Mystical Magical Potion No. 1

You know that saying: As above so below? I think I finally understand what that means and knowing it makes me feel like I've always had this secret magical power within me just waiting to be tapped into. So today I'm going to give you a mental recipe for your first magic potion.

The subconscious mind is the key to untapped powers within. It understands and speaks the language of images and in fact is the bridge between you and the divine infinite responsible for turning thought into material manifestations. Feeding images of how you want your life to be to the subconscious mind is like watering a plant. Eventually, with enough love and regular attention, the plant will flower into something beautiful. You've actually been doing this all your life but you've probably gotten pot luck results because you didn't know how to create your life in a deliberate way.

So how does this work? It really is like magic because as you feed images to the subconscious mind through visualization, the subconscious mind goes to work with the infinite to make them happen. You don't have to know how they will happen just trust that the results will unfold in the best way for you and all involved. In essence, you are reprogramming your life the way you envision it instead of what your parents always told you or your teachers or the media.

I'll give you one example of some small things that have started happening to me by using this method over the past couple of weeks. I needed to make an emergency appointment with my dentist. I didn't focus on a particular day but I did have a time in mind. I wanted a 3:00 p.m. appointment so every time I thought about making this appointment over the weekend, I visualized that I would be offered a 3:00 p.m. spot. Amazingly the only available appointment this week was a 3:00 p.m. on Thursday (tomorrow). While this is much later in the week than I had hoped, I did get the time I wanted because that is what I visualized. Pure magic! Next time I'll be sure to include a day.

Ingredients:

• Willingness
• Strong Belief
• Positive frame of mind
• A particular intention
• Affirmations
• A quiet place
• 
  

Preparation:

I recommend choosing a time when you are in a positive, relaxed and receptive state of mind. In the morning just after waking is a good time because you are still relaxed. Evenings are good too but I find I fall asleep in the evenings so I like mornings and mid afternoon.

Sit or lay someplace quiet where you won't be disturbed for 15 minutes or so. Breathe deeply a few times. Imagine a white screen in front of you. Visualize your intention. I keep going back to a yurt in some quite setting. You can say affirmations at the same time or just use images. Spend a little time each day visualizing, affirming and feeling the feelings of what it would be like to actually be living that dream. In a very short period of time you should start seeing some interesting things begin to happen as the heavens rearrange themselves to accommodate you.

Note about money: I would recommend that money itself not be the focus of your intention. What you want is not actually money itself but what you believe money can give you. This might include security, freedom, a new home, travel or whatever it happens to be for you. There is a different, more positive energy associated with focusing on an outcome rather than how it will come about or be paid for.

 

Vintage French Perfume Bottles

Immerse yourself in a romantic, victorian lifestyle. It's Paris, 1899. Your courting the most eligible bachelor in town and he's totally in love with you. Your friends are jealous and you feel like the most beautiful woman in the world. What secrets do you tell only in the company of your journal?

vintage french perfume bottle

Who says you can't take clip art and turn it into something totally gorgeous and new? Start with a couple of black and white atomizer images from the Graphics Fairy. 

french parfumerie printable journal cards

Add some inspiration, imagination and style along with some other victorian design elements and you can create some really beautiful new pieces that are not only original but aren't being overused by digital collage artist masses.

atomizer perfume bottles found at Graphics Fairy

You can see the full parfumerie journal card collection by visiting Le Charmed Life on Etsy. These would make a great little addition to your corset diaries! Oooh, now back to January corset creation. (tee hee :) Enjoy!

Note: Color images are copyrighted by Kellie Reynolds and Kell Belle Studio.

1 Step to Leading a More Magical Life

Feeling grumpy today? Maybe you feel overwhelmed, stressed, sad or just plain out of sorts. I spent all day yesterday thinking about how to write this article and one word came bubbling up from within myself as being the answer to it all. That one word was gratitude. Before you scratch my eyes out and pin my picture to your dart board for being too much of a Pollyanna just give me a minute to explain. By the time you finish reading this, you might find yourself feeling less negative.

via Zen Moments on Pinterest

Ultimately what we all want and crave in any given situation is to feel better, to feel uplifted and hopeful as we try to find our way in this game of life. When we take our minds off what is bothering us  even for just a few moments in order to appreciate something or someone, we begin to open the door to allow the magic of universal energies to present solutions to us that we might otherwise have missed. We see more clearly, we act from our own sense of knowing instead of just reacting which can make all the difference between a desired outcome and total disaster. This concept can work magic in our lives if we let it so here's today's exercise.

via A Smile A Day on Pinterest

What are you grateful for today? It can be anything from simple to complex but it should be something that makes you feel happy when you think about it. I'll start.

1. the smell of fresh laundry
2. a sleeping kitten
3. quiet, peaceful places
4. a flower poking up through the snow 
5. a singing bird
6. an unexpected letter from a friend
7. imagination
8. creativity
9. lavender soap
10. a warm shower on a cold day
11. my comfortable, warm, dry, bed
12. spring time

Now it's your turn. Give it a go either on your own or by leaving a comment. 

