I started bringing these cosmic love muffins into material form a few months ago. Although many of them have told me their individual names, I didn’t know how they liked to be addressed as a group until a few days ago when they told me–where else!–in a dream.
The tale of the cosmic love muffins
Probably my favorite spinning book is called Intertwined by Lexi Boeger.
It has instructions for making art yarn and also patterns and inspiration for things to make with it. One of her patterns is for what she calls Nozzlers or fiber travelers.
Basically, they are 3-D freeform crochet, felted and then stuffed. But I love her description of them–
They do not actually exist in a solid state, but are more like dens spots within the fabric of the universe; semi-gelled masses of energy and vibration. The ancients discovered a way to confure these travelers out of the energy field and manifest them in solid form. Once manifested, the ancients could seal them forever in their earthly bodies through a process of heat and friction known as fibration.
Creating the muffins/critters
She writes about the ceremony to conjure one of these creatures–taking time and focused energy and opening our hearts. And that each human has a nozzler that they need to connect with to be whole.
So my sweet little cosmic love muffins are my own version of a Nozzler. But, at least so far, most of them aren’t felted and most of them have plastic doll eyes.
Meeting our monsters
I also think of my cosmic love muffins as soft, cuddly monsters. I’ve thought a lot about monsters in recent months–as in this post: Welcome to the monster closet: let the wild rumpus begin!
And also Let your inner monsters come out to play (where I introduced my first crocheted monsters).
I just finished reading Menagerie, by Rachel Vincent (2016).
Here’s the description from Amazon:
When Delilah Marlow visits a famous traveling carnival, Metzger’s Menagerie, she is an ordinary woman in a not-quite-ordinary world. But under the macabre circus big-top, she discovers a fierce, sharp-clawed creature lurking just beneath her human veneer. Captured and put on exhibition, Delilah is stripped of her worldly possessions, including her own name, as she’s forced to “perform” in town after town.
But there is breathtaking beauty behind the seamy and grotesque reality of the carnival. Gallagher, her handler, is as kind as he is cryptic and strong. The other “attractions”—mermaids, minotaurs, griffins and kelpies—are strange, yes, but they share a bond forged by the brutal realities of captivity. And as Delilah struggles for her freedom, and for her fellow menagerie, she’ll discover a strength and a purpose she never knew existed.
Quotes about our inner beasts
Here are a couple favorite quotes (no spoilers!) Erxy is the minotaur:
“Eryx had long ago realized that the only true difference between the hybrids and most of their handlers was that the handlers his their beasts on the inside.”
“Most people have something horrible hidden inside. A beast. A secret. A sin. What makes you and the other exhibits different is that your inner monster can’t be explained by the laws of physics and biology as we know them. What people don’t understand, they fear. What they fear, they lock up, so they can come see whatever scares them behind steel bars or glass walls and call themselves brave.”
Turning our monsters into cosmic love muffins
For me, a couple things inspire this making of muffins. I’ve spent a lot of my life trying to hide my inner monsters–I am a recovering perfectionist and although you might not guess it by looking at how I present myself, I care very much what people think of me. So I’ve tried to keep my imperfections inside.
Also, those parts of ourselves that we tend to avoid–to label as monsters–those parts that keep bugging us no matter how hard we try to get rid of them or ignore them–actually have something to teach us. Our gnarled, ugly bits stay with us for a reason. They probably served us at some point in the past if they don’t any longer. But our fears, our anger, our uncertainty, or whatever they can be our friends. They can teach us about ourselves and the world. So by making my monsters cute and cuddly, it’s my way of acknowledging their importance.
By allowing these critters into the world in all their strange cuteness, I also acknowledge my right to play. It’s taken me a long time to find the courage to freeform my crochet. And also, it’s a way of acknowledging my own inner strangeness-to myself and whoever happens to see them. The fibration process, bringing these visions into form is part of my own way of getting to know and honor my vision. And honoring my silly side and remembering that art and creation can be a form of sacred play–it doesn’t have to be serious!
Coming soon to an ETSY shop near you!
Most of them will soon be appearing in my ETSY shop because there are just too many of them and I can’t give them all the attention they deserve. They’ll also make further appearances here in my blog as I share each one’s story.
And now, they are all clamoring for a bedtime story, so I’d best be on my way.
As always, thanks for stopping by.
xoxo
