Like our other house bundles, our limited bundles are fashioned to be simple, sturdy folk magic that a variety of practitioners can utilize in their practice. With planned releases of limited bundles for the next few months, here's more information on how to utilize our Queer Ancestor kit.
Queerness, for me, is as much about my identity as a queer person as it is a “queering” of traditional ideas, to rethink, modify, and subvert tradition through a queer approach. Queerness is expansive for me - not just within the people I love who are still here, but within plants, Spirits, places, and the spirits of our history.
Ancestors are not separate from us. The people that we are related to, that influence us, teach us, those we call family (even if not blood-related), live through us.
When we experience a shift in our bodies, a discovery, a way of becoming, we are changed and changing through the people we meet and interact with.
Our ancestors live in our bodies - sometimes in our throats, heart, stomach, sometimes in our back or hands, and move through us.
Connecting with ancestors is open for everyone.
Calling in the Queer Ancestors is a bundle cultivated to honor our queer ancestors and living queer relatives during Pride month - made by a queer individual. In a similar fashion to our house bundles, these kits are slightly more expensive and expanded, only available for Pride Month, with the possibility of them returning next year if the run goes well.
This house bundle has a classic, house-dressed candle for queer ancestors and queer protection, our Oil of the Queer Ancestors in half ounce size, snake shed supplied by our lovely in-house ball python (Belaflore), and a limited-run charm bag for connection to queer ancestors and protection of queer relatives.
Oil of the Queer Ancestors is one of the two already existing oils in our ancestral veneration line, preceded by Oil of the Matriarchs, created to connect with communal and familial queer ancestors. It's Mother oil is fed songs by notable queer artists, and it contains various materia for ancestral veneration, spirit communion, and queer-related herbs.
Our Queer Protection oil is a limited run product - only available in .5oz sizes, only during Pride month, within the bundle and outside of the bundle, created with classic protection herbs historically used for protection from evil, from malintent, and with well-known queer ancestors who worked for liberation and protection of queer people called in over it. This oil is fierce in the best of ways, working with queer herbs and allies to bring more protection to those who wear it.
The white candle is dressed with a mixture of both of these oils, with herbs to assist in spirit communing and ancestral veneration, sealed with white wax.
The charm bag is created as a mixture of the spirits of both of these oils - for protection and calling in the ancestors, made with blue fabric and fed with each oil, small enough to be concealed and hidden. Included within it are some traditional materia for protection in Italian American folk magic, such as red coral, as well as queer-centered herbs, like lavender, fennel (my own personal relationship), and more. These charm bags are prayed over, fed, and tended to like any of our other charm bags.
How we recommend working with this collection:
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Write your petitions and names of queer ancestors you want to call into your space on the white candle. Feel free to be specific or broad! Some of the ancestors that are connected to our Oil of the Queer Ancestors include famous queer singers that had a profound affect on Frankie growing up - including George Michael (Freedom 90' was an anthem for their adolescence).
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Use the snake skin provided around your queer ancestor altar, to connect with the spirit of the snake, and to call in transformation, transition, and more.
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Use both the Oil of the Queer Ancestors and Queer Protection oil on candles, yourself (do a patch test beforehand) and feed them to the charm bag.
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Wear the Queer Ancestor oil on your pulse points and the Queer Protection oil on the back of your bag.
To set up an altar for your queer ancestors, you can:
1. Decide on a location where you would like your ancestors to be present. Somewhere communal, such as the dining room, kitchen, or living room is always a great option. Depending on your tradition, you probably don’t want to place your ancestor altar in your bedroom.
2. Gather photos or other mementos from your ancestors to place on the altar. These could be items that belonged to them or things that remind you of them. Fragrances that you associate with your ancestors, jewelry that they owned are more ideas.
Take your candle from this collection, and
1. Write out your ancestors names on a piece of paper or on a glass-encased candle in sharpie.
2. After lighting the candle, say out loud your intentions for your ancestors. This could be along the lines of verbally declaring that your ancestors are welcome in your life and in your home. It could be asking them for guidance and assistance in your life from them. I usually vocally say,
“We welcome in all ancestors known and unknown, (list of names of those you wish to call in), who wish to help us for our best good in these areas (give examples).