Tag: witchcraft

Products, Wheel of the Year

Autumn Equinox rituals & our Autumn Collection

Wild Fen

Hello Wild Soul,

How are you as we move towards Autumn?

Monday 22nd September marks the Autumn Equinox here in the Northern Hemisphere, and in astronomical terms, it is the beginning of the Autumn season. If you are new here, or would like to dive a little deeper into the changing energy at this time of the year, you may wish to catch up with our Autumn Equinox blog post.

With the rain and winds this past week, I have found myself craving soups and stews, reaching for a cosy cardigan, and getting into bed a little earlier in the evening. Have you noticed any changes to your rhythm yet?

The Fruit Harvest

The Autumn Equinox (or Mabon) is often thought of as the second harvest festival of the year, (the first being Lammas: the grain harvest).

Mabon, is the time when fruit is becoming ripe and is gathered in from the trees and hedgerows. This year, the harvest seems especially abundant, and we have been enjoying stewing fruits to top porridge, fill crumbles and make jams and syrups.

The Woodland Trust have a great guide to foraging in September for some top tips, identification and recipes to make the most of Autumn’s bounty.

Beautiful rosehips against a bright blue sky, one of my favourite Autumn sights

Seed Gathering Season

The Autumn Equinox also marks the start of The Tree Council’s seed gathering season. They have some brilliant resources available online, to support anyone who wants to have a go at planting their own trees from seed. You can download their Tree Grower’s Guide here.

We have loved nurturing a little nursery of Elder, Rowan and Ash trees that we grew from last year’s seed and will be out gathering more in the coming weeks.

A few of our little trees grown from last year’s seeds

We have been working with some glorious woods for this collection, inspired by the abundance of Autumn, wild shapes, and the rich colours and markings in the woods.

Here is a sneak peak!

We are also excited to tell you that we have been working with a brand new wood for this collection too. An Autumn icon, the Horse Chestnut tree.

Horse Chestnut Energy & Symbolism: Expansion, Potential, Growth, Hope

Horse Chestnut, aka the Conker tree, was introduced to Britain in the late 16th century and has since become a symbol of the Autumn season. Its leaves are one of the first to change colour and fall as we crunch them underfoot in our search for their plump, shiny conkers.
In Spring, their large, sticky buds open up like vivid green palms, welcoming us to a new season of growth. Their large, conic flowers decorate the trees in early Summer as if to announce the potential of the year ahead.

The windfallen Horse Chestnut wood that we have worked into a moon pendant has such unique character too.

Our Smoulder Sticks are back!

Crafted with our vibrant, homegrown herbs and flowers, our smoulder sticks are intended to support your wellbeing rituals.

Herbal Garden Smoulder Stick
Mugwort Smoulder Stick
Perfect for your wellbeing & seasonal rituals

Wishing you all a little magic on this new moon

Nic x

P.s you may also enjoy…

Some Simple New Moon Practices
Tree Guides for Embracing Change
Wheel of the Year

Trees of Samhain

Wild Fen

Hello Wild Soul,

As the Wheel of the Year reaches Samhain, I wanted to introduce you to two very special trees that have been guiding me lately and whose symbolism may speak to us as we move into the dark half of the year here in the Northern hemisphere.

In a recent post on Instagram, I talked about how experiencing a sense of awe has been shown to have a positive impact on our physical and emotional wellbeing along with our relationships.

The Autumn, feels like the perfect time to connect with a sense of awe whether it is gazing up at a starry sky, catching a misty sunrise or watching the woodland transform in front of our eyes. I experienced a sense of awe on a walk beneath some mighty Pine trees last week and I wanted to share a little more about this wonderful evergreen with you.

Scots Pine

Scots Pine is the most widespread variety of Pine in the world and is the only Pine native to the UK, although other species grow happily here including the Corsican or Black Pine that is predominantly grown for timber.

Scots Pine was one of the pioneer trees that first returned to Britain after the last Ice age, moving northwards where it formed the vast Caledonian forest in Scotland. Some remnants of this forest still remain today and protects an array of iconic wildlife including red squirrels, cross bills, and pine martens.

Their vast height and fresh resinous scent encourages us to look upwards, take a deep breath and open our mind and lungs. Being in their presence can help us to move from our busy minds and into the present moment. To experience reality with a fresh outlook and calmer sense of being.

Evergreens have been celebrated through the dark months since antiquity and Pine groves were especially important to the druids, who would decorate them around the time of the Winter Solstice.

To me, they are important to visit often through the cold months where I most appreciate their green, their freshness and the awe they inspire in me. Tell me, have you visited a Pine forest lately?

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Blackthorn

Blackthorn are small but mighty trees often found growing as part of hedgerows and boundaries. They are steeped in folklore and hold strong associations to the dark months on the year and the waning moon cycle. Their sharp thorns and dense thicket like growth are both protective to the wildlife who live and shelter within them yet attacking to those whom it prevents from entering.

