Y’all I’m being so serious when I say this: go to the library for witchcraft reasons.
You can usually find books on witchcraft, yes, but there’s also field guides on local foraging and wildlife, cookbooks, books that teach you how to craft and DIY, books about environmental protection and stewardship, books on how to use herbs medicinally, books about other religions, cultures, and spiritual practices. My favorite local library even has a seed swapping program and fantastic resources to research your own family history!
Berries are a food source for many birds and mammals; the tree supports numerous butterfly and moth caterpillars.
Highly valued for furniture, cabinets, and musical instruments due to its fine grain and luster.
While the raw fruit is bitter, it is commonly used to make jams, jellies, and flavored liquors like brandy or rum.
The inner bark is a well-known, historically significant remedy for soothing, irritating coughs, bronchial infections, and asthma. It is used in, and acts as a, natural expectorant and sedative to calm coughing fits.
Extracts from the plant, including the bark and fruits, exhibit anti-inflammatory and analgesic (pain-relieving) properties, which can aid in managing joint pain and, as used traditionally, labor pains.
Black cherries are rich in antioxidants, particularly anthocyanins, which protect cells from damage and support cardiovascular health.
Traditionally used to aid in treating diarrhea and other digestive issues.
The Iroquois regarded wild cherry trees as inhabited by powerful spirits and used the bark in ceremonies to ward off evil. Associated with Venus, cherries are used in spells for romance, sweetness, and fertility. It is used to help in recovering from relationships that were not beneficial. Cherry-related magic is used to promote clear communication. The bark is used to revitalize magical energy for completing old, stalled projects. Cherries represent the intersection of innocence and knowledge, as well as the fleeting nature of life. Cherry juice is sometimes used as a substitute for blood in spells, and the fruit can be used to charge intentions for manifestation.
(Quick notes found through google. Please use caution and further research before doing your own experimentation with this foraged food).
Smrtná Neděle (Deadly Sunday) (4/6/25)
Under the cherry tree (5/1/25)
Native Black Cherry (Prunus serotina) (6/14/25)
Midsummer Black Cherry Cordial Day 1 🤞 (6/18/25)
Video of black cherry cordial fermenting (6/21/25)
Native Black Cherry Cordial with Elderflower Syrup (6/23/25)
My First Lammas Recipe—and second batch of native black cherry cordial (7/25/25)
Black cherry cordial offering on St. Anne’s Day (7/26/25)
Black Cherry 🍒 Syrup (7/30/25)
Wood Sorrel and Black Cherry “Lemonade” (7/31/25)
Lammas Day Protection and Abundance Ritual (8/2/25)
Consecrating cordial on Lammas eve (8/2/25)
Black Cherry Iced Tea (8/3/25)
Cherry resin (11/28/25)
Six Months in the Making — Native Black Cherry Cordial on St. Barbara’s Night (12/4/25)
I actually really love that. It also sounds helpful for just keeping the associations for various materials in one place while still moving forward with other categories. Like just add the new herb into the herb file instead of adding a whole new page apart from the herb section in between the crystals and planets or whatever
Long before grimoires and glass bottles, people learned by touching leaves, tasting roots, and watching which plants healed and which harmed. Survival came first. Meaning followed.
Over time, those practical lessons became symbolic ones.
🌿 Rosemary came to mean remembrance because it preserved food and memory.
🌿 Lavender came to mean calm because it quieted the body.
🌿 Basil came to mean prosperity because it was tied to kitchens, trade, and nourishment.
Magical meanings did not appear randomly.
They grew from how plants behaved in the world and how humans relied on them.
In magic, an herb does not “contain” a spell.
It carries a history.
When a witch chooses a plant, they are choosing its story:
how it grows
where it thrives
what it smells like
how it has been used
what humans learned from it
This is why different cultures give different meanings to the same herb.
Magic is shaped by land and tradition.
What protects in one place
may heal in another.
What blesses in one culture
may banish in the next.
Working with herbs is not about memorizing lists.
It is about relationship.
Touching the leaves.
Learning when it flowers.
Noticing how it changes in heat or water.
Listening to its folklore.
A plant you know personally
will always be stronger
than a plant you only know from a chart.
