January Vine Wreath Tutorial

 Hello everyone!

With all my Christmas decor taken down, things looked a little sparse. So I decided to use the Grapevine and Virginia Creeper vine in my yard to create a festive January wreath out of natural materials. I also have quite the craft stash to design my Ren Faire costume pieces for Cosplay! I used the following materials to make my wreath:

• Silk floral 
• Dehydrated berries
• Dehydrated floral - Eucalyptus, Pussy Willow
  
• Dried Hydrangeas (from my garden)
  
• Glue Gun
  

I wanted to keep the winter theme so I decided to stay with different shades of green, white, brown, taupe, and cream. Using natural elements from my yard made this project inexpensive and I'm sure if you use materials from your yard or local park you could create something gorgeous as well! Of course, if you don't have access to vines, feel free to stop by any craft store and buy a pre-made vine wreath but for this tutorial I'm going to show you how to make it from scratch!

Step one: Gather a handful of vines and make a loose sphere. (The great thing about Virginia Creeper is it is so supple, you do not need any floral wire to hold it together.) Start weaving it by twisting the vines around each other. Gather loose vine tendrils and weave in between vine strands or snip off. 

Once you have a basic circle shape, you can use a loose vine to wrap around the bundle of vines, creating structure. I also like to create a hook at the top of my wreath using a loose vine that I fashion into a loop and secure to the base. Once this is done, I generally let the vines dry out for 24 to 48 hours before adding foliage with a glue gun. 

You can use whatever type of foliage that fits the look you are going for. I decided on eucalyptus and pussy willow because I wanted to have this January wreath carry into spring. (In February, I plan to add dried pink roses, carnations, and chrysanthemum from a super market bouquet.) Some ideas for a January wreath are:boxwood, pine, pine cones, lambs ear, eucalyptus, hydrangea, any evergreens from your yard or surrounding winter landscape. 

I like to mix and match dried floral with silk floral so I tend to use both in my wreaths. I decided against ribbon this time, opting for just foliage. For a more detailed look at how I whip up wreaths for decorating my home, please see the tutorial below.

 

Thanks for checking out my corner of creation!

                                                                                                                                    All the Best!

                                                                                                                                        Marissa

 

Galileo by Indigo Girls

 Hey everyone!

So, I finally learned a song by Indigo Girls. Their music is so incredibly difficult and unique with a lot of lyrics and fast chord switches. I have a few more that I'm attempting to master but for now this one was the easiest. The other two have a bunch of bar chords. Gah! I'm diligently trying to get those but I have tiny hands which is challenging when I'm trying to wrap my finger around the neck of the guitar.

So this song, Galileo, is probably my favorite Indigo Girls song because it delves into the mystery of spirituality and how it's a life long process to find your inner voice. It's also a bit rebellious, with the nod to Galileo who lost his life for speaking the truth and going against the religious powers at the time. However, ultimately he won because humanity has been better off because of his discovery and bravery. I think about that a lot. How we balance tradition with progress and everything in between. He will forever be remembered as a Lion amongst men.

Personally, God is my OG but to each their own. The mystery of faith, is well, a mystery. The only thing I know for sure is that I have it. So cheers to Galileo by the Indigo Girls.

Thanks for visiting my corner of creation.      

    

                                                                                                                    All the Best,

                                                                                                                      Marissa

Learning Bard Songs!

 Hello everyone,

Fellow Festy here! I love Renaissance music and dressing up and going to fest to live in a fun fantastical world for a bit. It's been such a great event to attend over the years, and I always admire the creativity and dedication that goes into the costumes. Now that Christmas is over I needed to switch gears a bit in my guitar lessons. I'd been learning traditional Christmas carols, with a very folk/medieval vibe so I'm riding this wave into the New Year!

After watching season 2 of Rings of Power, I got inspired again. I heard the Tom Bombadil song and I've been a big fan of composer Bear McCreary. He creates the scores of so many wonderful fantasy historical shows like Outlander. I decided to learn the music for some of my favorite shows and also just bard folk music in general.

This one is Sky Boat Song which is the introduction theme to Outlander. If you haven't watched it, you should! It's a great show about a time traveler, enduring love, historical battles, past superstitions, the trepidation that women face in the world, and the bonds of family. So check it out if you haven't!

 

 This one is "The Elven Knight" and it's just a fun jig about an elf and love. It is by Kate Rusby who has created some excellent traditional folk/bard style music. So if you love upbeat, fun, folk music that is a bit bawdy check her out.

 

 This last one I was inspired to learn by hearing on Rings of Power. :) It's such a cheerful tune and don't we all just want to live in the shire, happy in our homes surrounded by friends and family (and maybe a magical wise wizard)? Working together to make a heavenly place? I know I do.This song definitely brings that vibe. Thank you, Mr. Tolkien for making such epic masterpieces.

 

 

 Thanks for visiting my little corner of the world!

                                                                                                                All the best,

                                                                                                                Marissa

 

Belly Dance Music for Belly Dancers by a Belly Dancer!

 Hello everyone!

For many years I was a belly dance performer and from that my love for drum-centric music was born. I decided that I wanted to make my own belly dance music and set out to do so after learning some basic Darbuka rhythems such as Baladi, Chiftitelli, Ayub, and Maqsum. In addition to learning some basic drumming, I play zills (finger symbols) which nicely compliment drums. The guitar, when tuned into Drop D can create sounds that are similar to an Ood (Lute) and when playing the Arabian scale, some pretty neat music can be made!

Having some cursory knowledge of the different rhythms, how belly dancers typically operate when improvising or creating routines, I decided to try my hand at making both electronic and instrumental belly dance music.

I've been combining both to get some pretty interesting sounds! Dancing, and playing music is ingrained in my soul and I want to share it with the world! So here's a few of my favorite belly dance tracks that I have created.

Thanks so much for visiting my little corner of the world and letting me share my art and music with you. Dum-Dum-Tek!

 

                                                                                                                          All my best,

                                                                                                                        Marissa