I know I’m not alone when I say that over the past few months I’ve watched a lot of films. A hell of a lot of films. I’ve also had friends – aware that I write about weird movies and cult cinema – asking for film recommendations. Particularly the low budget flicks with all of the blood, balls, and brains typically missing from big budget blockbusters. I ultimately collected these into a few social media posts, detailing three dozen films worth seeing that had largely gone under the radar, the neglected gems you’ve never heard of that are hidden in the depths of the streaming libraries. The posts proved very popular and it struck me that they might prove useful resource for others. Particularly in the current climate, where everyone’s exhausted all of the high profile new releases and reliable old favourites that Netflix, Amazon and co have to offer.

Dear Friends,

We want to wholeheartedly thank you for your kindness and patience during this time. Your support has been truly overwhelming, we will never forget it.

The time has finally come ALCHEMY is OPEN!!!!!!! We are excited to announce from Monday 15th June we will be reopening to all of you!

During the coming weeks wait times may be longer than normal and some of our designs may be unavailable, but we are working hard to become fully operation again. So please bear with us just a little longer. If we don’t answer the telephone, leave us a message and we will call you back!

More exciting news! We have a whole new ‘Alchemy Gift & Home Collection’ which will be online any minute. Even better news. It’s all IN-STOCK Now! The collection includes Mug and Spoon gift sets, tableware, travel mugs and the most intricate Alchemy, hand painted, miniature models. We are in awe of it all and we know you will be too!

Again, another huge thank you to each and every one of you. We wish you all the very best as we all begin to emerge from the dark, we are here for you!

The Alchemy Team.

Dear Friends,

We hope that you and your loved ones are staying safe and well during these exceptional circumstances.

Unfortunately due to the current Covid-19 pandemic and government restrictions in place, we have taken the very difficult decision to continue our temporary closure and we will be reviewing the situation week commencing 10th May 2020.

Whilst we are closed, orders will not be processed until we are able to re-open. The website is still operational should you wish to secure stock for a future delivery, any orders received during this time will be processed in order of the date they were received. In the meantime, if you are advertising products but do not have the stock available we kindly advise you to mark these as out of stock until we are able to reopen.

These are very challenging times for us all and we know that this may cause difficulties to some of our customers and we wholeheartedly thank you for your support and patience at this unprecedented time.

We can’t wait to get back to doing what we all love, in the meantime, please stay safe and take care of yourselves and your loved ones and we will be back to serve you as soon as we possibly can!

The Alchemy Team.

Dear Friends,

We at Alchemy feel extremely privileged to be able to count you amongst a very special group of people, you are what makes Alchemy extraordinary!

We have been serving you for almost 45 years and have no intention of stopping now, and intend to do so for many, many more – business as usual has become unusual!

We all face this unprecedented situation together. Fortunately here at Alchemy, we have the most exceptional, dedicated and experienced team of staff imaginable and to keep them safe and to help our government and NHS to limit the spread of this disease. We are now closed and will look to re-open Monday 20th April. This reopening date will be subject to government guidelines. And we will confirm this date in due course. This will enable our hard working team the time they need to look after their own well-being and that of their families too.

Please continue to order via your usual channels. If you wish to secure your stock then please order via the website. We will attend to any orders received during our closure period as soon as we return to the office.

During this short break our social channels will be as always fully active, so join the conversations and engage with us in the coming weeks – Now is the time to make our digital lives a positive place for all!

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you! Together let’s support one another, be kind and take care of those most vulnerable.

The Alchemy Team.

The pentagram, basically the graphic image of a five pointed star, has existed as a symbol for at least 2,000 – 5,000 years, when during the stone age it was carved into rock, no doubt with some spiritual tenor. Since then it has been in constant use by countless peoples and various ethno-religious and spiritual groups, perhaps most famously, the legendary King Solomon. These include the Greeks and the Babylonians for which it represented the five elements, (earth, air, fire, water and spirit), but also the Chinese, the Jews, the Christians, ancient folk communities everywhere and more recently, by occultists and spiritualists.

The following was adapted from an article originally posted at modellaesmeralda.blogspot.com.

This article is republished here with permission from the original author. You can read the full version by visiting their blog.

Disclaimer: This post contains advertisement – read more below.*

As every year, I have been shooting many photos for Alchemy England’s catalogues in 2019 and also got to wear their beautiful jewellery for other occasions. As I have been looking back on some old photos and finally started blogging again, I thought it would be a good idea to make a little feature with my favourite photos from this years’ shoots!

The Royal Armouries is one of the oldest museums in the world, founded in the 1400s in London’s famous White Tower, viewable by appointment only. By 1660, paying members of the public were invited to visit this extensive Royal collection of arms and armour. In 1991 a major shake-up was begun, and much of the collection moved to a purpose-built museum in the northern English city of Leeds, which opened to the public five years later. In recent years, the Armouries generated some controversy when they began to acquire weapons used on iconic TV shows and films, such as LORD OF THE RINGS and STAR WARS.

This Valentine is all about love, warm hugs, kisses and appreciation. Yes, yes, I am talking about the best witch familiar, the graveyard guardian, the Ancient Egyptian pride and absolute dark beauty: the cat. And if you’re not convinced yet, here are a few reasons why we should be celebrating Calentine from now on.

‘I love Christmas. People are jolly, happy, they gather around the table and eat, drink and laugh all day long. They eat lots of meat and sweets and become fatty and…juicy.’

Jolly Zombie

Once upon a time, before Christmas became sanitised, Americanised and candy-coated by Santa Claus and Coca Cola, in Europe Yuletide was more ominous, weird, and occasionally downright scary than jolly. Few are better qualified to explore the dark side of the holiday season than the Folk Horror Revival group. ‘Folk’ has recently become the hottest buzzword in horror circles, ‘folk horror’ the term to describe that elusive area where rural folklore and arcane tradition intertwine with the ghostly and ghastly on page and screen. In early December of this year the Folk Horror Revival group held a symposium on all things spooky and seasonal they entitled Winter Ghosts 2019.