DIY Ogham Set
Have you felt the pull to connect with your families past?
For as long as I can remember Ive been obsessed with all things tied to the UK and Ive been diving into creating a deeper connection with my ancestral roots over the last few years.
Ive done an ancestry test, traced my family tree back as far as I can go, enrolled in a Celtic studies course and even started to learn Scottish Gaelic, as well as Irish (thanks DuoLingo!), I feel like a part of me has always wanted to connect with my ancient homelands.
Recently I felt the pull to learn and to start working with the Ogham ( also known as the Celtic tree alphabet), to make my own sigils and also for divination. And the very best way to learn is to not only read information, but to roll up your sleeves and give things a go! Having a tactile experience, helps the body, not just the mind, remember and form your own connections to the content.
Id have loved to have a set made out of little pieces of different woods, but I wasn’t quite sure how exactly to pull that off, so I went with plan B…. using baking clay to create my own Ogham set.
Now while I appreciate arts and crafts, I cant say I have the talent or skill, BUT the point was to create something that would be useful and personal to me, so I pushed my apprehension aside and gathered my supplies!
I used:
Green oven bake clay
A selection of small crystals (to decorate)
A divination blend of dried cedar, mugwort and lavender (to roll into the clay)
A small bell to trace the circles
A larger crystal to carve the Ogham alphabet
A silver pen to decorate
I started by rolling out the clay and then kneading in a mix of divination incense blend into the clay to both personalise and enhance psychic connection. Then I rolled the clay out again and used a small bell to cut out the 20 circles I needed.
Once i had the circles, I carved a letter of the Ogham into each and placed a small crystal to the side - to show which way to read the letter, as a lot of them look very similar, but the symbols face different directions!!!
Then I popped them in the oven for 15 minutes (I’m pretty sure I burnt some of the clay 😂) and then they were done!
Once cooled, I used a silver pen to outline the carvings and make them POP a little more.
This set isn’t perfect, its messy, its quite raw
BUT
This was such a fun and easy activity to do and it’s personal. ….this set has been made by me, infused with my intention, for my use, which in my opinion makes it all the more potent to use!
If you are into divination and would like to do something similar, you could try making your own traditional Rune or Ogham set or you could even create your own version, using symbols that are personal to you. You could use glass tiles, or stones, bits of wood or even polished crystals (if clay isn’t your thing) and either inscribe or draw your symbols onto the material you are using.
If you are into drawing, painting or creating with collage, what’s to stop you from creating your own set oracle cards? Nothing needs to be perfect and you are only limited by your imagination!
Doing an activity like this, that allows you to not only learn, but be creative and have fun is something we adults need to do more of!
Making the Ogham Set was kind of like being a child again, rolling out clay to use, feeling the different textures of the clay, the dried herbs and crystals, how often do we get the space to just play? Create? BE????
Theres such medicine to be had in getting messy and allowing yourself to create just for the sake of expression and connection. In allowing yourself to make something that doesn’t need to be perfect or sellable or for the rest of the world to see and judge.
I hope that this quick read, helps inspire you to have a little fun with your learning. To be a little less perfect and to creatively connect with your playful and intuitive side.
