Free Spell for Magic Under the Solstice/Oak Supermoon!

Download these candle labels and petition sheet free right here, I designed
them just for you!

We've got some very powerful energies converging magically right now making tonight's full moon a very powerful time for magic.  Yesterday was the Summer Solstice which is of course the time of the year when the sun is at it's zenith.  The longest day of the year means the sun is at it's highest point at noon, and the period of time between sunrise and sunset is the longest of the year.  Magically during midsummer nature is at it's height of energy, Another of the energies converging right now is that tonight's full moon will be a supermoon.  The moons orbit around the earth is not a perfect circle, and once a year it ends up a bit closer to us than usual.  Tonight it will appear about 12% larger in the sky than usual.  Here is a link to a great article on the science of tonight's supermoon. On top of all of that, we are also in the Celtic month of the Oak and tonight is also the Oak moon according to Robert Grave's Celtic Tree Calendar, and the energies of Oak correspond with opening the door to opportunity, strength, wisdom and power.  Oak magic also includes luck, protection and abundance.

Free candle label and petition sheet click here to download your printable copy.

 Supermoon Spell to Achieve Success

I designed this spell specifically for the energies of tonight's Summer Solstice/ Oak/ Supermoon energies, but it can be altered for use during another full moon, summer solstice or during to Celtic Oak month June 10-July 7.

You will need:

• a candle, golden in color, yellow, or white.  You can use a tea light or votive candle in a small glass votive candle jar or a large jar candle.
• Printed candle label and petition sheet (click here to download) print the sheet and affix either the large or small candle label to your jar using a glue stick and have the petition sheet ready to write your petition on.
• pen
• incense of your choice, try frankincense or sandalwood
• Your choice of several of the following herbs; oak leaf or acorn, basil, bay, vetiver, patchouli, chamomile, cinquefoil, marigold, sunflower, st. johns wort, any herb corresponding with your specific success goal
• lighter or matches and a fireproof dish
• your favorite success oil or olive oil
• gold, yellow, or white square of fabric about 4x4 inches
• green or gold ribbon

Find a quiet place where you can be alone to work your magic, if you can do it outdoors under the moon all the better, but if you can't indoors is fine.  Light the incense and take some time to ground and center, cast your circle and summon the elements and the God and Goddess as you usually do.

Anoint your forehead with success oil (or olive oil) by using a drop of oil on your finger, marking your forehead from the center of eyebrows straight up, then directly above both eyebrows. put a drop of oil in your palm and rub palms together vigorously.  Light your candle in it's jar holder and hold the jar before you and charge it using this charm,

"I call upon the Sun and Moon with power strong and bright,

With my magic I ask a boon that you may grant this night.

For I am as the mighty oak that stands within great power,

I know that create success as I begin this very hour."

Now charge the candle with your power as you focus upon your goal complete, do not visualize the path your success will take, but the completed goal.  For instance if you're goal is success finding a home, do not visualize looking for a home, but see yourself already moved into your dream home, your furniture already there, family around the table in a new dining room, etc.  

Once you have thoroughly charged your candle with your goal, set it down and surround it with the magical herbs you've chose from the list.  Take the pen and write clearly your goal for success upon the petition sheet provided on the printout sheet.  Now hold it up towards the moon and state the following,

Success shall be mine, I know it is true,

With all that I say and all that I do,

I carry my goal and I do my best,

I send it to you, may it manifest!

My power is strong, as sound as can be,

with harm to none, so mote it be!"

Now light the petition in the candles flame and allow it to burn, placing it carefully in the fireproof dish.  Now your intention has gone into the spirit realm where it may grow and manifest in the material realm.  Once the ashes have cooled, bundle them and the herbs into the fabric and tie it with the ribbon.  Leave it near your candle to continue charging it as it burns down, then you may leave the bundle where you will see it daily, or carry it with you as you go forth to make your success in the world!

“The mighty oak was once a little nut that stood its ground.”-anon

I hope you've enjoyed this spell and that it will serve you well during this time of the Summer Solstice, Supermoon and Celtic Oak Month!

And again, the Wheel of the Year turns as we see the Sabbat of Midsummer
come around, rejoice in the cycles of the seasons and grow what you need the most to be
harvested as the wheel turns again!

If you love this candle sconce, click here for more details!

