Handfasting Cord for Andrea & Thomas

Today is my 24th wedding anniversary and it seemed wonderfully fitting to get up and spend some time working on the handfasting cord for my friends Andrea & Thomas to use in their upcoming June wedding.



A handfasting cord is used in the pagan ritual of handfasting, and is apparently the source of the saying 'to tie the knot' in referring to weddings. I say "apparently" because there seems to be a variety of knot associations with marriage customs from all sorts of cultures and religions.

I felt very honored that Andrea & Thomas entrusted me to create this important part of their wedding ritual, in their colors of yellow and purple. After experimenting for quite awhile, I decided on a 4-strand braid, using 7 different cords, braid and ribbons.

I thought it would important for me to stay very mindful during the actual braiding, to keep Andrea & Thomas in my thoughts, along with my blessings for their lifelong happiness together. In order to stay focused, I made up a little chant:

over under in and out
in love and light a cord i weave
that hands clasped within its circle
remain forever cleaved.

Now "cleave" is a peculiar word - it means both 'to split' and 'to stick together.' I, of course, was using it in the latter meaning!

I finished the cord itself this morning. The next part will be adding charms and dangles that Andrea & Thomas chose. There will be a Green Man charm on one end and a Goddess charm on the other.

Here is a link to Gaia's Handfasting Cords - her cords are just beautiful and provided inspiration for us to draw upon.







Happy Anniversary, Paul - I love you!



Our wedding was tiny, in our home. Flowers from the back of one of the vans of the flower sellers in the Zayre's parking lot in Coconut Grove - $10 got us two overflowing laundry baskets full of flowers. Dress from Pier One. Two bottles of Veuve Cliquot Champagne and a deli platter from Publix. Vows (from the Quaker marriage ceremony) before a notary public friend took maybe one minute.

Ian, Paul, me, Shaun, 24 years ago today...

blessed be,
'zann