IMBOLC ART

  In my mind there´s a picture, an ideal vision, of each sabbat´s soul. I want to get them out of there, to make them visible for everyone. It´s nothing I could photograph, it´s more like a dreamy state of being.
  I decided to paint them. Here´s the first one, Imbolc:

Dreamy light blue with hints of pale pink in the top left corner, and minty green in the bottom right (the hints aren´t as visible here as in reality). Painted with watercolors.

Flat paintings are boring. I want my paintings to have more depth, and I don´t mean only with the colors. I mean actual 3D depth. I glued these paper snowflakes on my painting  to really make them pop.

On the bottom of the piece, I glued a little light turquoise glitter on top of the mint color, to accentuate the icy effect I was going after.

I added these tiny Swarowski glue-on crystals to make resemble both stars in the sky, which are still a very remarkable part of this darker side of the year, and little ice crystals.

To give even more depth, I chose to use these bigger Swarowskis as well. Now that´s 3D!

This type of frame doesn´t draw attention to itself, and showcases the piece separating it from it´s surrounding. This baby ended up in our entrance hall. It´s the best place because you see it when you come home, setting you right into the mood of current sabbat, and is the last thing you see when exiting.

  I´m pleased with how this piece turned out. It wasn´t said that would happend, since I haven´t done painting in two decades.
  Not only am I happy now, but also encouraged to paint more sabbats!

AROMATHERAPY NECKLACE

  I have been asked a lot about aromatherapy jewelry for those who do not have their ears pierced. Well, here is the solution: aromatherapy necklace!

Now available on Nelland Boutique!

  It took a lot of research to find the proper type of pendant, because I want all my jewelry to be first and foremost be safe to wear. Essential oils are so strong, that I do not want to risk their contact with the skin.
  This pendant is solid in the back, so it will not leak any oil when in touch with clothing or the skin. The front is abundantly cut open for the oil to evaporate through, while still protecting clothes from staining.
  I fixed the pendant to the middle of the chain, so that it always stays in place, keeping the lock in it´s place in the neck as well.

  I welcome this new type of aromatherapy jewelry to my collection with open arms! On days when I want to wear teeny tiny stud earrings (on which it is impossible to add essential oil), I can now boost my being with aromatherapy via my new necklace! Cool!

  Check out more on Nelland Boutique on Etsy!

IMBOLC FASHION: SNOWFLAKES

  When I pulled out my Imbolc garderobe last week, I noticed, for my own surprise, that it was one outfit short. A slight setback, since I thought I had covered it all last year. Oh well, now I got to let my imagination fly again, and here´s the result:

A loose-fitting, light blue stretch jersey dress. I see Imbolc mainly in light blue and grey, so this outfit nails the essence of it, snowflakes and all.

These snowflakes I made three years ago, when expecting our daughter. Back then I still had the time and peace to work on something as time consuming and detailed as these. They are just right for this freezing wintery weather, turning cold into beauty. The dress fabric is quite thick and up close actually looks a bit like quilt material. =)

For once the makeup is showing! I repeated the cool light blue in my eyeshadow, binding the whole look together. Besides the eyeshadow the makeup is very natural. Only nude tones are used on the face, light beige on the cheeks and clear glittery gloss on the lips.

  It was a lot of fun creating and making this outfit. Now I´m kinda glad I was one outfit short!  =)

YULE FASHION COLLECTION

  Although Christmas seems long gone, in my calendar Yule time extends all the way from early December through mid-January.
  Now Imbolc is approaching and it is time to sum up my Yule wardrobe. It´s all done and completed now, and instead of the usual five outfits, there are seven in this collection. Christmas and New Year both fall in Yule period, and they both have strong individual styles. So I made a couple of outfits just for Christmas and just for New Year.

This first outfit, St Lucy, can be worn all through Yule. It is merely wintery, not Christmasy.

The applique in the shirt is so rich, that only a pair of aromatherapy earrings is needed to complete the look.

Sheepskin tunic is also appropriate all Yule long. (I wear it with dark grey leggings, but I did not include them in the picture because I have not made them myself but are store-bought.)

Only tiny golden earrings are needed for this surprisingly masculine outfit.

The third outfit, Cottage look, is also wearable all through Yule.

This year I added new earrings for variety.

  The previous three outfits make the base of my artistic Yule fashion collection. In addition, here are the rest, which take turns. First two are for setting Christmas mood:

Gingerbread dress.

To my own surprise, The Elf outfit is the only one that celebrates the most obvious Christmas color, red.

This Yule I made new aromatherapy earrings to match the necklace, which I also remodeled this December. Live and learn. Perfectionism keeps one going. =)

The Fireworks outfit is for post-Christmas, when it feels like I´m ready for New Year´s mood.

All new diy jewelry this year.