Brightest Blessings,

5 Pagan Festival Essentials From the Studio

Midsummer is right around the corner and the Pagan Festival season is upon us!  Will you be dancing in the moonlight and reveling in the sun?  We love the fun, workshops, shopping, drum circles, and the fellowship that comes with the festival season.  We love to don all of our favorite Pagan and witchy attire & jewelry, we even deck our tents or campers with our coolest tapestries, solar lights, wind chimes and more!  Before you head out to your favorite gathering, here are a few fun additions that are practical and eye catching as you make your way through the faire!

Dan and I setting up at St. Louis Pagan Picnic this year, one of our favorite Pagan Festivals!

This great beverage wrap insulator has the art of Greenman heat pressed
onto the surface of the fabric which is adhered to inner Neoprene™ rubber insulator. It has
beautiful black trim and a velcro closure. Works great for aluminum cans,
water bottles, and 16 oz widemouth bottles.  Click here for details

1. Koozie Bottle Insulators

You've gotta stay hydrated out there and keep cool!  It's easy to get too hot or dehydrated during the day when you're out under the summer sun.  If you're drinking a bottle of water, beer or soda your drink can get hot pretty quick between the heat of the day and the heat from your hand.  It's also easy to set your drink down and then not know which one was yours.  We have a solution to hot and mixed up beverages, our new Pagan art koozie beverage insulators.  You're drink will be distinctively yours and it will stay colder longer with your choice of awesome koozie.  We have two styles, a wrap or a slide-on with lots of various Pagan art to delight your magical spirit and impart blessed energy into your drink.  You can't get these from your local gas station, we make these ourselves right in the studio!

This great beverage insulator collapsible slide-on Koozie for 12 oz (and up) cans or
bottles. It has the art of Lunar Eclipse heat pressed onto the surface of the fabric on the outer
surface adhered to inner Neoprene™ rubber insulator, foldable with sewn seams and
slotted bottom, Works great for aluminum cans, water bottles, and standard 12 oz beer
bottles. Click here for more details

2. Travel Mug

Many of us prefer to use a single cup all weekend and therefore committing to leaving less trash behind as part of our spiritual path.  A great solution is our beautiful Pagan art travel mugs.  Our travel mugs are lightweight and impact resistant so you don't have to worry about it getting broken while camping, traveling or drumming!  It holds 15 oz of your favorite hot or cold beverage, I often use mine for hot coffee in the morning and then switch to a cold beverage in the same cup later in the day.  It's got a nice lid to keep it from spilling or getting bugs in your drink.  It also fits great in the cup holder of your car, so it's the only cup you'll need from the time you get on the road until you're waving your goodbyes at the end of the event.

Yes, since we're caring for the earth by using the same cup for the whole event, we care about our body too, rest assured, our travel mugs are CPSIA approved, BPA-free, and conform to FDA requirements of 21 CFR 177.16.  So while at your favorite Pagan festival, you can have your coffee, tea or mead in style!

This polymer mug is a generous 15oz  with formed lid is made in the USA, dishwasher and
microwave safe, lightweight and impact resistant. Heat pressed by hand with the Dryad Spirit
image onto this mug right in our studio so that you can take your coffee or tea in style!
You'll feel magical every time you travel with this magical mug. Click here for more info

3. Backpack

Don't forget your sunscreen, bug spray, incense, smudge bundle, essential oils, lighter, elf ears, notebook for workshops, body glitter, tarot deck...good Gods, how are you going to carry all this loot??!!  How about a magical backpack?  These cool backpacks have lots of pockets for storing all your essentials for survival at the Pagan festival, and it looks so darned cool with a hippy skirt or sarong! The best part, if you want a total Pagan design like the Triple Goddess for camping, but you might prefer something more toned down like a fairy for school or work in the fall, we've solved that for you too!  The front flap is changeable!  *poof* Yep, the flap is attached with velcro, you can get a different flap for later.

