How to make a May cup
(Craft project for Beltane)
Materials:
Directions:
Fill the cup with floral decorations of the season (bluebells, roses, daisies, primroses, lilac) or potpourri in May colors (green, soft pink, blue, yellow, and/or white). Around the cup, use gold, red, or white ribbon to hang a charm of some sort; some of the best images to use would be a grapevine or twig star (available at most craft stores or easily constructed with twigs and wire), a bell, or a faery image, possibly even a small broom or just a string of beads. Now the stem of the cup can be decorated however you like: Wire-stemmed flowers can be wound around it, or fake ivy, or even red and white ribbons wound around like a maypole if that suits the decoration. Place the cup in the center of the grapevine wreath, and also decorate the wreath with seasonal florals, including red and white ribbons. Use it as a centerpiece for a seasonal altar or kitchen table.
Ritual use:
The "May cup" was originally a chalice whose purpose was to hold wine or another beverage which was consumed by the May King and May Queen, elected by the people during the town May Day party. The cup can be used in solitary, couple, or group ritual to hold a blessed beverage for the ritual; the cup can be decorated but left empty of florals until after the beverage has been consumed. Then it can be rinsed with water and filled by the participants with the various florals.
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