between eclipses ....

owl and pussycat by the little fox

We are now in the two week period between the September eclipses. With so many important transits this week, I wanted to add a little more info to the weekly post (the same post that, yes, I am thinking of ending and, yes, I see the irony in this).

Let's unpack this a little more. First we have expansive, big picture Jupiter (in earthy, detail oriented Virgo where he is not super comfortable - imagine you just ate a Thanksgiving dinner in your skinny jeans) opposing Neptune (in watery Pisces, where he is uber comfortable - now imagine you just ate a Thanksgiving dinner in your jammies).

(Hmm, I am not sure what all this Thanksgiving talk is about - we do suddenly have 6 wild turkeys wandering around the reservoir where I walk most mornings. I have to resist the urge to toss them into my back seat and protect them until Black Friday - and now that I think about it, they can earn their keep by clearing the garden of the tiny worms that have ended our kale season ... )

Before Jupiter was discovered in the mid 1800's, Jupiter was considered the ruler of Pisces (now he rules Sagittarius). This opposition lasts for the entire month of September and is exact (strongest) on Thursday. Then it starts to unwind itself. If your stomach (digestion) or skin (think bacterial overgrowth) is in some kind of distress right now - this is probably why.

Now normally Jupiter vs Neptune would have us lost at sea in a beautiful pea-green boat. And we might be. But with Jupiter grounded in Virgo and Saturn moving into Sagittarius (answering to Jupiter, but also adding a little more lead to his boots) we should be able to tell the fantasy from reality. If something appears too good to be true now. It is.

We also have Mercury turning retrograde in Libra (ruled by Venus barely back in action since her own lengthy and challenging retrograde in firey Leo this summer - when our relationships were tested over liony - how is this not a word? come on spellcheck!) issues of pride "who's in charge here?" and fidelity "where's your loyalty?". Then we have Saturn (in watery Scorpio) moving into firey Sagittarius (ruled by Jupiter). And I almost forgot asteroid Juno (marriage, commitment) moves into Libra (where power is often given away) so we've got power imbalances coming up again ... and loyalty issues, sound familiar?

So what does this mean for you? Well, that will depend where all of this hits your natal chart. For Libra the Jupiter/Neptune opposition is a 12th house event (hidden potential, secrets) so Libras could have the urge to go public with something or something that was recently rather inconsequential could become a major focus or some kind of secret fantasy or hope could peak (although this might only happen in her head). For Virgo, the Mercury Retrograde is a 2nd house event - so she will be rethinking her earned money, does she have what she needs, if a Virgo has been making emotional or financial 'sacrifices' they will come up for re-evaluation now. For Leo, Saturn's move into Sagittarius (thru December 2017) is a 5th house event - her house of self expression, creativity, children, love, fun - so extra effort and focus in these areas will be needed for her to get what she wants.

You can see how all of this is different for everyone and these scenarios (and all general astrological predictions by sun sign you see anywhere) do not take into account the time of your birth, they assume you were born at dawn and they use a whole house system with one sign per house and do not take into consideration your actual houses. This is why having your own natal chart handy is important if you are interested in this stuff.

In general we are facing a time of being "lost at sea" (we see the literal examples of this in the news everyday) although there is solid ground  in sight if we take the time to look for it and think things through, compassion works miracles now - a time of  needing to slow down our communications and certain actions, we are relooking at relationships (again) and beginning (again) the longer term changes of Saturn into Sagittarius.

While task master Saturn has been in Scorpio, he has been reinforced by Pluto in Capricorn (since Saturn rules Capricorn and Pluto rules Scorpio) making the last two years very challenging with the energy favoring the powerful and those "in control".

In Sagittarius (ruled by expansive, benevolent Jupiter, the only planet larger than Saturn) Saturn's structure will be different. I'll write about this later.

This is almost certainly the most powerful month of the year - we all will need patience and the willingness to support each other through the ups and downs. Any space in our life we are feeling over-zealous will be a space there are more possibilities available if we can just get out of our own way. Let's try to relax into what life is offering up and - yes, I know this is easy for me to say since I am not in your exact situation, that's why I'm saying it - instead of obsessing over how we think things need to play out.

See what is changing in your life. Beginnings and endings during eclipse season are designed to get us 'back on track' with our original purpose for being here. If they have you on the mat, hold on, October is coming! xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of September 13th - the Changing of the Guards ....

"Creation comes from an overflow, so you have to learn to intake, to imbibe, to nourish yourself and not be afraid of fullness." .... Anais Nin

We are now working with the New Moon in Virgo solar eclipse energy (we have a much bigger lunar eclipse in two weeks!).

The beginning of this week is an excellent time to set intentions (if you haven't already) for Virgo ruled themes.

We are pushing forward now with our work situation, our health, paperwork, stuff with co-workers or employees, what's happening with our pets and we are getting organized. It's fall clean out time - closets, inboxes. We have big trash pick up in our town next weekend and it couldn't have better timing. I am ready for it!

("ready" in my world means I have made a mental list of what I am ready to hasta la vista - next comes the paper list - no point rushing into anything people - and then comes the part where I get hubs drunk so he doesn't notice the pile of crap I dragged to the curb and he actually leaves the stuff there until the trash man comes also I forgot to mention the part where I ice my neck after dragging the crap to the curb)

MONDAY to WEDNESDAY the best results come from focusing on other people. Partners, clients, agents, competitors - if we need to reach out to someone do it now. If someone wants to partner with us this week it could be a good thing.

There may be something that we don't get now or something that doesn't happen - that's OK. Even though it feels like something we wanted we will see later that something better is moving toward us.

There may be something karmic working itself out with another person around Tuesday - take a breath.

We can't see the whole picture yet. If we have some kind of important meeting with someone on Wednesday there is some "out of the blue" energy at play this day so expect the unexpected. Bringing the unexpected ourselves to this meeting or conversation could be a good thing, but maybe not, it's our call. If what is happening involves love, or women, or money or beauty it would be a good thing. 

(also you need to back up your computer RIGHT AFTER YOU READ THIS!)

On THURSDAY we have multiple changing of the guards!

First, Mercury stations retrograde at 15 degrees Libra so the Libra house of our chart will require us to consider both sides of something. There will be delays and revisions over the next few weeks. This is Libra, so politeness and civility matter and pay dividends. All the usual re's apply - re-do, reconnect, rethink, repeat, revise, redesign, recuperate, repair. We know the drill by now.

Then the Jupiter in Virgo opposition to Neptune retrograde in Pisces becomes exact - this is our dream for our work crashing into the reality of actually doing the work. This is also the energy of an unlimited expansion that could be positive or negative depending on what is expanding! This is still Virgo season so doing what is right in front of us, doing our best and taking care of those tiny details will get us the best results with whatever this energy churns up. This opposition is exhausting many people. This is the when we get so overwhelmed with everything we have to do (much of which is all in our head) that we just look at cute cat videos on youtube all afternoon.

But the big news, especially for those weary late degree Scorpios is that Saturn enters Sagittarius where he hangs his shingle until December 2017 (you might remember his brief  appearance here from December 2014 - June 2015).

So what is happening this week? We've got a mixed bag of - our dreams vs. our day to day reality - a time to pause and reconsider - and a BIG shift in our responsibility and focus.

This is the time to take stock of our next steps.

With Saturn moving into Sagittarius we will be stepping into new responsibilities and pointing our arrow in a new direction (please don't point that thing at me and please don't shoot your eye out)!

