Dedicating Crafts to Frigg
by Jessica Pape-Green
[This post was originally posted to WordPress and may have formatting errors as a result to being moved here.]
So I see posts on Tumblr and Amino sometimes asking what to dedicate to So-and-so Deity, and when it comes to Friggspeople, the answer is always "Crafts!" When it comes to Heathen crafters, even if they barely talk to Frigg, I see them often feel compelled to dedicate a craftwork to her or decide to do it in hopes of good luck with the process or result.
Unfortunately sometimes I see non-crafters think they can't dedicate stuff. That's absolutely not true! You can still give food, water, alcohol, time, or other things specialized to her domain. I began my work with Frigg by dedicating housework and personal development. She has also spent long weeks without anything being dedicated to her, and honestly, she doesn't seem to mind. She wants me to be leading my best life, and the usual reason for not giving her stuff is being too busy doing exactly that.
Another thing I see is beginning crafters thinking they can't dedicate their work because it's not good enough. Again, this is so not true! I'm a jack-of-all-crafts myself and far from an expert in anything. In my experience, that's exactly how she likes it. She doesn't want you to give her a beautiful finished piece, put on her altar and never touched. She wants to be the inspiration by which you learn and apply yourself to craft, trying your very best. She's a matron, the job she gives herself is to prepare the next generation. She wants to see your growth into success.
And so, I thought I should share my experience dedicating craft to her, for example and inspiration. Or, as I have now decided to start tagging such posts: Friggspiration!
Right now I'm working on a silk dress. It's in a simple stola-like design. For the reference, I'm sort of following these directions, but will be adapting to my own tastes and the fabric I chose.
Next, I had to find my fabric. I ended up finding a couple used sari suppliers on Etsy, but I had to go through many listings to find a colour I liked (I like cool colours) in a pattern that works for this kind of dress. I ended up finding this lovely fabric from this seller:
The more I worked on this project, the more I felt connected to Frigg and remembered I owed her time and dedication. So, I sewed the hem with her in mind. I bought a needle case with her in mind. As I began working on the hem, I kept the needle case at my chest, warming to my skin's temperature until I didn't notice it anymore. It called to me as a devotional item, and so I used it to connect her to my project. I work on the dress - when I work on it - in her name, with her as my inspiration. I try to do my best to do a really nice job of it instead of being lazy, holding myself to the highest standard I can with my level of ability. I feel her with me, a supervising grandmother. She doesn't hang over my shoulder, directing me, but instead just watches and lets me know how I'm doing.
That's what it's like to dedicate your work to Frigg. It's nothing to have anxiety about. It's an expression of love, companionship, and admiration.
If you would like to see a more detailed post about this dress &/or a progress series as I make it, feel free to comment below. Also let me know what crafts you're working on, and what sort of things youve dedicated to Frigg or other gods. 💕