Thorny Blackthorn

According to Celtic myth, the Cailleach (goddess of the Winter) beat her blackthorn staff on the ground around the time of Samhain ushering in Winter across the land.

Interestingly, Blackthorn is also the first tree to come into blossom at the end of Winter, providing a crucial early nectar source for insects and bringing a sense of hope that Spring will return to the land once again.

I often think of Blackthorn as a wise Elder that guides us with implementing the boundaries needed to protect our tender inner worlds, just as they protect wildlife. Their energy can guide us through the dark months and offer glimmers of hope that the wheel will turn once more towards Spring.

SHop NOw

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Further reading

Tree guides for the darker months

If you would like to read more about Samhain, you may enjoy our previous posts; the energy of Samhain, Samhain offerings and spontaneous rituals and the Wheel of the Year.

Wishing you all some peace and awe this week,

love,

Nic x

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Products, Wheel of the Year

October, Samhain, Self Care & Tree Prints!

Wild Fen

Hello Wild Soul,

How are you as we move through October?

Between the rain showers, we have been catching glimpses of some wonderful Autumnal magic. From misty sunrises, starry skies and dewy spider webs to the incredible Aurora borealis which we were overjoyed to see this month. And if that wasn’t enough, the largest Super Moon of the year graced the October skies and woah, it was a strong one – did you feel its impact?

Dew kissed Spider’s web
The Hunter’s Moon
Aurora borealis
Aurora watching

This season feels like such a potent one. As the light wanes, the Swallows have departed and the Starlings have arrived here on the land. The first frost seems to have encouraged the leaves to transform and the forests are full of mushrooms. I wonder, what is standing out to you about this transformative season?

First frost
Falling leaves
Magpie Inkcap

Samhain

Samhain (pronounced Sow-in) is celebrated at the end of this month and marks the end of the harvest and the birth of Wintertime. This Celtic festival inspired modern-day Halloween, and was once thought of as the end (and the beginning) of the year.

For me, it can sometimes feel a little overwhelming adjusting to the darker, colder days. The earth’s energy has shifted from one of growth and light to one of retreating, turning inwards and rest. This is also a time of endings that can evoke strong emotions in us all. You can read more about the energy of Samhain here.

Our Wheel of the Year reflection cards offer seasonal info, ideas for connecting with the season and journal prompts. Find them in store now.

Self care

Whilst our calendars and to-do lists may be feeling full at this time of year, taking the time to pause and check in on our energy is really valuable. How has the year impacted us so far? What emotions are present right now? and how may we be able to shift our energy if we are feeling tense or overburdened? A question you may wish to spend some time reflecting on at this time of year is, ‘how can I welcome more nourishment into my life?’

Wild Fen Updates

We will be heading to the fabulous Nottingham Pagan Market on Saturday 26th October, 12-5pm for the first time and we are really looking forward to it. We have some great events coming up throughout November and December too, you can find out where we will be at the bottom of our About page.

New Print

If you follow us on Social Media, you may well know that we have had a new print (or two) in the works for some time! We are so excited to finally share, that our Energy of Trees prints are now in store!

We are SO pleased with how they have turned out, they feel like a true celebration of our journey with trees over the past few years. We have adapted historical botanical drawings with our interpretation of the energy of our most beloved trees, combining our own observations and conversations together with ancient folklore. We would love to hear what you think of them.

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As with all our designs, they are printed on premium, recycled card (uncoated) and packed in biodegradable packaging. They are available in 2 sizes (Medium 8 x 10″ and Large 11 x 14″) and in light and dark versions.

As a valued newsletter subscriber you will receive 10% off any tree print when you add the discount code TREE10 at the checkout. This code is valid until midnight on Wednesday 23rd October.

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Coming up….

We are currently working on a very special Wild Jewellery collection to capture the magic of this season so do keep an eye on your inbox in the run up to Samhain as you will see the collection here first!

Wishing you all a little October magic this week,

With love,

Nic x

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Wheel of the Year

Awakening with Ostara

Wild Fen

My emergence into Spring is feeling rather slow this year. As my dear friend, Theresa put it, ‘it’s like waking up, but I’m not quite ready to jump out of bed yet!’ Some years, I am desperate to jump out of bed, and begin planting seeds and foraging those fresh Spring greens. But this year, as I sit in front of the fire and look out onto yet another wet day, my body whispers, ‘not yet’ and I remain in my late Winter cocoon a little longer.

In today’s post, I wanted to share with you my favourite question to return to at this time of year. I am celebrating a tree with deep associations to the season and sharing our first Wild Jewellery release of the year…

Continue reading “Awakening with Ostara” →