Beatrix, Bringer of Joy, Rainbow Serpent of the Dreamtime...

The Rainbow Serpent (Snake) is an important part of the beliefs and culture of the people of western Arnhem Land. Today the Rainbow Serpent is associated with ceremonies about fertility and abundance, as well as the organisation of the community and the keeping of peace.

~ Found at Aboriginal Art Online ~





Beatrix, whose name means "Bringer Of Joy,"
coiled around my computer today just after
completing her...



Something has been happening to me all summer. Tremendous change and transformation. All that I wrote about last night, Snake as Totem Animal, has been true in my life. We don't ask for totems, they appear in our lives when the time is right. And as I am a very earth-centered woman, living with many animals inside, and tending to many animals outside, the presence of animals, totems, and familiars are simply part of my life. I was somewhat startled when in my hands the first snake appeared (She is very small and is in my etsy shop, Dragonfly Cottage Design Studio and I will not be making any more small ones.) as I had no intention of making a snake and my hands just created her without thinking. Her name is Cassandra. I was startled, just now, to look up the name Cassandra and find out that it means Prophetess, and that in Ancient Greece she was a Trojan Princess blessed with the gift of Prophecy. My Cassandra foretold the work to come, the work that would invade every corner of my life and guide me in a new direction. And then came the Rainbow Serpent of the Dreamtime. There is no turning back. I, too, have been blessed.

As Beatrix took nearly 2 months to complete and was sold before she was even finished I have also found that my work has become deeply spiritual. I thought many times that Beatrix was nearing completion, but she gently told me, "No, keep going." And the deeply spiritual journey that I was on, unbeknownst to me, changed me in so many ways that I realize I have turned a corner in my life and it is like the moment, in the movie The Wizard of Oz, when the screen turns from black and white to a vivid rainbow of colors. My world has opened up wide and the lessons, the teaching, the healing, are far reaching, and I know that there is much more to come...




Beatrix as Wearable Art on my
vintage dressform, Anastasia...



Why Wearable Art? Wearable Art is in vogue, it is all the rage, yes, it has become popular, but that is not why I'm doing it. I have been drawn to it for some time. I had the tools, I had the books, I subscribed to magazines, and read about it online, but it had to mean something, something more than just a piece of art to wear. For me, with Beatrix for example, she is, yes, beautiful and stylish, but she is a Protector for the one who will wear her. You don't wear a snake of that size and not feel changed, protected, blessed. I am in a deeply spiritual mode when I am doing my fiber art, and each peace comes with love, prayer, deep blessings and is infused with spirit. That is the kind of wearable art I am and will be creating. And for now it is the Snake that is guiding me, and may be for sometime to come. But there will come the day when I will shed that skin, and another totem will lead me along the path I need to go. I feel in awe, I feel humbled, I am wide open, this is most definitely spirit-led.





Coiled around the wearer's neck
for warmth and protection...



Beatrix is made of at least a dozen yarns, all handspun by me, with the exception of two beautiful handpainted cottons I purchased from another artisan. Her eyes are very old vintage buttons. And the last thing, the thing I was called to do, was finish her going all around the 8 feet, 16 in total, with the Sari Silk yarn I have just finished 2 weeks ago, with many types and colors of wool rovings and vintage saris, shredded into tangled bits of silk. It took a very long time to spin that much yarn as I only use a hand-spindle, but it was a very meditative process and one that I love. All of my work, henceforth, will be made from my own handspun with perhaps bits of embellishment or handpainted yarns I've purchased as I don't spin cotton. The work was very long, intricate, and each step along the way was so full of lessons, I bow before her, and thank her, for all that she has brought me.

Tomorrow Beatrix will be in the mail on the way to her owner. May she feel as much joy, as blessed, as I did in making her, and may the fiber totems to come keep leading me on this fascinating journey I have been called to serve.

Rainbow Blessings to One and All,

Maitri