Sistrum

So I may have made my partner Sunlitgarden a sistrum/sesheshet this summer in a jewelry-making class.

For the curious, here is how I made it:

First, I cut a small sheet of copper into strips, and drilled holes for where it would attach to the handle, and where I wanted to put the wires that held the jingles. I bent the frame pieces into shape, then soldered them together with a silver-zinc alloy. Since I had to anneal (heat to soften) the metal to work with it, it was still too bendy afterward -- it could barely hold its shape! My instructor showed me a device called a tumbler: basically, a bucket full of ceramic pellets with a little water added, with a lid, attached to a motor that gently shook the contents. Working (hammering, bending) metal hardens it, and this machine does it gently, without distorting the shape. I put the sistrum frame in for about an hour. Meanwhile, I worked on my favorite part: the jingles!

I cut squares of about 3/4 inches (using a jeweler's saw) and drilled a hole in the middle of each. It wasn't important that they be perfect, because I would be distorting them. Many of the pieces were scraps from other students' projects, anyway. Once I had made enough, I hit each piece on a sand-filled leather pad with a round plastic hammer until I was satisfied with their shape, and they were completely hardened. I then strung them on wire and put them into the frame, securing the wire by putting loops on each end.

For the handle, I already had a suitable wood dowel (I forget what kind) from a failed wand-making attempt; all I had to do was saw off the extra and sand it...and sand, and sand some more. I finished it with a clear one-step oil and finishing product. Turns out I cut it too long, but better too long than too short, eh? I drilled a pilot hole and fastened the base of the instrument to the handle with a single all-purpose screw: not the prettiest, but I couldn't find a copper-plated one at my hardware store and it needed to be sturdy.

And there you have it! My explanation makes it sound simpler than it was. I made a plan, but I had to modify it a little as I went along. My instructor suggested that I could make more of these sistrums outside of class in the future, using cold-setting (rivets), but I haven't been brave enough and/or willing. Sunlitgarden is the Kemetic, not I. :) I hope Bast approves.

PBP: Crafting as Spellcraft

Sometimes, I make jewelry. I've crafted a couple wire rings, and a few bracelets, but my favorite thing to do is pendants and necklaces. Often, I just get this itch to craft something, so I sit down with my supplies and work with what feels right. In my deepest crafting-trances there's a corner of my mind that thinks I'm going crazy. But I've come out with some powerful stuff. Look:

Found length of copper wire, and hematite beads. 

It may not look like much, but this thing is heavy. It has resisted becoming a pendant, even though I added a thin bale; I just don't have the materials to wear it in a way it wants to be worn -- or if I do, I haven't figured it out yet. So it sits on my altar, soaking up the energy of the objects that surround it, until the idea comes to me.

I also can draw -- moderately well, better with reference. I am just skilled enough to have a chance that the images pressing for attention will come out right, and I get viciously disappointed when they do not (which is often). Coloring confounds me. As a result, my best works often begin as idle doodles. I have pulled some interesting things from my subconscious this way.

I want to be an apothecary and/or hedgewitch, damnnit.

Still not sure what this is. A minscape scene, perhaps? I was melancholy when I drew it.

So what am I getting at? Any artist or artisan worth their salt, no matter their world view, simply must pull from within themselves to create a meaningful piece. That's a bit of your soul, right there: on that scrap of paper, that clay bowl, inside that carved wood box or scattered in pixels on your computer screen. At very least, it's time and effort, a piece of your life. The process is similar to spellcasting, at least how I understand it: you set out with intent, take a dive into the Otherworld(s), and use your tools to make it happen and/or bring a part of it back. This can be draining...which is one of the reasons I am not a prolific artist. (The others are related to the overly high bar I set for myself.)

For the Spirit-deaf or -blocked, like I most likely am, art may be the best way to tap into the...other side. By "other side," I mean all incorporeal realms: mindscapes, the astral, lands of the Dead/Fey/Spirits, et cetera. (Fandoms, too.) I am lumping them together because I have no experience in consciously traveling them; they are not distinct to me -- yet. Perhaps that can change with persistent effort.

If you're curious about the other things I've managed to pull out of myself, scan, and post on the Internet, visit my Deviantart account.