A fluffy, sunset cloud. I’m in love with my little moon 😍 Also love that I spend a good chunk of Beltaine painting this ❤
Did you know you can see all my videos early on just the 1$ USD patreon tier? I elaborate on the ideas, or feelings, or experiences behind my videos over there as well, so you’ll get more behind the scenes.
Hope you’re all having a lovely Sunday, loves. And for those of you who enjoy seeing the kittens in my videos, they definitely made appearances 😹
So since I want to create more space to begin the Yuletide stockpile of tea, I decided to throw a (very rare) sale on my Zodiac teas! There are between 10-20 bags of each sign, depending on the sign, and they’re all 20% off! You can take a gander here.
Next month, I’ll be making some big orders of ingredients and begin making the teas that sell like hotcakes during the holidays (I’ll give you one guess as to which ones those may be!). It will ease me into the busy season, but also ease the work when it gets really hectic in November & December. I can already tell my future self is going to be very happy that I began making lots of teas early!
In other news, it’s been a busy summer! Lots of visiting people, lots of fun adventures canoeing and tubing on the river nearby. Of course I’ve gone out to the lake a few times, though the water cooled down after a rain last week, I was sad that I couldn’t really swim in it! Oh well, it will level out and I would like to bring myself to the beach if not every week, then every other week. I love Kincardine so, and I loooove lake Huron just as much. I feel so very much like myself in the water ❤
Day 26: Craft a Sigil
Craft a sigil that represents the path you are on or the path you want to follow. This is a deeply personal creation so put some thought into it. (Recommended Resource: Practical Sigil Magic by Frater U.D.)
This is my most important sigil, and yes, it is also my shop’s logo! Of course it is, what kind of witch would I be if everything wasn’t meaningful and full of intent? 😉
When I was designing it, I was tempted to go the usual route of runes, or simple symbols incorporated into the sigil. However, as I am always pulled to do, I decided to go with what appealed to me the most, the thing that resonated with me the most, and of course, not necessarily the easiest thing to recreate off hand.
To me, this sigil looks very Elven, which evokes a sense of magick, especially magick in everything. The flowing lines in themselves represent something that begins as a small point, a small idea, at the bottom, and grows upwards. Like a seed rooting down, supported by the earth’s nutrients, waters, and the plants that grew and died to provide new life.
The small plant in the center has three leaves. For me, that initially represents an idea growing stronger. The two leaves that always pop out first for any seedling to provide a wide and strong foundation for receiving the sun’s rays. The third leaf, a sign of growing and reaching higher towards full potential.
The surrounding lines/vines also represent the flow and protection of magick, the things that nourish the plant in the center, physically, spiritually. Then near the top of the vines, they create a crescent moon shape. The moon has always been important in my own practice, the energy that I’ve pulled down and worked with, that has been woven through my life and actions. I love the imagery of the magick of the vines flowing up through the moon and up into the expanse above. That my magick flows out into the universe, nourished by it, and supplying nourishment for others.
So while I do very much enjoy sigils made with bits of established symbols, and the idea of sharing magick and symbolism with my fellow witches, I think this sigil for me is so very personal, incredibly representative of my own energy, my own views, and sends that energy out, of wanting to connect and create happiness and growth in the world.
Just go do this challenge already! You can find it at Plentiful Earth ❤
The inspiration bug has bitten hard over here. Not only for paintings, but I’m feeling the need to make music wash over me again. I’m focusing more on the paintings at the moment, but I have been recording snippets of melody and even lyrics now and again.
It’s funny that I used to think I SHOULD only focus on one or two things, and now I’m like, YAAAASSS, all the things, all the time. I’ve even been planning a couple different meads. And also (see I told you I just wanna do all the things), I’ve been feeling a very strong pull back into witchcraft, which has fallen very far off to the side in the past few years.
I suppose now’s the time to do things since once the holiday buying season ramps up, I’m not going to have time for anything at all.