I'm going to do a post about what this will mean for your creative business later on this week, if I don't toss my neck out dragging the old dishwasher to the curb ..... xo all

New Moon Solar Eclipse in VIRGO | September 12th-13th - minding and mining the details

"Put light against light - you have nothing. Put dark against dark - you have nothing. It’s the contrast of light and dark that each give the other one meaning." ... Bob Ross

Eclipses are super charged New Moons. They often mark major turning points (when aspecting our natal chart) and they almost always have a sense of finality connected to them.

Whatever ends during eclipse season is surely gone for good.

Some people, maybe 20%, experience an eclipse 30 days before or after the actual event often almost to the exact day. But, most events occur within the new moon's 2 week window.

This one is a partial eclipse so not as bright, but it lasts for almost 4 1/2 hours which translates to events that play out over the next 4 1/2 years - it's energy will be with us for a while.

If you have any natal planets 18-22 degrees of the mutable signs - Virgo, Sagittarius, Pisces or Gemini - you will feel this eclipse most strongly.

We are are like computers being turned off and on when the skies go dark and the program that uploads at restart is a little bit (or quite a lot) different than the one we ran on before. Eclipses change us and we (vibrating differently) change our circumstances by attracting or repelling what our new self lines us with.

Although solar eclipses are new moons and have themes of newness we can't have a beginning without an ending! Sometimes the ending is all we feel with this stuff. So, even when we are soaked in mourning for what has ended and we aren't consciously starting something new, the very fact that something/someone is no longer in our life means we are in a new beginning.

Opposing Chiron (the wounded healer) in Pisces - something about this new moon maybe exposes a weakness - maybe something that cannot be fixed. It's inconjunct Uranus so we need to stay sharp and ready to pivot and think on our feet - changes can come out of nowhere with this one. If some opportunity comes up that we are not quite ready for can we allow ourselves to just jump in, knowing everything might not be exactly perfect but trusting there is perfection in the imperfection. Can we trust that we really are ready? Can we trust that what we have to offer is what is needed?

Let's try not to make things big and important in our head and over analyze things (and yes, I realize you may be going through some big and important things) - let what it going to happen happen. Our dial is turned up. Our only job is to be real and authentic. We only have to be ourselves.

This is one of a series of eclipses on the Pisces/Virgo axis. We can also look at the past to see when we had similar degree events and see how they connect with what is happening now. We had a solar eclipse at 19 degrees Virgo in September 2007 and Saturn went retrograde at 22 degrees Virgo in December 2008. Jupiter stationed retrograde at 19 Virgo in January 2004 - think about these dates if stuff is hitting you now.

This weekend's eclipse is at 20 degrees Virgo (the Sun and Moon are both at 20 degrees Virgo) - my brother has Jupiter at 20 degrees Virgo in his 10th house of career in his natal chart. We can't wait (well, maybe he can!) to see how this plays out for him over the next few months as 20 degrees Virgo is triggered by transitting planets (my natal Virgo is 22 degrees in my 10th house, so we'll see how this shows up for me, too). You can check your chart here or email me and I will check!

(Interesting update - Serena Williams with a 20 degree Jupiter in Virgo just lost the U.S. Open in a stunning upset!)

Given a Solar Eclipse is a New Moon, then like all lunations that work their influence over time, it triggers events related to previous celestial events and is triggered by subsequent transits to those points.

So whatever activates with this Solar Eclipse will re-activate when Mars and then Venus transit 20 degrees Virgo in late October then will expand in some way when Jupiter hits 20 degrees Virgo in late November, again in February 2016, and for the final time in July 2016. This is all part of the journey called life on planet Earth. We signed up for it. We will get through it.

It's no coincidence the refugee crisis has finally reached a breaking point and is all over the news. It will not be ignored now. The Virgo/Pisces axis teaches compassion and the lessons of "the other who is our brother". What we learn and how we allow the lessons to change us is up to us. We can grow harder and more brittle, breaking off pieces of our humanity until eventually we look in the mirror and do not even recognize the person we have become or we can grow softer and more resilient.

Seeing Germans welcome "the other" from trains with such compassion, not knowing how they are going to make this work or what the future holds for anyone, but just working with love and releasing decades of fear, is truly pushing our entire collective toward the best use of this energy. There is a new frequency of "effortless plenty" rising now - we need to focus on what is growing and not on the walls that contain it - the walls are an illusion.

Individually we can use the positive qualities of this axis to move forward with whatever we are facing now - (Virgo) work, precision. accuracy, maintenance, taking care of our health, service to others, doing the work without expecting credit, accepting there is not always a relationship between effort and outcome and making the effort anyway and (Pisces) showing compassion, knowing there is only one of us here, dreaming, using our creativity and intuition.

We can avoid the negative energies of this axis (Virgo) perfectionism, nitpicking, nagging, setting ourselves apart, being overly critical and losing the big picture (Pisces) escapism, gloom, laziness, getting enmeshed in the big picture and losing track of the details

One final note - if you have any planets around 29 degrees Scorpio, Taurus, Leo or Aquarius - that's where taskmaster Saturn has been taking his stay-cation, I would imagine some area of your life is feeling mighty squeezed right now. He moves on in 6 days, you can count on it.

Also remember our flock - people often ask me how to make more money with their Etsy store and what they really need is more people - in their lives, businesess and SHOPPING with them. I am going to do a post about this next week. The people come first. Where's your flock? What do they need? It's our job to connect to others who value us.

Remember this is still a New Moon in Virgo so set your intentions and make your affirmations for Virgo themes for the best outcomes - health, quality over quantity, service to others, attention to details, work, co-workers, employees, day to day activities, cleaning, organizing, pets.

INTENTION TIPS: let the earth guide you this month, plant your feet firmly on the ground, clear your head, write what your physical self, grounded by the earth, wants not what you think you should write, write your intentions down by hand in script on a blank piece of paper, speak the words out loud, burn the paper, give the ashes back to the earth - release your attention from these things knowing your intention is known. Life has heard you. Do what is in front of you.

Next week is huge for everyone and we are about to be eclipsed ... today's a Balsamic Moon, get some rest. xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of September 7th - touched by magic ....

"When you’re touched by magic, nothing’s ever quite the same again. What really makes me sad is all those people who never have the chance to know that touch. They’re too busy, or they just don’t hold with make-believe so they shut the door without really knowing it was there to be opened in the first place."   ... Charles de Lint, "What the Mouse Found and Other Stories”

We've got multiple focuses this week.

Venus moved direct on Sunday, September 9th after her 40 day(?) retrograde in Leo. She will move forward slowly so it may take a few days for things to ramp back up for everyone and we may be a little slow to get our bearings, but we are definitely moving on and we will be ready to make new choices and welcome the new ideas and opportunities we will be moving toward!

This retrograde has asked us to go within and explore what motivates us and compels us to share and be seen - what do we really value? what do we want to give? what do we want to receive?

Now that Venus has her groove back decisions we made regarding Venus themes of - love, money, beauty and women - during the last few weeks are up for review, yes again.

What we do with what we have learned and what has played out for us is mostly up to us (as always).

When she FINALLY leaves Leo and moves on to zero degrees Virgo on October 9th we will be decided with this stuff. We don't want to push too hard to make things happen just yet. Let's continue to let this stuff (especially the old stuff that has reincarnated itself) unroll itself. This is also almost the exact date the upcoming Mercury retrograde will end (October 10th) so mark your calendar for full steam ahead then.

MONDAY and TUESDAY (Tuesday is another trigger date for the upcoming solar eclipse so you may have some ending or something big happening then) are get-it-done days.

With the Moon in Cancer on Monday a focus on home and family (and self-nurturing, yes, that hammock and glass of wine are effective uses of your time now) are supported.

