Showing posts with label Dawn Leith Daugherty. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dawn Leith Daugherty. Show all posts
As we wind up the season, it's time to get more serious. Tomorrow evening, we begin our Ancestral Remembrance known as Samhain. It's been fun, and we've enjoyed every moment of this month with you.
The Thinning of the Veil by Loren Morris. Available for purchase at Primitive Witchery
Before we go further, we need to announce the winner of the Cordelia's Charms Giveaway. And the winner is...

Sandy McLean!

 Congratulations! Please be sure you send Kallan your mailing address so Kourtney can send out your prize!

 What kind of witches would we be without a song from Damh the Bard? Perfect for Samhain Eve.


Samhain Altars

Today, we show you some of our own Samhain altars from years' past. We hope this may inspire you for your own altar, and you'll enjoy this. We're also going to give you a preview of the Grand Prize Giveaways- winners to be announced tomorrow.
From Autumn Earthsong:


From Jennifer Hodgson:








From Johanna Lawson:





From Debbie Becker:





From Dawn Leith-Daugherty





From Angie Crabtree:


 From Silver Swan:
Please take a moment to comment and thank these wonderful Sirens for sharing their Samhain Altars with you. These are very personal, and most people don't like sharing for that reason. These are beautiful and creative.

Grand Prize Giveaways!


 For those of you who have been entering our giveaways all season, you are already entered into the grandprize giveaway. Every time you posted a valid entry, that entry counted toward our grand prizes. This year, we have two grand prizes to give away. Here's what the lucky winners will receive:
Grand Prize Giveaway #1:  From LaPulia Studios

 The Witches’ Pentacle Blank Book of Shadows
Blank Book of Shadows comes with 1000 blank pages ( 500 leaves) of acid free french parchment paper.

 The five-pointed star, or pentacle is the most recognizable symbol in magick. It represents the integration of body and spirit, and the spiritual mastery of the four elements. The pentacle is considered to be the most potent, powerful, and persistent symbols in human history. It is used in a number of rituals, and as a Grade sign in many traditions. The pentacle is often worn as a symbol of recognition among practitioners, especially those who practice a code of secrecy and with this thought in mind we have created Witches’ Pentacle Book of Shadows.

 LaPulia Book of Shadows’ purpose is to bring real magick, as a way of life and as a world view, into our world of physical forms from the world of ideas. We infuse each and every book with the magical energy needed to serve its owner and become a powerful magickal artifact. As magickal artifacts, our Book of Shadows and Grimoires create strong connections with their owners and will activate and increase your magickal consciousness.

 Your magical Blank Book of Shadows or Grimoire will be crafted in accordance with the oldest witchcraft traditions. LaPulia Book of Shadows only uses brand new, pristine and virgin clean materials of the highest quality. In addition, before use, all of the materials used to create your book undergo a special cleansing ceremony to remove any negative energy and prepare them for use in production. Lastly, every single Book of Shadows and Grimoire is magically blessed before it is shipped to you.

 This prize will have a 2-week delay in shipping due to back-orders.


Grand Prize Giveaway #2:  Total Value $491.90

The following vendors are participating in this one-
Baublesmith, Hauntiture Creations, Primitive Witchery, Blackthorn Hoodoo Blends, Cordelia's Charms, and Marie Bargas, The Hollywood Witch

 From Baublesmith:


Handmade Copper Tree of Life wired across a Picture Jasper.  This unique piece hangs from a cotton cord and is brought to life by the unique way the picture jasper creates a landscape for the three of life to dwell. This one of a kind piece fills the palm of the hand and is a bold focal piece to any ensemble. Retail price: 49.95

From Hauntiture Creations:
The Work of a Wizard (Wizard Tray, Figurine, and Book)













As masters of the secret knowledge of fairies, elves, and a whole host of other spirits invisible to human sight, the wizard holds a position of power that must be used only for good.  It is considered a defect of manners if a person is ever aware of your wizardly efforts on his behalf. Magic is not one of the Natural Sciences.  Wizards do not seek to perform repeatable experiments.  Alchemists, astronomers, natural philosophers, and geographers who consider their work to be in a par with that of wizards are sadly mistaken.