This is why kitchen magic and garden witchcraft endure.
They weave spellwork into daily life and living things.
Herbs appear in magic through:
🍵 teas
🔥 smoke
🕯️ oils
🧿 charms
🛁 baths
🍞 food
Each form changes how the plant’s meaning moves.
Smoke sends intention outward.
Tea brings it inward.
Oils seal it.
Food makes it part of you.
The same herb can protect, bless, or cleanse
depending on how it is used.
Herbology is not just about plants.
It is about transformation.
At its heart, magical herbology is a conversation
between humans and the green world.
Plants offer:
form
scent
memory
Witches offer:
intention
attention
meaning
Together, they create a language older than writing.
To study herbs is to study:
patience
seasons
and survival
It reminds us that magic does not come from rare ingredients.
Thank you for the suggestions!! I have some of my own too!! I have purchased from these sellers and really liked their products so I figured I’d throw my hat in this ring too
Of Smoke and Soil
Moon Magic Parlor
NewMoonVibes888
Chaotic Clairvoyance
Nettles and Moonstone
MoonlightVibes4YouTM
BellasMagickCauldren
MoonMagickUS
I’ve had great experiences with these sellers, overall I’ve received great products that worked, and I hope you guys consider small business!!
Winter. The word evokes a sense of chill, of cold, crisp air, and of dark, long, quiet nights. Darkness is often seen as a symbol of confusion or unfamiliarity, of uncertainty, of not knowing the way forward, but darkness can, indeed, be a powerful ally in the art of divination. Darkness can be the backdrop for some of the oldest and most varied forms of divination still known to us, and it can also be a tool itself, a key player in our divinatory practices. Two such realms of divination that rely on darkness in their own ways will be explored in this piece, two schools of divination that are perfect to welcome into our winter practices and traditions.
BY FIRE
As a backdrop, darkness serves its purpose in divination in many ways. For those who look to use fire as a divinatory tool, it is in the depths of darkness that fire is most useful to us, to ward off the chill of winter, as well as to brighten the space we inhabit.
Divination by fire is called pyromancy – from the Greek πῦρ / pyr (meaning ‘fire’) and μαντεία / manteia (meaning ‘to divine by’ or ‘divination by means of’). Fire is held as sacred in many cultures, partly due to the importance of fire as a means of survival. Fire is seen as a powerful element, a conduit of pure energy, a force of destruction, a symbol of purification and renewal, and, in many cultures, a symbol of life. It finds a vital role in many religious and magical rituals, and, just as there are many ways to use fire in ritual, there are just as many ways to use fire in divination.
Pyromancy is a great method of divination to include in your winter practice, and there are some amazingly simple ways to do so.
Basic Pyromancy
Pyromancy in its most basic form is the act of divination by the observance of flame. One way to do this is also called fire scrying — when one stares into flame to see what symbols or images appear to them there. This can be either a physical event, in that the shape, symbol, letter, etc. appeared in the dancing flames; but it can also be a symbol or image that is mentally received, that forms in the subconscious or psychic mind whilst one is focused on their scrying.
Fire scrying can be done with just candleflame or with a larger fire, such as in a fireplace or campfire.
Another easy way to divine by fire is by using the sounds of fire instead of scrying for images. With a fireplace or campfire, one can divine by the sounds of the pops that the burning wood makes. Some practitioners will speak questions to the flames either aloud or in their minds, taking the pops sounding off after the question as their answer. One can assign meaning to these sounds — for example, one pop means yes; a series of pops or crackling means no; and silence means that the answer is inconclusive.
Candle Scrying & Ceromancy
[by Jarl Schmidt]
Observing the behavior of a candle flame is a wonderful way to use fire in divination. Some methods can be as simple as speaking or thinking questions to the flame and then watching the flame for a response. One interprets as they will — perhaps a still, sturdy flame indicates a negative response while a wildly flickering flame indicates a positive, or vice versa. The ways these responses are interpreted is purely personal and up to each individual reader, and different behaviors the flame may exhibit have different associations from one culture, region, or tradition to the next
Another method of using candles in divination is ceromancy (alternatively spelled carromancy) — divining by use of candle wax. There are many ways to perform ceromancy. One of the simplest forms is to light a candle and let the wax drip down, observing the wax as it melts.