Mid week we have something that came to our attention from two weeks ago that now needs action.

A trine from Mars in Leo to Uranus in Aries on TUESDAY and WEDNESDAY's Leo Moon are great creative energy - sparks of genius will be flying that could take a project in a new direction or turn it from average to amazing.

It could also be a great hookie day with the kids or our love or some kind of recreation. With Uranus there will be an element of the unexpected to whatever we do and all this fire could have our passions sparked  - watch out for actual fire though!

Something could also return our attention to Scorpio themes - we only have a few more days with Saturn in Scorpio (YAY!) - this means sex, divorce, financials, a partner's money, child support, inheritance, mortality, reproduction, or third party situations - if this is you, this is not a good hookie day.  

Let's finish this stuff.

On WEDNESDAY/ THURSDAY Mercury in Libra squares Pluto in Capricorn so we may hear some news that is hard to hear or our own words may be challenged - this aspect also gives us the ability to penetrate to the very core of a matter or problem. Long lasting solutions could follow. We could also discover information that wasn't meant to be uncovered. Will we speak up or avoid conflict? Watch for power struggles mid-week..

September and October are, like August, big visioning energy. What's our dream? In November and December Saturn will help us (maybe with his boot to our back) - to begin - progress will be visible. January and February will be a little hibernation period, I suggest we stay warm and snuggled up by the fire with a hot chocolate and Agatha Christie paperback (so soothing to me somehow, I'm not sure why) and then March to July we build the damn thing.

This will involve our Virgo, Pisces and Sagittarius houses. We should know our Virgo house by now - if not email me or find it on astro.com - our Pisces (that's where dreamy Neptune is hanging out) and our Sagittarius (expansive Jupiter) houses are all the spaces we will be growing this thing!

September will be hectic and next spring will be HECTIC (isn't it odd how writing in all caps makes the spelling look wrong, visual memory I guess) so with all this Virgo energy right now it is an excellent time to focus on ourselves and our health - make the time for ourselves, make it sacred and unalterable now. We can't just pencil ourselves in anymore or use that disappearing ink - it's permanent marker time now people, etch it in stone or we will burn ourselves out before we even get this thing started.

Stilling our minds, moving our bodies and eating clean will create steady and long term results for us now. It's Virgo season. We can use this practiced, efficient, precise energy or be used by it. There is always something to be done ... or undone.

I'll do an eclipse post before this weekend, this month is BIG - and yes, obviously, I'm still here. xo

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of August 31st - New Directions, Focus Adjustments and Cutting Our Losses

"My wish for you is that you continue. Continue to be who and how you are, to astonish a mean world with your acts of kindness. Continue to allow humor to lighten the burden of your tender heart." ... Maya Angelou

I have been thinking about giving this blog a rest (and yes, by rest I mean a nice walnut box with a red velvet liner about 6 feet in the ground).

Having been told for months, years maybe, (when did my blog take this astrological turn, it's hard to remember and even harder to search the backend of blogger to figure it out), that it isn't a good idea for a jewelry designer and maker to talk about this stuff so often.

It hurts my SEO (which I rarely think about probably because acronyms have always annoyed me for some reason), my credibility, my right elbow, my left toe - you get the idea. And now with so much happening astrologically in September and October I am afraid I might not have the time or skill set to do it all justice.

This will be the last weekly forecast then I'll likely go back to timely "bigger picture" business/personal posts with a magical, astrological bent. I'm a bit up in the air about it. For this week, we'll take a lesson from Maya and continue on!

Anyhoo ....

Lots of ending, releasing and new beginning energy again this week. Last week the Sun went into Virgo so details matter, little things are big things now. We are working our way through these last moments of summer - lots of water aspects - tears, sweat - we are feeling everything.  There is this "where are we going?", "what are we doing?" energy we are working our way through.

On Monday we are wrapping something up. We have an Aries Moon, so will probably want our own way with whatever we are working through, of course so will everyone else. Monday's aspects trigger the Full Moon Lunar Eclipse that happens at the end of September so we may feel like something has to end or we are reaching or reaching for some new height and are willing to 'eclipse' something or someone out to reach some achievement or reach for something we want.

On Tuesday and Wednesday we have Venus meeting up with Mars in Leo. This is excellent energy to meet someone new, start a new job, launch something. Yes, Venus is still retrograde for a couple more days, but when the Goddess of love and money meets up with the God of  action, opportunities that come up are most likely opportunities to take. Taking action to get what we want is favored here.

This is the second of three conjunctions between Venus and Mars in 2015. The first conjunction (the third week of February at 1 degree Aries) offered a new beginning where actions (Mars) combine with our wants or love or money (Venus). This week's conjunction as Venus prepares to move direct (14 degrees Leo) is an assessment of what started then. When Venus stations direct on Sunday, assessment time will be over and things will move forward.

The final conjunction will be on November 2nd (Virgo 24 degrees) and will wrap up this Venus/Mars cycle. Wants are materialized. What actions do we take to get what we want? This cycle is about our relationships, our values and self esteem, our money and/or our creativity.

On Friday Jupiter will be pushing us to go bigger with something.  On Sunday Venus moves direct and whatever we have been working through since she went retrograde in late July will move forward as she does. This is a reconnecting week - if we broke up with something or someone over this Venus retrograde period - that can come back up for another looksie as she moves over the same degrees she touched earlier in the summer - this doesn't mean a reconciliation is 'meant to be' if your ex suddenly pops up in the coffee shop or if an idea you let go of is suddenly in the news - it's just energy that is moving forward - forward can bring us back together with someone or something or just move us on up and away

(did you maybe notice how rude that ex is being as he orders his tall non-fat latte with the caramel drizzle or feel how that idea you let go that is suddenly all the rage still brings a pit to your stomach when you think about actually doing it).

As Venus stations we might feel a need to 'do something' about that relationship issue - we can really just let it all unfold. Venus wants acknowledgement and so will we. On September 6th our new flock assembles.

Mercury has entered his shadow so all the stuff that is going on right now is the stuff we will be dealing with while Mercury is retrograde in the coming weeks. Mercury is in Libra and hitting our North Node (future) so lots of job offers for lots of people who have been looking and that continues now as Mercury rolls through the upcoming eclipse degrees. If you want something put yourself out there for it.

Things are about to change, yes again, so take this time to think about what you want and that new dream we are hatching! The upcoming eclipses will take whatever anxiety and crap we have littered our past year with that has spread over into the rest of the house and clean it up .... xo all

FULL MOON in Pisces August 29th | happiness comes in like salty water

photography by vena

On Saturday we have the first of three Super Full Moons to usher us into eclipse season.

With our Sun in Virgo, we know the Full Moon will be in Virgo's polarity sign of Pisces.

Pisces and Virgo are opposite signs, but really the opposite sides of the same coin. The balance of these two signs is where we bring God (or whatever word you feel most comfortable using here) to earth through our actions of service.

Pisces; the mutable water sign is the archetype of the mystic, the dreamer, the visionary and the compassionate (also the addict, the escapist, the pessimist). Pisces beckons us to look inside, to use our intuition, to feel our connection. Pisces sun people need to meditate everyday (well, we all do) to empty themselves of all the crap they have collected from everywhere or they will become very spacey and forgetful.

(and if you are a Pisces thinking your absentmindedness is a character flaw - no, this is a just a condition of not being true to your mystical archetype - you must spend time in quiet everyday - I'm not a Pisces Sun but have Neptune in my first house and find this true for me also - when I get busy and don't take the time to get quiet and go within, I start misplacing and losing things very quickly)
 
Neptune, the planetary ruler of Pisces, and the mythical God of the Sea has been in his home sign since 2011 (and will be hanging out until 2026) - this is powerful energy for collective change and awakening.