This backpack has the art of Art of Magic, BUT you can request a different one
instead when you order, ALL of my art can be made into one of these cool backpacks,
we love special orders! Click here for more details

4. Mini Purse

Sometimes you just want to shop all the booths.  You need to carry just a couple of items and your wallet so that you can browse through vendor row at all the magical trinkets and do-dads they have to offer.  The problem, sarongs have no pockets!  How would you like a small bag that you can just carry your wallet in?  We've got it, with lots of cool art styles too!  And yes, just like our backpacks, the flap is changeable, so you can get a different flap for going out dancing at the club next week or shopping at the farmers market.  This little bag has an adjustable flap that you can easily wear across your body to make it easy to get into and secure.

All my art is available on these cool little bags,  Gods/Goddesses,
fairies, dragons, witches, cats, you pick!  The perfect light little purse for summer! And yes,
it also has that awesome changeable flap!  Love!  Click here for more details!

5. Garden Flags

How many tents and campers were at your last Pagan Festival?  Lots right?!  We all love to decorate our temporary space and make it distinctive.  It makes it easier to find your own camp and helps you feel at home.  We have a really cool addition for your personal space at your local Pagan Festival, customized Pagan art garden flags!  All my art including my three oracle decks are available on our beautiful 12 x 18 inch garden flags, we are happy to add your own text at no additional charge too.

Garden Flags are a great way to decorate your camp and help your
friends find you!  Pagan art flags with your message, we personalize it for free!
click here for more details

You can put your favorite magical quote, your magical name, a greeting to guests, anything you want.  When you meet up with friends and want to direct them to your campsite, you can tell them, "Look for the Freya flag down the hill, my name is on it!"  These flags can be used year after year, you can hang them from a metal flag hangar as shown below, run rope or ribbon through the channel and hang from a tree, or use office clips to hang it right on your tent!  Be creative, string several together and make your own Pagan Prayer Flags!  Your camp will stand out with personalized Pagan flags!  For more on "flag magic" click here!

String some together just for fun!

We hope our little Pagan Festival Essentials guide inspired you to bring your magic, unique style and favorite art with you as you gather to meet with like minds under the sun and moon this summer.

Brightest Blessings,

Mysteries of Life, Death, and Rebirth in the Garden

Today Dan and I went outside and opened a wonderful gift, our compost bin!  We have been battling our clay Missouri soil for years and have managed to work two decent raised beds for vegetables.  Last spring my mom passed on a compost bin that she wasn't using and all year long we have been dumping all of our vegetable scraps and coffee ground in there, my neighbor even donated some  pulp from her juicer! Occasionally we added a couple shovelfuls of earth or a few handfuls of straw, other than that, we've just let the sun, rain and Mother Nature take care of the business of the decomposition of the materials.

Our big black cauldron of life, death and rebirth, (aka the compost bin,)
provided our garden with a whole wheel barrel full of life-giving soil! 

It's hard to believe that this gorgeous rich humus full of nutrients was once kitchen scraps and yard clippings, this is a perfect example of the wheel of life in action!  We harvested fresh living growing vegetables from our garden all summer and he little ends of zucchini, tomatoes, the leafy tops of carrots and radishes all growing and full of life were placed in the compost bin.  There in the warm, soft cauldron, all the cells died off, they decayed, the original structure broken down to it's basest elements.  Coffee grounds, weeds pulled from the garden, and the entire plants that grew our wonderful vegetables all summer all found their dark rest there.  Watching the action of decay is fascinating, the process of the dank and moldy waste becoming a force for new life is one of the magical mysteries of the Craft.

We pondered these mysteries as we shoveled this lovely fertile compost into the garden bed, knowing that from death and decay, new life would soon burst forth!  When you work the earth to grow some of your own food, it seems such a shame to waste even the inedible parts of the plant, after all, those stalks and leaves worked so hard in the sun and rain to provide our family with sustenance.  Returning them with honor to the earth from which they came seems appropriate, and the reward for our effort is the opportunity to bring new health giving life back into the world!

The "Three Great Mysteries" card from my oracle deck  "The  Hidden Path"
See more of my magical art from this deck and more in my Etsy shop, click here!

The lessons that compost has to teach us is truly a great opportunity for anyone following a magical path to learn the mysteries of birth, life, death and rebirth and witness it in action!

Volunteer radishes growing in the garden, a gift from Mother Nature! 

To add to this lesson, we discovered volunteer radishes that had gone to seed and even though we haven't gotten our garden officially planted yet, those seeds have burst forth!

What a lovely gift from the earth!

