Sacred embroidery came into my life in 2017 after I attended a workshop with a Russian embroidery artist on the island of Rügen in order to learn how to embroider my destiny towel called “Rushnyk”. For over 30 years I felt disconnected from my roots in Almaty, Kazakhstan after my family moved to Germany. So exactly after 30 years I heard the call to reconnect with my ancestors and the call came through embroidery arts. I literally picked up my destiny thread and started to embroider my destiny towel “Rushnyk” on purpose with my unique destiny symbols.
Since then, I have completed my destiny cloth, another 13 Worlds Rushnyk and am continuing to embroider my Shamanic Dress with new symbols that currently weave through me. It is an ongoing journey just like my life unfolding and expressing through different symbols.
A very profound experience for me that changed my life over night was the diagnosis of metastasised breast cancer in late stadium last December 2020. Since then, I am focusing on embroidering of my Healing Rushnyk and have furthermore just finished embroidering the Goddess of Full Aliveness on my Shamanic Dress. My Goddess Of Full Aliveness receives nourishment from Mother Earth, weaves all her chakras in balance that gives her wings and has a sun crown from Father Sky. Through weaving herself into wholeness she stands tall and beautiful like a World Tree with a diamond in her heart after she turned her demons from breast cancer into diamonds.
I have developed the metaphor of turning demons into diamonds while journeying with breast cancer - that is the even more Wyrding Way unfolding. I write my second book about my healing journey in form of a diary. My first book “The Wyrding Way: the mysterious art of weaving your own destiny” is an account about how my sacred embroidery and specifically weaving my ancestral threads of Russian and Kazakh sacred symbols has been so paramount on my journey of uprootedness to belonging. You can get a taste of it by downloading my first chapter of the book HERE or by pressing on the image.
So currently, I am practicing stitching specifically for healing. My most recent embroidery piece is a fountain, Rune Ehwaz and a diamond on my undergarment on the right hand side around my breast where my tumor and metastases are. While I am embroidering, I am sending my intention of healing into the symbol. The Fountain is particularly alive within me now.It is important for me to use the holy water of the earth as a healing fountain to direct transformational chemotherapy and hot flashes fires through peri-menopause wherever I want and need them. As a double firey aries woman, the fire used to burn me often, now I am learning to direct it specifically as a sacred life energy force into all chakras. That gives me wings. And my Soul Rune Ehwaz that looks like an “M” is my portal between lower and upper chakras. Everything flows nicely in the DNA / infinity eight. I continue to breathe and embrace and forgive all my unfragmented parts...A thousand times...and as long as necessary.
The garment becomes my second skin of wholeness. Recently my Womb centered Healing Mentor Sama Morningstar and I already offered a couple of Moon Underwear / Moonbelt Stitching Circles. The following symbol emerged for me:
I let the sunshine in in form of embroidering her on my sacred underwear. It is an initiation of the sun that shines light on the lotus flower. The rune Ingwaz appeared during our last stitching circle with Sama Morningstar and also lightning and Sun power of the Rune Sowelo was present, hence I have woven them into my magical underwear as well. Now it looks like a sunflower. The Lotus is rooted in dark soil, because no mud, no lotus. My moon underwear is now sacredly connected with Source and how it uniquely weaves through me. And with my intentional symbolism, I feel like I am in the process of reweaving my lost parts into wholeness and flow.
Since I am currently journeying with breast cancer, I do not have regular moon time but instead experience peri-memopause symptoms.I am consciously concentrating on sending the flowering lotus energy up to more subtle realms like the sun. Shamanic Journeying and also #SoulbasedCoaching Skills help me with that.
Sama and I have been offering co-creative stitching circles for a few years in the Womb centered Healing Temple now. Since it is spring now and everything is blooming, we plan to offer
3 Flower Power Inner Wear Story and Stitching Circles. The first one takes place on Friday, the 18th of June between 7 to 8.30pm CST.
I will tell a story about how each one of us is a unique flower, Sama will offer an Oracle Card Reading from her own deck and we will connect with our unique blossoming symbol and start stitching those into our inner wear.
Please come and join us on one or all three of the upcoming Flower Power Inner Wear Story and Stitching Circles.
About this event
In this workshop we will gather to stitch visionary symbols into our inner wear (panties, bras, etc.) to celebrate our sacred menstrual cycles and the rhythms of our inner wisdom. We will be guided by Erika Maizi, a sacred stitching artist trained by Siberian, Ukrainian and Kazakh Embroidery practitioners and currently in a one year training with a Siberian Shaman that she is connected with through her ancestral heritage.
Participants are invited to bring a fabric belt and/or a pair of underwear, pencil, paper, needle, and embroidery thread to the online zoom calls. We will discuss menstrual celebration and initiation traditions, share a guided meditation to connect with sacred symbols that are meaningful for each individual participant, and receive guidance and support to stitch the symbols onto our belts/underwear.