How does water change things? Water dissolves. Water washes away. Water erodes. Water suffocates. Neptune rules spirituality and dreaming. Neptune rules creativity and inspiration. Neptune rules illusion and escape. Neptune rules water and the sea, drugs and hospitals.

The last time Neptune was in Pisces we saw the abolitionist movements to end slavery in the United States and to free the serfs in Russia. This is powerful energy for the release of victim consciousness. This transit of Neptune has again put issues of injustice and inequality on our collective radar (a spotlight on refuge and immigration issues, the black lives matter movement, etc) - the ways we blame the other and refuse to look at our own shadows. Pisces dissolves boundaries - we can more easily see and feel the ways we are the same. The unifying forces of Neptune and Pisces remind us that "there is only one of us here" is not some crazy bumper sticker but the way the universe actually works!

This transit will increase our sensitivity to toxins and our focus on water. Escapist activities like drugs and the internet will expand (basically anything that is pleasurable and repeatable). Neptune in Pisces wants to feel everything.

Saturn, preparing to move into Sagittarius for the next two years is going to be squaring Neptune in Pisces popping some dream bubbles and bringing us down to earth. Whether we end up disappointed or transcending our previous limits depends on our chart and the other influences hitting it. Some will be able to make the magic happen and some will have a rude awakening. Not everything is possible, and not everything belongs to us. For those indulging in escapism, denial or addiction, this square will be especially harsh. Mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces) will feel this. For people born with Neptune in Sagittarius (1970-1984) at some point over the next two years Saturn will conjunct your natal Neptune - the dreams and fantasies you've been carrying will be questioned and addictions and vulnerabilities exposed. This is just how life works - the ebb and flow of things - sometimes we're the windshield and sometimes we're the bug kind of thing.

There is nothing to fear here. Sometimes Neptune takes us down the wrong path, and Saturn is our course correction. Saturn can focus our dream and give us traction. Sometimes traction comes in the form of our back against the wall giving us something to push off from. This might manifest as the lack of something essential. Then our discomfort will push us to do something else.  

Sometimes the Neptune vision needs limits to manifest.

FOR NOW we have this loving and compassionate FULL MOON asking us to embrace the positives of Pisces - compassion, imagination and our highest vision for ourselves and use the energy of the Virgo Sun - precision, work without rewards, craftsmanship, service, putting our dreams into words, speaking our truth - to move everything forward.

This is an excellent healing moon. Walk in it. Be near water. Take a bath.

It's a powerful time to be mindful of what we have worked for and created and be grateful for the process (Virgo). It's a time to recognize our ability to dream (Pisces) a different world - to be a difference in the well-being and evolution of the planet. xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of August 23rd - Get Stuff Done, Meeting With DESTINY

be brave locket by polarity and inspire your art

We've got the Sun in Virgo for the next 30 days, so we are all burning the fuel of Virgo precision "do the job. do it right. measure twice, cut once. eat your veggies. move your body." - you get the idea.

(ugh, Virgo, I'm tired already!)

Summer is winding down ... sniffle.

He is joining expansive Jupiter, who's been in Virgo since August 11th. Now we get a little movement going! This is about what we will be working on through next July.

Our focus turns to our Virgo house - what house(s) holds Virgo in your natal and progressed charts?

(this is an especially important time for people born in the 60's with Pluto and Uranus in Virgo - more on this later in the week)

Make a list of how you want this area/house of your life to expand. Start to get organized. This year we need a plan.

On Monday we have a Sagittarius Quarter Moon that has us thinking BIG and BELIEVING in ourselves. It's also an energy that encourages us to RUSH and bounce from one thing to another, but we won't. We've got a Virgo Sun to keep us grounded.

By Tuesday and Wednesday the Moon is in Capricorn and we are plowing on through whatever is in front of us. We can get a lot done with this energy. We are building toward a full moon so this is the peak work time of the monthly moon cycle.

(if you are looking to work with the Moon, this is the week to put in the hours - remember working with the Moon isn't a Monday to Friday thing - we slow down after the Full Moon Sunday and rest completely during the few days of the Balsamic Moon about 10 days later)

On Thursday, Mercury enters Libra and conjuncts the North Node on Friday (we could also feel this on the 24th or 26th or 30th). Our attention will flip to key relationships (Where's that flock people - I just left another flock last week - ugh!).

A NOTE ABOUT FLOCKS - Remember as relationships take center stage this week we have a long history of giving up our individuality for the safety of the tribe. This is not the tribal experience we are seeking in this new paradigm. Let's not focus on getting specific outcomes with others now. Instead let's just focus on feeling our OWN emotions. The tribe needs our individuality now. This is not the time to be fixing anyone or anything.

The North Node is our future and with Mercury, the fleet footed God of communication nearby a message about our future will be delivered.

Are you paying attention?

We might meet someone we are destined to meet. We might have a meeting or talk with someone that impacts our future. We could have an idea or receive an offer. In gracious, balanced and partnership oriented Libra however this plays out there will likely be choices.

Over the next 3 months (Mercury will be retrograding in Libra in a couple weeks so this is a longer transit than usual) Mercury will conjunct the North Node two additional times (October 8th and 10th) so whatever comes up this week will come back around then. This might also connect back to last September.

(back in October 1995 and 1996 we had this configuration if that time frame rings a bell for anyone for fated options and meetings)

On Sunday we have a Full Moon in Pisces. I'll do another post on that. It will be a biggie and connects to mid September. Did I say the eclipses are coming? Some people feel the eclipses a month early - if something has just eclipsed itself right out of your life, know it needed to go. xo all

New Moon in Leo August 14th - FRESH START | Money and Love Reset Button

Today's New Moon in Leo (even with a retrograde Venus and maybe even because of it - she does conjunct the Sun tomorrow!) is excellent instigating energy.

Fresh starts associated with this New Moon

(we've got a friendly aspect to Uranus now, too - making unexpected events, to quote Martha here - a good thing and favoring our more unorthodox and unique endeavors and perspectives)

have an element of generosity, excitement and, dare I say this - LOVE - connected to them.

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of August 10th - Jupiter into Virgo | the details that change the BIG picture

We start the week moving into the Balsamic Moon phase - see my post about that HERE.

The dark night sky is the perfect arena to see August's annual meteor showers. More shooting stars = more wishes. Let's get outside and on this!

We have Jupiter (the planet of luck and wishes) changing signs this week and a New Moon in Leo on Friday - the two weeks following the Leo New Moon is a great launch period - see my post HERE about that.

There are some caveats this year with Venus still retrograde - I'll write about that with my New Moon post later in the week!

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of August 3rd - Saturn Says MAN IT UP

Mega-accurate and amazing astrologer Susan Miller has called August the best month of 2015. She isn't concerned with Saturn and maybe we shouldn't be either!

Read her HERE (if you know your rising sign, read that FIRST)

Maybe since Saturn sits all comfy, cozy with my natal Sun I give him a little too much power. But, I see pressure this week.

Anyhoo, here we go because this is another big week!

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Once in a BLUE MOON

Another crazy astrological week (and yes, I realize it's half over!).

This whole summer is going to be a wild ride. And if you are thinking, "no, not me, my life is moving along the straight, narrow and predictable road" ... well, talk to me in October and we'll see where you are then.

