Blog – Jennifer Wilber

Ishtarfest 2025 Reflections

Posted on June 13, 2025 by Jennifer Wilber

Here are some reflections on Ishtarfest 2025. This was my first year presenting, and also my first year being on the planning committee.

Mesopotamian Eye Idol Amigurumi Pattern

Posted on June 5, 2025 by Jennifer Wilber

I made an Amigurumi Eye Idol pattern, which is available from my Ribblr shop: Nya’s Magickal Crafts

Eye idols are small figurines that were found at the site of the “Eye Temple” at Tell Brak in Northern Mesopotamia, modern day Syria. They are thought to be offerings to the gods, representing worshipers, with the large eyes representing unwavering attentiveness to the gods.

I am making this available at a special discount for the next week!

This pattern is pretty easy, but it may be a bit confusing for beginners when you get to the eyes. I designed it in such a way that you don’t need to sew any pieces together, but the eyes might be a bit tricky. The eye rows essentially have you make two separate panels, then the last row crochets the two halves together.

Try making them with different types of yarn!

I provided instructions for standard facial features, but feel free to experiment with other ideas! Try safety eyes or extra accessories! I’ve been playing Hello Kitty Island Adventure lately, so I made this little Hello Kitty eye idol!

I also have a few free patterns in my Ribblr shop; a charm featuring Inanna’s star, a moon, and Sanrio’s Big Challenges (also inspired by Hello Kitty Island Adventure).

Ishtarfest!

Posted on June 3, 2025 by Jennifer Wilber

I’m so excited for Ishtarfest this weekend! This will be my third year attending, and my first year both presenting and being a part of the planning committee.

Ishtarfest is very special to me. About a year or so after I first started re-exploring paganism and deepening my relationship with Inanna, I went searching for groups specifically dedicated to Her since I hadn’t met anyone who was a devotee of Her through any of the general pagan groups and events I’d been exploring. I found a couple online social media groups, and from there, I heard about Ishtarfest. It was the first time I met so many people who loved Inanna as much as I do!

So this year, I volunteered to be a part of the planning committee because I wanted to help to keep this festival going.

Here is a promo poster I made for the festival! It features stunning artwork by Damara Carpenter.

I will be presenting about how we can connect to nature through our connection to Inanna in my presentation titled “Feral Inanna: How the Goddess of Civilization Can Help Us to Reconnect with Nature.” My presentation will include my ideas about Inanna’s nature goddess aspects, ancient literature that supports the idea of Inanna as a nature goddess, my experiences with Inanna in nature, and a guided meditation to connect to connect to the wild through Inanna.