Opal Luna is the author of the book Fiber Magick and an officer of The Grove, a pagan congregation in South Florida. Her creations are also ubiquitous in the Florida pagan festival scene. She is everywhere! If you’ve been to FPG, Summer Magick, or other nearby events, then you’ve probably at least seen some of her witch hats. Heck, you might even own one.
In this interview, we discuss her background and all things related to Fiber Magick, like crocheting, magickal tools, correspondences with yarn and fabric, poppets, and even making physical representations of the Platonic solids. And at the end, she SINGS!
Background
Opal says she grew up in a very hostile household. When things would get bad, she would escape to her grandmother’s room, where she learned to crochet at the age of eight! This brought her a newfound sense of peace and accomplishment.
After gravitating toward magick later in life, she realized that the same fundamental processes were involved — whether she was was picking candles for a spell, ingredients for kitchen witchery, or colored yarn for crochet… it was all part of the craft!
Opal was introduced to the pagan community through drum circles in Tequesta and the Universalist Unitarian Church in Ft. Lauderdale, where she spent a decade learning the basics, participating in ritual, and forming the foundations of her eclectic practice.
What is Fiber Magick?
Fiber Magick is a lot of things. Opal says that it’s a spiritual path for the crafter.
But it’s also a book. And inside this book, you will find a complete explanation to the wonderful world of magickal crafting. Visually-speaking, it’s beautiful! There are tons of full-color pictures and illustrations to walk you through creating more than 70 projects.
It isn’t just an instruction manual, though… or a collection of patterns. It’s actually more of a full initiation into a magickal tradition, but in a relaxed way, like sitting with a friend and having a cup of tea.
There is discussion of magickal deities related to the world of crochet and weaving, knot magick, correspondences, and more.
As for the actual projects, there are enough to keep everyone busy, regardless of their skill level. There are tablecloths, offering bowls, bracelets, prayer shawls, witch hats, poppets… the list goes on and on. I think my personal favorite might just be the poppets.
Look at these guys!!! (Stolen from Opal’s Patreon)
To give it a full and honest evaluation, I borrowed some of Selene’s tools and tried my own hand at a project. I made quite a mess, which you can see in the interview opening. It turns out I am not very good at crocheting, but I can definitely see the meditative and magickal potential of this path. Regardless of how it looks, it was fun. And as a musician, I can appreciate the rhythm of stitching.
Magickal Tools
Like many other magickal traditions, Fiber Magick uses tools!
The crochet hook is a wand. The scissors are the sword. The darning needle is the athame.
Oh, and the chalice? That’s your cup of tea.
Simple associations? You betcha. And I love that. How fantastic is it to look at these things through such a magickal lens?
Honestly, it makes me want to re-evaluate all of my regular daily activities and turn them into magickal correspondences.
Types of Fiber Crafts
What can you do with Fiber Magick? Pretty much anything. Opal has talked about everything from making Qabalistic representations to the Platonic Solids to sleeping mats infused with for homeless. This was a very “show and tell” type of interview and it was really cool to see such a wide range of creations that she has made through an assortment of methods.
Different types of fiber crafts include:
- Crochet: uses yarn and a hook to create
- Knitting: uses yarn and two needles to create
- Macrame: ties knots to create
There are countless magickal associations and correspondences throughout this world. Opal has even assigned one of the Four Elements to each type of crochet stitch. If you’d like to find out what they are, watch the video!
Natural vs Synthetic Fibers
You can make fiber creations from natural or synthetic fibers. There are pros and cons of using each. You’ll have more correspondences when using natural fibers, but synthetic ones are sometimes cheaper and way easier to find in the store.
Let me tell you something… ever since Selene got into crochet sometime last year, I think I’ve been on at least 20 yarn hunts at Joann, Michaels, Hobby Lobby, or dare I say it… Walmart. The aisles are filled with a thousand different colors and sizes, but most of them seem to be synthetic. When your requirements are natural fiber, the selection is definitely reduced by a significant percentage. And just go ahead and compare the price between acrylic yarn and cotton or bamboo yarn.
Many of the creations that Opal sells while vending at festival are made with synthetic fibers like acrylic because it’s a little more cost effective, but the good news is that you can still imbue them with magickal intention!
For straight up spellwork, however, she recommends using natural materials like cotton, wool, linen, hemp, or bamboon. One giant reason for this is because you can’t burn or bury synthetic fibers — I mean, you can, but it’s really bad. You’ll know you’re burning acrylic yarn if you notice that it’s producing a toxic, black smoke. Seriously, don’t burn synthetic stuff.
Getting Started with Fiber Magick
Alright, let’s say you went ahead and got all of your magickal tools ready — that is, you have a set of crochet hooks, some yarn, a pair of scissors, and a cup of tea. And let’s say that you’re ready to begin your journey into Fiber Magick. Where should you start?