      The Red Dragon of Wales

 The national emblem of Wales has been a red dragon.  This goes back to an ancient story about Merlin, the great wizard.  The story tells how a red and white dragon had been fighting each other and doing terrible damage to the country. They were captured by magic and imprisoned under the hill called Dinas Emrys.
      All was quiet then for centuries, until King Vortigern tried to build a castle on the hill. Each day the workmen would start building the walls, and each morning they would find that their work from the day before had been destroyed during the night. Local wise men led Vortigern to a young boy called Merlin, who lived near the hill and who was known to have magic powers. Merlin told the King about the dragons under the hill.  Nobody believed him, but finally Vortigern had the hill opened up.  Everyone was terrified as the two huge dragons flew out and at once began fighting again. A battled followed, and at last the red dragon overcame and killed the white dragon.  This was the beginning of Merlin's career as a great wizard.

 There are so many interesting stories of Merlin to read. Such important lesson in life to learn for our younger generation by reading with them.

 Fairy Tales are more than true...not because they tell us Dragons exist, but because they tell us Dragons can be beaten.     G. K. Chesterton.

 A marvelous treat you can give your young one, is the gift of knowledge thru wonderful books to read.
             Magyk.   By Angie Sage.
             Book One- Septimus Heap
This spell binding series opener is a book full of wonders, charms, and surprises. Beautifully written and richly imagined, it invites us into a world we never want to leave.

 Septimus Heap, the seventh son of the seventh son, disappears the night he was born, pronounced dead by the midwife.  That same night, the baby's father, Silas Heaps, comes across an abandoned child in the snow-a newborn girl with violet eyes.  The Heaps take her into their home, name her Jenna, and raise her as their own. But who is this mysterious baby girl, and what really happened to their beloved son Septimus?

 Total Value: $75.00
From Primitive Witchery:

 Set of Wolf Hair Runes
Full set of 24 Elder Futhark Ulfhednar Ice Runes featuring actual wolf hair. They come in burlap bag and they are fully handcrafted and handpainted. The wolf hair is from shedding wolves.

 Retail Price: $54.95

 Blackthorn Hoodoo Blends: Mojo Box Giveaway
Retail price: $11.00
From Cordelia's Charms:


Whimsical Witch Hat Dangle Earrings: $22  --  Cute little witchy hats are suspended below purple bicone and olive green roundelle Swarovski Crystals. Total length measuring from the top of the ear wire is 2 inches.

From Marie Bargas. The Hollywood Witch: Two prizes


Retro-buster candle set. Value: $90.00
As seen on TV's "Extra"
Psychic Reading from The Hollywood Witch. Value $150.00

 From The Lapis Dragon:









This Samhain Besom is designed to add both decoration and protection to your hearth. At 32" tall, it's not quite large enough for flying, but traditionally placed at the door or above it, you can use this besom to sweep negativity out the door and keep it from entering again. Decorated with crow and pheasant feathers, with a crow's head accent and scented with our Samhain oil (patchouli, vanilla and cinnamon), this is the perfect piece for the season, or all year round.
Retail Value: $40.00

 How to enter:
If you have not entered any of our giveaways until now, you still have one more chance left! Comment on this blog (be sure to either post your email address or send it via email to Kallan)

 Those of you who have already entered, you can go ahead and give us a comment (email addresses please)- perhaps a farewell?
Canadian residents: One last trivia question for an entry-

When did the flag of Canada make its first official appearance?
1867
1965
1982

 That's all for today! Tomorrow, we post remembrances and the winners.
Samhain Blessings!
The Sirens
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It's a terrific Tuesday here in the Sirens' lair. Come on in, don't be shy!

Before we go further, let's announce yesterday's winner! The number of items was 48! So, the winner is..........
Angie Crabtree!

 Congratulations! Be sure you get your mailing address to us for shipping.


Today's Music: Order of the Owl- Cu Dubh







Haunted Maryland by Kallan Kennedy


 Halloween- the very name conjures up all sorts of delicious thoughts.. ghosts, goblins, ghoulies of all sorts.. treats, comfort, and honoring the dead. I live in the great state of Maryland, and have been a resident for 15  years. 


A little history on Maryland 
Nicknames: The Old Line State. Also known as The Free State, The Cockade State, The Oyster State and The Queen State

 Formed: Charter given from Charles I to Lord Baltimore in 1632; it was the 7th state to enter the Union in 1788.

 Named: Maryland in honor of Henrietta Maria (queen of Charles I of England)

 Known for: Crabs, Oysters, Old Bay, The Star-Spangled Banner (Francis Scott Key was born here), Edgar Allen Poe and John Wilkes Booth.

 Haunted: In a 1993 article in the Washington Post, reporter David Montgomery makes the observation that “The State of Maryland is the single largest local owner of haunted real estate”.

 I am only selecting a few of these, as volumes can and have been written on the numerous haunting throughout Maryland. I’ve selected a few, and am providing some pictures that we (my family members and I) have taken over the years. As you can see from the brief history above, Maryland has a very old (comparatively speaking) history in the United States.

