Are you a big fan of Alchemy? Love all things gothic and alternative? Have a flair for business and a passion for connecting with customers? Or perhaps you already have your own company and want to add some unique and beautiful jewellery, gift and home collections to your inventory? Well.. you can become an Alchemy stockist!
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Midwinter’s night in the sacred grove of Crann Brethadh. A priestess casts a spell of veneration, just as her forebears had done on this very night since the world was young and icebound. And in the snowy heartlands of ancient Britain peasant folk continue the magical traditions of joyful, raucous tree worship to scare away evil spirits and provide a good harvest – The Wassail.
Evergreen trees were always powerful symbols of rebirth at the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. The ritual of decorating the home with evergreen boughs and symbols of fertility at the winter solstice seems to have been passed down, more or less unchanged, since pagan times. It is a time where the fresh new sprigs of nature go underground and the maiden of spring sleeps. The Earth, like the Mother, carries the potential for future growth in her quietude. And in the depth of winter, the crone reveals herself, embodying wisdom, resilience, and the promise of eventual renewal.
We would like to wish a happy new year to all of our friends in the east. We hope the year of the Ox will be a prosperous one for you all.
To learn more about the Luna New Year you can read our previous blog here.
The pentagram, basically the graphic image of a five pointed star, has existed as a symbol for at least 2,000 – 5,000 years, when during the stone age it was carved into rock, no doubt with some spiritual tenor. Since then it has been in constant use by countless peoples and various ethno-religious and spiritual groups, perhaps most famously, the legendary King Solomon. These include the Greeks and the Babylonians for which it represented the five elements, (earth, air, fire, water and spirit), but also the Chinese, the Jews, the Christians, ancient folk communities everywhere and more recently, by occultists and spiritualists.
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The following was adapted from an article originally posted at modellaesmeralda.blogspot.com.
This article is republished here with permission from the original author. You can read the full version by visiting their blog.
Disclaimer: This post contains advertisement – read more below.*
As every year, I have been shooting many photos for Alchemy England’s catalogues in 2019 and also got to wear their beautiful jewellery for other occasions. As I have been looking back on some old photos and finally started blogging again, I thought it would be a good idea to make a little feature with my favourite photos from this years’ shoots!
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This Valentine is all about love, warm hugs, kisses and appreciation. Yes, yes, I am talking about the best witch familiar, the graveyard guardian, the Ancient Egyptian pride and absolute dark beauty: the cat. And if you’re not convinced yet, here are a few reasons why we should be celebrating Calentine from now on.
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A recent enquiry from a ‘friend of Alchemy’ based in Australia, referred to an item he’d bought some 30 years ago from a Metal For Melbourne fest in Australia. The image above accompanied the message. His query was its identity and, in particular regarding the branding stamp on the reverse which simply said ‘POKER’.
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The early branding of Alchemy jewellery was different to today’s markings. The company’s origins were, as is the case with many nascent companies, not straightforward and its identity evolved over time.
The very first products which launched the venture, around 1976, were a small collection of punk ‘anti-jewellery’, irreverent pins and pendants such as a toilet seat, a graffitied padlock and a bent screw, all made one at a time, hand cast from scrap lead and designed to shock! These were branded as ‘Poker’, with the name hand carved into the back of each model. Then, in 1977, we rented a small shop with a little room for a workshop behind. We named the shop Rieder’s Axe and the company, Rieder Design, after one of our heroes; a revered late 15th century Austrian armourer Kaspar Rieder, from Muhlau, Innsbruck who was a master metalsmith in magnificent gothic style, by appointment to Emperor Maximilian I.
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Alchemy will help you play a good trick on someone who does not know much about the dark world. All you have to do is stay as cold and serious as Morticia Addams. 
This year Alchemy will help you celebrate an amazing Valentine.