Wearable Sacred Shrine

I am very pleased with my handiwork!

This is my first soldered pendant.

I used silver solder and a vintage image of the Madonna.

I found this image on www.beta.dawn.com

of pilgrims on a trek to honour the Black Madonna in Spain

and this is the 'feel' that I tried to recreate with this pendant.

black rose shaped beads in a traditional rosary

a tiny silver heart dangling at the top 

fiery passion

blooming into a single rose

(hand made glass lampwork rose)

shooting out into a spanish crown

the traditional cross at the end of a rosary

replaced with a crowned sacred heart

The back of the shrine carries a quote on love

now for sale at Her Grace on Etsy.com

blessings

St Terese of Lisieux, the Little Flower

St Terese of Lisieux, also known as the Little Flower

Prayer of St Terese of Lisieux

May today there be peace within.

May you trust God that you are exactly where you

are meant to be.

May you not forget the infinite

possibilities that are born of faith.

May you use those gifts that you have received,

and pass on the love that has been given to you.

May you be content knowing you are a child of God.

Let this presence settle into your bones,

and allow your soul the freedom to sing,

dance, praise and love.

It is there for each and every one of us.

I just loved making this shrine of St Terese.

She is known as the Little Flower and is well-known for her

beautiful sayings comparing the inner life to a garden.

“The splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily
do not rob the little violet of it’s scent nor the daisy of its simple charm.
If every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, spring would lose its loveliness.” 

The shrine is filled with flowers and roses

and I covered the wooden cross with a multitude of roses.

I used fabric roses, aluminium roses, paper roses,

porcelain roses and german glass glitter on the roses

on the holy card image of the sacred heart.

St Terese said that after she had gone she will

shower roses from heaven.

The rose is a powerful symbol for many reasons.

It has five petals that shows at any given time,

representing the five elements,

thus representing wholeness.

I used all sterling silver charms on the side;

a brass finding as a halo behind her head;

velvet ribbon and vintage lace on the frames

as well as

hand punched lace paper trim.

I was so happy when I found these punches.

This shrine is part of the Mary Sacred Rosary Oracle Deck -

a huge project that I have undertaken!

blessings

Sacred Rosary Oracle of Mary Deck

I envision these shrines linked together in a

Sacred Rosary

each shrine a small window in the ordinary day

where the holy

is recognized as the unfolding rose

of Love present in each and every moment

I have started work on the 36 cards

of this Mary Oracle and

12 completely new shrines have been completed.

Each shrine takes a minimum of a week to create

and weeks to put together in collecting all the

bits n pieces

and in understanding its unique part in the greater story.

The Sacred Rosary Oracle of Mary deck

includes the four Initiations of Fire, Water, Air and Earth

in the life of Jesus and in the life of Mary;

the various apparitions of Mary, as well as

some of her sacred names.

It will also include the stories of Catholic Saints

such as Padre Pio, Saint Francis, Saint Anthony,

Saint Joseph, Mary Magdalene, Sarah-la-Kali, amongst others.

Pilgrimage to sacred places all over the world is what

I enjoy the most.  And most of these shrines are based on holy

places that I have visited :  the cave where the Archangel Michael

appeared three times in Italy, the village of Monte Sant'Angelo;

the shrine of Padre Pio at San Giovanni Rotondo;  St Bridget in Kildare;

the Mary Chapel and Well and the sacred hawthorn tree planted by

St Joseph at Glastonbury Abbey in England; the shrine, cave and church

of Mary Magdalene in the South of France;  the festival of

the black gypsy saint Sarah la-Kali, where the three Marys

landed in a small boat;

a pilgrimage to Lourdes, the Chapel of the Miraculous

Medal in Paris, the Notre Dame de Paris,

to mention but a few.

If you are interested in reading more about these pilgrimages

to Thailand, India, England and Europe, 

you will find them all here on Her Grace as well as on

The Path of Divine Love (link on the right hand side).

I will be sharing these shrines and their development over

the next few weeks and months.

Each shrine incorporates the significance of colour,

flowers, holy medals, vintage holy cards, 

statues, symbology related to astrology,

numerology and the spiritual significance of

these holy stories as related to our own

spiritual growth and development.

I hope you find it as fascinating as I do.

blessings