Sol and Luna

The silvery light of Luna is now bathing our woodland. Her fullness on the same day of the blessed Summer Solstice has not occurred in nearly 70 years. The energetics of Sol and Luna in balance is a powerful metaphor for the union of opposites.

Perfume for this powerful time is Vespertina! Her combination of rose, frankincense and precious woods is fitting for activating greater awareness and balance. Vespertina conjures images of a golden Byzantine crown with rubies, emeralds and opals accompanied with precious essences from Arabian deserts and lush ancient forests. This is a concept perfume, weaving in the different elements surrounding her story and character arc. Since the epic tale has a backstory of her romance with the young knight Dante, I added co-distilled essences and attars—representing a marriage of two separate parts. Sol and Luna.

Everlasting

Friday evening, during the Street Art Live event at Wizard (Whizin) Center a gentle soul who auspiciously resembled Frodo came by the perfumery. We began chatting and soon found we shared a love of plants, specifically those of the California wildwoods. My friend Marie, who was spending time with me at the perfumery that evening, commented on how it seemed like a visitation from Middle Earth to the Elven/Fairy realm...she believes me to be part fairy.

Eventually we ended up trading small bunches of Everlasting which also goes by the names of Immortelle and Helichrysum. He gifted me a Gnaphalium, also termed cudweed, which might be the bi-color variety. There's quite a challenge with determining the exact name since so many sources don't agree. For our purposed today lets call it Gnaphalium bicolor, a two-toned greenish perennial with sticky, woolly-white leaves that contain grey undersides...thus the secondary name of bicolor. Gnaphalium comes from the Greek meaning "lock of wool", relating to the woolly-leaves.

The elongated, dual toned leaf contains a superbly interesting aroma with notes of valerian, sage, patchouli and agarwood. Being a lover of earthy and unusual notes I'm loving it and enjoying the difficulty in pinning down the aromatic profile, particularly since it doesn't quite share similarities with its relative that goes by the same common name of Helichrysum italicum. The little papery flowers are small and creamy yellow in color with a very subtle herbaceous scent.

I gifted him Helichrysum italicum (angustifolia) organically grown in Ojai. This variety has a maple-like fragrance with very similar looking flowers to Gnaphalium bicolor although the color is golden yellow.

The other native varieties to California, that are often confused is Pearly everlasting, Anaphalis margaritacea and California everlasting, Gnaphalium californicum. The latter grows abundantly here in the Santa Monica Mountains and has a sister plant on the East coast called "White Balsam" Gnaphalium polycephalum.

Everlasting has such a perfect affinity with the Summer Solstice today as it is a plant of the Sunflower family (Asteraceae) and thrives in full sun and dry, arid hillside regions with little flowers that emulate the look of our fiery golden star which gives us light and warmth called the Sun. The word Asteraceae comes from the Greek Aster meaning star.

Roxana Illuminated Perfumes featuring helichrysum are Impromptu and the upcoming Mellifera which is found at my fan funding page or the perfumery.

Photos and text: ©Roxana Villa

Path to the Sun

"Some painters transform the sun into a yellow spot,
others transform a yellow spot into the sun."
~Pablo Picasso

Happy Solstice everyone! Friends and family in the southern hemisphere celebrate the return of the light while we here in the north end the longest day and begin the slow transition to the dark.

I've chosen this Summer Solstice for the imprint of the honey bee perfume. Today is the longest day of the year and one of the eight Earth festivals of the Celtic sacred year and the affiliations with the sun. The sun to the honey bee is not only their navigational system but also one of the keys to their well being. Since moving our hives to the full sun here in the woodland we have found the bees are much more energized and healthy. Honey bees have a built in ephemeris which they use when making they're daily forage trips and communicating where those nectar rich sites are located.

"Bees are the engines that keep the earth in bloom."
~Queen of the Sun press release

I'm slightly behind with all the labors associated with launching a perfume. These many varied tasks include:

• Creating the formula for the perfume, then make it as a liquid and a solid
  
• Filter the infusion and tincture
• Write the copy and press release
• Develop imagery which includes the photography

I'm just about done with all these elements, "To Bee" will make its debut in the E-shop momentarily along with more information appearing here in the morrow. Thanks for your patience.

