RoseQuartzandAmethyst

Cas, 29, they/them. Welcome to my witchcraft blog!

[lilbittymonster]

Potion time

[lilbittymonster]

Spell of Banishment of Winter Feelbads

[lilbittymonster]

It smells so good in here

[lilbittymonster]

There's a certain poetry to finishing this right as it's getting dark and blue outside.

(This came out so fucking good I will definitely be making this again.)

[lilbittymonster]

Certainly!

I was loosely following a wassail recipe I found but made some substitutions, and this might be closer to a mulled cider than a true wassail, but either way it's delicious.

Ingredients:

-64 floz (~2 litres) of apple cider

-5 mid sized oranges

-1 regular or 2 small lemons

-1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

-3 or 4 cinnamon sticks (I used three since one was chonky)

-fresh ginger root (or 1/4 tsp ground ginger)

-15 whole cloves or 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

-1 Tablespoon of honey

Optional: your choice of rum or brandy

Preparations:

Juice four of the five oranges and your lemon(s). Slice the fifth orange and poke the whole cloves into the slices.

Thinly slice the ginger root. I ended up only using one of the two pictured, and each of those were about 4 inches long or so.

Add all of the ingredients to your cooking vessel and bring to a medium heat. You want to see a bit of bubbling in the liquid (not a rolling boil) and a froth/foam will form on top. This is fine!

Reduce to a low simmer (around a 3 out of 10) for 30-40 minutes. Stir everything in the pot in about five minute intervals.

Storage:

If you aren't going to drink it all immediately, you can pour it back into the original cider container or any air tight container and keep it in the fridge.

[lilbittymonster]

Yearly reblog of my wassail recipe with the addendum that you DO NOT need fresh ingredients for this.

I've opted to use a 1/4 teaspoon of all four spices, and got a single serve thing of Simply Orange orange juice and grocery store lemon juice instead of freshly juiced citruses the last couple times I've made this. If you want to just buy a bunch of things, toss them into a pot together, and simmer them you absolutely can do that.

[honorthegods]

 February 24 is European Pagan Memory Day, a day to commemorate the ancient roots of modern pagan religions.

This date was selected because it approximates the day when the sacred flame of the goddess Vesta in Rome was extinguished by decree of Theodosius I. Sacred flames continued to be smothered throughout Europe until 1388, when the sacred flame of the Baltic god Perkūnas was extinguished in Vilnius, Lithuania.

Today, we recall and celebrate the many expressions of traditional religions across ancient Europe. Let us also take pride in the efforts of modern revivalists and reconstructions to kindle those flames anew. 

May all who offer light and prayers to the gods be blessed!

✦⊶⊶⊶⊶⊶༻*✿*༺⊷⊷⊷⊷⊷✦

Featured Image: Detail from View into the temple of Vesta, drawing by Karl Friedrich Schinkel, 1818. Photo: © Kupferstichkabinett of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Preußischer Kulturbesitz

Image source:  https://id.smb.museum/object/1504319/die-vestalin–oper-von-gaspare-spontini–entwurf-zur-2–dekoration–blick-in-den-tempel-der-vesta

Image license: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Germany License 

[medusa-must-live]

❤️🔥In times like these, I hope that Hestia makes your home a safe place where you can heal and be protected from harm 🔥❤️

[slewfootwitch]

Citing witchcraft books is helpful for giving credit to where you got your ideas, as well as for including in your notes so that you can go back and refer to your source material again later.

It's not really helpful for proving or disproving things; because, just like blogs and websites, books are written from the perspective of different frameworks, systems and models. Most of the time, a witchcraft book should be approached as a window into the author's personal gnosis and experiential knowledge.

[awitchandhersecrets]

Agreed. I see citations more often now in witchcraft books tho, which means if you want to write a magic book, we'll probably be expected to cite, so might as well start.

I like citations for facts in history or when an author is building on a prior idea, model or framework.

[alexandra-erin]

And now, a joke.

How did the witch find the coffee table in the dark?

Widdershins.