The other night we had a salad with fresh radishes that were gifted to us from Mother Nature!  Those radish plants had died at the end of their season.  They dropped their seeds into the earth, pure potential, passing on their life to the next generation.  Those seeds rested in the dark earth all winter while the world lay in sleep beneath the snow and ice.  They knew when the time was right to begin their new life.  The radishes were delicious, and of course you know where the leafy tops went...you guessed it, right into the compost bin!  And the circle continues!

Brightest Blessings!

How to Create a Watermark for Your Art in Photoshop Elements

I've had quite a few artists contact me wanting to know how to make a watermark for their art like the ones I use on my art.  Why use a watermark?  Well, there are several reasons.  One reason is that nice well meaning people often see your artwork, love it,  and want to share it on sites like Pinterest or Facebook, the problem is, they don't always think to give you credit for the art or link it back to you.  If you put a watermark on there, any of their friends or followers that see your art will know that you created it, and if you put your website on there as part of your watermark, they now know where to find you if they want to see more of your work or buy a print.  Another reason is that sometimes people find art on the Internet and they think that just because it's there online, anyone can use it for anything that they want.  According to copyright law, that's not true, but it can be hard to stop people anyway.  The next thing you know someone has grabbed your art from a Google image search and slapped it on jar candles, boxes, or a variety of other items and they're selling them on eBay or Etsy as their own creation.  If you have a watermark on there, it makes that kind of thing really hard for them to do and lets the art pirates of the world know that your art is protected by copyright.

How do I know all this?  I learned the hard way years ago, I've had both of these things happen to me.  There are still un-watermarked versions of my art floating about out there on the web, and once they're out there, they're out there!

The World card from the Upcoming Tarot deck Mystical Cats Tarot with Watermark.  

 We're just beginning to put images from my upcoming Tarot deck "Mystical Cats Tarot out there, so I needed a new watermark.  I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to show you how I do it!

Watermark Tutorial: Photoshop Elements

I use Photoshop Elements to edit my art, it's really close to the same as the full version of Photoshop, not too hard to use, and it's pretty affordable, less that a hundred bucks compared to it's big sister Photoshop (the full version) which is more like a whopping seven hundred!  I've used both and believe me, if you're just starting out, get Photoshop Elements!  I gave you step by step instructions and screenshots, because we're artists, we're visual, and a picture is worth a thousand words! Click on the images if you need to see them bigger.

1. In Photoshop Elements open an image that you want to add a watermark to.

   

   Adding the text, include copyright symbol, your name and website if you have  it, or any
   other information that you feel is appropriate for the project.

2. Select the type tool, its on the left and is just a letter "T" Pick a font that is easy to read, if there is an option to make it bold, do it.  Now type out whatever you want your watermark to say, it's a good idea to include the copyright symbol, your name, and website if you have one.   Ahh, I know, you're asking, How do I get that little © symbol? !" Here's how, hold down the ALT button and while you do type 0169 on your keyboard.  It will appear like magic! Are you on  a Mac? then hold down the Option button and then type a G.
3. Now highlight the letters and click on the color swatch on the left hand side, it's that black square. (or whatever color your text is at the time) When you do, a window will pop up that lets you select a color, change it to 50% gray.  Make sure "Only Web Colors" is not selected and then enter the values R-128 G-128 B-128, as shown in the picture below. Click OK

   

   Changing the text to gray.

4. If you want to add a logo, now is the time to do that.  If you don't want to add a logo, skip ahead to step 7.  I created a logo from one of my sketches of a cat paw shield design from the deck and filled it in with 50% gray just like the letters. Open your logo, use the magic wand tool to select it away from the white background and drag it onto your art.  

   

   Select the logo, click and drag using to move tool, just drop it onto the art in the window below.

5. Now you can re size it using the move tool (the little 4 arrow thing at the top) and drag it around until you have it right where you want it. When it looks just how you want it to, click the green check mark.

   

   Using the move tool, you can re-size and re-position the logo.

