as we continue along our journey through life as witches/Pagans.

The clearer and more accurate a picture we have of where our ancestors stemmed from, the better able we are to research, engage with and build a spiritual practice that involves elements of the cultures and peoples that comprise our genetic makeup.

It is worth pointing out that, true as this can be, there are definitely some cultures for whom we presently know much more about their earlier beliefs, customs and traditions than others.

Simply knowing what area(s) of the world we have genetic ties to, however, can be a stepping stone to connecting with the culture – both past and present – of those locations and in turn finding ways to incorporate these important things into our daily spiritual walk.

2. Knowing where your ancestors originated from can lead to incredible travel experiences: If one feels so inclined, and has both the means and health required to do so, visiting one or more countries (if they differ from where you currently live) that you have ancestral ties to can be a profoundly poignant, potentially even life-changing, experience.

You could choose, for example, research and try to visit specific parts of the country, including graveyards or other burial sites, where your ancestors may have lived, worshiped, or been laid to rest.

Or you might opt to visit spiritually significant locations, sample national cuisines, perhaps, walk in locations that your ancestors may have trod with their very own feet, watch the sun set on the same horizon that they once gazed upon, connect with the Elements as they exist in that area (likewise for the genius loci), study traditional clothing and jewelry, and otherwise connect with the lands that helped in their own way to propel your ancestral line ever forward to the eventuality of your own existence.

There is no shortage of ways that travel can help to foster and bolster your spiritual path, your connection with your ancestors, and your understanding of human history – both that of your own family tree and the world at large.

3. It helps you to better know and understand who your ancestors were: Genetic DNA testing might not be able to give you precise names or put faces to those names, but it can very effectively paint a detailed picture of what ethnic groups we may have ancestral ties to.

This is important for a wide wealth of reasons and may, at least in part, help to explain why you’re instinctively drawn to certain cultures and/or the belief systems of such.

Many witches and Pagans honour, celebrate, and work with our ancestors in a myriad of different, highly personal ways. The more we know about the people we were descended from, the more specifically we can venerate and communicate – and/or feel a close bond with – those whose existences ultimately lead to our own.

As well, and this is a point whose importance cannot be overstated, ancestral DNA testing is not dependant on who our parents were. This means that if a person was adopted or little is known about who their parents were for whatever reason, genetic DNA testing helps to part some of the dark clouds of mystery surrounding your ancestors. Giving you a better and more accurate picture of whereabouts in the world your relatives called home.

Knowing this can be of great comfort and support (including offering a sense of kinship with others from the same areas of the world) to each of us, but potentially all the more so for who were adopted or had direct relatives who were adopted or whose family histories are largely unknown.

4. Provides more information about your ancestral female line: While some of us feel a stronger connection to male or female energy and/or deities, and some prefer not to assign or identify with gendered energy or aspects of the divine (or ourselves), here on earth we are all the product of countless generations of males and females engaging in the reproductive act.

Unfortunately, historically, less information was, in some times and places at least, recorded for our female ancestors. Names, birth and death dates, specifics about their lives and interests, and much more has frequently been lost to history. And the same is certainly true for many males, too, of course.

Ancestral DNA testing alone won’t likely be able to say what your great-great-great-great grandma’s favourite colour or dessert was. Nor can it, in and of itself, tell you her name. What it can do, however, is to help paint a better and broader picture of the female ancestral line from which you are both descended.

Everyone, regardless of gender, can benefit from honouring and connecting with the females in their family tree, some of whom, I’d be willing to bet, you both look like and may have much in common with.

In short, genetic DNA testing can help to give women a stronger presence in history, even if the particulars of their lives have sadly been lost.

It reminds us that they were just about everywhere that males populated the world for any length of time, while also reinforcing the goddess-like quality inherent to the act of giving life.

5. No one can take your ancestry away from you. Despite the atrocious, heartbreaking attempts to annihilate various populations or smaller communities of people (to say nothing of specific individuals) throughout the course of our collective history, those of us who are alive today carry in our very DNA proof of all those who came before us.