[thecacklingpixie-deactivated201]

omg

[starlight-and-promises]

oh my goddddd

[verdantlyviolet]

hi, i was wondering if maybe you could help / give me some advices ?

i’m a hellenic polytheist but i’m also disabled. because of that, i’m always exhausted, and i have almost no motivation, so i tend not to worship. it’s not good for me, because i feel better when i am connected to the Gods, especially when i have a daily routine. but i started uni in september and i’ve barely been able to do anything because either i’m busy, or my executive dysfunction stops me, or i’m so exhausted and in pain that i get lazy and choose to scroll on my phone in bed instead of honouring the Theoi. i really need to find ways to go back to connecting with them and building kharis, but i don’t know how to build a routine for that, and how to manage to actually do it ?

Firstly, congratulations on starting university! Uni is a huge endeavour and it's important to focus on your studies and do the best you can. That is a priority, and you should not feel guilty or torn over dedicating time to that. Secondly, I want to add that it's not lazy to only do what you're capable of. You said yourself you're in pain and exhausted, I'm not surprised if at the end of the day you are not more active. Our brains need time to decompress just like our bodies, and scrolling on social media is a way to do both.

We are allowed to have hobbies and enjoy them!

Now. Habits. There is a technique called habit stacking which is where you use a current habit or behaviour and build another into that. Do you brush your teeth regularly? You could choose to add pouring out a libation of water to the gods while you brush (you're already at a water source after all). Do you like to sit in the shower and close your eyes, enjoying the water? You could say a quick word of praise or pray to the theoi while you do that ("Glorious theoi, givers of good things, thank you for your abundant blessings" etc.). As you walk to class is there a flowering plant or water feature, something that looks pretty and reminds you of their beauty? When you eat meals, could you portion off a piece first in offering to the gods? When we stop to think, there are a million moments in every day where we could add the gods to our lives, and you only need to pick one or two.

A reminder I needed too: you can ask the theoi for help in times of need. Attending university, you could pray to Athena, maybe Hermes, and/or any other gods relevant to your course. You could also pray to Apollo, Asklepios and Hygeia regarding your disabilities.  This may help with the feeling of connection since it will be relating directly to things you live with every day.

I also want to try a little mindset shift here. Try not to focus so much on the idea that you need to build the habit of devotion, and instead focus on your love for the theoi. From "I have to find more time for this" to "I want to show them my appreciation." It's a small thing, but the stress of 'I have to I have to' really sucks out the joy. You are already accomplishing so much and should be proud of that, don’t be hard on yourself for one thing you’re not doing.

I hope my babble helped in some way. I encourage people to reblog or reply in the comments with any thoughts!

[dog-rose]

Enchanting with touch -

A lot of witchcraft seems to be focused on visualisation as a means of imbuing things with magic, energy work seems almost entirely written to suit those who can visualise images. I am extremely tactile, I am a touchy feely person with busy hands so I decided to share how I “enchant” items.

Enchantment in my book means to take an object and make it magical, whether it be a charm, a ward, an agent of the spell itself.

Kissing things - your lips are far more sensitive than your fingers, they are also very close to your nose so you can incorporate smell into this, too. Take the item, and bring it too your lips gently, place a plush firm kiss whilst focusing on planting your into into the item.

Stroking or brushing - I have heard people try knot magic by braiding their hair, my hair is too short for this, but you could start by brushing your hair. Really smoothing it out, deeply brushing hair or even fur is a great way to transfer magic from your mind to the hands to the object, brushing is very therupeutic and could almost be a trance inducing activity. When I had hair I could sit on, it was a wonderful sensory experience to hand brush it after a wash.

You could also feel the surface of your item by smoothing it with you hands, really get to know the texture, let the magic explore the grain of the wood, the crevices in the stone or the cool touch of the metal.

Crumbling something - You could do this with breadcrumbs for kitchen magic or a bath bomb for bath magic (I wouldn’t crumble a bath bomb imo but I have heard some people prefer to do that.) Guide your intent to your hands and let it over whelm the object in your palms.

Stepping on something - This could be very destructive and great for curses.

Walking around it - Walking around an object features a lot in folk lore, perhaps you could use it to slowly build up intent and magical energy within you?

