Blessing Sticks
I've had visions of these art pieces in my mind’s eye for a while now. I finally sat down and created the first blessing stick in March 2024 using seed beads of my favorite colors - orange, brown, and yellow. I chose milagros and bells to add to the hanging wire that created a sweet sound and shine. Then I began my exploration with different colors, themes, shapes, lengths…all the while enjoying the meditative state I would arrive to as I chose the “perfect” sticks, twisted wire, and began stringing beads.
The first blessing stick.
Blessing sticks are created with small branches and sticks found in my neighborhood in Boston, MA. The sticks are chosen with care: each stick should be thick enough to not easily snap and different shapes and colored bark can influence each unique design. The designs are hand beaded by the artist. Each blessing stick is centered on different themes, invoking a particular goal, blessing, or manifestation. Some themes include mental clarity and enlightenment, creativity, fertility, love, fortune and abundance, protection, strength, and gratitude.
A blessing stick to celebrate and honor lives lost through genocide in Palestine, May 2024
Art mends a broken heart.
A blessing stick contains:
A variety of seed and natural beads strung on wire then hung off of a branch.
Charms and milagros. Milagros are small golden figures that can be strung, fastened, sewed onto clothing, or held pockets, wallets, and bags. Milagros are religious folk charms from Mexican and Latin culture that are thought to bring “miracles” and protection. Learn more about milagros here: https://zinniafolkarts.com/blogs/news/36153281-what-do-milagros-mean
Bells make a sweet charming sound and the sound can have a cleansing effect on the energy of the space. Bells can be used for protection, attracting blessings, driving away negative spirits, and spiritual rituals. Learn more about the spiritual uses of bells here: https://originalbotanica.com/blog/altar-bells-cleansing-protection-2