Let's start with Saturn, this is the BIG Daddy taskmaster of the zodiac and he was in the deep dark waters of Scorpio for two years, peeked his head into bright and bold Sagittarius last December and then retrograded back into Scorpio in June for a final plunge into the dark (whatever halted in your life in June is back).

Olive Bites at Art Star Asbury Park July 2015

This past weekend's craft show has left me totally exhausted - maybe I really do need to be drinking all this wine! Ack!

I met so many wonderful people at this show. I had Kella and Chris's vintage camper "Lucy" - Suburban Camping Company with me and it brought so much joy to so many people (rent her here for parties, camping, overnight guests) plus people were very kind and excited about my work ... and the weather and city of Asbury Park (where my mother grew up) was looking especially amazing.

Back later this week with the upcoming forecast.

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of July 20th | Welcome to the Jungle - it's LEO Season

welcome to the jungle - it's LEO season

Another action packed week as we enter Leo season!

First, Venus stations as she prepares to go retrograde next weekend.

She's still hanging out with Jupiter and if we look up at the night sky they are still the two brightest stars. They are in two different signs though since Saturday when Venus left Leo and moved on to early Virgo.

Venus is only in Virgo for the next week and a half. Then her retrograde, which begins Saturday and lasts about 6 weeks, takes her back into Leo. So we have this short window to work with her in Virgo and she will also hit these same degrees in the fall when whatever we are doing now comes back around in some way.

New Moon in Cancer, Wednesday July 15th - Plus Up Close and Personal With PLUTO!

first ever photo of Pluto's surface

Today's first ever photos of the surface of Pluto (everything we've ever seen before have been artist renderings!) along with tomorrow's New Moon in Cancer which has a Mars/ Mercury conjunction and opposes a retrograde Pluto in Capricorn - must mean something!

Pluto rules Scorpio, the sign of things hidden and dark; secrets and shadows. Pluto rules transformation.

Quantum physics has proven the bizarre fact that observation affects reality so now we are all up close and personal with this bad boy planet of revolution, destruction, power and the hidden realms will Pluto's influence change? Will we?

Pluto was discovered (astrologers believe planets are discovered and named when we are 'ready' for the archetype they represent to be introduced into our collective awareness) by Clyde Tombaugh in 1930.

Clyde requested his ashes be inside any spacecraft bound for Pluto, so he's in there! Pluto brought us the rise of Hitler, World War II, nuclear power, the United States as a super power. There is all kinds of pain behind Plutonion violence. How we transform this pain is up to us.  

Compassion toward ourselves and others lays the groundwork for our miracle now.

Is something hidden about to be revealed? What are we all waking up to? Everything negative with Pluto comes from holding on and everything positive comes from letting go, not sure how any of this will factor in. The timing is quite interesting though

Because tomorrow's New Moon is a doozy.

Yesterday and today we are building toward it. First advice I would have for tomorrow is to hold our tongue. There are power struggles. With Mars and Pluto (both war planets) in opposition and Mercury (communication) thrown in the mix there is a good potential for an argument that will not end well. Just agree to disagree.

Don't fire off any emails in haste or anger. This energy is encouraging stuff to fall apart. If something ends today it's pretty much over. And think about that if you are the one ending it. We will have to deal with the consequences.

Now with all this going on we still have a New Moon in the nurturing mama bear sign of Cancer. It's an excellent time to begin a self-care regimen. This moon is all about family, security, our home and intimacy. With the Sun and Moon in Cancer we can all experience compassion and healing now. What is takes to get us there could be big.

Hang in there - we are all in this together and our new story is coming.

Lots is happening. First the New Moon then we're charging toward Jupiter square Saturn! It is a whole new ballgame for certain, especially for our businesses, our art and work we do with women.

Venus is about to go retrograde so if we have something in the cooker - we don't have much time to run full steam ahead but we have at least a week! The retrograde will be an excellent time for relooks and re-dos with our businesses, money and love.

Wednesday is a powerful energy to focus our intentions and make affirmations on Cancer stuff : mothers, motherhood, self-care, nurturing, home, family, real estate, home business, food, breast health, stomach and digestive health, gut health, security ...

AFFIRMATION TIPS: get into a positive frame of mind - always make affirmations from a  positive place (positive meaning both happy and certain) - write your affirmations down by hand, speak them out loud - then release your attention from them knowing that your intention is known. Know these things are already yours. Cancer is a water sign so this is a great day to be near and in water! xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of July 13th | Potential for High DRAMA

I'm going to keep this short because I have a New Moon post on Wednesday that will cover this and much more.

On Wednesday, we have a New Moon in Cancer. This one comes with a little baggage

(or maybe enough baggage to keep the Beverly Hills Housewives in Paris for a month - yes, that much!).

The New Moon has a square to Uranus in Aries and an opposition to a retrograde Pluto in Capricorn. These are all big time change making planets and signs.

New Moons bring new beginnings. Since these are times in the dark we usually can't see what has taken root until sometime later and then we look back and go "oh yeah that thing started then" or "that changed then".

This Moon could be the exception.

These squares and oppositions will make whatever the "new" thing is that is happening quick and challenging or it could be birthed from some kind of challenge or opposition. 

It can also get us out of a stagnant or negative situation and into a whole new space pretty much overnight. This is decision week.

Lots of drama near Wednesday. I recommend having some wine and chocolate on hand. Try to keep your schedule light.

Mars and Pluto are war planets so we have some kind of war/dispute/confrontation in our Cancer house - where is Cancer in your chart? Verbal challenges and some kind of upheaval are both possible. The middle of the week is kind of a mess. We are all letting go of some big family of origin stuff with this. It has to go. In the big picture outer world there is the potential for some chaos.

Fortunately, this Moon is anchored by a grounding and compassionate trine to Saturn retrograde in Scorpio and Chiron Rx in Pisces.

More on this later in the week!

For now and Monday and Tuesday - the Moon is Balsamic so let's take it easy. It's Cancer season so time to nurture ourselves and those close to us. 

We'll be full steam ahead by the middle of August, but we have some stuff to wade through first. xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of July 6th | Preparing to CHOOSE

We kick off this week with our Cancer Sun (all about our security) opposing Pluto; retrograde in Capricorn.

This is going to pull some of us back to that March 20th eclipse.

Pluto clears out what is not working, worn out and dysfunctional. It sounds like this would be the stuff we would want to let go of anyway, but life is not always so simple. Sometimes this stuff needs to be pried from our cold, dead fingers and actually Pluto rules death and can oblige this, too.

(hopefully it won't come to that though!)

The United States has a Cancer Sun - we just celebrated USA's birthday on Saturday. 

Pluto in Capricorn, the sign of stability, our foundations, power, and the polarity of Cancer, has given us a national Pluto opposition since 2008 and continues until 2023. 

The country and its institutions are being tested for flaws in its character and cracks in its foundation. If the flaws are deep, the institutions will fall. Fate will be the judge of any weakness here. Lies can be disastrous. Shortcuts will not work. The last time Pluto was in Capricorn we had the American Revolution.

For each of us personally, this is a time we can clearly see our self defeating behaviors. We will feel a need to control our own lives. For everyone, but especially those who carry a strong Plutonion signature, there will be power struggles. 

We are learning how to step into our own power and responsibility and find the balance between standing up for our rights and not imposing our will on other people. It is a challenging polarity to balance.

(and speaking of Polarity - warning shameless plug ahead - have you seen my Polarity Lockets?)

