Amulets by Merlin's Blog

For centuries,
Handfasting was practiced in Northern Europe
as a primary stage to marriage
still practiced into modern times.

“Handfasting” is derived from the verb
“to handfast”,
used for making a contract of marriage.
The couple is promised for “a year and a day”
as they hand-festa
(Norse:” to strike a bargain by joining hands”).
The rite varies between practitioners
but usually incorporates the participants
to bind their hands together with ribbon or chord;
a physical extension of promises made and kept.

Handfasting Bracelet

Using a design of two strands creating a combined knot
stronger than the sum of it’s parts.
The bracelets are to be put on during the ceremony
and worn for the “year and a day”;
then cherished as a keepsake when the marriage is preformed.

Many have chosen the bracelets for handfasting
and the rings for the marriage.
The Handfasting Rings
hold the same knot work design
for those people that find the bracelet too cumbersome.

Lovers Knot Ring

I have made another version of the Lovers Knot,
giving it a more “Celtic” feel:
weaving the knot work in to a more intricate design.

Celtic Lovers Knot Ring

If you are looking for a custom piece to be created for you,
I can design a knot work for your Wedding
or Handfasting that would be a “two of a kind” set.

Other Rings may be seen at the
Rings Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Pentacles often had no connotation of “five” in the old magical documents,
but were magical talismans inscribed with any symbol or character.
The most common “pentacle” is the five point star.
In one of it’s earliest forms the Pentacle symbolized the first “ADAM”,
signified in early art as “Human Perfection”,
the “First Man” in the Garden of Eden.

Grape Vine Pentacle

Pentacles are used in the Tarot
to signify Matter or the Material World.
Each of the Pentacle cards represents a scenario and lesson about money,
influence, decisions and more.
The five pointed star is found everywhere
from a Sheriff’s badge to a countries’ flag;
it is found in nature within apples,
in flowers and trees.
The Pentacle as a five pointed star
represents the balance between the Elements
(Fire, Water, Air, Earth)
under the Spirit
(the top point).
When presented with the top point up,
this is a symbol of health, wisdom,
balance and good fortune.
When inverted,
like any symbol reversed
it is no longer in balance but rather oppressed:
the elements are over powering the spirit.
When both are shown together
it represents the cycle of life:
the “ups and downs” of one’s existence.

Each of my pentacle amulets are focused on a different aspect of health:
brotherhood, environment, healing, friendship and love.
With over 20 designs to choose from
I have versions that include rough textures,
women’s forms,
the caduceus,
moonstone, caldrons, a pin design for wiccan clergy in the military and much more.
If you cannot find the Pentacle you are looking for,
have no fear.
I can create your design by way of your drawing or description.

Pentacles may be seen at the
Pentacle Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Merlin’s Ouroboros Ring

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on September 24, 2015

Posted in: Amulets. Tagged: Egyptian Jewelry, Egyptian ring, mythological imagery, Never Ending Story, Oroboris pendants, Oroboris rings, Ouroboros, Ouroboros pendants, Ouroboros rings, RingX Uroboros pendants, Uroboros ring. Leave a comment

The Ouroboros has been important
in religious and mythological imagery,
used in alchemical illustrations,
where it symbolizes the circular nature of their work.

The Ouroboros (also spelled Uroboros and Oroboris),
is an ancient symbol illustrated by a serpent swallowing its own tail,
forming a circle.

From 1600 B.C. in Egypt to the movie: “the Never Ending Story”
the Ouroboros has been found in cultures through out many ages.

The Ouroboros Ring

The Ouroboros often represents self-reflexivity or cyclicality,
something constantly re-creating itself,
the eternal return,
and other things perceived as cycles
begin anew as soon as they end.
It can also signify
the concept of primordial unity
persisting from the beginning
with such force and quality
it cannot be destroyed.

The Ouroboros Ring for your finger.
This version has a small diamond shape cut into the forehead
symbolizing the “third eye”
adding the concept of perception through illusion;
lightly textured and smooth for comfort and wear ability.
Each ring is made as it is ordered,
providing the recipient to request unusual sizes.

