Friday Updatey-ness

Wearing...
I worked from home today, so I'm wearing pajamas and my favorite purple and grey crocheted sweater.  And my engagement ring, of course:

I don't think I officially announced our engagement on the blog, because neither of us have been very gushy about it, and due to him being in grad school we've decided a longer engagement is probably necessary.  Still, I'm really excited to be marrying my best friend (so cliche, I know!), and almost just as excited to scandalize my family by bucking all the patriarchal and otherwise creepy traditions usually included in the marriage celebration.

Feel free to follow my Wedding board on Pinterest to see all my wedding-planning pinspiration!

Follow Colleen // Heartache Into Beauty's board It's You and Me Against the World on Pinterest.

Reading...
I'm about halfway through the Wool Omnibus Edition by Hugh Howey, which was recommended to me by my good friend Annie.  It's a decent enough book, but I find that while some parts are great (especially part 1), it often isn't engaging enough to hold my interest (like pretty much all of part 3).  I definitely find myself opening it up on my Kindle some nights and immediately wanting to switch to another book.

I've also been moseying my way through The Magical Household: Spells and Rituals for the Home by Scott Cunningham & David B. Harrington.  Some of it the information presented has been helpful to my practice, so it's been good to page through it now and again, but it's a bit dry.  Less discussion, and more like: "...and to weave this type of magick in your home, you could do this, or this, or this..."

Crafting...
I started a butterfly cross-stitch ages ago, but truth be told... I haven't done anything with it in months.

Stressing about...
Work.  Once again I have a lot on my plate, and all of those things are priority items that I can't shelve, and all of them are due within the next few weeks.  HALP.  I'm starting to feel a bit like Dean here. 

But really, as long as nobody hands me any more projects for the next month, I should be okay.  Just gotta remember to breathe now and then.

Planning...
Tomorrow I'm going to a shamanic journey class that a friend is holding at his house.  I'm still not sure that shamanic-style journeying is right for me, but I find that the classes help me practice things like my visualization skills on the astral plain, and learning how to distinguish ally from non-ally from product-of-my-imagination.

Laughing at...
This plant my friend and I saw at a local park (it has an indoor conservatory for tropical plants).  It's called elephant ears.  The leaves are bigger than me!

Pumped about...
Posting my first giveaway on the blog!!  Seriously, I am really thrilled to participating in this awesome multi-blog giveaway to celebrate the release of Summoned by Rainy Kaye.  If you haven't entered yet, please hop on over to Monday's post and submit your entries - you have until Jul 31 to enter! :)

First Ever Giveaway!!

Hi folks!  I am so excited to host my first-ever giveaway!!  I've been given the opportunity to be one of several Pagan bloggers hosting a giveaway for a bottle of Moroccan Argan oil and a personal diffuser, to promote the release of Summoned by Rainy Kaye.**

The story of the jinn dates back to pre­-Islamic Arabia and was part of the Pagan Arabic beliefs for hundreds of years. A new novel, SUMMONED, is a re­imagining of the jinn­­or genie­­ folklore with a nod toward these earlier concepts of the jinn. Check it out below, and then keep scrolling to enter a great giveaway!



Twenty­-three year old Dimitri has to do what he is told—literally. Controlled by a paranormal bond, he is forced to use his wits to fulfill unlimited deadly wishes made by multimillionaire Karl Walker. Dimitri has no idea how his family line became trapped in the genie bond. He just knows resisting has never ended well. When he meets Syd—assertive, sexy, intelligent Syd—he becomes determined to make her his own. Except Karl has ensured Dimitri can’t tell anyone about the bond, and Syd isn’t the type to tolerate secrets. Then Karl starts sending him away on back­to­back wishes. Unable to balance love and lies, Dimitri sets out to uncover Karl’s ultimate plan and put it to an end. But doing so forces him to confront the one wish he never saw coming—the wish that will destroy him. A dark twist on genie folklore, SUMMONED follows a reluctant criminal as he unravels the mystery of the paranormal bond controlling him. SUMMONED is represented by Rossano Trentin of TZLA.

Amazon US | Amazon UK
When Dimitri is summoned, he is brought to a secret chamber which is decorated with Arabian artifacts and smells of argan. Argan is derived from the kernels of the Argan tree, found in Morocco. For everyday use, it provides deep moisturizing and conditioning for skin and hair. For magical use, it provides strength and works best when carried in a personal diffuser. Not to mention, it smells amazing!

International Giveaway

Enter the giveaway below to win a personal diffuser and a bottle of Argan oil.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
If you can't see the widget, click here to enter instead.    You have until July 31 to enter!  Good luck!! :)

**Please note that I am one of several bloggers hosting the giveaway -- I am not responsible for picking winners or awarding prizes.

Rhiannon, Burden-Bearer

I have a new chant to share with you all!  It's a chant for Rhiannon, who has been my patron goddess since I was a wee baby pagan in college.  She showed up at the Conjure Dance at this year's Sacred Space when Cat sang Fleetwood Mac's Rhiannon.  My goddess loves that song, and a whole bunch of us joyfully danced for her while Cat sang.  But after it ended, she let me know quite strongly that she wanted me to write her a chant.

This seems to be a theme in my life - gods requesting I write a chant during the Conjure Dance.  At Sacred Space 2013, the Morrigan told me she wanted me to write her a chant that could be used to call her down - so I wrote one.  And this year Rhiannon asked for her own chant.  Which leaves me wondering, who will show up next time?




Rhiannon, Burden-Bearer

Rhiannon,
burden-bearer,
you'll rise once again.

You walked the path
for seven years,
each step a silent plea.

Til babe was found,
your innocence
known to none but you.

But now you reign,
Queen once more.
Reign high upon your throne!


(c) Colleen Beaty.  You are free to share my post and SoundCloud widget, and to use my chants in ritual - and I would love to know that you do!  But please do not record or otherwise reproduce my chants in any other way without permission.