The importance of claiming and celebrating our ancestral autonomy, of knowing where we come from, and being able to connect (be it literally or in spirit) with various populations around the globe is a highly meaningful act. And to my mind, it is also a basic human right.

No matter how long you live, what you do in your life, the relationships you engage in, your job, your beliefs, or anything else, your DNA is your DNA and your ancestry is your ancestry. It cannot be stripped from you, for your DNA is quite literally what you are made of on a cellular level.

There is such an uplifting sense of strength, positive power, and inspiration to be found in this fact. Which you can apply to your witchery in a multitude of different ways, from having greater inner confidence to learning more about the peoples you are descended from to actively making elements of their cultures a part of your spiritual path.

Ancestral DNA testing is its own form of modern-day magic

Is ancestral DNA necessary in order to live your witchiest life? Definitely not. But that doesn’t mean that availing of an ancestral genetic testing service can’t be of meaningful, perhaps even substantial, benefit to you as a witch and/or Pagan.

It is important to note that if you wish to research if you’re descended from an accused witch or if you come from a family lineage that included people who practiced witchcraft (or were cunning folk, shamans, etc), genealogical research usually will need to be employed as well.

And even then, scant to little direct evidence may be found in many instances. For a multitude of understandable reasons, it wasn’t always the safest thing to flaunt one’s witchiness far and wide in various times and places past.

Though, conversely, sometimes it was the fact that someone was a healer, cunning woman, local witch, etc that helped the stories of their lives and abilities carry forth through the generations to the present day (this may be especially true in families with a long history of hereditary witchcraft).

While some of us, myself included, are firm believers in past lives, at the end of the day, we are each currently living our life in the here and now.

The physical body that our soul/spirit presently resides in is connected to the entirety of humanity as it has existed from the days of our collective mitochondrial mama.

Genetic DNA testing is a miracle of scientific discovery and understanding. Imagine, even just a few short generations ago, having the ability to look back in time across the span of human history care of a wee vile of our salvia?

It’s remarkable that we’re able to know and learn so much about ourselves and our ancestors via this incredible technology.

If you have the chance to use a genetic testing service, I highly recommend doing so. And if you’ve already availed of this kind of service, consider reflecting further on how the results you received about your ancestry can be of benefit to you from a spiritual standpoint.

While my ancestry composition tells me that I’m 99.7% European, that number is further broken down in the report I received and its results both back up and expand on where my genelogical research informs me that my ancestors hailed from.

The fact that I’m comprised of fair number of different European ancestries, most of which stem from Northern and Central Europe, helps me to feel that my natural inclination to associate with the Pagan traditions of these areas is exactly the spiritual path I’m meant to be on.

They echo down through the ages and are a part of both my genetic memory and my literal genetic sequencing. As it’s pretty safe to assume that if we go far enough back in time, plenty of my German, Scandinavian, Russian, French, Irish, British, etc ancestors would have been straight up Pagans.  

I like to think that it might also be part of the reason why, at the end of the day, I’m an eclectic witch who cannot spend enough time in the woods, feels instinctively at home around people who speak certain European language that I know scarcely a word of, and why my heart is called to so fiercely by various parts of the world.

The connections you develop, already have and may deepen, or what surprises come your way via genetic DNA testing and how it corresponds to your own witchery will vary from mine. They will help to strengthen your life’s story along with the voices of your ancestors, whoever they were and wherever in the world they called home.

We grow as people the more we learn about ourselves and our ancestors. Doing so reminds us of the fact the entirety of humanity is interconnected and that for all of our differences – be they real or perceived – at the end of the day, we have far more in common with one another than points that set us apart.

Yet true as that is, we each have our own wonderfully unique origin stories as well. Ancestral DNA testing allows us to explore branches in our families trees that might never have been accessible to us were it not for this extraordinary technology.

If that is scientific magic in action, I don’t know what is!

Have you used an ancestral DNA testing service before? If so, how did what you discovered (or had confirmed) influence your witchery or Pagan practice?

PS: Happiest Canada Day wishes to all of my fellow Canadians who are toasting our nation’s birthday today.

The post 5 ways ancestral DNA testing can benefit your witchy life appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.