"In summer, the song sings itself."
~William Carlos Williams

The Sun Dance

The Summer Solstice is upon us once more, resulting in the longest day of the year here in the northern hemisphere. Henceforth our day light will begin to shorten as we cycle toward the dark part of the season. Luckily it is a slow transition, hard to think about darkness just as we are entering the summer holiday season.

The ancient Celts celebrated the sun on this day, emblematic of the light winning over the dark. On this day we give gratitude to the sun as it is key to our survival here on planet earth.

The honey bee is often referred to as "The Queen of the Sun" because the sun is their compass. When a forager bee discovers a plentiful site she comes back to the hive, shares a bit of the pollen and does the waggle dance to instruct the other bees how to arrive at the source of the pollen.



Today our birdhouse bees got a second story added to their periwinkle home. we are intending that the energetics of the Summer Solstice will help them expand into their new dwellings with grace and ease.

Related Summer Solstice Posts here at the Illuminated Journal:
the SUN
A Summer Solstice Perfume
Summer Solstice

Opening photo by Andrew Dunn, found on Wikipedia.

the SUN

Today we honor Fathers and Summer Solstice. Rather auspiciously one of the symbolic aspects of the Sun is the Male, the father. Where as the Moon is associated with the Feminine, the mother.

Known as Midsummer and Lilith, Summer Solstice marks the official first day of summer, an extended day of light for those of us in the Northern hemisphere. Where as in the Southern hemisphere, like in Argentina where my father is, they will be celebrating the Winter Solstice, albeit in a different manner than how we celebrate it in the North. If you are in the South and celebrate Solstice, please share with us how you celebrate, we'd love to hear!


The Sun, the largest star in our solar system, has been personified in many myths including Helios by the Greeks and Sol by the Romans. Since all is revealed in the light on the Sun, we find Truth as one of the iconic aspects associated with this ball of fire traveling through our heavens. According to Biblical stories the Sun was manifested on the fourth day of creation. I guess God was working in the dark on the previous days. The Sun also plays a role in Dogon, Hebrew, Japanese, several Native American and South and Central American creation myths.

In Germanic traditions the Sun is the embodiment of the feminine where the moon is masculine. This is a great illustration of how the people of the earth will create their own mythologies to suit their needs.

Some of the symbols that have been utilized in creating mythologies associated with the Sun are include the fact that it is a huge orange ball in the heavens that provide us with light and warmth, resulting in the growing of our food. The rising in the East and the setting in the West is another key aspect that is focused upon, like the god Helios and his firey chariot pulled by four horses.

What symbolic aspects do you associate with the Sun and the Solstice? In botanical perfume, as mentioned in previous journal entries, Sunflower oil as a base for an "solar" infusion of "solar" plant material. Solar plant material includes:

• Amber
• Benzoin
• Broom
• Calendula
• Everlasting
• Frankincense
• Labdanum
• Saffron
• Rose
  
• Spices (relaxing)
• Citrus
  

The ancients derived these associations by observing several factors: the color and shape of a plant, how it makes you feel, plants that show signs of being affected by the sun (Sunflowers), plants associated the circulatory system and where the plant grows. Today being SUNday makes it an even more potent day for honoring the sun and beginning or creating a vital aromatic Solstice elixir.

More posts at this journal which focus on Summer Solstice are these:

A Summer Solstice Perfume
Summer Solstice

Art Heart image ©Greg Spalenka, www.spalenka.com. The second image is a detail from the Art heart. The third image has been created by me, Roxana, utilizing layers of imagery in photoshop. See the photos of how Greg created this image here.

A Summer Solstice Perfume

The great earth wheel has cycled around once again as the Sun reaches its zenith and marks Midsummer, the longest day of the year. To create a perfume, anointing oil or balm for Summer Solstice consider building it based on orange, calendula and rose.

For the botanical perfumer essences of orange from the peel and the juice are readily available. Orange flower absolute is the most prized from the spectrum of orange and lends a beautiful floral note to the heart. Tinctures, infusions and extracts can also be made from both the fresh rind and flower to deepen the theme. Calendula is available as a C02 and an infused oil. The infused oil would work well added to another base oil if you are creating a solid perfume or oil based perfume.

The rose is considered the flower of the Summer Solstice. An essential oil or absolute of rose is another theme that could be built on or added to the essences mentioned above. Both Orange and Rose are available as waxes which work well added into beeswax for solid perfumes.

