The Avebury World Heritage Site is a prehistoric landscape which boasts stone circles, henges, burial mounds and barrows. It has been considered a site of pilgrimage since the Neolithic and Bronze age period in which these monuments were built, and continues to draw in visitors today. It’s a place rich with mystery and fascination, andContinue reading “Folkdays: Silbury Hill”
Author Archives: Nellie
Blog: Lammas Breads
Happy Lammas! I’ve tried out my recipe for Lammas Breads a couple of times in the recent weeks, and thought it would be nice to share it here. These little loafs are somewhere between bread and cake: they are crusty, but also soft-centred and sweet. They are also gluten free! Read more about the traditionsContinue reading “Blog: Lammas Breads”
Folkdays: Taylor Swift’s ‘folklore’
On Thursday 23 July, American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift unexpectedly released a new studio album. This is not the kind of content I’d usually cover on this blog, least of all on a Folkdays post. Yet the album’s title – folklore – suggests something worth a closer look here. I’m not a music critic: this postContinue reading “Folkdays: Taylor Swift’s ‘folklore’”
Folkdays will be back next week.
For personal reasons, I have not had the time to devote to researching and writing a Folkdays post for today. Posts will resume next Friday as usual. At a time where I feel a bit uprooted, I like to remind myself of this Welsh phrase dod yn ôl at fy nghoed meaning to come backContinue reading “Folkdays will be back next week.”
Folkdays: Reviewing ‘The Selkie’
I was delighted when the wonderful Imogen Di Sapia sent me her book, ‘The Selkie: Weaving & The Wild Feminine’. At first glance, flicking through the pages, I was entranced at the beautiful craftmanship of the book itself. I would continue to be spellbound by the folktale, poems, and photographs contained inside. I only hadContinue reading “Folkdays: Reviewing ‘The Selkie’”
Folkdays: Goldfinches
One of the things I feel I really miss out on when I live in the city are the birds. The skies above are mostly the domain of urban gulls and wood pigeons. Sometimes there will be the chattering of a magpie in the early hours, or the warbling song of a blackbird at dawnContinue reading “Folkdays: Goldfinches”
Blog: Leaf Printing
On the weekend I experimented with leaf printing, using leaves from my parents’ garden to imprint distinctive shapes and colours onto fabric. I was really impressed with some of the outcomes: read more about them, and how to have a go yourself, below!
Folkdays: Folktale Closings
It has grown late, and the campfire has reduced to smouldering embers, which glow in the breeze that begins to creep in from the surrounding dark. As the flames recede, so does the story: both have spent hours dancing in the air, and both now begin to wane. The tale teller, as if to coaxContinue reading “Folkdays: Folktale Closings”
Folkdays: Reviewing The Hedgewitch Botanical Oracle
My very first Folkdays post was a review, of Shakespeare and the Folktale by Charlotte Artese. This was a book I had read, aside from simply for my own enjoyment, as preparation for my MA dissertation. Well, that dissertation is now underway, and so I have not had much time to dedicate to writing aContinue reading “Folkdays: Reviewing The Hedgewitch Botanical Oracle”
Folkdays: The Oak King
With Midsummer only a day away, it feels apt to use this week’s Folkdays post to write something about the traditions and folklore associated with the summer solstice. There were so many things I could have written about: whether it be beliefs, rituals, celebrations, or traditions. Yet, one story captured my imagination more than anyContinue reading “Folkdays: The Oak King”
Nellie Cole 