I’m new to astrology, which reading should I book?

A natal chart reading is definitely the best place to start. However, if this feels like too great an investment, the Sun Moon Ascendant reading offers a pretty comprehensive overview of the key bases of the chart and will also be very illuminating.

What’s so great about the Natal Chart?

The birth chart is like a sort of blueprint for our life (but not in the sense of something static, fixed or immutable. It’s better understood as a dynamic, living energy pattern, which, whilst holding its essential form - i.e. it’s blueprint, brings forth different tones and expressions of that foundational pattern throughout our life as we grow and mature and as different areas of the chart are activated). We could also think of it as a topographical map of the terrain we’ll be covering as we progress through life. It outlines the major themes and archetypal energies we’ll encounter and interact with on our journey and helps us understand how to harness and wield to our advantage the particular qualities and ‘archetypal coding’ with which we’ve been endowed. It reveals the gifts intrinsic to us and the pitfalls implicit in the poor management of those same energies. In short, it supplies us with some very useful information to help orient us in what can, at times, be a rather bewildering experience! For a more in depth look at this, watch the video on the About page.

How often should I have a reading with you?

This really depends on you. Astrology readings generate a lot of information and we all have different rates at which we metabolize and assimilate it. Generally speaking, it’s best to wait at least a few weeks after an initial reading to have another. Some people like to get a transits and progressions reading once a year around the time of their birthday, so as to get a sense of the major themes for the year or so ahead. I also work with people on an on-going basis (see the Astrological Guidance package). This is a really great way of working if you want to dig deeper into your chart and understand in greater nuance and detail the underlying dynamics between the different elements of the chart and how that is being reflected in your life. Entering into a deeper exploration of your chart can be an invaluable tool to supplement a process of therapy or any introspective practice of self-knowledge.

I don’t know my birth time, can I still get a reading?

It’s not possible for me to do a reading for you without an accurate birth time. However, there are many astrologers who offer a service called ‘chart rectification’. Through using the dates of important events in your life they are able to determine, through a careful, analytical process, a time of birth which is likely to be close to exact. I recommend Graham Ibell if you need to get this done, he is an excellent astrologer I have known for over 20 years and in whose work I trust. Once you have a rectified birth time, I can then proceed with a reading for you. You can find Graham here: http://grahamibell.com

What information will you need from me for a reading?

When you book with me you’ll be directed to an online form asking you to submit your birth data and other information it is helpful to have from you for the reading. Please read it carefully and double check your birth time (especially am/pm!) before sending it to me. It is critical to have a precise time of birth for an accurate reading. It is also helpful to have some biographical information about you, this allows me to build a more comprehensive and coherent picture from the symbols of your chart and will be to your benefit in providing you with a more tailored reading. However, if you prefer not to share this information, that’s fine, I can still do a reading for you if you provide me with accurate birth data, it just may not speak quite so precisely and directly to some of the given circumstances of your life.

Does payment have to be made at the time of booking?

Yes, payment must be made at the time of booking. However, if you really prefer not to use the automated payment system on my site, you can let me know (info@victoriairis.com) and I will send you details regarding alternative methods of payment. This will not alter the price of a reading. I can hold your appointment for you for 24 hours, if, after that time, you have not made the payment, I will release the booking.

What happens after I book a reading?

After you book you will receive email confirmation of your payment and of your appointment time. I only do online consultations and these are conducted via Zoom and are recorded (the meeting link will work even if you do not have Zoom yourself). The recording of the session will be sent to you via email the same day. You will receive a direct link to connect to the meeting in subsequent reminder emails before your appointment. If you have any questions or want to update or change some of the biographical information you shared with me at the time of booking, you can do this before we meet (but please try to have all biographical info. with me at the very least 24 hours prior to meeting) by sending me an email: info@victoriairis.com

What’s your cancellation policy?

If you need to cancel, please let me know asap, I put considerable time into preparing a chart before we actually meet and usually begin this process 3-4 days before our appointment.

If you wish to reschedule: cancellations made 24 hours+ prior to an appointment can be accommodated at no extra charge. Cancellations made within 24 hours of an appointment can be rescheduled, but will incur an additional fee of $50 (barring exceptional circumstances).

Final cancellations (for those not wishing to reschedule): If you cancel more than 72 hours in advance of an appointment you will be refunded in full, minus the credit card processing fee. Within 72-24 hours of an appointment you will be refunded, minus 50% of the fee (unless, in the rare instance, I have not yet started working on your chart, in which case I will gladly refund the full amount, minus the credit card fee). Final cancellations made within 24 hours of an appointment cannot, unfortunately, be refunded, please bear this in mind when booking.

What is an archetype?

‘Archetype’ is a word I (and many astrologers) often use to describe certain key signatures visible in a given chart. But what does the word mean? Etymologically it’s from the Latin archetypum, and the Greek arkhetypon, meaning: “pattern, model," and also: "first-moulded," from arkhē "beginning, origin, first place". It refers to a primal pattern or original model from which all things of a similar kind are derived. In psychology, particularly in the work of Carl Jung, archetypes are seen as universal, inherited symbols or themes embedded in the collective unconscious—manifesting in dreams, myths, and cultural narratives.

Philosophically, archetypes echo Plato’s Theory of Forms, where every physical object or idea in the material world is a shadow of a perfect, non-material ideal Form or Idea. Astrologically, archetypes are reflected in the symbolic language of planets, signs, houses and aspects, each representing timeless energies or roles within the human experience. So, archetypes serve as bridges between the visible and invisible, which is to say, the personal and the universal, providing structure to both our inner life and symbolic systems like astrology.

An example of how we use archetypes in astrology is as follows: let’s say you have strong Aries or Mars placements in your chart - I may describe the need to embody the ‘warrior archetype’ in the particular field of worldly activity in which that symbol appears. I could encourage you to connect to a sense of personal empowerment, courage, daring, a pioneering spirit etc. I may also caution you against the potentially destructive manifestations of that same energy - rash, explosive outbursts, cut-throat competitiveness, violence in thought/word/deed etc. all of which derive from this one ‘archetype’ of the warrior that encapsulates these particular qualities of being and action; qualities we instinctively recognize just from the mention of the word itself. So, one archetypal image (or, as Plato described it, Idea or Form) holds within it the potentialities of every possible expression, the high and the low and everything in between, of what that one pure energy can become in manifest human experience.

Are astrology readings age specific - should I get one for my infant/young child?

Getting an astrology reading for a young child can be both insightful and potentially limiting, depending on how it's approached. On the positive side, a natal chart reading can offer a symbolic map of potential personality traits, emotional tendencies, and innate strengths, which might help you as a parent to understand and support your child’s unique temperament and developmental needs. However, a major con is the risk of projecting fixed expectations onto the child, interpreting tendencies as fate rather than possibility. Children are constantly growing and changing, they are shaped by their environment as well as their innate psychological makeup, so astrology should be used as a gentle guide—not a definitive script. When approached with flexibility and care, it can be a useful tool for self-awareness and parenting. But generally I would suggest the late teenage years as being the earliest stage at which an individual can really start to benefit from a reading if they themselves have sought it out in a spirit of genuine curiosity and open-mindedness.