 The Susquehanna Indians lived in this area long before Europeans came to settle here. It is no wonder that we have such wonderful stories and hauntings to share. These stories are either well-known in Maryland or personal experiences from me and/or my family members.



The Jericho Bridge

 Built in the 1800’s, this is the last covered bridge standing in Harford County. It is also just a few hundred feet from the 242 year old Jerusalem Mill, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The bridge itself is nearly 90 feet in length and about 15 feet wide. It’s completely made of wood and I can tell you from personal experience that the word ‘rickety’ is kind when driving through it. Legend has it that slaves were once hanged from its rafters during the Civil War. Maryland, while being a Union state, was very sympathetic to the South, and many night riders captured and sold back into slavery those that made their way along the Underground Railroad. Hundreds of personal encounters have been recorded there.

The most common is that when driving through the bridge, if one looks in the rear-view mirror, one can see a body hanging from the rafters. There have also been sightings of women in “old-fashioned” clothing walking around the bridge area, only to disappear upon closer looks. In the interest of ‘fair reporting’, I’d like to point out that at the Jericho Mill on weekends, there are a lot of re-enactments that go on, and women dressed in old fashioned clothing would be common.

 I have personally never seen either of these, but one of my family members did see a man in a black hooded cloak run out in front of their car in the middle of the night just before they crossed the bridge, and then he disappeared.
I've had an eerie experience at the bridge one evening. It was a few years ago at dusk, and a friend had taken me to the bridge to show it to me. As we pulled up in my car (probably 50 feet from the actual bridge) a fog appeared out of nowhere and enveloped the road to about 4 feet in height and covered the area all around the bridge. We slowly pulled up into the bridge and drove across, turned around and returned across the bridge.. the fog seemed to follow us ( and the temperature dropped drastically during this time as well) until we came through the bridge and to the Jerusalem/Jericho road crossing. As we looked back.. the fog had completely disappeared, as if it had never been there. Needless to say, we were a little creeped out by it ;)



Thomas Run Road

 Thomas Run Road is host to one of the top community colleges in the nation- Harford Community College. It’s also host to a strange ghost tale a little further down the road.

 There is a housing development back there called The Villages of Thomas Run (upper middle class neighborhood). Hundreds of witnesses of all ages over the years (dating back to the 1800’s, although the housing area hasn’t been there that long) have reported a man dressed completely in black with a stark-white face running through the neighborhood at various times, but mostly at night and in the rain. More than a few residents living near the woods have stated that someone is up to mischief around there- they will hear their doorbells ringing and when they answer, no one is around. Is it the “Tractor Man” (as he’s been affectionately named)?

 Bottom Road

 There is a ghostly tale on Bottom Road, which runs through several areas of Harford County and into Baltimore County, and there is a bridge over the Little Gunpowder River on Bottom Road.

 Sightings of a little girl (ages have been reported from 4-7) at the narrow end of Bottom Road in a torn, bloody dress, holding a bloody teddy bear and crying. The sight is so startling that most travelers who have seen it, have actually stopped to help the little girl and when they do, she disappears.

 Havre De Grace
Havre De Grace was almost the site of the nation’s capital. It has a long, rich history as a town. There are so many ghost stories in relation to the town that every year, the historical society does a Haunted Havre De Grace walking tour. Having personally taken this tour, I must say I’ve never seen anything ghostly (yet!), but the experience and the history lessons are well worth the admission fee.

John Wilkes Booth
Tudor Hall

 Yes, that’s right. The infamous killer of President Abraham Lincoln was born and raised in Maryland. His home, called Tudor Hall, is located in Churchville Maryland. Legend has it that JWB was actually never caught and that his alleged killing was reported to appease the American people. Some say he escaped to the Mid-west, where he lived a long life into old age. 

Others say he was killed and that he now haunts the grounds of his childhood home. Regardless, there is a tombstone in his family’s plot in Green Mount Cemetery in Baltimore, which is the most-photographed in the site’s history.