Throwing or juggling - Juggling is a great skill to learn and I can well and truly say kinetic energy is magical very powerful, throwing and catching something in the air until your satisfied is a fantastic way of enchantment, the weight as you catch it in your hand and watching it fly in the air is just fantastic.

Rubbing it to give it body heat - This is very physical, you can feel the warmth you’ve transferred to this object and its very responsive as well.

[heatherwitch]

Yule Resource Masterpost

A collection of categorized links for your Yule needs! What is Yule? [X] Yule is celebrated on slightly different days depending on who you ask, but the broad spectrum is: December 20th to January 1st in the Northern Hemisphere and around June 20th (give or take a few days) in the Southern Hemisphere.

 The basics:

Yule correspondences

Celebrating Yule

Yule: A very merry sabbat

Guide to Yuletide plants + herbs

A Yule ritual

Secular celebrations: Yule

50 Yuleisms

Inexpensive Yule decorations

Winter solstice - Spoonie witch friendly

Yule Crafts:

Yule potpourri recipe

Witch balls

Decorate Yule tree with crystals

Mini herb wreaths

Yule log

Yule craft ideas

Pine protection balm

Dried orange slices

Apple feeders for winter birds

Yule Recipes:

Herbal shortbread

Chocolate Yule log

Double chocolate bread

Yule banana bread

Mulled wine poached pears

Yule tea

Yule Punch

Non-alcoholic mulled wine

Yule mulled wine

Yule Spells:

Merry Yule spell jar / Season of peace spell jar

Holiday ornament snow spell

Yule bath spell

Blessed Yule - for a positive holiday season

Winter solstice spell

Spell for a happy family gathering

Yule energy sun spell

Winter stasis spell sachet

Holiday home blessings

Safe delivery envelope spell

Yule wishing cones

Yule Tarot Spreads:

The return (2 card)

Yule spread (3 card)

Tarot spread for Yule (3 card)

Winter inspired spread (5 card)

Yule reflection + advice spread (5 card)

Winter solstice/Yule spread (6 card)

Other:

Music ideas / Winter witch playlist

Winter solstice simmer pot

Yule altar ideas

Mistletoe Lore

Emoji spell for luck during Yule and Solstice

Spell ideas for the holidays

Updated December of 2023. Please inform me of broken links via askbox!

Imbolc / Ostara / Beltane / Litha / Lammas / Mabon / Samhain / Yule / Bedridden ideas

[recreationalwitchcraft]

Celebrate Yule

Outside:

Leave out birdseed ornaments as offerings to the season

If snowing, play in the snowfall to appreciate the changing season or collect some for snow water

After the sun has gone down, burn a yule log in a bonfire

Take some friends and go wassailing! 

In the Home:

Make stovetop potpourri as an alternative to incense 

DIY gifts with your witch skills for your friends and family 

Read a winter solstice tarot spread for yourself

Decorate your holiday tree, blessing the ornaments with good energy

Hang mistletoe for protection and (consensual!) kisses

In the Kitchen:

Make one of these Celtic Yule recipes

Prepare some traditional or non-traditional wassail for any adults

Bake mini yule logs to share with family and friends 

Make Swedish Lussekatter rolls or Norwegian Julekake bread 

In the Bath:

Bathe with fresh orange slices and frankincense and myrrh essential oils for a prosperity ritual bath

Take a lazy witch holiday LUSH bath (our suggestions here) 

Do a pre-solstice ritual bath with essential oils

Make winter spice bath bombs and enchant them for prosperity

On your Altar:

Use colors like reds, greens, whites, and metallic colors

Add holly, pine, ivy, mistletoe, juniper, or cedar for some greenery

Decorate with a yule wish bottle to for some easy magic

Represent the seasonal harvest with oranges, pears, nuts, and berries

Incorporate snowflake obsidian, clear quartz, or bloodstone

[recreationalwitchcraft]

It’s today everybody!

[breelandwalker]

For my fellow fibre arts witches, if you're starting to get the Annual Cold Weather Fidget, that driving urge to reach for hooks and needles and that big bin of spools and fabric lurking in your closet....

