Happy Ostara!

[Labrys]

Better pictures of the Ostara candles I made!  And a couple of them burning...the metallic foils look awesome on the melted wax!  Happy Spring, everyone!

[RedRonin]

Back atcha!!

Blessings, everyone.

That bottom candle looks like a yummy little chocolate cake.

A flaming cake, but a cake nonetheless.....

[Labrys]

LOL...they were actually quite black enough to enthuse the most darkest deepest chocolate enthusiast!  And melting, they did look lava-like!  I was shocked at how long they burned....it has been several years since I made these last, they burned over six hours and barely consumed half the candle!

[witch_wonder]

those look really cool! very pretty. 
ok this may be a dumb question but forgive me i'm new to wicca: what is ostara? sorry if thats a dumb question.

[Brijrian]

There are 8 Sabbats Wiccans and some pagan traditions celebrate throughout the year: Samhain (our "new year" Oct 31), Yule/Winter Solstice (Dec 21/22), Imbolc (Feb 2), Ostara (March 21/22), Beltane (May 1), Litha/Summer Solstice (June 21/22), Lammas/Lughnassad (Aug 1), Mabon (Sept 21/22), and then we start the "Wheel of the Year" over again on Samhain (Oct 31).

Ostara is the celebration of the Spring Equinox. We celebrate that the light and the dark are, again, equal in length (like the fall equinox in September, Mabon). Only this time, the light wins out over the dark. It is the celebration of the Earth's rebirth. The grasses green, the trees leaf, the flowers begin to bloom and peek out from under the snow (up in North Dakota, anyhow!).

This is the myth we read at my coven's Ostara ritual last Saturday: Ostara's myth
(source: http://myths.freshcaffeine.com/2006/04/eostre.html)
        Eostra (also known as Ostara, among other names), is a Teutonic goddess of spring, the dawn, and fertility. Her name was derived from the ancient word for spring: "eastre". She may sound familiar to many as she also lends her name to Estrogen, the East, and the Christian festival of Easter.   

        Once, when the Goddess was late in coming, a little girl found a bird close to death from the cold and turned to Eostre for help. A rainbow bridge appeared and Eostre came, clothed in her red robe of warm, vibrant sunlight, which melted the snows. Spring arrived. Because the little bird was wounded beyond repair, Eostre changed it into a snow hare who then laid rainbow eggs. As a sign of spring, Eostre instructed the little girl to watch for the snow hare to come to the woods.

        Eostre is connected with renewal and fertility. She represents the re-birth of life and nature after the harsh weather of the winter. The ancients saw the image of a rabbit or hare in the Full Moon, and eggs, rabbits and the Full Moon are sacred to Her, each representing re-birth.

Love and light!
*Brijrian

[witch_wonder]

wow thats really cool. thanks for the cool story and for the info on the hollidays. I'm trying to keep a journal of everything i'm learning right now and this is something i definately plan on adding.  thanks for going above and beyond answering my question. 
Ceciley

[Still Kate]

They do look gorgeous Labrys.

[Labrys]

They do look gorgeous Labrys.

Thanks, I about wore out my old Jello Jiggler mold, lol.  I will do this again, if I can find another mold!

[Rowan CedarWolf]

I wish I could do what you do! your candles are goregeous and the Goddess you made was beyond words!

[Labrys]

It really isn't all that arcane an art!  Anyone can dip tapers, and the eggs came out of Jello molds, lol!  I overdip them to smooth them and use a brush on metallic dust and liquid wax pens.

You CAN do it....trust me!

[Brijrian]

Is it incredibly messy though? How do you keep from destroying your "creation" area? If I had to do this (and it would be SO fun!) I would have to do it in my kitchen...and the cleanup I picture would be horrendous! Is my imagination worse than the truth?

[Labrys]

Well, I admit...I built my wee Honey House to spare the Big House.  But in the days before that, I made candles in the kitchen.  I covered my tile floor with a canvas painters cloth and the counters and stove with aluminum foil.

It worked pretty well!

[Zenon]

happy ostara!