The Ouroboros Ring and Other Rings may be seen at the
Rings Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

The Dragon Money Clips of Amulets by Merlin

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on September 23, 2015

Posted in: Dragon Jewelry, Money Clips. Tagged: Amulets by Merlin, Custom Jewelry, custom Money Clips, dragon money clip, DragonsX Face off, Face off money clip, John Travolta, Money Clips, Skull Jewelry, Skull Money clip, Travolta Money clip. Leave a comment

It all started a few years a go when
a fellow who was a big fan to the Movie “Face-off”
saw and fell in love with the money clip that John Travolta was proffering.
He asked me if I could make a clip “just like it”.
The problem was that there are copyright issues in design
and being as I specialize in Jewelry design
I respect the sanctity of another person’s work.
I told him that I would be only too happy to make him a Dragon Money Clip,
but I would not make a “copy” of the one in the movie.
After a little discussion and examining the clip in a screen shot,
we decided to re-design the piece:
I increased detail in the scales and re-shaped the skull.

Dragon Money Clip

The result was a Dragon Money Clip
similar in size, it functions like the original:
the jaws articulated to grasp the bills but the detail was more intense.

After the creation of the Original,
another person liked it,
bought it and decided he wanted to “up-grade” the clip: a larger version.
And so I increased the jaws,
added even more detail in the scales and flames across the face,
making it more distinct than the original design and provided a larger bite for the bills.
This Dragon Money Clip I named “Flame”.

Flame Dragon Money Clip

My most recent commission is a one-of-a-kind Dragon Money Clip.
The size was nearly doubled (four inches long!),
even more detail in the scales and the eyes.
Now the retina and the pupils of the eyes are of garnet
and the “whites” of the eyes are in Sterling as is the entire piece.
The jaws are also articulated as the original
but because of the increased size it can hold a wad of cash
that would be the envy of any High Roller.

Custom One-of-a-kind Dragon Money Clip

I have also created a variety of Other Money Clips as well,
skulls with stones in the eyes,
cross bones and a Jolly Roger perfect for Pirates,
Bikers and other lovers of the Skull.

For your Pleasure,
I have posted more images of the original Dragon Money Clip,
Flame and now the new GIANT Dragon Money Clip in my website.

Merlin’s Dragon Money Clips and Other Money Clips my be seen at the
Money Clips Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Merlin’s Om Earrings

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on September 21, 2015

Posted in: Earrings, Peace Jewelry. Tagged: Aum, Aum charm, Aum earring, Aum earrings, earrings, gold Aum earring, gold Om earring, Moody Blues, Om, om amulet, Om charm, Om earrings, om jewelry, Om pendentX silver Aum earring, silver Om earring. Leave a comment

In the Sixties “Om”
(or Aum”)
was placed in pop culture through out America and Europe.
Even the Moody Blues even wrote a song “Aum”
in the finale of
“In search of the Lost Chord”
of their Threshold series.
Even as our pop-culture moved on to other things,
Om continued to be what it is:
a very sacred and complex idea.
In an earlier blog
I wrote a bit about it’s use and history.
I created my own version of the Om Amulet
by encasing it within a circle.

Om Earrings

To accompany the Om Amulet,
I have also developed the Om Earrings.
The symbol is made with a small bail within the top of the Sanskrit word,
then I added a jump ring to suspend it with a earring finding.
The added jump ring gives the glyph additional movement
as it adorns the ear.
Flanked on either side with an OM,
one is surrounded with eternity and peace.
These earrings are for those who wish to be reminded of
and/or wish to harness the depth of this “simple” symbol.

