Vine and Bramble

At noon on the solstice, these appeared on the porch. We have added Diabolical, XVI, Howling, and Devoted to our shelves. The books are gorgeous. Each is hand numbered, with high quality binding and lovely paper. They are all from Scarlet Imprint. I have read through most of Devoted already, and am thoroughly enjoying it. My favorite essay so far is “The Mysteries” by Stephen Grasso. It discusses a new theory about deity, particularly the consistency of personality and experiences of different people with a specific entity. He’s very good at approaching working with these entities in a scientific way without allowing science to ruin the experience, and it has given me a new perspective on some of my own beliefs and interactions. In other words, this is a really great book.

Now for new stitchery. I have begun a new project on a piece of brown wool that combines the coven symbol with some symbols that are important to me. It’s intended to be a shawl, and will be good for meditation in chilly rooms. I started with a sketch, then cut it out and drew on the outline on the fabric.

Here it is with no stitching, at the very beginning of the project, about six weeks ago.

Here it is with nearly everything outlined. I am almost done with it! I have the coven symbol in the background, a stag for the Horned One, and a datura and a horse for myself. I’m thinking that my reasons for the horse should be fairly obvious to people who know me at all. I think I started talking about them about as soon as I could talk. The datura is a newer interest, but the plant has been very clear about working with me, and as a result, I think it is entirely appropriate on here.