February Corset Inspiration: She's no Tramp

She doesn't have to take off her shirt to be sexy, in fact, it's far more exciting to leave a little something to the imagination, something to look forward to unwrapping later. What a perfect way to merge two ideas into one in a paper mâché meets traditional paper kinda way. Curious yet?

gold corset via Corsets & Lingerie

With February and the season of love fast approaching I think we'll forego the traditional Valentine's Day revelry and try something a little racier. Ha! Really? What could get racier than a corset on Valentine's Day you ask? How about a corset made for carnival season!

The White Witch of Montmartre

You have entered a world where magic is real and dreams come true.  A warm welcome to the "Grow Your Blog" participants. Leave your cares at the door, kindly step inside and rest for a spell.

via The Bohemian Gypsy on Pinterest

My name is Kellie, a throw back from a victorian age of long ago. I see myself as part gypsy, part eccentric french artist, part white witch and psychic. I offer you a few small gifts as tokens of my gratitude for your visit.

via Thius Thius
how to make a lavender terrarium

The Kell Belle Studio blog was started as a way for me to share my paper art with the world. Over the past year and a half, Kell Belle has evolved into a way for me to give back to the art community by offering tutorials, templates and inspiration for creating a variety of girlie paper crafts.

I live in the greater Seattle area with my two cats (how perfect for a witch) Flora and Phoebe. I believe my way of being of service to others is to uplift them by offering words of encouragement and ways of creating a positive and beautiful life for themselves. I too am on this path and want to share what I learn along the way.

envelope template via paper craft on Pinterest

Inspirational Idea: Use the envelope template above to create a sachet that could be filled with a little dried lavender from your terrarium. Magical uses for lavender include love potions, aphrodisiacs and healing sachets to name a few.

Perhaps you need a label for your terrarium bottle? Feel free to grab the image below. Simply click to enlarge and save.

vintage french ephemera label

My post is short and sweet so as not to take up too much of your time so I'll wish you well and bid you farewell. Please feel free to linger if you wish or e-mail me with any questions you might have.

via a smile a day on Pinterest

I'll leave you with a smile. I see great things in store for you in the year ahead. I see prosperity, good health and good friends. Au revoir for now.

Thank you to our hostess, Vicki of 2 Bags Full for organizing this blog event.

Living the Magical Life: Self Worth

Do you feel unworthy of having everything your heart desires? Do you feel that will never change? Many of us including myself feel we don't deserve to have all the prosperity that life has to lavish upon us and it stands in our way. What if you could change that in only a few minutes a day?

beach photo via Only Positive

Here's an exercise to try. Sit comfortably in a quiet place and take a few deep breaths. Imagine someone coming up to you in an everyday situation and appreciating you by saying something nice. For example, Kellie I adore your honesty and humor.

Next, imagine another person coming up to you and another and another. Imagine having several people coming up to you who are there just to appreciate you and say wonderful, uplifting things about you. You could imagine crowds, applauses and cheers that are all meant for you.

via @ High Frequency

How do you feel? I tried this and had a centered, peaceful feeling for an entire day. Don't worry if it feels uncomfortable at first. Keep practicing and be on the lookout for small changes to show up. This is the beginning of your magical life.

The Corset Shrine

Oooh! How tasty is this positively divine shadow box shrine made by BrocadeMoon? Something like this would be very easy to make out of chip board, wood or even plexiglass and makes a perfectly unique display for our paper corsets.

BrocadeMoon27 on Flickr

You could embellish this in so many different ways to make it reflect your style from antique, shabby chic, rustic or contemporary. Just add imagination. BrocadeMoon makes these in several charming styles so do pay a visit if you get the chance.

Ackermann's Repository Fashion Plate Freebie

If you liked my most recent journal card post and were secretly coveting the image of the fashion plate I composited onto the dress form mannequin, here it is for your digital collaging pleasure.

Ackermann's Repository Ser. 2 V. 10 1820

I cropped out the background, enriched the color, added a nice creamy complexion to her skin and lightened her up a bit for use in my digital collage. Newsletter subscribers got the edited version of this. Just sayin'!

Is Kell Belle Certifiable?

The answer to the question of whether or not Kell Belle is certifiable will not be known until September of this year but I believe the answer is a resounding YASE!! Last night I participated in the first of 9 monthly classes that upon completion will earn me psychic certification and the opportunity to read for clients at the Stargazers psychic fair in September.

Psychic self defense was written in the twenties with
a judaeo- christian/racial slant but reviewers say it's
worth the read if you can overlook its datedness.

First up on the required reading list is a book called Psychic Self Defense. I'm not sure how I feel about having to defend myself psychically. I think it's a little bit like fearing possession during astral projection. Poppycock! I do believe that some fears are learned and I'm not sure I want to learn this one but like a good student, I am willing to broaden my horizons and read the book as instructed. Sending hugs, Sophia! :)

Her Majesty Just Wanted to be a Bad Girl

In the age of repression, she dreamed of breaking free of the confines of her proper, buttoned up ladyhood. Even her secret journals revealed that Her Majesty desired a taste of courtesan freedom. Deep down she simply just wanted to be a bad girl.

see the printable journal collection on Etsy

I was playing around with some fashion plate images from the 1800's and divine guidance led me to create this whimsical piece as part of a new collection I'm calling Victorian Secrets. I'll bet those gals had a LOT of juicy stories to tell. Imagine yourself immersed in a secret victorian life. What delicious secrets would you write about? 

