Steampunk: Owl-Topia!
Here is a Steam Punk Necklace My mom made called: Owl-topia, Steampunk Necklace!

A piece reminiscent of the turn of the century, apothecary shoppes, mercury glass and bottle glass, history, folklore, museums, wisdom, owls, birds, time machines, travel and starry nights. Castles Archaeology, Egypt, and Exploration.
To purchase this piece or many others in the collection or the rest of her works visit:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/auroratique

The Folklore and Magic of Owls:

Africa

Among the Kikuyu of Kenya it was believed that owls were harbingers of death. If one saw an owl or heard its hoot, someone was going to die. In general, owls are viewed as harbingers of bad luck, ill health, or death. The belief is widespread even today.

The Americas

In the culture of the Uto-Aztec tribe, the Hopi, taboos surround owls, which are associated with sorcery and other evils. The Aztecs and Maya, along with other Natives of Mesoamerica, considered the owl a symbol of death and destruction. In fact, the Aztec god of death, Mictlantecuhtli, was often depicted with owls. There is an old saying in Mexico that is still in use^[15]: Cuando el tecolote canta, el indio muere ("When the owl cries/sings, the Indian dies"). The Popol Vuh, a Mayan religious text, describes owls as messengers of Xibalba (the Mayan "Place of Fright"). The belief that owls are messengers and harbingers of the dark powers is also found among the Hočągara (Winnebago) of Wisconsin.When in earlier days the Hočągara committed the sin of killing enemies while they were within the sanctuary of the chief's lodge, an owl appeared and spoke to them in the voice of a human, saying, "From now on the Hočągara will have no luck." This marked the beginning of the decline of their tribe. An owl appeared to Glory of the Morning, the only female chief of the Hočąk nation, and uttered her name. Soon afterwards she died. People often allude to the reputation of owls as bearers of supernatural danger when they tell misbehaving children, "the owls will get you."

Middle East

In Arab culture, owls are seen as bad omens.

Western culture

The modern West generally associates owls with wisdom. This link goes back at least as far as Ancient Greece, where Athens, noted for art and scholarship, and Athena, Athens' patron goddess and the goddess of wisdom, had the owl as a symbol. Marija Gimbutas traces veneration of the owl as a goddess, among other birds, to the culture of Old Europe, long pre-dating Indo-European cultures.

Owls were considered funerary birds among the Romans.

Use as rodent control

Encouraging natural predators to control rodent population is a natural form of pest control, along with excluding food sources for rodents. Placing a new box for owls on a property can help control rodent populations (one family of hungry barn owls can consume more than 3,000 rodents in a nesting season) while maintaining the naturally balanced food chain.

For more info visit: wikipedia.com

Published in Bead Trends Magazine Dec. 2009
There is something so magical and uplifting about seeing all your hardwork in print. To be able to share ideas and techniques with everyone, to give back to your friends and fellow artists is amazing.I love experimenting within a variety of mediums, it challenges my creative muse and opens the doors to endless inspiration and can embark one on a journey into themselves.

When you try new things, you branch out of your comfort zone and will either enjoy the new things or not, then you can try something else. I used to primarily draw, sew, bead and sculpt, so to re-visit these favorites when I can re-ignites me with a new found energy. So for Bead Trends Magazine I chose to create a simple, yet trendy piece, one with a technique which could be made by anyone and turned into a variety of pieces such as a necklace and a bracelet.

I try to create projects which are easy to complete, not intimidating, all though some might look that way, once you read the instructions, you understand the process of the piece and if you truly know me, you know I love to recycle and up-cycle things giving them new life.
In the project: Gothic Owl Bracelet and Necklace, the focus was on the OWL, a pendant from the Lost and Found Collection of pieces from Blue Moon Beads. I might add, Blue Moon has some impressive jewelry lines out now for all tastes and styles.

Now a quick story on why I chose an Owl as my focus, for years I have always wanted to own a pet owl, my Aunt Winnie had owned one, seeing pictures of her pet owl always fascinated me. In the Harry Potter movies, the students of Hogwarts owned owls, some gothic victorian homes have owl sculptures or other winged creatures on their homes, Tootsie Roll Pops, remember the wise owl?The owl represents in some cultures protection, protection from negativity or harm, it represents education, intelligence, wisdom, mystery and secrets to name a few. In relation to Harry Potter, J.K.Rowling placed owls with the students of Hogwarts, they carried messages to them and were their companions. The meaning of owls in West African and Aboriginal Australian cultures viewed these winged beauties as a messenger of secrets, kin to sorcerers, as well as companions to seers, mystics and medicine people.I paired this symbolism with gothic rosary style black beads and silver components on both the pieces in these projects. If the blue moon assortment of beads is not available to you, try making an owl pendant from silver polymer clay, Sterling silver fired clay, recycle from an old necklace or pin, try broken rosary beads already connected, by the beads by the yard or use an old necklace. Try my "cupcake chic" color palette and use pink beads and a sugary sweet plastic owl charm.

The possibilities are endless, the protection and magic part, everyone could use some protection and magic here and there, Don't you agree?

Magic and Joy,
Lisa!

To purchase a copy of Bead Trends visit your local book store, magazine stand or craft store, their site:
http://www.beadtrendsmag.com/


For more info on owls and other meanings visit:
http://www.whats-your-sign.com/animal-symbolism-owl.html