If you feel like Doing A Witchcraft, you can work some witchy into whatever you're making. Weaving, crocheting, knitting, nalbinding, stitching, embroidery, and knotwork can all carry magic and serve as a vehicle for creating spells, sigils, talismans, or enchanted wearables.

Am I saying you can put a spell into that pair of socks you're knitting? That scarf you've been working on? That pile of granny squares waiting to become a blanket? That cross-stitch piece you've been meaning to finish?

ABSOLUTELY.

There are even books on knot magic, witchy crochet and knitting patterns, and beautifully spooky cross-stitch and embroidery pieces. (And lots more downloadable patterns exist on etsy and fibre arts forums!) Perfect for chilling with your favorite hot beverage and current binge-watch while you keep your hands from getting bored.

Go forth and have fun with it!

[honeyandhestia]

May Lady Hestia be with you and help you to find the light through the darkest times, and comfort when it feels hard to grasp 🧡

[junkworldusa]

[witchyy-kittyy-deactivated20260]

Shoutout to all the pagans that can't celebrate holidays in a 'traditional' or 'typical' way or can't do 'traditional' or 'typical' devotional acts due to chronic illness, neurodivergence, executive dysfunction, disabilities, anything

You all are still perfectly valid and your deities understand and still love you.

You can't tidy their alters or pray before their alters because you can't get out of bed? They understand

You can't walk barefoot in the grass or pick flowers for Betlane? That's perfectly okay

You can't easily create things for your deities? They understand

You can't clean something for Ostara? That's perfectly okay

Your deities understand. You are still valid. You are still loved.

[brujarojaderio]

Urban Animism and Watersheds (Part 2)

Everyone lives in a watershed, which just means where the water goes from where you are. It makes it’s way through waterways into bodies of water and into oceans and into aquifers. You can look up your watershed online and find out a wealth of information about the health of your waterways and your local watershed.

I think that is a good and responsible thing to do and is important to your practice as a way of being intentional about your place in the system of water and life. However, like the tap, it is difficult to have a personal relationship with your community of beings if you’re just looking at maps on the internet, or at least it is for me.

I want to build empathy with the water and it’s community and in order to do that I need to experience it. So, let’s follow the water.

Depending on where you live, this may be more or less difficult but in the beginning, it’s pretty easy. Find a rain spout or a place where an outdoor faucted drips or where an apartment sprinklers leak and follow that water.

I’ve talked before about how to use weeds to read the landscape and this is a great place to use that skill.

In a low corner of my yard, I found this spot of dollar weed, pony’s foot, and other water-loving weeds against a fence. I followed these weeds down to the curb of my house.

Here right on the curb, my water runoff is nurturing a little population of algae on the cement as it seeps down into the street.

Of course, then it goes into the storm drain. It looks like the end of a story, but this is just where things start to get interesting. Here is where you might need to use a map to find out the direction of the storm drain flow. Generally, it will move downhill, so a topo map and Google Earth can help you follow the approximate direction to a ditch, culvert, or creek.

I’ve lived here about 20 years, so I already know where the outflow is. I found out because as a youth, I would shoot fireworks into these pipes that run under the neighborhood and when I walked home the smoke would rise from the gutters.

There is a lot of activity here. There are fish and some turtles in the water. There’s also a lot of algae, probably helped by fertilizer runoff.

Now the shots are not quite as close because this isn’t as near to my house. This is a park that is also retention to heavy rains. For normal drainage and to follow our water, we can just walk down and see where it goes.

I don’t know that this water is healthy, but it’s alive. The audio is garbage, but I want you to hear the insects and the distant birds. This is their water now.

The water here is nurturing a strange little habitat on the edge of the soccer field. Several turtles disappeared when I walked up. Native and naturalized semi-aquatic plants are trying to carve out space on the banks, but this pond shrinks and grows day by day, so it is difficult for any of them to take hold.

And here is the other side, where the water flows into a drainage ditch. Our neighbors are here, a couple of ducks and a heron. There are slightly larger fish in the water here, as well, which also feeds our neighbors. So I ask myself, as a member of this community and as a neighbor, am I being a good steward of the water as it is on a journey to these neighbors?

