Description
Stag Drum- hoop style – open hearted- lacing with antler handle bound with stag hide and chamois leather. Laced with 42 holes. A medicine pouch is attached with Stag toes bone, a peice of quartz from this land and the drums ‘umbilical knot’.
Beater stick is willow, with a chamios head, stuffed with local sheeps wool.
The hide was soaked in rain water and willow tea, with the willow wand that the beater is made from- willow medicine is about renewal, vitality and immortality .
Handmade in with prayers and ceremony in a beautiful natural setting known as Brynberian, West Wales- close to Pentre ifan stones, on the bluestone hills. (from the photos i hope you get an idea of the expansiveness of the land here)
Hoop is ash and the hide is Stag- the beat of this drum carries the spirit of animal and tree and their energy blend together in alchemy with yours to create special journeys for you.
I weave in the natural elements of the land and the energies of the stars and moon while creating drums bringing what feels to me and those who have bought my drums a deep connection to the wild nature of our Mother Earth and the blessings of Father Sun and Grandmother Moon, I use intuition and follow nudges from my guides when creating drums.
By the way…. I don’t make drum videos- playing the drum for the first time wakes it up and i believe this is the drum owners priority! See my YouTube video about it
youtu.be/MkyV_D8UjFs?si=2f-19rfKWY091dw2
I made my first drum over 20 years ago and after reading Layne Redmond’s book “When the Women were Drummers” I felt guided to create drums for people to play and connect to the heartbeat of our Earth Mother.
Hides mostly come from within the United Kingdom and are either from culled wild horses/ponies/deer/stags or animals that have naturally died. The hide is a waste product so by using it we are honouring the animal. As a life long vegetarian I’ve wrestled with the ethics for a long time, in the end my calling to make drums and bring us to the heartbeat of our Mother was too strong! I source my materials as ethically as possible, supporting local crafts people.
To call upon the Stag is to call his divine power to enhance a new beginning or new venture, to bring dignity, power and integrity and to fertilize new ideas. With the stag as your drum it is a time to stand tall and be seen, now is the time to attract those that you desire. It is your time and thoughts manifest reality, be positive, assertive and diplomatic and your dreams will materialize.
The Stag is an Earth tied energy and will bring harmony and a sense of natural progression, he encourages stability and patience, patience is a virtue bestowed upon the wise. To be able to wait and be comfortable waiting. The stag is a solitaire for most of the year, but with his antlers comes his need to share, he will make himself known to all that seek his influence and will give willingly to all that are prepared to accept his ways. The Stag has always occupied the Celtic lands and is the source of many a myth and legend. It takes a skilled hunter to find an older stag, with age comes wisdom, with responsibility comes a stronger will to survive.
Ash Medicine (hoop wood)- It has large roots that sink deep into the ground. For the Celts, this symbolized the people’s ability to dig inside themselves to find nourishment and inner stability. In fact, it is also a great symbol of stability and security. Those belonging to the sign of this tree do not tolerate those who are not concrete or those who rely solely on spirituality, forgetting the more concrete side of life.
Also according to the Celts, it was a kind of connection between the sky and the earth that allowed a flow of energy between these two different spheres. Therefore, spectacular things happened inside.
It was commonly used in ceremonies for protection rituals because it was believed that great energies were contained within it. Specifically, it was thought to be excellent for guarding children by protecting them from evil.
Quartz (in pouch) is the strongest enhancing stone in the mineral kingdom and helps reignite our true identity while showing us the path towards enlightenment. It’s clear energy acts as an amplifier of the vibrations that are put into it, making it an excellent manifestation tool. Its point is frequently displayed at high energetic areas such as the tops of staves, wands, in between crystals in grids, and placed on top of key energy points on the body. When using Quartz, it results in an awakening effect that supercharges the chakra system and dispels the malignant energies within.
Willow medicine
Most willow species thrive close to water or in damp places and a lot of willow folklore reflects this watery theme. The Moon too recurs as an association, the movement of water being affected by the Moon. In Scotland it was believed that harvesting willow during the waning Moon lowered the quality of the wood. Willow regrows with vigour when it is cut back and can grow several feet in a season. It also grows well if you push a healthy cutting into the soil (even if it is upside down!). These properties came to symbolise renewal, vitality and immortality .
