Elves

In England it is the smallest trooping fay who are called elves and the 

name is applied particularly to the small faerie boys.

The elves emrge at night and sing and dance in the light of the full moon, 

their beautiful music is said to bring the trees and rocks to life so that they too will 

dance under the moon.

Any mortal that hears the tune 'The Elf King's Reel' will fall under the spell 

and dance until the morning, the only way to break the enchantment is to cut the 

strings of the fiddle.

Faeries and Folklore of the British Isles

Snails, more than garden pest...

Like most enthusiastic gardeners I view the appearance of snails munching on my newly planted lettuce with  little tolerance! But there are other uses for these little shelly beasties..

In Cornwall, snails were regarded as a lucky charm, especially ones with a striped shell. The snail would be thrown backwards over the finder's head while chanting:

'Lucky snail, lucky snail, go over my head

And bring me a penny before I go to bed.'

There are quite a few traditional remedies using snails, however I don't think I would recommend them!

Snail juice in particular was considered to be an effective treatment for weak backs and ankles; the snails were either boiled and the liquid drunk or twelve snails would be collected, crushed, then hung in a bag. The liquid which dripped from the bag would be collected and rubbed into the weak areas.

As I said, I wouldn't recommend this! Yugh!

Faerie Flora 2013

Delivery..

My delivery waiting to be put on a boat in Hong Kong!

According to a Devon legend...

According to a well known Devon legend, the hard frosts which sometimes 

occur at this time of year are the revenge of a man called Frankin, 

a beer brewer who was put out of business by the competition from the cider makers of the west country. He vowed vengeance and offered his soul to the Devil in return for frosts 

on each of the three Frankin's Days' around May 21st, which he hoped would kill 

the apple blossom and ruin the cider crop.

Luckily for cider drinkers  a few frosts don't stop our locals brewing up a good cider!

When I was younger we used to buy a barrel every summer when we were 

haymaking from a local apple orchard, the rumour was it tasted so good because 

he used to put a live rat in the barrel to add flavour!

I'm sure it wasn't true tho!

To marry in May...

To marry in May is very unlucky and to wear green is worse.

Married  in May and kirked in green

Both bride and bridegroom won't long be seen

O' marriages in May

Bairns die in decay

This little extract is from a Year Book written in 1826 by Hone

On May the 20th 1736 the corpse of Samuel Baldwin was immersed in the sea off the Needles on the Hampshire coast. This was performed in consequence of an earnest wish of the deceased in order to disappoint his wife who had repeatedly assured him during their many arguments that if she survived him she would revenge her conjugal sufferings by dancing on his grave!

It doesn't say whether they were married in May.

A bluebell wood...

It has been a beautiful sunny weekend here in the west country and we made the
 most of it. 

Driving through the green overgrown lanes around our home, the sunlight 
dappling through the green leaves, was a magical journey. 
On either side the woods stretched out and 

underneath in a lovely blue carpet were thousands of bluebells. 
Very tempting.

The bluebell is one of the most potent of faerie flowers and a bluebell wood is a 

very dangerous place to stray into. It will be full of faeries weaving spells and 

enchantments amongst the trees in to which you will be drawn if you are not careful.

Mortals will be held captive until led out by another human and if a child wanders into 

their webs of enchantment they will be whisked away to faerie land and never seen again.

The faeries are called to their revels by the sound of the bluebells chiming but if a 

human hears the chiming, it means a malicious faerie is nearby and can possibly 

fortell your own death. 

For this reason it is known as Deadman's Bells in Scotland.

If you wish to attract faeries to your garden plant bluebells in the flowerbeds.

Faerie Flora (coming June 2013)

The magic of primroses

 The primrose is also known as faerie cups and is a very magical plant. 

Faeries inhabit the flowers and hide beneath the leaves and they will do their best 

to protect the plant from harm. They will be very displeased if you allow a primrose 

to die in your garden.

A faerie portal can be opened by striking a faerie rock with a posy of primrose flowers. 

For your own protection you must use the correct amount of blooms (which I believe is five) 

The rock will split and the entrance revealed. The faeries dislike being disturbed and will 

try to pull you through the entrance into their world and you will never be allowed to 

return to the land of mortals.

If, however, you have used the right amount of flowers they will be unable to do so

 and don't forget, if you wish to see the faeries that reside within remember to eat 

a primrose flower first and this will make all visible.

Faerie Flora has landed!

At last my package has arrived from China!

I was in the garden planting some lettuce seedlings when the DHL driver rang the doorbell so I scampered to the door covered in dirt, wearing wellies and brandishing a trowel. 

And it looks great.. I am so relieved, I was imagining all sorts of horrors.

The only thing that I am going to have to change is the thickness of the cover, it's too thin at the moment and the corners have started to curl already on the sample they sent to me.

  The order has to come by boat from China and will take about a month so I am hoping it will arrive in time for me to start selling it at the Witches Market, Glastonbury in June

Well, while I am waiting for my delivery, ho hum( I have been tracking this via DHL, it's fascinating watching the route its been taking,China to Hong Kong then to Germany, West Midlands and then down to Bristol, just hope it makes the last leg of the journey, am I sad or what?!!) I will carry on my blog..
Mind you, somebody who writes about faeries has got to be a bit odd, well just a teensy weensy bit!

This is what everybody should have at the bottom of the garden!

Now the better weather is here, the spring flowers are popping out which I am sure encourages the faeries to come out, and I am sure this is what she is waiting for.

The primroses are abundant now in the hedges of the west country, my favourite spring flower. As well as being pretty it has medicinal properties as well.  These plants give faeries invisibility, if they are eaten it will enable you to see the little people. Hang a bunch on your door and it will act as an invitation; to keep them out of the house, sprinkle the petals outside the door.

I'm beginning to get excited!

After teething troubles with the publishing of Faerie Flora things are looking promising! The artwork got lost on the way over to China, the computer went down! Then the printers wanted full payment up front, yoicks!
I politely offered a deposit in good faith and happily they accepted.. thank goodness I was beginning to break out in a cold sweat.
But things are looking good now, Amy, such a nice girl, from China has sent me photos of the proofs which she is sending over. They are looking good and I am getting quite excited, tho I am telling myself it all might look terrible, it will get lost on the way over etc. Still I have put on the pics..

 This is a children's book that I am having printed at the same time, about faeries of course!