    
6. Now, on the bottom right you'll now see three layers; your art background, the text layer, and your logo. Holding down the Shift key, click the logo layer and then click the text layer. Now go up to "Layer" at the top of the screen and click it, then click "Merge Layers."  Now you have just two layers, the background and the watermark you've just created!
7. Now to make it fancy and see-through! You'll see the layers on the bottom right, make sure the text/watermark layer is highlighted in black (it should say Layer 1) and then click Layer at the top of the screen, scroll In the layer styles palette choose "Layer Style" and then "Style Settings" from the drop down menu. Now you'll see a window, click "Bevel" now you can use the slide bar to adjust the bevel until it looks great.  This step really helps your watermark stand out. when you're happy with the look, click OK at the bottom of the bevel window.

   

   Select Layer, Layer Style, Style Settings, then a window will pop up,
   select Bevel, then adjust it however you like.

8. Now making sure that the watermark layer is selected look right above the layer and you'll see the Opacity bar, click the arrow and adjust how transparent your watermark is.  Just play with it until it looks good, you want it to be able to be seen while not distracting from the art too much.  You'll find that you might want to adjust the opacity differently for each piece of art.

   

   A close up of the watermark

9. Congratulations!  You just made an awesome looking watermark!  Now you need to save it.  Delete the art layer (Don't worry, we'll bring it back!) Just left click on the layer to the right. and select "Delete Layer" now grab the Crop tool from the left side and crop around just the watermark. Got to "file" "save as" and save it where you know you can find it again and title it something like "watermark" so it will be easy to find.  Be sure to choose the format Photoshop (*.PSD;*.PDD) this will keep it on a transparent layer and make it easy to drag and drop onto anything you want to put it on.

   

   Remove the art layer for now, crop and save as a transparency, PSD file.
   Now you can use it again and again!

10. Now open your art again, and using the move tool grab the watermark and drag it right onto the art.  You can move it around, and even re-size it using the move tool.  Once you're happy go up to Layer at the top and click "Flatten Image"  Then save your art as a JPG.  I usually name it by the title with the word "web" at the end so that I know it's the version with the watermark. For this image I called it TheWorldWeb.jpg

I hope you find this tutorial useful as a way to protect your art online and direct fans back to your website!

Happy Art and Blessings!

Llewellyn's Spell A Day: Lilac Faerie Beauty Spell

Oh the lilacs are in bloom, it's spring, and it's Friday and Beltane is just around the corner! What a great time for some faerie beauty magic!  Today's spell in the 2013 Llewellyn's Witches' Spell-A-Day Almanac is one that I wrote, it's a spell using a flower that's very much loved by faerie kind and my favorite flower (if I had to pick a favorite) the lilac.  This is a spell to call upon the Queen of the Fae to assist you in bringing your inner beauty out so that it shines for all to see.

Photo by Mickie Mueller

I hope you enjoy it, here's the link for the spell on the Llewellyn Spell-A-Day website!  Enjoy!

Lilac Faerie Beauty Spell By Mickie Mueller

Spell Date:  Friday, April 26, 2013

Color of the day:  Coral

Incense of the day:  Cypress

Call upon the queen of the Fae to bring out your inner beauty with this lovely lilac spell.
If the lilacs are in bloom in your area, place fresh Click here for the rest of this spell...

Llewellyn's Witches' Spell-A-Day Almanac, this is a great Almanac
full of spells from many of their writers, I read it all the time and
collect them year after year! Click here for more details!

I hope you enjoyed the spell.  If you love the faerie art at the top of the page or want to work more magic with Tatiana, we have lots of faerie art in my official Etsy shop! https://www.etsy.com/shop/MickieMuellerStudio

Light a candle in honor of Queen Tatiana, beautiful decor for you home!
Get yours here!

Please drop me a comment below on my old wooden art table and let me know how you liked the spell!

Brightest Blessings,

Free Healing Candle Labels and Spells

Hi Dears,

Sometimes life is just hard.  This spring has been particularly difficult for many, and really for all of us, as we have seen political battles, human rights showdowns, natural disasters, misplaced hate, rage and anger.  A school shooting of unthinkable proportions in New Town started off our year and then we all watched two tragedies unfold in Boston at the Marathon and then just shortly after in Texas when a fertilizer plant exploded.  And of course we have to remember that it's not just here in the U.S., no, there are many parts of the world where oppression, abuse, and large scale violence are commonplace.  In all of the grief that we have all witnessed and felt, we have to remember something very important, even in the midst of some very bad things going on in the world, the power of good is still stronger.  The power of healing can move mountains.