Does it accumulate more in one area than another? Does the accumulation form a distinct shape or symbol? Does the wax instead melt smoothly, burning into a puddle at the base of the candle? Does the wax drip steadily?
Study the wax and interpret it as you will, as interpretations vary from culture to culture, creed to creed. For example, in some practices, piles or mounds of accumulated wax are said to signify a strong, sturdy footing one stands on, while in others these mounds may instead symbolize a roadblock or obstacle in one’s way.
[by Mariola Grobelska]
A well-known method of ceromancy calls for heating wax until it melts and then pouring the melted wax into cold water. The cold water will solidify the melted wax once more, and the ribbons of wax will form shapes or symbols in the water. These shapes, along with the movements of the wax in the water, can be used to divine.
A variation of this method calls for holding a lit candle sideways over a bowl of cold water, so that the melting wax drips directly into the cold water. Observe the behavior of the wax as it falls into the water, as it solidifies, and it drifts or sinks into the bowl below. What can you see in the wax and its movements? What do the shapes it forms mean to you? What does the behavior of the wax say to you?
Capnomancy
Another form of divination connected to fire or to burning is capnomancy — divination by smoke. Capnomancy can be performed with any smoke but is commonly done with the smoke of a campfire or pyre, the smoke of a candle (either an extinguished candle or by the smoke around a particularly active flame), or the smoke from incense, which is called libanomancy.
One reads the ribbons of smoke. Perhaps symbols or images or letters appear in their curls, or maybe the behavior of the smoke speaks to you.
Some methods interpret the posture of the smoke – curling smoke being read as a bad omen and straight, upright smoke being read as a good omen.
Other methods interpret the thickness and volume of the smoke – a strong, thick pillar of smoke and a lot of smokiness is said to be a good omen, with a weak plume and little smoke being a bad omen.
With libanomancy (the burning of incense for divinatory purposes), certain incenses are preferred over others. To name just a few —
Frankincense has long been used for divinatory purposes through the ages and across many cultures and religions.
Cinnamon is a powerful multi-tool when it comes to witchcraft, and its connection to divinatory skill is but one benefit this powerful herbal ally provides. It is believed that cinnamon can strengthen one’s psychic skill, promoting psychic and subconscious awareness and awakening the psychic within. It can also be used in protection magic, money and prosperity spells, love spells, cleansing work, and healing spells, and is known for its association with good fortune and fertility, thereby being a handy tool to utilize in any divining surrounding questions of love, financial matters, and health.
Hibiscus can be used in incense for divination, especially for divination pertaining to dreams or spirit communication.
Likewise, jasmine incense is good for divining via communication with spirits and ancestors, as well as divination for further clarity in the realm of our dreams.
Camphor incense is not only associated with strengthening one’s gifts for prophecy, but also for cleansing a space and one’s energy, which is ideal for divination.
SCRYING
As a tool itself, darkness is essential in many forms of divination, though perhaps in none more so than scrying, which often relies on darkness as a focal point to steady ourselves, to open our minds, and to clear our minds of any unnecessary clutter that stands in the way of deeply productive divinatory practice.
Scrying is an ancient and beloved divinatory method which involves gazing into a surface or area (often a reflective surface or into darkness in a room, sometimes at the sky or even at the backs of one’s eyelids) and opening oneself to receive visions or images implanted upon the subconscious or psychic self. This is often done via entering a trance or meditative state, though some scryers find they need not fully induce a trance state to receive images or messages. Scrying, like fire divination, is a great method to include in our winter practice because of how available darkness is to us during this time of year.
Using Dark Windows
Many scryers like to use dark, reflective surfaces to scry in. This can be a black bowl filled with water, a pane of glass against a black background or with black paint upon the backside of the glass, or any other dark, reflective surface. Using windows at night, particularly if you live in an area where there is not much light interference from streetlamps or neighbors or the headlights of passing cars, can be a very accessible method of scrying, though this method can also be easily disrupted by situational circumstance outside of one’s control.