This week we have Pluto making this opposition with the Sun allowing us to see clearly some dark corners we would probably rather not look at. There may be ulterior motives and secrets and power struggles. We may have to put some of our energy (Sun) into Pluto themes - debt, inheritance, taxes, insurance, other people's money. Next Sunday, the Sun will square Uranus and whatever needs to break free, probably will. Uranus will allow us to move on and make the necessary choices. There may be some security rattling with this one.

We have to do what we have to do now. If you know you need to do it, just do it. Whatever we find ourselves avoiding now is what we need to move on from BUT this is our Saturn summer to clean stuff up. Do what you have to do first.

On Tuesday Mercury's final aspect in Gemini is an inconjunct to Saturn (retrograde in Scorpio) so there will be some communication, meeting, offer related to someone older or more established maybe or related to our goals or something financial, sexual, maybe divorce, mortality, reproductive issues, or third party stuff. We will need to be flexible here. The Moon is in Aries so we get a little of that warrior energy to work with and we have the Cancer Sun to proceed with love and compassion.

On Wednesday Mercury moves into Cancer so our communications and conversations get more emotional. Home, real estate, renovations, security might be our focus. Our attention moves to our inner circle - old friends and family require more of our energy and attention and give us more of theirs.

Venus is moving toward her long, upcoming retrograde. If you have any beautification projects planned - don't wait too long. In 2 weeks she will be retrograde and that will not be a good time for a new hair color, paint color, you name it. You will just have to re-do it later. Don't do anything new and permanent beauty related with Venus retro!

Venus has three meet-ups with Jupiter - expansion (7/1, 8/4, and 10/25) and three squares with Saturn - retraction (7/14, 8/5, 10/10).  She’s in Leo for most of this encouraging our heart to choose the road ahead! Then she moves into Virgo saying, "make it good, make it last." We are starting a new twelve year expansion and abundance cycle with Jupiter and a new eight year love and values cycle with Venus AT THE SAME TIME - this is why we need to be doing what we love now!

We can think back to the Augusts (within a couple months in either direction) of 2007, 1999, 1991 and 1983 to see what new Venus chapters have brought us in the past! We only get Jupiter and Venus launching new cycles at the same time every 24 years so let's make this one count. This summer is our time to get it all together and tie up any loose ends, so we can move forward in the fall! xo all

POSTING LATE THIS WEEK

I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend - I did, but now need to play catch-up. How is it always Sunday night? Going to be late with the creative forecast - a heads up that the week could be a wee bit challenging.

We have Venus building to a square with Saturn this week - asking us "is this what you really love?" - we also have a lot of Cancer stuff (home, family, renovations, security) preparing us for the New Moon in Cancer next week.

Conversations and communications are going to get more emotional when Mercury goes into Cancer mid-week.

Back tomorrow night with more info - with any luck! xo all

Happy FULL MOON Day to Jumpstart July!

Tonight we have the Full Moon in Capricorn I wrote about in my last post Astrology Forecast for Creatives HERE

Spend time outdoors today, tonight and tomorrow!

We also have Venus and Jupiter conjunct in Leo (where is Leo 22 degrees in your chart?) - we could see them a couple days ago here. We have clouds today but maybe you can see everything where you are. Even if they are not visible be assured they are still out there doing their thing!

We start July with a Full Moon and we will end July with another one - making this a very emotional month!

Remember Full Moon's illuminate and throw light into hidden corners. With the Venus / Jupiter conjunction in Leo the spaces in our life we are making choices out of love (Venus, Leo) are going to expand (Jupiter) now. The spaces where we are denying our passion and stepping back from our personal power and responsibility because of fear will be revealed to us, too.

If our life energy is locked in an unconscious fear pattern we will continually self sabotage in order to stay safe. Know that whatever shows up for us now is what we need to work through to evolve. We need to be patient with ourselves and with life. July is going to be a time of preparation.

xo all

My Cancer Aromatherapy Locket featuring the adorable illustrations of Oksana Grivina is on sale now for all those Cancer Birthdays!

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of June 29th | Love WINS

This week is all about - LOVE (yes, it totally wins), CREATIVE PROJECTS, CHILDREN and FUN.

Yes, I'm shouting - it's that kind of week! Whatever we have going on in these areas is where we want to focus our energy for the most support.

We saw the preview of the power of this building Venus and Jupiter in Leo period (the first one aspecting Jupiter trining Uranus) - with the Supreme Court (Jupiter rules legal issues, the media, weddings) supporting marriage for everyone (Venus rules love and our values and Leo rules true love and pride).  

This is the summer of love and we are only just beginning!!
 
Monday and Tuesday are great days to get alot of work done. The Moon goes void Tuesday afternoon so that's not a good time to start anything new.

On Wednesday, Venus officially unites with Jupiter in Leo adding positivity and expansion to our Venus ruled love, money, and values. And since Venus rules Libra, currently ruling our North Node - it will make it easier to work with other people to get what we want. Win wins will be everywhere. The caveat is we must have skin in the game and commit our heart to this journey.

Whatever that important news was we got last week when Mercury finally cleared his shadow will act as an invitation to pull our story forward. Mercury moves 10 degrees in the next week so communications and information is zipping along. With Mercury full steam ahead we are as clear as we are going to get right now about what is coming next. If we are unclear we can go back to what we used to love and do that. Doing what we love pulls everyone forward now.

We have a Full Moon on Wednesday/Thursday in Capricorn. This is the culmination of the New Moon from January when we set our New Year resolutions. Where are we with that? Things feel quite different now, huh?

This Moon opposes Mars and the planet of war has just moved into emotional Cancer so likely the stuff that is culminating from the beginning of the year will involve some kind of competition and likely some kind of angst. I know we are so over competition.

Mars though, still likes a good head to head, and since he is one of our personal planets he hits our personal lives as well as the world at large with this one. It's OK we are up to it. Lots of fire to work with. Remember the dream doesn't have to be BIG. It just has to be OURS (think Leo in your chart!). Focus any potential disappointment or anger toward our next move. We've got this thing. It's not a race - we are in no hurry.

We have a Cancer Sun now so are all burning Cancer fuel (this is the time of year we all get to see what it feels like to be the tender bellied crab). The Sun trines Neptune retrograde in Pisces on Thursday, too.  

So that Full Moon culminating our Capricorn ambition will be fueled by our emotions (Cancer) and our dreams (Neptune) making the most impractical suddenly quite practical.

Remember we have all working that North Node (where we are going) in Libra and South Node (where we've been) in Aries for the past year and we have been shown why we need those pesky 'other people' and the ways going it alone just doesn't work for us. The Full Moon squares the Nodes so whatever it brings to light will move this part of our story forward, too.

Saturn is back in Scorpio through mid September so something from December (when he moved into Sagittarius) comes back around and (if you are old enough), think back to the summer of 1984 and what story we were working with then! If music helps with memories (it does me) think - Springsteen : Dancing in the Dark, Lauper : Time After Time and all the music from Footloose!

xo all

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of June 22nd | Comfort Zone RESET

comfort zone quote by neil donald walsh | misty michelle design

We have four astrological events this week worth talking about!

And I am writing this on the Summer Solstice (today's chart sets the scene for the next 3 months) so lots going on.

We'll start with a challenging aspect we have been kind of muscling our way through since May 9th when Mercury (in Gemini, where it rules) began squaring Neptune (in Pisces, where it rules).

This has not been an easy aspect.

We might have been hit hard with information we received or things hidden may have come to light. News out of the blue we didn't have the grounding for, issues regarding balance and our relationships with others, lots of nostalgia and crazy weepy feelings these last 6 weeks have strained many people. This stuff is karmic. The good news is this aspect begins to wrap up on Tuesday and every day after that continues to lessen.

