Yule Crafts

[Calantiriel]

• Yule Goddess Doll
  
  Items needed:
  newspaper
  unbleached muslin (1 yard)
  sisal rope
  white glue
  florist wire
  small egg-shaped Styrofoam ball
  trim
  
  Directions:
  1.Fold one section of newspaper in half and roll it lengthwise.
  
  2.Fold the roll in half, and twist a twist tie at the upper third of the folded roll to form the body and legs. It may be helpful to stuff the legs into a large bottle while you work.
  
  3.Cut off a 20 inch section of florist wire and twist the ends together. Twist the ends into a loop approximately 1 inch long, and bend the wires close together. This will be the arms and hands
  
  4.Stick two pieces of florist wire approximately 6 inches long into the wide end of the Styrofoam ball and fold them around the ball, twisting them together to hold it securely. With the remaining wire, secure the ball to the loop of the newspaper - this will be the head.
  
  5.Thread the arms through the paper of the loop, not the loop itself, to help it remain secure.
  
  6.Mix the glue with an equal part of water to form a solution that the material will be dipped in and used to hold the fabric to the doll and stiffen the fabric to desired shape.
  
  7.From the muslin, rip several 1/4- 1/2 inch strips of fabric, run them through the glue solution. The material should be saturated, but not dripping. Wrap the hands and arms wire with the material, covering the wire completely. It may take several applications of material. Tuck the ends into the material already wrapped.
  
  8.Repeating the same dipping process, cover the head first with horizontal wraps and then with vertical. Wrap the body of the doll crossing over from the front to the back in an "X" shape. Wrap the neck wire and secure the ends of the strips
  
  9.For the skirt: Rip a 12 inch by 20 inch piece of material, sew the 12 inch ends together if desired, and dip the material into the solution. Pull up over the legs, gather the waist and secure to the paper using a 1/2 strip acting as a belt.
  
  10.Make the apron - rip a 2 inch wide strip that is wide enough to fit over the top of the skirt, and cut the front bottom edge into a curve if desired. Secure the apron with a piece of trim.
  
  11.Rip a 1 inch piece of material approximately 8 inches long, dip, and drape around the neck.
  
  12.Rip a 3 inch wide piece of material approximately 16 inches long and drape around back and over arms.
  
  13.Arrange the skirt into desired folds and allow doll to dry.
  
  14.After the doll has dried, cut the rope into 12 12-inch sections and fold in half - this will be the part of the hair. Sew the ropes at the fold down the center of the head. Unravel the rope.
  
  15.You can garnish the White Goddess with a wreath of dried flowers if you like - take a vine and wrap it on itself until you have a wreath. Insert dried flowers into the wreath and place on the head.
  
  16.She can be left in the bottle for year-round use, or placed on top of the tree at Yule.
  
  
  Yule Door Ornament
  
  Items You Will Need
  
  Small broom, about 1' by 8"
  Plastic seasonal flowers
  {Holly, berries, mistletoe, evergreens}
  3 different colours of ribbon, about 12"-16" long
  Some thin wire
  {strip garbage bag twist-ties of thier paper coats}
  Ornament oriented to the sabbat
  Wire Cutters
  Scissors
  
  DIRECTIONS:
  Using the wire cutters cut down the flower stems to a workable height. Using the wire, begin tieing in the seasonal flowers and berries at the base of the broom where the bristles begin. Manipulate the leaves of the flowers to lie flat against the bristles. This will give a good background for the colour of the flowers to show.
  
  Lay your berries and or fruits in between the flowers and tie off with wire. Once you have all the foliage in, wire in the sabbat ornament of your choice.
  
  To hide the wire tie the ribbon in a bow or whatever knot you prefer and let some of the excess drape around and under the the piece.
  
  TO HANG: String a bit of wire through the top of the handle and hang on a nail in the door. If you prefer to hang your broom bristles up, then weave the wire through some of the bristles and really twist for strength. If you are hanging this on the front door, it's going to get a lot of traffic by it, so make sure it is secured well.
  
  
  
  Yule Gods-Eye
  
  An amulet made for protection that uses eye symbolism to represent the Sun is the South American God's Eye, which has its origins with the native people of that continent. These amulets are made from two sticks placed across each other to form an equilateral cross. Colored yard is then wound around them to form the body of the Eye. By alternating the colors of yarn the finished product looks like a stylized eye, and its four points symbolize the four directions. The Native South Americans used them both for decoration and as protective talismans.
  To make your own God's eye, you will need a quarter-inch dowel available at craft and hardware stores, a pair of scissors, and a collection of colored yarns (popsicle sticks work well too).
  Cut the dowel into lengths approximately ten inches long. Holding the dowels together at their centers so that they form and equal length cross, begin wrapping your first yarn color around the center in an "X" pattern to stabilize the dowels.
  Now begin slowly working your design outward. Wrap the yarn completely around one point of the dowel and then move on to the next point.
  Periodically stop and push the yarn down against the center so that you have a tight weave. When you have wrapped the yarn within half an inch of the dowels, stop and wrap the yarn several times tightly around one point. You can then tie it off, leaving a loop from which it can be hung.
  God's Eyes can be made of any size, depending on how you want to use them. Larger ones can be used for protection like a Native North American medicine shield, and smaller ones in Yule colors make excellent Yule tree decorations and can symbolize the return of the Sun. If they are decorative items to honor the Sun, then your work is done. If they are to function as protective talismans, then you should be visualizing their purpose as you weave them and consecrate them to their purpose later on.
  
  Taken from
  The Sabbats- A New Approach to Living the Old Ways
  by Edain McCoy