That being said, should the darkness of your window remain undisturbed, it absolutely can be a tool for scrying. With the nights of winter longer and darker than the rest of the year, winter is the perfect time to give this method of scrying a go.
Using Ice
For those of us who live in areas where winter means ice, ice scrying is an accessible and fun seasonal method of divination. Though, you don’t have to use ice that has occurred naturally, and we’ll go into an easy at-home method of ice scrying in just a moment.
As said before, scryers often like to use reflective surfaces. Sometimes, ice isn’t reflective. In fact, usually ice is reflective when either there is only a thin layer of ice atop a body of water that hasn’t yet frozen underneath, or when ice is beginning to melt, leaving a thin layer of water atop ice. So, either of these circumstances provides a great, natural scrying surface. However, for those who don’t necessarily need an extremely reflective surface, ice can still be an especially useful scrying tool.
[Black ice on a frozen lake; by Thomas McKinnon]
Water is a powerful, natural ally in divination and witchcraft. Often associated with spirit work, spirit realms, spirit communication; with change and growth; with slow, stalwart strength; and with adaptability, water can be used a great deal in divination, an art with which water's spirit and energy often aligns. Ice being water in a frozen state gives us an opportunity to utilize water’s energies in new ways.
Water scrying is quite common. Ice scrying less so. But that doesn’t mean that it is necessarily any less effective. In fact, some scryers may find it easier for them to enter the state of mind they need for scrying using ice — something still and solid — instead of moving water.
For an easy at-home ice scrying session, try filling a bowl with water and freezing it just enough so that at least the very top layer is ice. Then, you can use your bowl of icy water in a dark room with one or two candles lit nearby. The dim light of the candles helps provide a shine atop the partly frozen bowl of icy water. Sit before the bowl, staring into its dark, icy surface, and do whatever feels right to you to enter the state of mind you need for scrying, whatever best enables you to receive visions, messages, and images.
Both divining by fire and divining by scrying are a great way to broaden and deepen our connection with the winter season, as well as being a way to help link our practices to the seasons and the natural cycles of time. For those of you who choose to take up any of these methods of pyromancy or scrying, I wish you the very best in your endeavors. Happy winter!
SOURCES & FURTHER READING: While this brief piece was written based on the prior experiences of the author, the pieces below feature relevant information about these same or similar divinatory practices. The reader is welcome to read for themselves and come to their own conclusions.
Demonologia; or, Natural Knowledge Revealed; Being and Expose of Ancient and Modern Supersitions, Credulity, Fanaticism, Enthusiasm, & Imposture [...] (1827); Forsythe, J.S.
Divination for Beginners (2003) Cunningham, Scott
Encyclopædia of Supersitions, Folklore, and the Occult Sciences of the World: a Comprehensive Library of Human Belief and practice in the Mysteries of Life Through More Than Six Thousand Years of Experience and Progress (1971); Daniels, Cora Linn and Stevans, C.M. (Prof.)
The Fortune Telling book: Reading Crystal Balls, Tea Leaves, Playing Cards, and Everyday Omens of Love and Luck (2000); Kemp, Gillian
Greek Nymphs: Myth, Cult, Lore (2001); Larson, Jennifer Lynn
When we hold on to excess stress, it creates a blockage in our personal energy system. Imagine that your is body filled with tiny, invisible wires that carry energy from one point to the next. When you hold on to stress in a certain area, you tie a knot in the wires that keeps energy from flowing smoothly to the rest of your body. This can manifest as fatigue, lack of motivation, overwhelm, or other mental and physical symptoms. This spell is designed to untie those knots and let the energy flow freely.
This spell is very loosely adapted from the book Light Magic for Dark Times by Lisa Marie Basile, which I highly recommend for anyone looking to bring witchcraft into their self care practice or vice versa.
What you will need:
A piece of white paper
A pen or pencil
A bowl or cup of clean, fresh water (water from the tap is fine!)
(Optional) a few drops of lavender essential oil
Performing the spell:
Set aside some time when you can be alone and won’t be disturbed. If you like, set the mood by lighting candles, burning incense, or playing music. If you chose to include lavender oil, add it to the water now.