Our comfort zone has been permanently RESET.

One of the best things about astrology is it lets us see the cycles and gain some perspective on why things happen when they do and also see when challenging cycles are going to begin to smooth out.

The potentials for this Mercury and Neptune square started in 2011 when Neptune went into his own sign of Pisces and continues until 2024 when Neptune moves on. We have not had this exact aspect since the mid 1800's so know that whatever came up for you over the last 6 weeks, and this could apply to someone near you and your karma is to help them through it, for example (you could think past life or family karma with this) it is probably very old.

This aspect has been happening at some point every May or June for the last 4 years but until this year has only lasted a couple days - this one lasted 6 weeks. There is another dousy in 2021 - if you haven't been playing out some long karmic situation these past few weeks, your turn will probably come up then. I know you will still be remembering this blog post in 6 years right?!

It is important to think about what has happened to us since May. Depending on your birth chart this will hit everyone in different spaces but it is the same basic theme of choices that need to be made and news we needed to deal with. Our response matters, but mostly just having dealt with whatever came up will move us forward. 

Lots of breakthroughs can come from these annual transits, too. Artists will create the best work of their lives, big romances (one of the great loves of your life regardless of outcome), medical breakthroughs, spiritual awakenings. We also have asteroid Chiron, the wounded healer, shadowing this transit for 4 more years so there are many opportunities for great healing.

When you heal any aspect of your story you heal the collective story - when anyone lets in more light, there is more light for all of us. 

On Monday we have a big, powerful trine between Jupiter in Leo (growth, happiness) and Uranus in Aries (fast change, action) shaking something up and breaking us out of our rut. This is the final one that started back in late September - what has expanded in our life since then?

Uranus is always about landing us (yes, sometimes with a kick in the ass) where we need to be when we can't quite get ourselves there.

By this week the groundwork will be set for this so we likely have some idea of the potential for a positive something or other shaping up in the background, paving the way for something BIG and something NEW.

If an opportunity just comes totally out of the blue now, I would say go for it. Whatever is growing will begin to blossom between now and mid August. This is about hope and opportunity. It's all good.

And it's another comfort zone RESET.

Venus in Leo trines Uranus from Thursday through the beginning of next week and then joins with Jupiter next Wednesday. Venus adds love, money and our values to the mix. While there are no guarantees, of course, our best bet is to reach beyond what’s comfortable or common. The opportunity will lie within something's newness now.
 
On Wednesday Mars enters Cancer. Anything uncomfortable - feelings or issues should probably be confronted head on. Sensitivity could bring on anger or vice versa and mama bears will be dangerous. Don't say I didn't warn you.

This cycle through August 8th will focus us on Cancer favorites - security, home, real estate, family, roots, renovations, etc.

I am going to do a post later in the week about various summer aspects we will all be working with!

xo all

seeding without weeding .... how to destroy your business by using Etsy fundamentals outside Etsy

Weeds for Sale © 2011 Mufidah Kassalias

Many people I know with maker businesses started their business on Etsy. It is understandable when, as they move their business outside Etsy territory, they might stumble a bit.

You'd think it would be easier for someone who had a business before Etsy, but I seem to make all the same missteps and then invent a few of my own.

(and now that I think about it this is the same thing that happens to me when dancing although I am excellent at that dance move Courtney Cox does in the Springsteen video, yeah that move)

1.  On Etsy more is more. More options, more variety, more opportunities to draw more people into our shop, more price points, more for sale = more sales.

 (this more is more will actually cause our business to break down on Etsy, too, or give us one, but it does usually produce more sales, at least until it doesn't)

Some of us have been seeding without weeding our Etsy shops for years.

But outside Etsy this more is more stuff doesn't work at all.

At shows - now for in person sales, we need a certain amount of product to sell a certain amount of product. At a craft show for example, I want to make 10X my booth fee and I stock with 2.5-3X that to make it happen. So if my booth fee is $100, I want to make $1000 and I bring $2500 - $3000 retail of my makings.

(of course I still need the weather and the foot traffic and the location and the right show to make this happen, but much of that is outside my control, the parts I can control and inventory is one of them, is how I give having a successful show my best shot)

So, let's say my retail price point was $30 and I was bringing $3000 worth of makings - that would mean I was bringing 100 items with me. Now, on Etsy the way to more sales would be to have 100 different items for sale and just remake things as I sell them. At a show this doesn't work of course and would be a very bad idea anyway. You might think more choices would give you something for everyone, but my experience tells me something different happens.

Given too many options people face overwhelm and can't decide.

There is an infamous 'jam' study about this. Lots of options = more eyes on our stuff. Lots of people stop and look, but then they more often leave without buying than when we have fewer options.  

There is a sweet spot with this between too few and too many and it is our job to find it. 

Since I sell mostly picture jewelry the customer has to like a particular style of jewelry and then they have to like a particular picture. This is easy on Etsy where I can offer almost limitless options.

In person this is trickier.

So I limit the options on a particular style down to say 12 options, sometimes as few as six. The customer who likes that style can make a decision and a purchase much easier.

(And yes, sometimes they ask if I have something I do have but didn't bring - I just hand them a business card - most of the time I will never hear from them anyway. I find that when I have a customer who says something like "oh I love this style I wish you had an owl" and I whip out an owl, will just as quickly respond "oh I wish he was blue" - they don't really want to buy anything even if they think they do. This happens to me in Anthropologie where I often like everything but nothing enough to buy it - like if that same plate were in the drugstore I would snatch it up but in Anthropologie surrounded by lots of amazing whoseewhatsees I can pass it up. I'm not sure we can totally eliminate this.)

Remember also at shows we have just a few minutes to get a buyer to purchase. They didn't just come to see us (although that doesn't mean we aren't totally adorable and have minty fresh breath). Unlike Etsy where people tell me they return to my shop again and again to decide - that isn't going to happen with in-person sales.

We need to be weeding.

On our own website -When I started my own website I just pulled all my listings over from Etsy and made a huge mess of it. I have been weeding it ever since (yes, my back hurts and my gardening gloves have holes worn through the fingers). I do not suggest anyone do this.

On our website things need to make total sense - for your customers, stores that stop in and for SEO.

1. We need to be selling the things we are talking about (this is why I am absolutely moving the astrology posts off this site this summer, I know I said it before and backpedaled because it was so sad for me to see the traffic stats on the new site, but this time it's all moving - it will always include astrology since it's a passion of mine, but I need to have many more posts using the words I want Google to affiliate with what I make) - blogs are necessary SEO tools for our website, assuming of course we update them regularly, but can be detrimental if not used correctly.

We need to weed.

 2. We need our lines to be consistent. For example if we sell lip balms and lotions we probably need to have the same flavors/scents for both. We need to sort things out seasonally. If we have a line of necklaces and sell bracelets - we need that line of necklaces to work with that line of bracelets or we probably need to just ditch the bracelets. Things need to make sense and be consistent.

We need to weed.

3. Our websites do not have the SEO strength that Etsy has and people are not often randomly Googling the thing we are selling.

How often do you buy from a random website? Well, that's about as often as everyone else does. People aren't just going to Google "necklace" and stumble into my website. People need to be looking for me.

Which means I not only have to be selling something people want - they have to have heard about me. All that social media/promotion stuff we haven't wanted to do

(and yes, I know I am just talking about myself here, but I think many makers can relate)

 - well with a website it is no longer an option. This stuff is going to take a lot of time and since we sell things we make and not just something we purchase and bag up there is not a lot of time to do this part.

