Remember to try this out near or in the element if you can, and note any changes in your usual thought patterns, behaviour, or general character.
Water and Earth meet at the shore
Earth
For the element of earth I experimented on a willing victim, my friend Anna Simon. Despite the fact that she did not choose any of her costume herself and believed that she was merely dressing up in order to pose for photographs, she found it to be a profoundly transformative experience. Indeed, both the photographer and I found the change in her energy and behaviour to be quite remarkable, noticing a real connection between her and her surroundings, particularly the trees, and a deep sensuality, confidence, and grace.
In Anna’s own words:
We headed to the woods, and as we walked down the hill and the great old trees rose up before us, I joked about being in my “element” (or, in fact, being in myself, ha ha), but once inside the boundary of green, I have to admit my perception was already changing. I’ve always had an appreciation for nature, for spaces untouched by humankind. It isn’t terribly out of my character to randomly hug or even sing to trees, so this wasn’t a massive shift in perception. But something did occur that afternoon, despite the itchiness of the wig and the weight of the cloak. I connected with earth—I daresay I even became earth, just for a little while.
As I posed for the camera with an apple in hand, I felt that if you looked away, you’d turn around and I’d have blended into the scenery. What a strange feeling to mesh into one’s surroundings on an emotional level but not feel lonely or outcast. I walked taller, more elegantly (save for a little skirmish with my skirt getting caught in sticky bushes), and felt a peace I have longed for. The icing on the cake came after Emily had finished her water session and we were walking back; our photographer and great friend Steve was seeing a great shot of me next to a tree, and when I approached that tree I felt like I was wrapping my arms around a handsome, earthy man! Everywhere I looked, the trees were more vivid, the air was sweeter, and the area seemed to welcome me like an old friend.
Here’s what we did. The main colour for earth is, of course, green, but all earthy tones of brown and even black are suitable, or even autumnal hues of rusty reds. Again, I used face paint, this time using the sponge to create a foundation of green, then darker areas with black around the eyes. Leafy details were then drawn in black and green with a brush, the whole face taking about five minutes to render, yet with very dramatic effect. As you may have noticed by now, I have a small collection of wigs at my disposal, and I chose a very natural long brown wig for Anna’s look, complemented by an ivy headdress that very simply consists of a piece of fake vine wrapped around her head as a crown—so effective and very easy to do!
I also found a long green skirt that worked perfectly with the plain black tunic that she was already wearing, and finished the look off with my rather heavy outdoor cloak, which is a beautiful shade of forest green and keeps out all weathers! Consider what aspects of earth you wish to emphasise in your costume. For fertility you might choose brighter green hues; for stability you might choose browns and blacks. You might even want to try shades of grey if you are trying to strengthen your connection with spirits of stone. If you wanted to try a mask, why not make one yourself? There are plenty of blank templates available that you can paint and add to with papier-mâché or perhaps feathers and plastic foliage. Horned or antlered headdresses are also a nice idea as ways to express or encourage connection to this element.
“How is it that I connected so deeply with my surroundings without so much as intent to do so? I’ve always struggled with meditation, and I’m terrible at grounding myself to the extent of clumsiness; I walk into doors and walls constantly. So for me to suddenly snap my roots on, that was a soul-opening feeling.”
Anna
Practical Everyday Applications
Once you have fully immersed yourself in each of the elements in this way, you can draw on your fresh understanding and the memory of any energetic shift whenever you wish, without the need to dress up to such an extreme. You can also apply the same technique on a much more subtle basis in your everyday life, particularly through conscious use of colour symbolism. For example, for increased confidence and drive, you may wish to draw on the power of fire by wearing an item of red clothing, perhaps altering your makeup or even colouring your hair in a red tone. To emphasise logical thinking and clear communication, try consciously wearing something yellow or gold, or perhaps a subtle piece of feathered jewellery, for the element of air. To bring a feeling of inner peace and bring forth the compassionate side of your nature, try wearing the colours of water, such as calming shades of blue and turquoise. Earthy colours such as green and brown will help to bring a feeling of grounded stability and connection with the natural world. You can also extend this idea further by looking at planetary attributions.
Sun: gold, yellow, orange; success, confidence, charisma, happiness
Moon: white, silver; mystery, magick, intuition, dreams
Mars: red; power, strength, status, sex
Venus: green; femininity, love, beauty, fertility
Mercury: light blue; communication, thought, travel
Jupiter: purple, dark blue; expansion, hope, joy, luck
Saturn: brown, black; structure, organisation, time, law
As you can see, with this awareness you have a whole palette of tools at your disposal to bring energies into your life and to encourage conscious
