Gotta love when you can make something do double-duty, right? I opened another LifeBook class and it was the thing that sets my teeth on edge. The class was for creating a charm for the year. I don’t buy in to all the “cast your dreams to the universe and the universe will provide” malarky so I knew I was going to struggle. It was all a bit airy fairy for sure, especially when I read the bit about creating a SIGL. The only reference to that I can recall is in fantasy books where the sigl is the symbol of a clan or group (pretty sure I heard it in GoT at some point too) and I figured I’d google it for more info. That led me to a You Tube video about witchcraft (!) and implied that creating the sigl was “magiks” and that added another layer of weird to the whole thing.
Soldiering on, I followed the instructions for creating “my sigl” based on an affirmative present tense sentence then crossing out the vowels and every duplicate consonant and (shifting to the instructions for a video rather than the class) matching the remaining letters to a number according to the alphabet laid out in a number-grid, THEN assigning the number a dot on a circle and connecting those dots with curved lines. I came up with something that is meant to represent my positive sentence to the universe. Right. I didn’t hate the IMAGE, but then I like palmistry images, and goddess images, and all sorts of new age-y image. I just don’t care for the self-obsessed belief system behind it all. That’s just me.

The arty part is where I covered a cardstock circle with tin foil, and with the stencil (actually that guide for rock painting I already mentioned) embossed with UTEE gold. The little Teesha Moore figure on wheels that I found as I was trawling thru my stash, looking for a focal point. It made a phrase pop in to my head – more on that later. The stamped figure is painted with some metallic watercolours and I assembled the layers with the “sigl” created for the class sandwiched inside.

The whole time I was assembling it, all I could think of, the only thing that was in my mind, was not my positive affirmation but the line from Blazing Saddles (mis-quoted from the older Treasure of the Sierra Madre) adapted for the exercise, Sigls? We don’t need no stinking’ sigls! (Note: the line from TotSM is actually Badges? We ain’t got no badges. We don’t need no badges. I don’t have to show you any stinkin’ badges! and that is your obscure bit of movie trivia for the year)
{sigh}
So what do I do with this? Having done the work to complete the exercise it seems silly to just ignore it, so my way to deal with this sort of thing is to include it, but hide it. And mock it, cause that’s how I roll. And THAT was the other text that needed to be included
The “charm” has layers. The layer that has the image is one side, the movie quote is the other side, but I sandwiched the sigl in between. It is there, even if I am making fun it on the surface. Cause that is totally how I roll, like it says.
I enjoyed the process and like the piece, and so long as I can set aside the parts of the classes that don’t speak to me (OMG! what is wrong with me?) that don’t appeal to me, then I will probably find something in each class (ok, I did look at a lot of them and no, not every class, for sure, but many)that I can do and make the cost of the course worthwhile.
Just slap me, digitally, if I seem to be slipping in to the whole self-centered, goddess and moon and witchy and neo-paganism new age….stuff. I will totally deserve it.
09/08/2021 at 3:56 pm
I find you so refreshingly honest. (The fact that I agree with your opinions has nothing to do with that. Every time I was tempted to sign up for the LifeBook classes there were so few that appealed to me and I couldn’t justify the purchase price.) I love how you approach every project. And I love “that’s how you roll”. I don’t think you’ll ever need any digital slaps. Thank you for your newsletters. They are my favorite of all I get and look forward to Mondays when your digest is there.
29/07/2021 at 9:45 pm
Ha ha ha I love this
29/07/2021 at 10:57 am
I am not into the airy fairy stuff either…
But love your that’s how I roll piece…
Happy Crafting!
29/07/2021 at 6:46 am
You gonna be wearing this!?!?
Interesting post …..
30/07/2021 at 10:10 am
No, I think you are meant to hang it someplace. It is far too big for that anyway!