Well… There’s certainly room for improvement…

Here is where I had to get in the car and follow the drainage ditch to a larger waterway because there is no right of way where the drainage winds through private property. These smaller waterways are not monitored for their health, so I want to find out what it’s like when they reach a larger body. I used Google Earth to find where I could meet the water again from a public area.

Here I found the area where they reach a larger, named creek. Now my water is no longer Chicot-Evangaline Gulf Coast Aquifer water. Now it has changed to Mary’s Creek. These White Ibises feed along the waterways and we see them more and more in urban and suburban communities as the coast regions become more salty.

So now I see, my responsibility to the water extends to them. These, too, are my water neighbors.

This is my last location, where Mary’s Creek runs into the retention of a bird sanctuary. Here the water is monitored and I can just step inside the complex and ask how the water is. The answer is, it needs improvement, but it’s better than it has been in generations. Otters are returning to the creeks, which haven’t been seen in decades. They’ve built nesting sites and they see thousands of migratory birds here every season.

When I walk down to the little peninsula they’ve built for observations, I see neo-tropical cormorants, whistling ducks, a single white pelican, and coots, all roosting, fishing, swimming, My responsibility extends to them as well, in a direct and followable line from a cup of coffee I dump in my yard, all the way here.

It goes further. This creek will join a bayou, which goes to the bay, which goes to the Gulf of Mexico. This spring that gulf will heat and that water will rise with that moisture and move across this land and rain again, some of that rain will trickle down into the aquifer and it will be pumped up and start all over again. Everyone is downstream. Even me.

If where you live, you receive water from surface water sources, this system may be even more direct than that, so we have to ask ourselves. do we believe that the water is a being? Do we believe the algae and the plants and the fish and the insects and the ducks and the herons deserve respect and that they are our neighbors? Do we believe that we are in community with them, that they are our family? If we do, are we being loyal to them? Are we being good neighbors to them?

[bargainbinwizard]

Does anyone have an efficient way to block your enemies divination abilities/scrying abilities so they won't use them on you?

Say that you have an witch who's able to remote view through their black mirror and can use tarot cards. They're trying to figure out stuff about you so they can use the information against you. Are there any special herbs/planetary correspondences/spells that will block your enemy's ability to use divination?

[thewitchesfortune]

A good method is to bury sewing needles with the eyes broken on them at the 4 corners of your property

Other methods would be to place enchantments on your doors such as the one ofwoodandbone once posted, and I have a screenshot here!

[windvexer]

Illusory protection

[ladykinrannoch]

Read my mind. I have a lot of strangers coming for Yule in a few weeks and was looking for a warding spell that would make sure that any negative energy doesn't stay and I can stay protected from anyone being able to launch attacks from afar. Any more advice would be good @windvexer ?

[windvexer]

@ladykinrannoch I like @aesethewitch 's post on ambient spells to deal with lingering unwanted energy. I've heard of lighting a candle by the front door to deal with incoming energy, but I've never tried it.

If you have a potted rosemary, move it by the front door temporarily and give it offerings in exchange for capturing, filtering, and blocking unwanted energies, and for a general protective effect; you could try this with any of the kitchen herbs, perhaps most notably dill or basil.

A yule charm of cinnamon sticks, cloves, and lemon or orange peel (or, sticking cloves into the lemon or orange and creatively including a cinnamon stick somehow), can be hung by the door or guest areas and coaxed to transform or inhibit bad vibes.

As far as attacks from afar... I suppose I'd say any ward might work, but my favorite is the decoy witch bottle.

[travelingthief]

Hermes Devotional Post!

Not a complete list of course, so feel free to add on!

Travel

Dedicated travel playlist for Hermes

Mindful packing for trips

Road-trips/camping

Trying new modes of travel

Let Him pick the music

Travel by boat/kayak/canoe

Learn to roller skate, skateboard, or longboard

Learn to surf

Go for a bike ride

Find ways to save on gas (like rewards cards)

Misc.