On the paper, write a detailed description of the situation that is causing you stress, and of how it makes you feel. Be as specific as possible. What emotions do you feel? Are there physical sensations associated with these emotions? Where in your body do you feel them? (If you are more comfortable drawing than writing, draw a picture that represents your situation and how it makes you feel.)
Keep writing/drawing until you run out of things to say. Get a second piece of paper if you need to. Don’t worry about making it pretty or even legible. What matters is that you get the emotions out and onto the page.
Fold the paper in half, folding it away from yourself; rotate it to the left and fold it again; rotate to the left again and fold one more time for a total of three folds. With each fold, repeat out loud or in your head, “I acknowledge these feelings and I let them go. I release.”
Submerge the folded paper in the bowl of water. Make sure it is completely covered. Watch it soak through, and watch the ink bleed from the paper.
Say, “Spirits of water, keepers of emotion and the subconscious, spirits of healing, help me to cleanse and release. Help me restore my energy.”
Allow the envelope to soak in the water for at least an hour before disposing of it.
Critical Thinking in Witchcraft and Spirituality: Some Logical Fallacies You Might Find
Ad Hominem: Asserting that something is true or false depending on its source. If someone claimed that gravity obviously isn't real because it came from Isaac Newton, an occultist, that would be an Ad Hominem attack.
Appeal to Anecdotal Evidence: It's not that anecdotes can't contain meaningful information, per se. It's that anecdotes don't always tell the whole story, and they aren't inherently trustworthy - consider all of the people who said they were beaten as kids and grew up just fine. Likewise, if someone tells you that they recovered from cancer after filling their room with crystals and meditating regularly, it doesn't inherently suggest that crystals and meditation cured their cancer. This person might have experienced spontaneous remission.
Appeal to Common Belief: When someone claims that a thing must be true (or is especially likely to be true) because many people believe in it. For example, "many people believe Earth has been visited by extraterrestrials in ancient times, there must be something to it." In reality, the reason many people believe this is because there is a proliferation of media that claims it happened.
Appeal to Emotion: When someone argues that the way a thing makes you feel is essentially evidence for or against it. An example of this are spiritual leaders/guides who tell you that you can discern truth by asking yourself whether it makes you feel good and uplifted, or whether it makes you feel fearful or angry. In reality, cult leaders often engage in practices that manipulate people's emotions, effectively conditioning them to associate certain feelings with whatever they want. This isn't to say that your feelings are unimportant and you should never listen to them, but you should always apply critical thinking before making any big decisions or deciding what you should believe.
Another form of this fallacy is assuming that if someone is passionate, then they must be right. "He was really passionate about what he said, he spoke with a lot of conviction, therefore there must be truth in what he said" - again, this is how a lot of cult leaders getcha.
It can include thinking that feeling bad must mean you're on the right track. "When the pastor talked about sin, I felt so guilty and knew I needed God's divine grace" - lots of people can make you feel guilty, it doesn't mean they're right.
This fallacy can include the absence of feelings, too. "He spoke so calmly, I knew he had to be completely rational." That's how a lot of pseudointellectuals getcha.
Appeal to Irrelevant Authority: When someone claims that a thing must be true because a famous and respected person believed in it. For example, "Isaac Newton believed in God, therefore God must exist." Rather than examining Newton's particular reasons for believing in God, the person making this argument just expects you to assume that Newton's (allegedly) superior intellect made him incapable of error, and that you should just outsource your own thinking to him.
Appeal to Nature: When someone claims something must be good because it's (at least supposedly) natural. For example, "herbal remedies are superior because they're all natural." While it's true that herbal remedies can be useful, it doesn't follow that they're inherently better - much less safer. Kava, which has been used to treat anxiety and depression, has caused severe liver damage in some cases. Lead and UV rays are also 100% natural.
Appeal to Tradition: Asserting that something must be correct or better because it's traditional. For example, "the ancients believed the earth was flat, so it must have been true." Also, "people have believed in Hell for thousands of years, so it must exist."
Genetic Fallacy: Asserting that something must be good/bad or true/false depending on where it came from. While it's true that claims that come from known bad faith actors should be given extra scrutiny, it doesn't follow that everything they say must be wrong. The world doesn't spontaneously turn flat just because the worst person you know said it was round. A visualization exercise isn't inherently bad for you just because a New Ager came up with it.