Another form of scent fitting for the holiday is an Eau de Cologne. View our journal entries on Eau de Cologne here.

As you celebrate the sun, the light and our manifestation here on earth be sure to hold a special an intention for the day. This intention can be strengthened with each application of your special perfume.

"Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass
on a summer day listening to the murmur of water,
or watching the clouds float across the sky,
is hardly a waste of time."
~ John Lubbock

Read more about the iconography of Summer Solstice and creating a botanical perfume for the day here at last years post on the subject.

Roxana Illuminated Perfume™

Lunar Month of Oak

The Celtic Tree Month of Duir begins today. Duir meaning “door” is the Celtic name for Oak. The magick associated with the lunar month coincides with the upcoming celebration of Summer Solstice on June 20th. The Oak is the tree of the sun and is attributed to protection, strength, stability, fertility and success. Since it can withstand a lightning strike while remaining firmly rooted to earth, the Oak is also attributed with spiritual illumination. It is a tree revered by many cultures but in particular the Druids who held the Oak most sacred and worshiped under their large green protective canopies. The leaves, acorns, wood and bark of the tree has been used in magick as well as some herbal folk remedies.

There are over fifteen Oak species in California, the main types here in the Southern California Floristic Province are: the Scrub Oak, the Coastal Live Oak and the deciduous Lobata. Our botanical perfume pays tribute to the Coastal Live Oak. We have several on our property as well as surrounding us. In fact, we are in a Grove of Oaks that almost form a perfect ring. Las Pilitas, a nursery here in Southern California has a stragedy for reviving the beloved Oak Woodland that has been devastated by nonnative plants and development. Read about it here.

Celebrate this Celtic Lunar Month by becoming more conscious of the Oaks and acknowledging them in some way. Their great canopies are perfect for a shaded picnic, a Lavender Festival in Ojai or Shakespearean Theater in Topanga Canyon. Put an acorn in your pocket for goodluck!

Las Pilitas
The California Oak Foundation
Ojai Lavender Festival
Theatricum Botanicum

Roxana Illuminated Perfume™

Images: Above is the illustration for our Oak perfume, ©Greg Spalenka and Roxana Villa. below is

Summer Solstice

Today, on Summer Solstice also known as Mean Samhraidh, Midsummer and Litha, the sun is at its zenith, thus marking the longest day of the year. The Celtic people celebrated this day four thousand years ago by gathering at Stonehenge and honoring the height of power of the Sun.

I intend a magnifi-scented summer solstice for each of you. Take a moment to acknowledge this time by creating a
small ritual in tune with your lifestyle.

Rituals, festivities and gatherings for this high holiday began on Wednesday and extend to the New Moon on June 25th.



Yesterday, in acknowledgment of Midsummer, I had an opportunity to harvest Clary Sage, Salvia sclarea for steam distillation.
During the gathering we paused to walk a Lavender Labyrinth. The labyrinth is a path helpful in facilitating clarity and transformation. Walking the lavender labyrinth with the intoxicating scent and the hum of bees was magical. The labyrinth is associated with the pilgrimage of enlightenment, it is a form of meditation, quieting the mind and facilitating a connection with the divine. Similar to the associations with the holy grail.


According to Yasmin Galenorn the affirmation for this day is:
"I attract love and faery magic to my life."

Iconography of solar worship includes:
The Sun
The Sidhe
Fey faery folk
Goddesses: Tatiana, Rhiannon and Epona the Horse Goddess
The Cornucopia of fruits
Elder, Sambucus nigra: leaf, flower and berry
Fire
Mars and Jupiter
Gold
Salamanders, and their ruler Notus or Djin
Tarot suit of wands
Colors red and orange
Stone: Moonstone
Flower: Rose
Fruit: Peach
Direction: South
Animals: Swan, Bulls, Stags and Horses

What iconography will you use?

I read that the Celtics would honor the Oak and adorn it with garlands of flowers. Our property has three Coastal live oaks, Quercus agrifolia and two Quercus lobata. Each of these will be honored this day, as well as the seven we are defending on the lot next to us.

Many different essences are associated with the Summer Solstice, however the two that seem to be most appropriate are Calendula and Orange. Both of these exist in many forms to work with for creating a special anointing balm or oil. Be mindful, however, orange essential oil is photo-toxic and should be used in small amounts.