Walking by my patch of flowers I begin to imagine the bouquets I will make - both fresh and dried. With flowers and foliage the desire to create an artistic arrangement is irresistible. All throughout the year I co-create with nature with the materials provided me on this land. Bouquets I have been making for years, at first not knowing why. But now this floral art as a hidden craft passed down to me so that the tradition will not fade away.

Sometimes the resulting art is meant to decorate the table for as long as the flowers last in a vase. For the most part, I am inspired by nature to create dry bouquets which are a way to preserve the energy of this very moment throughout the rest of the year.

February in the Garden. A burst of sunflowers, cosmos, and zinnias after a very dry spring and a happily rainy January.

Alongside my personal tradition of flower art I am trying a new seasonal craft. A new craft that is also an old craft. An traditional craft with my own twist to match the climate and plants available here. I tried my hand at making Harvest Dolls.

More on the dolls in a moment, first I set out to capture a snapshot of this landscape of flowers and a lovely grass growing along the paths of which I do not yet know the name.

As children my sister and I often accompanied our grandmother and brought to her place of work, a florist shop. She is actually of no blood relation to us but rather my mom's step mother. But, it really doesn't matter. I feel lucky to have been witness so often to floral arrangement as a child. It is something that is often seen as frivolous but really I feel is a tradition that has deep pagan roots. One of the many semi-secret forms of natural magic that has maintained a presence in our society.

Local economies based on cut flower production aren't as common as they once were. Artificial flowers are more plentiful than real ones these days. Even so, I really doubt if there will ever come a time when real flowers aren't a part of weddings, funerals, and other important rituals of life.

From Grandma Maggie I learned a few secrets and the rest of the lessons came from the flowers themselves. The secret to creating balanced bouquets is foliage. We think of floral arrangements as, well, just flowers but the leaves are what make up the structure. They are the frame and the flowers are the painting contained within.

The History of Corn Dollies ~

When looking into any tradition connected with the revival of Earth-center spirituality and the wheel of the year you will find a collision of historical fact and fantasy. From there we get the crafts and activities associated with the equinoxes, solstices, and days in between.

Each day has a name, or several either based in some real holiday of pagan Europe while others somewhat invented. And the same goes for the customary foods and traditions of each of these mystical days. Some elements really are based in ancient folklore while others have been added along the way. To me this is the natural course of a living folkloric tradition and it is a joy to be part of this mix of history, folklore, and a touch of fantasy too.

Here in Argentina the harvests of late summer are just beginning and I wish to celebrate the successes of my garden from the flowers to the grains. To do so I am borrowing from a tradition often associated with Lughnasadh and the beginning of the grain harvests by making corn dollies.

My corn isn't ready to harvest yet so I used this very unique grass that grows along the path. From a bit of online research it seems that the crafting of harvest dolls, or grain mothers was a tradition across Europe and probably beyond. It was believed that the spirit of the harvest lives in the fields. Once the harvest was over the spirit would have no place to live and a vessel must be made for them to live during the colder months.

Online I found some truly inspiring images of contemporary and historical examples of such grain dolls. Here is my first attempt with the plants that grow near me.

I am curious to see if the spirit of harvest sticks around now that I have honored them by creating temporary shelter in these dolls. But maybe I have been creating such a thing all along with my floral bouquets to mark and preserve the energy of the seasons. Either way, it has been quite enchanting to continue on with my traditions and add some new handmade crafts to my personal Wheel of the Year as well.

Happy crafting everyone!