Note: Image is ©Kell Belle Studio, victorian secrets watermark tags do not appear on my high resolution images

Visualization Exercise: Creating a New Persona

Imagine how magical it would be to create a whole new persona for yourself. Who are you? Are you a king or a queen? Perhaps you are a fairy, an angel or an animal. How do you look, sound and act? Let yourself be light with a whimsical attitude. This is intended to be fun, just like the pretend games you played as a child.

Gina the free spirited Bohemian gypsy psychic

Meet Gina, my free spirited, Bohemian, gypsy, psychic persona. I am able to laugh at the challenges of life rather than be swept away by them. I have great humor and wit. I am opinionated and strong willed yet I am nurturing and forgiving. I am attractive, charismatic and confident, objective, compassionate and kind.  I use my psychic gifts to help others and myself for the higher good of us all. I am timeless.

via Pinterest - Einstein imagination quote

When I think about this persona I feel like the magical person I always wanted to be. I can do anything. I feel inspired, happy and connected to the universal energies of life.  I can slip into this persona whenever I want to even in the middle of a crises and let her guide my thoughts and actions.

Imagery is a powerful way of speaking to the subconscious mind. It can help us see and define our intentions more clearly. It can make the difference between letting life happen to us and taking control to better guide the outcome of our own life experiences. Who would you like to become?

Note: I took a photo of myself and composited my face onto an appealing photograph of someone wearing an outfit I liked. Not bad eh?! Try using collage to help you visual your intentions.

Living the Magical Life

When I was a child my most cherished fantasies had to do with living life as the beautiful fairy princess who married the handsome prince and lived happily ever after, traveling the world by magic carpet. There was something so intoxicating and empowering to me about being able to get whatever I wanted simply by waving a magic wand or twitching my nose.

via tinywhitedaisies

I still carry those fantasies within me to some degree. Frankly, I think that life as we originally intended for ourselves as energetic beings is not too far off from said magical life. As we grow up that belief and knowing we had as children fades as we take on the fears of our parents, teachers, peers, authority figures and the media. I'm ready to reclaim that inner knowing.

via Mousie Masala

I believe that magic still waits for me in the form of creative visualization. This isn't a new concept but I spend more time romanticizing about it than I do actually putting it into practice. I can feel all of the resistant thoughts that come up every time I start thinking about setting intentions and the only thing I've ever done about them was let them be my excuses for giving up.

via wanderingmermaid

I'm giving myself a magic wand today by creating a weekly blog column called Living the Magical Life. It's a way for me to hold myself accountable and on track. I'll be presenting the exercises that I'll be doing here so that you too can follow along if you wish or simply observe. My intent is to heal, learn, and grow.

Down the Rabbit Hole and Other Magical Arts

So, you've spent the season eating, drinking and otherwise enjoying life's merriment, now what? Maybe you made a few resolutions on a whim of a New Year's Eve moment or maybe you've put some thought into them. Today the reality of actually having to do something to make them happen begins to grip you in the chest with all the pleasantness of rigor mortis.

This year I will . . .

top 10 most broken resolutions plus a few of my own

Panic, anxiety, paralysis and yes, major thoughts of procrastination make it even more difficult to drag yourself out of the comfort of bed these days. You may even begin deepening your relationship with your TV or internet. Yes, the call of those mind numbing ways of avoiding what has to be done to move yourself beyond your comfort zone are practically irresistible.

Actually, I'm speaking about myself. I'm addicted to newness. You know, that brand new purchase for that thing I wanted or that new, self improvement technique are all so much more appealing in my lofty hallucinations before it sinks into my brain that my own effort is the magic ingredient that was intended to make it all work. The newness of anything eases the discomfort of life temporarily but it never lasts sending me off in search of the next new thing. I haven't quite figured out yet how to gracefully make it past the detox stage. Do you see yourself in any of this?

buy Creative Visualization on Amazon

Visualization keeps popping into my head. As someone developing psychic ability, I am learning to listen those inner callings and trust my senses more. Lately I find that any time I do spend visualizing sends me into an "I can do this later" attitude. Procrastination is one of my habitual ways of resisting change. The nasty saboteur within me would rather not see me succeed. Of course not! Its very survival depends on my lack of persistence and willingness to continually accept the status quo.

alice in wonderland - down the rabbit hole

I've been saying the same thing for years and it's no wonder I haven't moved very far. What about you? How long have you spent making the same resolutions year after year only to discover at year end that you once again succeeded admirably in offering excellent lip service? Nothing in life can change without a willingness to do something different. What do you think? Wanna take a ride?

Happy New Year!

This year I am . . .

An instrument of peace

Someone who acts from love instead of fear

Fully in touch with my own wellbeing

May the coming year bring you everything your heart desires!