Ball Drop in NYC is the other outfit for post-Christmas Yule time.

  I´m so happy to have completed this Yule collection! It´s an amazing feeling to know that I now have a fully working wardrobe for work, all year round!

YULE FASHION: SAINT LUCY

  Inspired by winter´s beautiful snowy forests and St Lucy´s Day (celebrated Dec 13th, particularly in Sweden these days) I created this outfit for myself:

This is as wintery as it gets. Nature is in all different shades of grey now, like the base of my outfit, with snow piled on evergreens. No signs of Christmas, simply celebrating true winter. This outfit is great all through Yule (early December through mid January).

Nature´s art, my never ending source of inspiration.

My art. Green aromatherapy earrings complement the look. In this traditional makeup, with faint red lips and cheeks, I try to capture the essence of ancient beauty ideals. Mankind has always sought for and appreciated beauty, and often traditional is better than quick fashion trends.

The shirt is simple cotton jersey, and the pants are dark grey corduroy.

The appliques continue in the back. Back is often neglected and left plain for some reason. I like to add detail there too, when appropriate.

   In truth, I´m no saint, and don´t try to impersonate one, but my goal is to shine happiness and good mood around me, making my own little bubble a better place. Deep down that´s selfish, but I believe others benefit from it too by (hopefully) getting a smile on their face. There´s enough bad in this world, so every effort adding good to it is welcome!

SAMHAIN FASHION COLLECTION

  Here´s my complete artistic Samhain fashion collection, all five outfits:

The French Artist.

The 1800´s.

Besides Halloween, these spider & pearl aromatherapy earrings suit this outfit perfectly.

The Goth. Apparently lying flat on the floor does not do justice on the dress...

These fancy crosses are also aromatherapy earrings.

The Hobo.

Pentacle aromatherapy earrings.

Schoolgirl meets Ringu.

A pair of very classic bow earrings, found in numerous colors in my little shop Nelland Boutique.

  This collection of five outfits serves me throughout Samhain, each year from about mid-October until early December. It´s a bliss to pull out a new wardrobe each time a season changes!

SAMHAIN FASHION: THE GOTH

  Deep purple is a color of high spirituality and wisdom. I´m not sure I possess either quality, but I wanted the color in my Samhain collection. Even if only to pretend my capabilities are greater than in reality... =)

  Gothic style is undoubtedly beautiful and magnificent. Needless to say, it suits Samhain perfectly, and I wanted a piece of it in my collection too. But boy, what a challenging task to tone it down to fit everyday life while still preserving it´s spirit.

A basic dress with modern print on it. The dress itself is not festive, and it makes the whole just right to be worn at work. All the accessories are old, excessive, and I like them a lot. So I knew the dress would have to be more on the plain side to avoid a party look.

A bow on the head adds a touch of femininity and opulence, which is needed in goth.

The pattern I used to make this dress is the same one I used for my funeral- and Romania dresses. It´s a rare pleasure to find a good new pattern!

Strong makeup is a must. Samhain is such a dark time of year, in every aspect, that dark makeup is allowed, fine, and a nice change to the usual natural look. Here I applied shimmering medium grey eyeshadow all over the eyes, upper and lower lids and across the crease and fading towards eyebrows. Then to further deepen and "open up" them I applied shimmering dark purple to the outer third of the moving lid and out towards the brow bone, blending well. Blush is actually just a bronzer, didn´t want cheerful cheeks, merely sculpted ones. On the lips purple of course. 

  Overall an important marriage of the garment and accessories. Alone neither would meet the desired result, but together create a gratifying whole.

P.S.  This outfit actually replaces the goth from last year. The shirt proved to be too sweaty in the long run, and since I had enough pant-based outfits in this collection, I decided to switch to a dress. Thank goodness for evolution! =)

SAMHAIN FASHION: SCHOOL GIRL MEETS RINGU

  My love for classic looks extends all the way to school uniforms. They are a universal phenomenon, but not used in my country, which is probably why I am intrigued by them.

  But this latest outfit of mine is also strongly inspired by the Japanese horror movie Ringu. Mixing innocence with terror is effective.

There is more innocence than terror in my look, but after all this is a business outfit...

A blouse and mini skirt is the classic schoolgirl look. To make it wearable and practical for everyday use, I made the "blouse" of ordinary cotton jersey and slipped a pair of pants under the mini skirt. Colors black and white were essential in my head for this look for some reason, but I could not find a proper checkered fabric for the skirt in b&w, so I had to go with this one. It´s more modern and actually keeps the outfit from being too costume-ish.

My undone hair brings a bit of horror here...

The skirt is sewn right onto the hem of the shirt. So when I move and turn, it stays in place and does not twist around me nastily.

Well, at least it made my hair stand up!

  If you think this is blah, go ahead and watch Ringu here!