Misleading Vividness: Constant exposure to certain types of information or certain types of people can create a false impression about the world at large. An well-known example of this is when people on Tumblr assume that the average person out there in the world has an opinion on (insert topic of Tumblr discourse here).
Here's another example: when you go through Law of Assumption success stories and see numerous people claiming they manifested all of this amazing stuff, it's easy to think that this practice must be working really well for everyone. But if you're on a blog or tag where success stories are curated, there's going to be a huge selection bias here. And with how many people are shamed and bullied into silence when they come forward and say that the LOA didn't work for them, and with Living in the End providing an incentive for people to claim success they might not actually have, it's difficult to be sure what the actual success to failure ratio actually is.
Post Hoc: When someone claims that if X happened after Y then X caused Y without providing any supporting evidence, that's the Post Hoc fallacy. For example, "I knew a girl who cast a money spell, and one week later her grandpa died! This is proof that magic calls on evil forces and always comes with a price!" is this fallacy.
Critical questions to avoid falling for these fallacies:
Is this the whole picture, or is something being left out?
Has this been repeatedly tested to see if the same results happen each time?
Is this really how things always work, or are there counterexamples?
I just want to put out there that Winter is coming in full force this weekend, and there are a bunch of people who shouldn't be in Minnesota who are rn. They are not prepared for the cold. They have no right to call themselves ice.
But they did.
So if you are in a safe spot and good at using weather, this is a great time cast a de-icing spell.
Idea off the top of my mind:
An icicle would be best, but any variety of frozen water would work
Name of the organization as a taglock, carve it into your vessel
Put it in a bowl
Smother it with some salt (salt mixed with red pepper flakes! black salt for some banishing sulfur!)
Curse liberally (with your tongue! out loud!) at it as it dissolves
I take special care of my bed. Because, as one of my wife's spirits once said, the bed is imbued with so much personal energy and so much a part of our most vulnerable moments that it becomes a poppet that influences the relationship itself. So I keep my bed warded and anointed. I keep the bedding clean and the pillows in good shape. I keep things nice and I try to make it a place that supports the loving, communicative marriage that I have and want to maintain.
Home Protection in Folk Magic: Charms, Wards, & Work to Magically Protect One's Home
by Keziah
As times get harder, many more are turning to magical customs to find security and protection. In my piece Protection Work in Folk Magic: Herbs, Spells, & Charms for Protecting Yourself & Others, I focused on taking magical protection with you wherever you needed it, but there was nothing at all written about the protection of one's home and property. This piece focuses on just that, including accessible and affordable (even free) means of magical protection that any practitioner (from beginner to a true veteran) can utilize.
Evil spirits, malicious magic, unwanted company, and even the presence of law and immigration enforcement — magical protection of the home is incredibly versatile and accessible. Now more than ever, we're in need of as much help as we can get, so I hope that there's something in this piece that can bring you and yours even the slightest peace of mind.
Note: This piece focuses largely on the folk magic with which I am most familiar with. I'm from the Southern US and have studied folk traditions within the South, Appalachia, Britain, and Europe. You'll see some overlap amongst these customs, as many Southern traditions were birthed from British practices. There is also a sprinkling of Jewish custom mentioned within this piece, as I happen to be a Jewish person. I write that which I'm familiar with, and, as a Southern of mixed race (Black and white) who happens to be Jewish, this is the world of folk magic I felt comfortable writing about. While this piece is meant as an exploration and resource, please be respectful of the sources of these magical works. If that particular work is not relevant to you based on your practice or if it belongs to a closed tradition (such as a Jewish custom or a practice found within certain schools of hoodoo), please respect that and see the alternative recommendations.
Against Spirits & Evil
Southern Folk Prayers:
In Southern folk customs, prayers and Bible verses are abundant in magical workings, especially when it comes to protection work. One custom calls for the recitation of prayers/verses to rid one's home of an unwanted spirit.
What you'll do:
Open all the doors and windows in your home, ensuring the spirit has plenty of options of places to leave through.