All these candles use the labels from this free Candle Label and Spell  PDF. The link to download
this set is below.
Goddess Statue in this photo designed by Abby Willowroot

My friend Blake Octavian Blair and I got to talking about the world’s events that have unfolded this spring.  I'm a Reiki Master and so is Blake, he also does a lot of Shamanic healing work too and studies Druidry with OBOD. We met online as so many people do these days, and found that we have a lot of things in common, we also are both contributors to the Llewellyn annuals and spend a decent amount of time writing about ways that people can improve their lives exploring the magical aspects of spirituality.  During the discussion we talked about how much it helps both of us to be able to send positive energy to world events.  It's the one thing that we can do as healers to contribute to the world.  It's also a great coping mechanism for those of us who tend to take these kind of events deeply to heart, and let's face it, that's a lot of us that do just that, I bet, Dear Reader, you do too!  Blake had seen some of my printable candle labels I make from my art and so Blake sent me a text one day suggesting that I create a candle label that people could use to send healing for all these current events that have hurt our hearts so deeply.  It was brilliant! Along with Blake's input, single label became a sheet of candle labels,  and we each wrote a spell to go along with them too with love and compassion for humankind.

Working the Healing altar Spell written by Blake Octavian Blair, included with
the Healing Candles and Spells PDF

In that spirit, it was also decided to share it freely with anyone and everyone who has the desire to send positive energy into the world.  We also decided to make the sheet non-specific to the current events and people in need of healing during this tumultuous spring, because there would always be events, places and people in need of healing energy.  In this way, this candle sheet and these spells may be used today and on into the future whenever you or others have need.  For safety, be sure to use the labels only on jar candles, or jar candle holders; never affix a candle label to the wax candle itself, as it could catch on fire.  Also burn your candles according to the candle instructions and never leave a burning candle unattended.  Use these spells as they are written, or as inspiration for creating your own spell for sending healing into the world.

For the Free PDF, click here to download! with our compliments from Blake Octavian Blair and Mickie Mueller

We both hope you enjoy these candle labels and spells for years to come.  Feel free to share them with anyone you like, please join us in sending healing energy to those who need it most, as often as you like.

For more on Blake Octavian Blair visit his website: http://www.blakeoctavianblair.com/
To see more of my art visit my website: https://www.etsy.com/shop/MickieMuellerStudio

I also have a YouTube channel where I share more free printables, spells, witchy tips, and other tidbits for living your magical life at: https://www.youtube.com/c/mickiemuellerstudio

Please drop a comment below and let us know how you used your candle labels and spells!

Brightest Blessings,

Send Love Rippling Out Spell, Llewellyn Spell-A -Day

Today's entry in the Llewellyn's Witches' Spell-A-Day Almanac is my spell for sending love rippling out into every aspect of your life!  It's quite a simple meditation spell, but when I field tested this one, it actually delivered some wonderfully positive results.  You see what you send out, really does return to you in the most lovely ways!

I did this spell this morning at my old wooden art table.
I added a pink candle to my lotus candle holder, some lavender,
a globe, and my little Quan Yin statue, the Goddess of compassion.
How will you get creative with this spell?

Llewellyn's Witches' Spell-A-Day
Send Love Rippling Out -by Mickie Mueller

Spell Date:  Friday, April 12, 2013

Color of the day:  Pink

Incense of the day:  Alder

"We think of love spells as being personal, but the power of love can be a catalyst for positive change in the world. Find a quiet place to sit, and...Click here for the whole spell on Llewellyns website

There are many more kinds of love in the world that romantic love, love for all mankind is the focus of this spell.  I personally just got a new granddaughter the other day so working this spell is easy for me right now because I'm all full of fuzzy happy thoughts.

Feeling the love!!  Me-Maw Mickie and Riley June!

Sometimes the best time to do this spell might be when you're not really feeling the love so much.  When life seems to be getting you down, sending love rippling out can be more of a challenge, but if you can make it work, the results will ripple back and change your perspective, and after all, being happy is often just a matter of perspective.

This fairy garden flag is full of love, find yours in my Etsy shop:  click here

I hope you'll try this spell today and that it brings you a great feeling of love and a connection with everything around you.

If you try it, please drop me a comment below and let me know both how it felt during the meditation and if some love rippled back your way as a result!

Blessings,