If we set up our website the way we set up our Etsy shop - no one will ever find us. We need to figure out what works and what doesn't with this stuff and trust me we don't want to be late to the party - and when it comes to social media I am often late to the party.

(I think because they didn't serve wine and cheese and finish it off with chocolate cake, that would have had my butt in line much, much sooner)

Although to be fair to myself I jumped into Twitter with both feet, was a little more tired by the time Facebook came along and maybe gave it more of a one legged hokey pokey kind of effort. With Pinterest I was years behind the curve and just started my Instagram a couple weeks ago! Gulp!

We need to make time to do this stuff if we are going to have a website and we need to choose which social media to focus on - we don't have time to do it all.

We need to weed so we can focus.

A diluted focus will always lead to diluted priorities, diluted enthusiasm, a diluted brand and a diluted bank account.

Wholesale - Off-Etsy we might decide to sell to stores and we might need to sell to stores in order to make a sustainable income. Store owners are busy people. They don't have time to be figuring out how to work our website or read our 10 page linesheet. We need to be streamlined and consistent.

They want stuff that is new and interesting but they also want stuff that has a track record and sells. These are not things that go together. We have to figure out how to give them both these things. For example with my new aromatherapy lockets I tell stores about the popularity of aromatherapy and the popularity of my regular line with customers on Etsy. So they get something new and exciting, but they do not feel they are going way out on a limb with me.

We need to weed through our losers and seed our winners for them because we want them to be successful and we want them to come back and buy more from us!

There are many changes we need to make as we maneuver outside Etsy, and maybe you have been weeding all along. But if our weeding is really only dictated by the Etsy expiration date feature we need to take a better look at this. Continuing to seed new stuff without weeding out the old makes the life we are creating for our business as short and unattractive (unattractive as in both ugly and not able to attract) as the life for our garden.

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of June 14th | One Part YES and Two Parts Pure Panic

every sunrise by the amazing aimee dolich of artsyville

So, we have a lot going on!

We now have Jupiter, Uranus and Mercury direct!

Are we ready to start? Within a week something is likely to kick into gear and life is going to look a whole lot different for a whole lot of people. In Gemini there will be choices - but we know the one that sets our heart on fire is the one we need to reach for - something that is likely one part pure YES and two parts total panic. Something new.

Do that thing Yes, that thing. There is luck here. And things are different now. We will grow with the situation. One step will lead to the next.

Mercury is direct and by the New Moon on Tuesday communications begin to pick up speed and then late June (Mercury totally out of his shadow) many hanging plots will be wrapped up.

We have a retrograde Saturn back in Scorpio today for the next three months. If you are a very late degree Scorpio, or have very late degree Aquarius, Taurus or Leo planets you will feel this strongest.

 (if you have planets in very early degree mutable signs - especially Sagittarius but also Pisces, Gemini and Virgo - you will feel Saturn's brief absence from Sagittarius and his restrictions easing up, so use this time to reflect on what Saturn in Sagittarius has brought you so far - likely some kind of roadblock. 

You’ll get a Groundhog Day style repeat when Saturn returns to Sagittarius in September - maybe there will be something you can do differently with that second chance?)

We will all be tying up loose ends from his Scorpio transit of October 2012 through December 2014. Yes, a recap of two years worth of lessons in three months ... oh my. This is heavy and, in fact, significant decisions or shifts in consciousness are happening.

If we ignored the stuff this stern taskmaster planet asked of us then, this will be one last chance to get our crap together. Situations will crop up that allow us to see if endings, boundaries and commitments we made are still valid and still being honored.

This will give all of us an opportunity to confirm why we ended that thing we ended or why we made that new commitment or took on that extra obligation in the first place. Are we sure this is the way we want this thing to go down?

Stuff we thought we were finished with can show up again. If this makes us feel like giving up, and it might at times, like we are going in circles, know that Saturn allows us to complete this stuff once and for all. This extra step back for another opportunity to get this right (ie step into our responsibility) will be a gift in the end. I want this. This is where I am going. This is what I am going to do. By going back over everything that confirms our choices - we will be certain.

On Tuesday we have a New Moon in Gemini. Here's some excellent New Moon posts. This Moon is sextile Eris (female warrior), conjunct Mars (masculine warrior) and squaring Chiron (wounded healer) in Pisces and Black Moon Lilith (outsider, rebel) in Virgo. This feels like, YES, stand up for yourself and for what you believe in and for those who cannot stand up for themselves! We can use Gemini logic, intellect and maybe even humor for whatever shows up. This is also an excellent moon, Gemini is the twins after all, for another look toward that damn flock we need if we haven't found it yet! The Moon goes void within hours so don't start anything new right at this Moon.

Mini astrology lesson : The moon is called "void" or "void of course"when she makes no aspects to any other planets. This is important.

Our moon lives in imagination where all our possibilities are kept alive simply because we never choose to live them out. So, in astrological terms, the Moon has to make an aspect to a physical planet before she leaves the sign she is in, before she 'changes the subject' so to speak, for anything to actually happen in the physical realm.

When an action is taken under a void of course moon - nothing will come of the matter.

Now sometimes this is a good thing. I got a letter on Friday (Mercury direct) from the IRS that they are missing our 2012 tax return. WTH! Thank goodness they have our money. So, I need to file/refile. A void of course moon is the perfect time because I want nothing further to come of the matter. I want the matter to end there. No one wants any further dealings with the IRS, right?

But now with most things we do, we want something to come of them, so should avoid starting things at the void moons which occur every couple days or so for a few hours. Here is a list of void moons for June.

xo all

owning our gifts | part II

awakening by elif demir

You can read the prequel here
and part I here

(this is starting to feel like Jurassic Park, which yes, I'd kind of like to see, have to find a kid to drag along)

I heard from a couple people last week who were not really feeling it when I wrote about letting go of the idea of "hard work". I know where this is coming from because we might like the idea of being a "hard worker" and "paying our dues".

(although I think if we are honest with ourselves we like these things best in hindsight when they have led us to victory or some kind of reward or achievement and not so much when they just lead us in circles - feminine energy is not linear, circles are our friend now)

If being a hard worker means doing the best job possible, I'm totally with you. If paying our dues means putting in the time it takes to get really good at something, you and I are in total agreement and maybe should go on vacation together or at least have a sleepover and do our nails.

Astrology Forecast for Creatives | Week of June 8th | POTENTIAL

We start the week with the Sun and Mars hugging it out

(both in Gemini making us all feel like an "action Jackson" Aries)

sextile Jupiter in Leo and Uranus in Aries. Sextiles may be the least potent of the harmonious aspects but with everything else that is happening thrown in we have a really nice sized nugget of POTENTIAL here.

(let's just say if this was Gold Rush, Parker Schnabel and his grandpa would be two very happy miners)

Jupiter (opportunity, expansion) plus Uranus (new, revolutionary) could feel like whatever is happening is too big to handle, maybe some opportunity we think we are not quite up to or maybe some change that feels like too much.

owning our gifts | part I

pandora by mary pohlmann

"One person who did not listen was Pandora. Her story comes from Ancient Greece and her curiosity brought a whole heap of trouble."

When I googled Pandora's story this was the first couple sentences to pop up. And it's pretty much the way most people remember the story - the first woman on Earth, made by the Gods, she wasn't satisfied and wanted more, more, more, had to open that damn box and it unleashed untold agony on the world. 

She is the ancient Greek's version of the Eve story and a key foundational block of the patriarchy paradigm we've been living.

Now that the sacred feminine is rising (and the sacred masculine) this isn't about the feminine energy taking over - we had a matriarchal society prior to patriarchy - this is about the merging of the two.