Starting at the back of the house (and from the uppermost level if you live in a multi-story home), work your way from the back of the house toward the front (do this on each level if applicable).
Whilst walking, recite a prayer or Bible verse used to ward off spirits. Where I'm from, the Our Father/the Lord's Prayer is most commonly used, and, as I recently learned after spotting it in 'Doctoring the Devil', Psalm 31:15-17 can also be used. As a Jewish practitioner of magic in the South, I've opted for Psalm 91, which has been known to be used against spirits.
Our Father/the Lord's Prayer —
Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name;
Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on Earth, as it is in Heaven;
Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those that trespass against us;
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil;
For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory,
Forever and ever. Amen.
Psalm 31:15-17 —
My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me.
Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies' sake.
Let me not be ashamed, O Lord; for I have called upon thee: let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave.
*Alternatively, one can simply chant or recite that last line — and let them be silent in the grave — whilst performing this work.
Psalm 91 —
1 He who dwells in the covert of the Most High will lodge in the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I shall say that Adonai is my shelter and my fortress, my g-d in whom I trust.
3 For Adonai will save you from the snare that traps from the devastating pestilence.
4 With (his/her/their) wing (he/she/they) will cover you, and under (his/their/her) wings you will take refuge; (his/her/their) truth is a comforting shield.
5 You shall not fear the terror of night nor the arrow that flies by day;
6 Pestilence that prowls in darkness nor destruction that ravages at noon.
7 A thousand will be stationed at your side, ten thousand at your right hand; but it will not approach you.
8 You will but gaze with your eyes and see the annihilation of the wicked.
9 For when you said, 'the Lord is my refuge,' you made the Most High your dwelling.
10 No harm shall befall you, nor shall plague draw near your tent.
11 For Adonai will command angels on your behalf to guard you always.
12 On your hands they will bear you, lest your foot stumble on a stone.
13 On a lion and a cobra you will tread, trampling the lion and the serpent.
14 For he yearns for Me and I shall answer him; I shall fortify him, for he knows My name.
15 He will call Me and I shall answer him; I am with him in distress; I shall rescue him and I shall honor him.
16 With length of days I shall satiate him, and I shall show him My salvation.
Crib & Nursery Protection:
As children are, in many traditions, seen as being more susceptible to the influence of spirits, many magical traditions have special protective customs aimed specifically at the young ones. One such protective custom comes from Southern Appalachia.
What you'll need:
Iron nails
What to do:
Drive an iron nail into the bottom of the foot of a crib or into a crib post. Alternatively, iron nails can be driven into the corners of the door and window frames. This is believed to protect the child(ren) from spirits of all ilk, not only ghosts.
For those who favor plants over nails, there's an alternative method of nursery protection —
What you'll need: (any combination of the following herbs)
Chamomile
Yarrow
Basil
St. John's Wart
What you'll do:
Hang a bunch of chamomile, yarrow, and lavender from the doorpost or at the window in the nursery. Plants can be dried or fresh. All three are believed to have protective powers and to also bring peace to an area.
Basil can be used in any room (hanging from windows and doors) to keep spirits away.
Salt the Doors, Sweep the Floors:
From Southern conjure to Jewish folk magic, salt being used as a means of protection across countless traditions and magical paths.
What you'll need:
Salt
Water (optional)
What you'll do:
Where to place the salt and how to use it varies from traditions to traditions.
In Jewish custom, salt is lined at the doors of the home, a protective barrier against evil. The salt can also be kept in clothes, closets, under beds, etc. as a means of a magical protection. This practice is also found in Southern folk magic in the US, in British folk magic, and in European folk magic.
In the Southern US, salt is a common ingredient in sweeps — a method of magical cleansing that can be used to bring protection, luck, financial stability, and such. Salt, used with other ingredients (these vary depending on the purpose of one's sweep), is scattered across the floors of the home (working from the back of the house toward the front, from the top of the house toward the bottom) and then swept from the home (again, in that same pattern of back to front, top to bottom). For protection work, you'll find that salt is commonly used alongside rosemary, basil, cinnamon, cloves, and high john the conqueror.