Opal has several resources available for you.
- Obviously, read her book
- Access her Fiber Magick Academy
- Watch tutorial videos on her YouTube channel
- Subscribe to her Patreon for access to new patterns
That should keep you busy for a while, I would think.
The Grove
Abelina
Opal is an officer of The Grove, a 501(c)(3) Religious Organization based in Margate, Florida. They meet regularly for rituals, have an eclectic training program for seekers, and are also involved in tons of community-based events like hurricane protection rituals, public sabbats, and even helping the homeless! We’ll talk more about some of those in a minute, but first let’s focus more on The Grove itself.
You’ll often hear their group referred to as “Abelina’s Grove.” This is because their guardian spirit is a dragon named Abelina. You can see her effigy off to the left — I stole the picture from their website.
Opal explains quite a bit about the group and Abelina herself in this interview. I think that listening to her is a pretty good starting point for finding out more, but you can also sign up for their newsletter right at their homepage.
Hurricane Protection Rituals
The Grove performs an annual hurricane protection ritual sometime around May. It’s not a prevention ritual, but rather one that asks that our homes are protected throughout the season. You can join them virtually for this or find some of the previous rituals up on their YouTube channel — anyone is welcome!
The ritual itself centers around making a hurricane candle — the instructions for which can be found again on YouTube. When there is a threat of a storm, all of the members light their candles!
The Green Man Alliance and Activism
Want to take action? The Green Man Alliance, which kind of seems like an activist arm of The Grove, hosts a monthly plarning session. They cut plastic bags are cut into strips, crochet those strips into sleeping mats, and then generously donate the end product to Broward Homeless Outreach.
Pagan Pride Day
The Grove is officially hosting Pagan Pride day on September 21, 2024.
It’s going to take place at Markham Park in Sunrise, FL between Noon and 6pm. There will be games, a workshop, music, ritual, and food! What more could you possibly want?
You can find the official schedule of events here.
Opal made it sound like so much fun, I volunteered to provide some music, so there I am at 3PM.
With everything mentioned so far, it seems like the members of The Grove keep fairly busy trying to give back to the community.
Honestly, it’s kind of inspiring. It’s really easy to use our magickal abilities to benefit ourselves, but it’s on a whole different level when we combine efforts and make the world around us a better place.
Finding More about Opal Luna
If you’re looking for more information on Opal, here are some great places to start:
- Her book : https://amzn.to/471HrCA
- AbelinasGrove.org – https://www.abelinasgrove.org/
- Her Website – FiberMagick.com
- Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/fibermagick
- Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/Fibermagick2
- YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/@fibermagick
- TikTok – https://www.tiktok.com/@fibermagick
- Patreon – https://www.patreon.com/FiberMagick
You can also sign up for her newsletters or The Grove’s newsletters.
And here are links to some of the other things that we mentioned in the episode:
- Mystic South – https://mystic-south.com/
- Florida Pagan Gathering – Samhain – http://www.flapagan.org/
Music and Magick
Okay, so if you’ve been tuning into all of my episodes, you’ll know that this is the thirteenth interview I started this crazy endeavor last year. I ask every guest the same question at the end: “How do you use sound or music in your personal magickal practice?”
And everybody gives a great answer. It’s my favorite part of the process.
But Opal didn’t just tell me. She showed me.
Opal sang these words while rhythmically stitching, then gave her poppet a cute little poke in the belly.
Lady spin your circle bright
Weave your web of dark and light
Earth, air, fire and water
Bind us as one
You should absolutely watch and listen.
Conclusions
I had a lot of fun with this episode. Aside from hearing Opal sing, one of my favorite parts was seeing all of the Platonic solids in physical, yarn form. I also had fun making a complete mess with yarn on my own time. If crafting is the type of thing you enjoy, then maybe you should try your hand at crochet! It doesn’t take much investment to get started and you might just find a new hobby!
If you enjoy these articles and videos and would like to help show your support, please make sure you’re subscribed on YouTube, hit the like button, and leave a comment. And while you’re at it, check out my Patreon! Patrons get nearly instant access to interviews (you know, about as quickly as I can download and upload), plus tons of other cool stuff. And as always, if you know someone that would make a great guest on the show in the future, please contact me!
As I wrap up this post, it’s raining. It’s been raining almost every day this past week, so it’ll probably be raining on the day I schedule it for release as well. What does that mean? Probably nothing; however, at this moment I would like to bring your attention to the fact that there are Amazon affiliate links on this page. If you use one of those links to make a purchase, Amazon will pay me a small commission. You know what? I can’t ever spell commission the right way. Thanks the gods for spellcheck. Now please join me in a song… raindrops keep falling on my head, but that doesn’t mean my eyes will soon be turning red…
Aerik Arkadian 
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