Imbolc: Cleaning Out My Closet

While this swamp-witch isn’t going full Marie Kondo on her lair, she recognizes that Imbolc is the traditional time to start on our “spring cleaning.”

Imbolc is the time when we prepare for the coming spring and herald the coming light. While it’s the coldest time of year, it’s already begun to get lighter, meaning spring is around the corner. To prepare for the planting season, which will begin in a few short weeks, we take this holiday to clean house, spiritually and physically.

And thus, let the purge begin!

I’m getting ready to start vlogging. By Spring, I want a full vlog up and running where I can show you how I work, what I do, maybe even take you to the shop to show you a tattoo or two. And Imbolc is the perfect time to do it.

Unfortunately, pre-spring cleaning doesn’t leave you a lot of time for other activities, so in lieu of a pattern to help you clean, here’s a helpful guide on how to know which yarn to keep, and which yarn to throw out/donate.

If you so choose, of course. Yarn can be a lot like books: treasured objects that can become something else; you never know which projects you’ll use a part of your stash for. However, yarn can sometimes get old, unusable, or just feel rough. Or you can have so much yarn that you are literally tangled out of house and home.

Fear not, here is a handy guide on which yarn to keep and which yarn to ditch:

1. Feel it – Does it feel soft and nice, or does it feel itchy? And if it’s itchy and dry, can you felt with it (and are you really going to felt with it, or are you just telling yourself that?), or is it just acrylic yarn gone bad? If yes to the last one, toss it!

2. Would you use this color, or would you make it for someone else? If you don’t know anyone who’s a fan of mustard yellow, you might want to give it someone who knows someone who is.

3. Be honest, are you really going to use that yarn? If you’re not someone who usually makes pastel, sparkly things, why are you keeping the pastel, sparkly baby yarn? Give it away or throw it away!

And remember: even if you regret throwing away the yarn, be real with yourself, you will buy more.

And a final thought, something that I might touch on with my next blog, but something I’ve been thinking about: Imbolc is also about cleaning yourself out mentally, emotionally, and spiritually so you grow new ideas, dreams, and prospects in the new year. Pay attention to what you’re thinking – are you at peace with yourself, or are you constantly putting yourself down with negative thoughts?

A Candle and Crochet Meditation for Imbolc:

1. Light a candle (preferably white or a color that represents what you’re trying to manifest – examples include red for passion, gold or green for money/success, purple for creativity or to start a new project, orange or yellow to start a new venture)

2. Look at the flame. Concentrate on the thoughts that hold you back: the doubts, the what-ifs, the would-a-could-a-should-as, all the stinking thinking that comes to your mind. And through that, imagine this little flame growing, engulfing, and purging all those bad thoughts. And as it burns the bad away, think about what can go right. If you need help, call on Goddess, God, Brighid (Celtic goddess of light and the hearth) or her counterparts in the pantheon you worship (a goddess or god of light and hearth) to burn away the negativity and fill your mind with light: what is good? what am I learning? how am I growing?

3. Picture these nasty thoughts as ashes on the ground. Take and broom and sweep them in the garbage or outside (also a great way to clean the house).

4. With positive thoughts burning through your head, pick up your crochet project. Whenever you yarn over and insert your hook, think of it as planting a seed (or if necessary – stabbing bad thoughts away if they creep back, if it gets really bad, I recommend repeating the candle meditation until they go away since I believe that what you think while you make a project tends to stick to it). Think of yourself gathering each stitch as a seed, getting ready to plant it when the ground thaws and spring comes.

Blessed be!