But let’s talk about the paintings because I haven’t shared them with you here yet. I currently have 4 that have been printed and are ready to ship when I get the proper sleeves for them, they’re my Elemental Goddesses.
Even though I wanted to start putting these up in the shop earlier, turns out I didn’t plan for the extra matting around the prints, and now I have improper sized plastic sleeves to ship the prints in. Sigh.
The reason why I’m waiting to fix that issue is that I am currently in preparations for my first craft market next month, so I’m waiting for funds to be replenished first. However, I’m excited to see what a market is like on the selling side of things!
Lastly, I just finished Her last night, is my Star Goddess. I really loved painting Her, and I think when I order prints, I’m setting one aside for my own wall. Also, nebulas are so fun to paint!
Finally done, and oh so yummy! These twelve teas are quite fruity, and very dessert-like, yum!
Aries
rooibos, peaches and cream, and a hint of cinnamon
Taurus
black tea, coconut and chai spices (cinnamon, clove, and ginger)
Gemini
green tea, strawberry, spearmint, and sweet vanilla cream
Taurus
Cancer
honeybush tea, cantaloupe, lemon myrtle, a little twist of lime, and a whole lot of juicy melon flavour
Leo
rooibos, pineapple, orange, and delicious cream; a scrumptious pineapple and orange creamsicle
Virgo
black tea, blueberries and cream, rosehips and a swirl of cornflower petals
Cancer
Libra
green tea with a lovely blend of lemon myrtle, lavender, calendula, and creamy goodness; like a fancy bowl of ice cream
Scorpio
honeybush, blackberries, rosehips, and hazelnut; truly a fancy dessert in a cup
Sagittarius
rooibos, banana, papaya, and guava
Scorpio
Capricorn
black tea, almonds, and strawberries; marzipan and strawberry jam
Aquarius
green tea, grapefruit, lemongrass, hibiscus, orange, and coconut
Pisces
honeybush, cherries, and vanilla cream
Capricorn
This group of tea has definitely been a lesson in the fact that knowing when I’m going to be done formulating is not always very predictable! I had been hoping to finish them by the end of April, in fact I had 9 or 10 of them finished! However, a few teas were just not working out for me, flavours weren’t turning out how I wanted them, and then reformulation had to happen.
It’s also a lesson that sometimes flavours that work in baked goods, or food that we actually eat doesn’t translate very well with the ingredients I have for tea. And that’s ok, because now I know!
I have been waiting for quite some time to get this project all done, but you know how it is when you do a bigger project, and in my case, the teas had to be JUST RIGHT! I’ve been mentioning working on it here and there over on my Facebook page, so I know there wasn’t much anticipation here on the blog, but yay!!! It’s done! And now for the big reveal!!!
*drumroll*
A tea for each house, whichever you’ve been sorted into! You can purchase them individually, or all together to save a few bucks!
This would definitely make a perfectly nerdy gift for your favourite Potterhead!
Each tea is a specially blended dessert tea, so lots of yumminess to find here!
GRYFFINDOR
Rooibos and honeybush provide a fruity, earthy base for spiced root beer to delight your tongue. A sweet treat as you sit in front of the Gryffindor common room’s fires before going off to do something you perhaps shouldn’t be doing.
SLYTHERIN
Black tea provides a lovely malty and sweet base for pistachios, cherries and lemongrass. A delicious treat for pistachio pudding lovers, and prestigious witches and wizards alike!
HUFFLEPUFF
Three citrus fruits flavour delicious, spongy cake with a delectable, buttery icing.
Honeybush tea mixed with lemon and orange pieces, calendula petals for a pop of sunny colour. Essences of cake and warm icing swirl in this tasty cup to bring you a lovely cup of dessert.
RAVENCLAW
Green tea blended with sweet blueberries, peppermint to lend a bit of brain power, all atop a creamy cheesecake. All this in a cup of tea? It must be magic!
And if you’re looking to purchase all four, click here!
Hey guys! As I mentioned, there will be some recipe changes, part of this is because of where I get my supplies, and the other part is making sure that my teas (especially older blends like Freyja) stay the most delicious they can possibly can!