Draw sigils on shoes

Leave coin offerings at the location you start your travels

Travel size portable altar

Give people in need bus fare 

Go for a run 

Picking up coins you find/leaving coins for others

Donating to homeless shelters

Car

Keep up on car maintenance (especially in the wintertime)

Courteous driving (Letting people out, stopping for pedestrians, using your blinker)

Clean snow off other drivers’ cars

Keep your car clean

Giving rides to others

Stopping for those that need help on the side of the road

Invite Him to ride in the passenger seat

Let Him pick the music

International

Get a passport!

Keeping up on foreign affairs

Decorate your passport

See the world!

Make a travel board/destination list

Learn about places you wanna go

Try foreign foods

Nature

Take a nature walk! (Or just a walk around the block)

Dedicate your hiking boots/running shoes to him

Find a spot in nature to talk to Him

Learn about birds in your area and where they come from and go.

Learn how animals communicate (great alongside Artemis)

Communication

Write letters to friends

Send postcards/greeting cards

Call a friend or relative

Reread messages/emails before sending 

Communicate your thoughts and feelings in your relationships

Practice keyboarding

Establish and enforce your boundaries 

Can and string telephones

Keep secrets entrusted to you

Support your local post office

Collect stamps/postcards

Dedicate your phone/laptop to Him

Have a penpal

Language

Keep a journal 

Learn a new language/Revisit the language you started learning and then neglected 

Learn ASL

Learn about the evolution of language and how it is always changing

Be mindful of the language you use in daily life and consider how it affects you and those around you 

Change your self-talk! Keep it positive!

Voice training (Particularly for trans worshippers)

Thinking before you speak

Learn about older forms of communication (like Morse Code)

Learn braille 

Go to the library and practice reading books in a foreign language (Great to do alongside Athena)

Practice writing (great to do alongside Apollo) 

Learn about the elements of writing, like allegory and metaphors (alongside Apollo)

Trickery and luck

Play pranks (remember: good pranks cause confusion, not harm)

Learn magic tricks 

Buy scratch offs/play the lottery

Understand how gambling addictions affect people

Dice and card games

Learn about good luck charms/Make your own

Night at the casino 

Learn about superstitions

Games like billiards or darts

Arcade/video games/carnival games

Make small/friendly bets

Poker nights!

Game of horseshoes

Learn parlor games

Miscellaneous 

Smoke a bowl with Him! (If your relationship is like that)

Offer him coffee and energy drinks

Trail mix, candy, road-trip snacks, 

Learn a good joke

Write/perform stand up comedy 

Related Jobs

Mail carriers and sorters

 Retail workers (Hermes of Merchants & Commerce)

 Canvassers 

Editors, journalists, and writers

Newspaper routes

Bank tellers

Carnies 

Casino workers

Gas station attendants

 Mechanics 

Where I Acknowledge Him

Gas stations

Mail carriers/trucks

Worn-looking travelers (thinking of the eye-patched man lounging on the sidewalk smoking a cigarette. Hope to be that content one day)

Gumball machines give me his vibe

Arcade games, pinball machines, and air hockey 

Flea markets/garage sales

Simple Acts to Devote to Him

Checking your mail

Checking email/voicemail

Buying stamps

Flipping a coin

Dice divination

Charm casting

Collections

Rocks

Coins/money 

Good luck charms

Pens/writing utensils

Playing cards

Dice (Looking at you D&D players)

Offerings

Orange peels

Trail mix/peanuts

Road-trip snacks

Rocks & pebbles, coins, cool things you find outside

Travel souvenirs 

Good luck charms

Energy drinks

Coffee (bonus points for gas station coffee)

Letters/postcards/stamps

Apples/bananas/grapes

Foreign foods

[creature-wizard]

For the witches and pagans who need to hear it, connecting with nature is supposed to be about like, actually observing nature over long periods of time, not doing stuff like hoarding endangered bird feathers and beach sand, or just meditating out in aesthetically-pleasing locations. Can you tell me exactly when your wildflowers and weeds start blooming? When do your bugs come out of hibernation? When do migratory birds come and go? How does the air feel during different times of year? If you can't do stuff like that, you aren't connecting with nature.