 Edgar Allen Poe
What kind of Marylander would I be if I didn’t at least give nod to one of the most Halloween-y Poets to ever live? Well, I’d at least be disowned by my youngest daughter, who is an absolutely Poe devotee. For those who aren’t aware, many cities like to lay claim to this literary icon. New York, Philadelphia, Richmond were all places where he lived and worked. But, Baltimore is the city of this amazing author’s death and burial. There is an annual Poe festival which offers tours of his home (The Poe House) and of course, we have the Poe Society which cares for his letters and memorabilia. But of course, the most famous legend surrounding him is the one of the Poe Toaster. Every January 19 since 1949, someone (and no one has never known who) leaves a special present at the author’s grave site sometime between midnight and 6 am. Three red roses and a bottle of cognac are left at the foot of Poe’s grave. The man has always dressed in black with a white scarf that covers his face. It’s become such a tradition that people have come out to watch the scene unfold. Sadly, as of January 19, 2010, our visitor hasn't shown. No one is sure why the tradition started nor why he stopped showing up.

Elk Forge Bed and Breakfast
Elk Forge, MD
The 1700s building was once part of a mill where British soldiers came and demanded flour during the Revolutionary War. The miller put ground glass in the flour, but the soldiers caught him and hanged him for treason. The miller’s apparition, voice, and footsteps have been detected by witnesses.

 The Union Hotel
Port Deposit, MD

 The building, now a restaurant, is said to have been a hotel and tavern in the 1700s. Folks say it is haunted by a ghostly lady in a blue gown, who has been seen by the owner and some of the employees.































My family went there this past spring. While the food was delicious, and the ambiance was lovely, we didn't get any cool ghostly pictures.


 Spook Hill, Burkittsville MD

 This stretch of road near the battle site of Antietam is known for a mysterious phenomenon. Folks say that if you put your vehicle in neutral at the base of the hill, the ghosts of Confederate soldiers will push it back up the incline. Rumor has it that the ghosts believe they are still at war and pushing cannons and artillery pieces. There also have been reports of laughter coming from the woods.

 Here is a video from Discovery that speaks to the phenomenon.Note: This is a very busy road. If you choose to try this, please be sure you put your flashers on and stay buckled up. If you don't want the mystery ruined, don't watch the video ;)
I could go on.. as stated earlier, we're the most haunted state in the Union. But, you'll just have to come visit to see all of our ghostly mysteries!
Alexis) Kallan Kennedy is the brain-parent and sponsor of Samhain's Sirens. Her vision for this project was to bring together Pagan authors, bloggers, crafters and vendors under one umbrella to celebrate the Samhain season with the community. She has been blessed to find so many wonderful folks who wanted to participate. 2017 will mark the 5th annual celebration for the sirens.

Kallan is a Celtic/Greek Wild Witch who lives in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.She has raised five children as a single mom and home-schooled them all. She is a proud grandmother of 3. Somehow, she was adopted by a wolf hybrid puppy ten years' ago, and has lived a life of regret and bliss ever since.
A United States Navy veteran; honorably discharged and proud to have served, she holds a bachelor's degree in Religion and Philosophy, is working on degrees in History and English. Her passions are anything wild: her family, friends, writing, and reading. If it involves rivers and forests, you'll have her attention :)
You can find Kallan writing, teaching, and reading tarot/totems at Wildly Witch  If you have any questions or concerns during the season, feel free to email her directly at kallan.kennedy@gmail.com


Today's Recipe: Pumpkin & Cauliflower Garlic Mash

1 medium head cauliflower, broken into florets (about 6 cups)
3 garlic cloves
1/3 cup spreadable cream cheese
1 can (15 ounces) solid-pack pumpkin
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Place 1 in. of water in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Add cauliflower and garlic cloves; cook, covered, 8-10 minutes or until tender. Drain; transfer to a food processor.
Add remaining ingredients; process until smooth. Return to pan; heat through, stirring occasionally. Yield: 6 servings.

 This recipe comes from "A Taste of Home"

Today's Giveaway: Pendulum Giveaway from Greybeard's Wand Shop

This pendulum is exotic Papaturro burl wood which is a beautiful hardwood from Central America, silver-plated hardware and chain, with tree charm. Comes with black velvet drawstring bag. 


Retail price: $35.00

Here's how to enter: You have until 11:59pm EDT to enter this giveaway. You MUST submit your email address in at least one comment to qualify.

US Residents: 
1st entry (mandatory): Go to Greybeard's Wand Shop. Peruse his wares. Come back and tell us what's now on your wish list from his shop. You can choose more than one item, but we need you to comment here about it.

2nd entry: Go to  Tree of Life Designs' Facebook Page. Like the page, and comment that the Sirens sent you.

3rd entry: Blog, tweet, or instagram this giveaway *your choice*. Come back and tell us that you did.

4th entry: Like the Sirens Facebook page.
Canadian Residents: Answer this question for 4 entries-


What is the capital of Canada?

That's it for today's Siren Fun! We'll see you tomorrow for our final Wednesday post of the season!
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