So what’s changed in the Freyja blend? Peaches have replaced the nectarines (peach was the original plan anyhow), and now there is flavour added to enhance the orange and peach notes.
If I haven’t mentioned it before here, when you add fruits to tea, you really aren’t going to get much flavour from the dried fruit. The only way you could do this naturally is if you had, for example, peach and orange juice to add to the tea. That’s why in most teas (especially the fruity ones), you’ll see that flavour is added.
Anywho! Stay tuned for some more recipe updates, whether it is reblending or discontinuing (sad, I know, but I can’t keep in the shop what doesn’t sell unfortunately, but it does help me focus on what you guys do want to have!).
I hope your Beltaine has been magnificent and full of all the fertility of the season in whichever way you need it!
Mia
❤
Enjoy Sansa’s favourite dessert in this lovely cup of green tea, filled to the brim with buttery lemon cakes.
Green tea blended with lemon pieces, calendula and essence of buttery cake. Enjoy on tense afternoons when you don’t know who to trust and are perhaps plotting revenge on your captors.
Find Sansa’s Lemon Cakes here, and find other story time teas here.
I’ve been strong-armed into participating in the YouTube Pagan Challenge!! Well, lovingly by Jo 😉
I will likely change up how I video… but I’m (fortunately?) much too tired to have re-recorded it! I don’t want to be as close next time, also on a day that is not so terribly dark! Oh how perfectionism stinks sometimes, nothing is ever good enough! 😛
Anywho, join in if you haven’t already, or take a look at all the witchy videos!! ❤
Latin name:
Cyclopia
Species for commercial use:
intermedia
genistoides
maculata
sessiliflora
subternata
Native to:
South Africa
Why is it called honeybush?
Well, the flowers smell like honey, which I imagine is like heaven!
What is the flavour like?
If you’ve had rooibos before, you’ll know that rooibos tastes sweet, woody, and nutty. Honeybush is fairly similar, but in place of the more woody/nutty flavour, honeybush tastes quite fruity. If you have a sniff of plain honeybush tea, you won’t smell any particular fruit, but that general sweet fruit smell. When you drink it, it’s much the same as the smell, there’s a nice and sweet earthiness to it, and then a lovely fruit-like flavour.
Ok, I love fruity flavours, so how do I brew it?
Unlike brewing tea from the tea plant (Camellia sinensis), honeybush, like rooibos, does not become bitter if you over-brew it. That means you can totally forget about it, but please, don’t put it in the microwave to reheat it… that’s such an injustice to tea!! Stick it in a pot on the stove instead and heat until it is ALMOST boiling.
Also, you’ll notice that it is composed of small pieces of what looks like (and is) bark! If you’re someone who doesn’t like drinking tea pieces, make sure you use a fine-mesh basket infuser instead of a ball.
Image from: http://www.biodiversityexplorer.org
What about health benefits?
There are some other reported benefits, including antioxidants, protecting from inflammation diseases, phytoestrogens, and combating tumours…
HOWEVER!
I am not a doctor, and there doesn’t seem to have been enough large-scale research to determine with confidence that honeybush tea will actually help you out with these health issues.
Drinking tea period is a much healthier choice over many other mass-produced, over-sugared drinks. And adding a new tea you may never have tried before is a fantastic way to enjoy lots of variety and yumminess in your healthier drink choices!
Ok, not-doctor-lady, what about the magickal properties of this tea?
While not much seems to be associated with honeybush tea, from my own experiences with it, like most tea bases, it really takes on the qualities of the ingredients added to it.
However, as a base, this tea in particular adds a grounded energy to the tea, not hard, and immovable, but the soft, life-giving kind of grounded.
I would suggest it is a good tea for magicks concerning:
love, relationships, fertility, creation, nurturing life, enjoying sweet moments & celebration.
So if you’re thinking you’d like to try out some honeybush tea now that you know a lot more about it, I have a few honeybush blends in my shop!
The Forest Witch 