Falling on July 1^st, Canada Day kicks off the seventh month of the year and is a beautiful, fun-filled and highly meaningful day of cheery national pride from coast-to-coast.

While handmade Canada Day cards are certainly not unknown (indeed, I have a Pinterest board dedicated just to Canada Day Cards), I find myself surprised at times that there aren’t considerably more cards for July 1^st shared online.

One new card might not raise the ranks there too much, but it certainly does its own wee part. To that end, today I’m sharing an elegant shabby chic Canada Day card that I recently created.

This card is my favourite Canada Day paper crafting project that I’ve made to date. Now I just need to decide who I’m going to give it to!

That said though, I love it so much that I’m half tempted to hold onto it and use this festive July 1^st card as part of our annual Canada Day home décor.

Enjoy the Moment Shabby Chic Canada Day Card

Various companies, such as Wild Whisper Designs and Photoplay, have released Canadian themed paper crafting products over the years, though not too many brands have focused specifically on Canada Day itself.

Save for the chipboard pieces (including the chipboard Canadian flag), I didn’t turn to any of these Canadiana type lines for this particular project.

I went into making this Canada Day card by knowing that I wanted to use a classic red and white palette, as those are the two colours that comprise the Canadian flag.

You could certainly stop there and have a fabulously festive make on your hands. I’m rarely one to make an understated paper crafting project though, so I injected some sophisticated hits of cream and gold, as well as an earthy shade of brown, into the mix.

I felt the brown both complimented the other colours and was a great nod to the abundance of outdoor activities – from camping trips to fireworks shows watched while sitting on the beach – that this colour calls to mind.

Initially, I’d envisioned even more dimensional elements – such as paper flowers or rhinestones – but when all was said and done, this handmade Canada Day card felt like it had enough going on as it was, so I refrained from adding more to it.

The sentiment hails from a lovely little package of ephemera pieces from Anna Griffin. I’m a massive fan of her work and product line, though find it almost as tricky to track down unicorns and mermaids here on Canadian soil as it is to source her products in this country.

Scrapbook.com carries a small selection these days, as do various other US scrapbook supply websites – and of course, there’s always Anna Griffin’s official online store (as well as her TSC and QVC lines), plus community marketplace sites such as eBay and Etsy.

Still, for those of us on a tight budget and/or who prefer to purchase our paper crafting supplies locally, it can be tough at times to find Anna Griffin products on this side of the 49^th.

However, that just makes me treasure the tiny handful of them that I do presently have in my stash all the more.

Maple leaves are as emblematic a symbol of Canada as they come, so on top of the chipboard Canadian flag itself, I included some die cut maple leaves here in a mix of brown and metallic gold cardstock.

If you don’t have gold cardstock or mirri (mirror) card, you could always use gold glitter paper instead (or emboss your die cut maple leaves with gold embossing power).

As with most of my projects, there’s an air of femininity and yesteryear style to this design, coupled with a dose of classic shabby chic charm.

One could easily scale back on certain elements – such as the crochet trim and heart flatback pearls – if you wanted to make a more masculine design.

Indeed, this card could easily, come to think of it, work splendidly – right down to the “Enjoy the Moment” sentiment – as a birthday greeting for any gender.

Cardmaking tips and tricks from this project

-While just about all reds can look elegant in the right context, true and blue based reds tend to have a certain ingrained sophistication to them that can help a card or other project look all the more formal.

-If you’re working with a paper pad, pack or loose sheets and have two or more papers with the same (or similar) prints in different colours – such as the red and grey doily print papers here – combining them on the same project is a great way to add instant cohesiveness to your design.

-Embossing and die cutting (or vice versa, though delicate parts of various die cut shapes may hold up better if you emboss your paper or cardstock first and then die cut it) the same paper or cardstock is a great way to get an even more eye-catching and detailed element for your project.

In this case, I ran my brown cardstock through my die cutting machine inside of the Birch Texture Fade embossing folder by Tim Holtz for Sizzix, then die cut it using a tree frame die. I didn’t ink or otherwise jazz up my die cut frame further, but one certainly could if so desired.

–Ornate frames and other intricate shaped pieces die cut in metallic cardstock always look stunning and are a fantastic way to glam up most any paper crafting project.

