Adornment Magic

What is adornment magic? Let's start with the meaning of adornment as an act of expression. The dictionary plainly states that to "adorn" is to "make more beautiful or attractive." Sure this can be accepted, as long as we also note that beauty and the wide variety of beautification rituals are often compulsive, intuitive, and subjective. 

Throughout time and history, adornment has marked every culture as part of an overall expression as well as existence. Adornment is a visual craft and tangible language, and one that has changed significantly just as we have. It wasn't too long ago that cultural attire and styling went well beyond aesthetics according to the course of fashion. Our appearance, based largely upon available materials, patterns and pigments of our designated region. The turning of time paired with the human impulse to change has created opportunity for fresh takes on adornment and beauty - some of which are ripe with magical opportunity. 

How most of us choose to adorn ourselves now is a combination of conforming to our environment of lifespan - how and where we were raised, what took place as we grew, and where we are now physically, emotionally and spiritually. It's also informed by the ways in which we change that environment simply by existing, and how we actively and knowingly augment or push against it. We may choose to regard our appearance in the larger discussion regarding decolonization. Assimilation has robbed many of culturally significant aspects of style and dress. How we look into the history of garmentry and adornment should perhaps begin to include our own ancestry, and even begin to show up within our wardrobes and rituals in respectable ways. We may unearth information about our history from books, blogs, or family members. Imagine the discovery of a particular detail as simple as the color red, for example. While investigating, we may begin embodying and adorning based upon what we find. To dye old garments, embroider, paint our nails, or adorn our lips. These acts of beautification may appear quite natural and normal - and they are! Yet as an individual practitioner, these little rituals become bridges connecting to our higher sense of being, to deity, and to our ancestors. 

There are many estuaries of magic that connect us back to the larger river of ourselves. To dedicate energy towards adornment is to commit to visibility and to self-witnessing at once. Because like attracts like, adornment often leads to community. How you present yourself tells the energies at large what kind of person you are choosing to be. It also communicates to others who may take interest, too. Ensure a willingness to begin to be seen, even if it's only with yourself for the moment. If it is uncomfortable or unsafe in your outward life to adorn as you see fit, begin practicing in private sacred space and truly enjoy it as an aspect of ritual. Start exploring the palette of your emotions and desires, and honor your own light by drawing them forth. A painter expresses onto canvas which supports the artist in understanding themselves. A poet does the same with words. To adorn is to consciously, intuitively, and magically create deeper meaning and understanding of self from the inside out. Adornment is a loving way to draw out our light and share it with the world. 

Here is a simple suggestion + spell to begin your adornment practice: 

-:- ASPECTING EMOTIONS COLOR SPELL -:-

The first step in understanding our inner workings is to allow them to exist. Emotion can be felt in color. Where are they leading us? When we are angry, we might lean into the fiery colors of orange or red. When we are in grief, the bruised blues may find us. A bright disposition could perhaps create pops of pastels, while daydreams of abundance might offer feelings of lush green. 

To embody our reality, we first may adorn with the colors we feel the most. This could be done with clothing, makeup, or jewelry. Let these colors be felt by telling your inner being that your feelings are valid, allowed, and supported. You may choose to write out your feelings or draw in vivid color, adorning the page as you have yourself. Allow yourself time in ritual with these colors as your backdrop. This act of self-love is supported with color magic based upon the emotional spectrum, and it starts and ends with you. 

If you are looking for specific intentions to embody such as abundance, you could adorn yourself with colors that invite sensations of self-love, growth, acceptance, sweetness and success. Magically speaking, the color green is famously used for abundance rituals and spellwork. Add a little green shimmer to your eyelids - "see" your abundant future and draw it into your reality through the windows of your soul! You might also choose to don yourself in a particularly fabulous green blouse or dress, moving through the world and causing waves of abundance with every step. As you begin your adornment ritual, you can light a candle, thank your guides and ancestors for bringing you to where you are today, and asking for support in your growth towards a rich, blessed and abundant life. Speak out your wishes, and see them in your mind as if they are your current reality. See it and feel it. Bring the spell to life. 

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