The Om Earrings and Other Earrings my be seen at the
Earrings Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

The Kallisti Amulet has been a source of humor for centuries.
To understand this “Ancient Prank”,
here is a brief lesson in Greek Mythology…

The Kallisti Amulet

Known for being a trouble maker,
Eris was not in the list of guests invited to the wedding
of Peleus and Thetis,
the parents of Achilles.
In spite of the lack of invitation
Eris came to the reception party
and threw a solid gold apple through the door with the inscription:

Kallisti: “For the fairest”

Hera, Athena and Aphrodite saw this piece of art
and started disputing who it was for.
Disgusted by the constant bickering,
Zeus sent them to Mount Ida near Troy to be judged by the shepherd Paris,
who chose Aphrodite as the most beautiful,
accepting Helen’s hand for a bride.
Paris, having come to fetch his bride at Sparta,
where Helen was queen,
left the city as her lover and sailed with her to Troy.
But her husband Menelaus and his brother Agamemnon
took great exception for this theft,
sent a powerful army against Troy;
and the rest is history.

The Kallisti Amulet is a favorite
of those fans of the Science Fiction Trilogy by Robert Anton Wilson:
the Illuminati;
and is hailed by the Discordians:
a movement that pops up now and then who attend such conventions
and enjoy a practical joke now and then.
An amulet of mischief and humor.

The Kallisti Amulet and Other amulets my be seen at the
Amulets Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Several years ago
m’Lady Tony designed a piece that combines the three stages of Womanhood:
the Maiden, the Mother and the Crone.
The idea was to develop the three aspects into a single shape:
the Astrological symbol of Venus.

Maiden Mother Crone Amulet

At the foundation is the Maiden.
She sits cross legged at the base of the piece,
creating the anchor of Womanhood: she holds a chalice that contains a flame:
an element that symbolizes transformation,
a promise of the future’s ever changing opportunities.

In the center is the Mother:
pregnant she fulfills the promise and instructs
the maiden with her accumulated wisdom of her own maidenhood.
In one hand the bud of a rose;
the other the blossom:
symbolizing beauty and passion,
the possibilities that fertility offers.
She is flanked with the stems of the rose illustrating life itself.
Above the Mother and below the sickle moon is the Crone.
Her hair flows into the spider web that encloses their backs:
the network of accumulated lessons of the lives that came before
brought to generations of Women for eons.
With arms outstretched she holds the wisdom
and reveals the destiny of those who seek her.

The symbol of Venus
is the cross of matter below with the circle of spirit above,
reviling the core concept of Venus:
Spirit over Matter: the symbol of love itself.
In its purest form,
Love is that direct link between spirit and matter without then need for demonstration,
condition or interpretation.
Women hold the very essence of humanity:
the ability to carry within them both the seed of life
brings the next generation
and the wisdom to bring to their children
the knowledge of a better life.

The Maiden Mother Crone Amulet
is a potent piece created as both an amulet that may be worn but also a focus of life itself.
Although intended to be worn by women,
it also is designed for small alters dedicated to life.
A good gift for girls who have achieved womanhood;
a talisman for the new mother
or for one who has achieved the status of Wise Woman.

The Maiden Mother Crone Amulet and Other amulets my be seen at the
Amulets Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Merlin’s Dragon Ankh Amulet

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on September 16, 2015

Posted in: Amulets, Ankh, Dragon Jewelry. Tagged: Amulet, Amulets by Merlin, Ankh, Ankh amulet, Ankh jewelry, ankh pendant, Dragon amulet, Dragon Ankh, dragon ankh amulet, dragon ankh jewelry, dragon ankh pendant, Dragon Jewelry, Dragon Pendant. Leave a comment

A combination of Serpent Power and the Egyptian sign of Life.

I have created several versions of the ankh:
the classic version with stream lines and easily recognizable shape;
the more literal version
emphasizes the male and female aspects coming together;
however I wanted to create a piece that was more versatile.

Dragon Ankh Amulet

The Dragon Ankh represents the tenacity of life,
the spark where in the union of opposites:
something new is created.
The Ankh is formed by the symbol of Kundalini: the Dragon.
Positioning the Dragon’s head so it curves around to create the Yoni,
the chin rests at the point where the wings spread.
The tail drops below completing the design.

This Amulet is tiny: only ¾” but it is potent with meaning and potential.
This would be a good amulet for those that are studying Yoga,
Kundalini, Martial Arts or an Egyptian enthusiast.
This amulet is to help focus and balance body,
mind and spirit.