-If you don’t have crochet trim on hand, lace, multiple layers of twine or string, raffia, burlap, thin cork, die cut boarder strips, or even a rub-on design could be used here instead.

-Inking the edges of your cardstock base (in this case, the cream cardstock base) is a terrific way to inject additional colour, visual depth, and interest without adding further weight to a card design.

It’s also an ideal approach when you want a given colour (or colours) to appear again in your design for a greater sense of cohesiveness or, conversely, to contrast and really standout.

In this case, I used an aged yellow coloured ink mini ink cube from Pink & Main to ink the edges of my cream card base, and then used the same ink on the edges of the red and grey doily patterned papers.

How to make this elegant Canadian flag themed Canada Day card

I started with a base of cream cardstock to which I added a large piece of dark red cardstock, followed by various patterned papers (inking the edges of the cream cardstock and the doily print papers, as mentioned above).

Then I die cut my ornate frame from gold cardstock, the tree frame from brown cardstock, and leaves from a mixture of brown and gold cardstock.

Next I wrapped a piece of cream crochet trim around some of my base layers and another piece of the same trim around my secondary base layer (with foam squares between the two base layers), selected some ephemera pieces to tuck behind some of my design elements, and settled on the final arrangement for this Canada Day card.

Having done that, I assembled the various elements, added the Canadian flag and scrolling decorative corner chipboard pieces, and finished off by adorning this festive card with two cute little gold-toned plastic flatback pearl heart embellishments.

That’s all there was to it. Easy as maple pie! )

Products used to make this festive Canada Day card

-Brown, red, and cream cardstock

-Gold metallic cardstock – Special Gold Bright Metallic Paper from Kodamaa

-Various printed papers – Farmhouse 8×8 inch paper pad from October Afternoon

-Yellow ink pad – Street Light Surface Ink from Pink & Main

-Fancy decorative boarder die

-Tree frame die

-Leaf vine and maple leaf dies

-Woodgrain embossing folder – Birch Texture Fade by Tim Holtz from Sizzix

-Canadian flag and decorative flourish corner chipboard pieces – Explore Canada Chipboard Pieces from Scrapbook Customs

-Assorted ephemera pieces – Jolie Collection Titles, Tags and Quotes – from Anna Griffin

-Gold toned plastic heart shaped flatback pearls (I sourced these from AliExpress a while back)

-Cream crochet trim

-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)

Celebrate Canada Day with your own cards, scrapbook pages and other projects!

Not Canadian? No worries! What about a scrapbook page that pertains to Canada, such as a holiday you’ve taken here, five things that make you think of Canada, your favourite Canadian entertainer, author or musician; or the Canadian animal you adore the most?

If that’s not your (Saskatoon berry) jam, why not use this design as a jumping-off point for a card or other paper crafting project that celebrates your own country’s birthday/founding date or another event that is significant to your respective nation instead?

Whether you live in the country of your birth or an adopted homeland, there’s often much to celebrate and adore about the nation that one currently calls their own.

Our paper crafting makes can be a stellar way to let our feelings (positive, negative, and everything in between) about our country shine out today and, in the process, potentially be documented for future generations as well.

Or, in the case of cards, which may not always be passed down to the same degree as scrapbook pages, as a terrific way to share in some national pride and celebratory spirit with your loved ones near and far.

Tempting though it may be to squirrel this card away and use it as part of our Canada Day decorations, I do think I’ll take my own advice there and share it with a fellow Canadian who is close to my heart, eh!

Do you enjoy making cards for your country’s birthday? Have you ever made a Canada Day card before?

Project share

Pin the image below – or any other in this post – to Pinterest, pop it into your Instagram Stories, post in on Twitter or Facebook, or share it anywhere else you wish to help yourself find it again and to inspire others at the same time.

If you make a project based on or inspired by this card – or want to share any of your other handmade crafts with me – please use the hashtags #WitchcraftedLife and #WitchcraftedLifeMakes on social media so that I see can your beautiful creations.

The post Enjoy the Moment Shabby Chic Canada Day Card appeared first on Witchcrafted Life.