New Chimehours Blog – “The Ebb and Flow of a Most Ancient Arte”

A new blog post, over at “In the Chimehours”…

 

Via personal esoteric practice & analysis of archaic folklore and rustic practice, we explore the Ancient Arte of Sea Witchery throughout the British Isles…

“Sea Witchery: The Ebb and Flow of a Most Ancient Arte”

New Blog on ‘In The Chimehours’ – The Secret Commonwealth

NEW BLOG: ‘In The Chimehours’ explores the enigmatic “vanishing constant” of the genuine British Faerie Traditions, by taking a closer look at our not so distant cousins, “The Good People”, denizens of the Secret Commonwealth…

The Secret Commonwealth…

If you haven’t followed me over to In The Chimehours yet, please change your links, as this blog will be disappearing soon. Many Thanks

Ancient Yew and Humps of the Devil…

New blog post over at ‘In the Chimehours‘:

Ancient Yew and Humps of the Devil…

New post: The Bone White Tree over at ‘In the Chimehours’

New post over at www.inthechimehours.com:

‘Of Dreams and Memories: The Bone White Tree’

Please remember to change your links and subscriptions, as this blog will be disappearing soon. Many Thanks. Enjoy.

IN THE CHIMEHOURS LAUNCHED!

My new blog/website has been launched: http://www.inthechimehours.com

You can read my first post here: Welcome to the Chimehours

Please change your links, etc as this blog will be deleted after I’m sure you’ve all followed me over. Cheers

In the Chimehours…

Feast your eyes on the amazing photography of Matt Baldwin-Ives, a sneak peak at one of the fantastic images that will be featured as part of what will be my new project, come the end of my wee blogging hiatus.

I’ll be traveling home to England on Wednesday to spend the holidays with my family and  friends. Old friends, new friends and old friends not yet met. A very long awaited visit. My heart aches to be able to stick my bare feet into English soil. To stand on the wave-lashed shore, and be beaten by the frigid, salty Sea wind. There’s something very special about my homeland, and the longer I am away, the harder the pull to return home becomes. A desperate need to return to where I belong. To where I should be.

The New Year will see a new blog, new material and new content. ‘In the Chimehours‘ will be an exploration of English folklore, folk tradition & magic, and my journey as an English Witch returning to her roots. The past couple of months have seem some rather large changes and shifts in me, and this blog will most definitely reflect that.

The boys at Miles Cross (Matt Baldwin-Ives and Ian Thurlby) are absolute stars, and incredibly talented photographers (though they are both so very modest and wouldn’t agree with me). They have been kind enough to provide the images for the project, and I’m so excited & honoured to be able to show off their work. I’m looking forward to getting together with them for a few beers and shenanigans whilst home. You should all definitely check out their website!

I’ll keep you all posted… And I’ll be back soon…

 

Dropping-wells of fire, rich in streaming gold…

One of the earliest memories I have of the Laburnum tree is of staring out of my parent’s bedroom window,  watching the beautifully long and delicate racemes of bright yellow flowers, swaying in the breeze.

There were many Laburnum trees growing in the neighbourhood when I was young. I can remember my sadness as they were all mercilessly cut down, as they posed a threat to the local children.

It is said that the Laburnum and Lilac would mourn, if a tree of like kind was cut down in their vicinity, by not blooming the next year. But there were no more Laburnum to watch for blooms nearby, they were all gone. I can remember laying flowers on the stumps that were left behind.

Every part of this tree is poisonous you see, and the seeds that develop after flowering are particularly so. I was fascinated by them, awed by their beauty, but I would always keep a safe distance from them. My mother  warned me how poisonous they were, especially since I loved to snack on freshly shucked peas straight from the pod, and the seed pods of the Tree of Golden Rain are very similar.

The Laburnum were introduced to the UK  in Elizabethan times from the mountains of Southern Europe and has proved hardy, decorative and useful ever since. It’s heartwood is the most gorgeous shade of deep olive brown, surrounded by contrasting creamy-yellow sapwood. It is ideal for turning, and was once widely used for bagpipe parts.

If you look closely at the flowers and their fresh green, clover like foliage you can see that this stunning tree is actually part of  the pea family, which makes the Laburnum a close relative to Scotch Broom.

Like it’s cousin, Broom, it is beloved of Bees,  extremely protective and great for purification. Hares and deer can feed on parts of this tree without any issues at all, and because of this the plant is believed to have magic properties in some regions.

It is a gateway tree. It challenges you. It reminds us that beauty can also be deadly.

Recently, I have been having a lot of dreams in which it features pretty heavily.

I look forward to what it has to teach me…