The Dragon Ankh Amulet and Other amulets my be seen at the
Amulets Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

In the mid Seventies I was given a book:
Real Magic by Isaac Bonewits.
After reading so many other books on the subject
I found the book a breath of fresh air.
Instead of creating a mist of possible misconceptions about the subject,
Isaac developed a clear,
concise and easy to read volume that both introduced the concepts
and gave excellent definitions and ground rules as to what Magic really is
and how it works.
Over the years I had purchased more than a dozen of these books
and gave them as gifts,
loaned them to friends and relatives
each time in hope that a little light on the subject
may bring a better understanding
and thus appreciation of those that are studding the subject.

Years later I had approached Isaac Bonewits
to create something for him.
He found my work pleasurable
and even purchased the Green Man Necklace from me.
I marked that day with pride.
For a favorite author to have blessed me in that way was inspirational!

Small Awen Amulet

Some time later
I approached him with the idea to create his designs.
Isaac is well noted for his skill in graphic art
and has developed several designs featured in his site.
After a bit of time he finally agreed and we began
to work on what was to be the first of several Amulets by Isaac:
the Druid Sigil;
representing Druidism in general and the Earth mother (Gaia) in particular.
Following that he requested we make an Awen,
and the Dagda amulets: Dagda’s Shield
and Dagda’s Club.
During one of the elections he developed a Spells for Democracy amulet.
With each of these designs he worked feverishly
to produce the renderings and sent them to me for carving.
Isaac’s Amulets are a beautiful combination of design,
comfort and concept.

Through his travels he presented these amulets with his books and other items;
he even created a special portion of his website to feature the work.
Though Issac is no longer with us,
you may purchase these amulets through my site.
To learn more about Isaac Bonewits,
please visit his website.

For more Amulets by Isaac, please visit my Designs by Isaac Bonewits Page

Merlin’s Pipes of Pan Amulet

Posted by Amulets by Merlin on September 13, 2015

Posted in: Amulets, Greek Mythology Jewelry, music amulet, Music Jewelry, music pendant. Tagged: Pan, Pan amulet, pan flute, Pan pipe, Pan Pipe jewelry, Pan Talisman, Peter Pan. Leave a comment

One of my most cherished memories from childhood is seeing Fantasia for the first time.
I recall seeing the movie when I was about 9 years old and of all the segments:
Beethoven’s Sixth was my favorite: seeing all those Greek mythological creatures:
centaurs, cherubs and unicorns flying about were all too wonderful to forget.
For years when I see a cypress tree light by sunset,
I can hear the melodies of the Sixth in my head.

August – September has played a part in these memories.
As I have grown older to appreciate summer and early harvest time,
there is nothing like a fine wine to bring in the flavors of the season:
the scene from Fantasia where the Centaurs bring the grapes from the fields
to be crushed and Bacchus is rolled in by his trusted friends,
surrounded by grapes… and the music…
Perhaps we can even Peter Pan playing the pipes in the air.

Pipes of Pan Amulet

To rejoice in the time of year when music is on the air and people are gathering to share their good cheer,
I have created The Pipes of Pan Amulet.
The central feature is a pipe of Pan, surrounded by grape leaves and a cluster of bounty.
This is for lovers of good times,
good company and good music; an Amulet to celebrate life itself.

Other amulets my be seen at the
Brooch and Pin Page
created and developed
by Kirk McLaren
of Amulets by Merlin

Amulets by Merlin's Blog

Reflections of the Art of Merlin

Merlin’s Handfasting Jewelry

Merlin’s collection of Pentacles

Merlin’s Ouroboros Ring

The Dragon Money Clips of Amulets by Merlin

Merlin’s Om Earrings

The Merlin Kallisti Amulet

Merlin’s Maiden Mother Crone Amulet

Merlin’s Dragon Ankh Amulet

Merlin’s creations of Amulets by Isaac Bonewits

Merlin’s Pipes of Pan Amulet

Amulets by Merlin

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