Another custom that can also be found in some forms of European folk magic and Jewish folk practice is the use of saltwater instead of just salt. The saltwater is sprinkled at the threshold of the home, or sprayed upon the doors and windows.
Haint Blue:
'A small white house with a blue door' (via Oleksii Piekhov)
In the Southern United States, one custom of home protection comes in the form of a hue of a paint. Haint blue doors, porch floors, or porch ceilings are used to ward off spirits. The blue color is believed to confuse the spirits, who mistake it for water, as it's a common belief in the South that spirits can't cross moving water. My own door is painted a lovely haint blue and I can't praise its effectiveness enough.
Bells:
In many folk traditions, it's believed that bells warn of the presence of evil and that their ringing or chiming wards off evil spirits and entities of all kinds.
What you'll need:
Bells (these can be of any size, can be small bells tied to a cord or kept in a bag, can be bells on a wind chime, can be a single bell)
Cord, string, or twine (optional)
A small bag (optional)
What to do:
Hang bells on or near your front door. They'll ring when evil is near your home, warning you of its presence. Their singing will also work to ward off evil.
The bells can be little jingle bells on a string or in a small bag. You can tie your bells to yarn and hang the strand beside the door. I keep mine on my doorknob. You can also mount just one bell beside your door. This is a very versatile method of magical protection, so change it however you like to fit your needs and style.
Garlic Charms:
Garlic is a go-to tool for protection in many magical practices, and in Cornish cunning ways garlic can be used to protect one 'against the influence of people and spirits with vampiric and envious tendencies.' -Gemma Gary, folk-magical practitioner and author, in her work 'Traditional Witchcraft: A Cornish Book of Ways'
What you'll need:
Whole garlic bulbs
Red ribbons
(optional) Bells
What to do:
Whole garlic bulbs should be tied with red ribbons and hung on, above, or beside doorframes and/or window frames.
Bells can also be added to this charm for extra oomph.
Hagstone Charms:
Hagstones, also called adder stones, serpent’s eggs, fairy stones, and witch stones, are stones which bear a naturally occurring hole caused by erosion or some other natural event. Hagstones have been used as protective amulets for long while in traditional folk magic of Britain. Hagstones can be used to protect from a number of things - general protection overall, as well as protection from spirits of various ilk, protection from harm on the sea, protection of livestock and farmlands, protection from nightmares, and more. Here, we'll look at how to use them to protect one's home.
What you’ll need:
Hagstone (one or more)
Thread, cord, or twine.
What to do:
Pass your thread, cord, or twine through the hole of the hagstone. You can knot the thread beforehand for added protection as a form of knot magic. Knots are believed to strengthen protective work, as they can confuse or distract spirits.
You can add as many hagstones as you like. One is plenty, but I’ve seen charms with as many as nine stones.
Hang your hagstone charm within your home or on your porch to protect the space from spirits and evil. One of mine hangs from a nail in my doorframe at the front of my home.
Against Law Enforcement
Dirt Dust:
This is a regional variation of a work used in the Southern US known throughout Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Virgina.
What you'll need:
Dirt from near a police station
Use any combination of the following ingredients along with the police station dirt —
Black pepper
Black mustard seeds
Brick dust
Coal dust
Dirt from an anthill
Dirt from a church yard (can be used in any work to ward off or get rid of unwanted persons)
Dirt from a graveyard
Red pepper flakes
Salt
Seeds of caraway
Seeds of lemon
Seeds of pawpaw
What you'll do:
To help keep police away from your home, mix the dirt, black pepper, and mustard seeds together. Dust the threshold of your home with it and sprinkle it at the outer corners of your home.
Some customs call for the recitation of Bible verses (welcome to the South, y'all; there are Bible verses in basically every kind of magic down here) whilst sprinkling this mixture. If that's up your alley, here are some verses that can be used for various purposes —
-Psalm 35:1 (for protection against any law enforcement)
Plead my cause, O Lord, with them that strive with me: fight against them that fight against me.
-Psalm 35:4-6 (for protection against any law and immigration enforcement)
Let them be confounded and put to shame that seek after my soul: let them be turned back and brought to confusion that devise my hurt.
Let them be as chaff before the wind: and let the angel of the Lord chase them.
Let their way be dark and slippery: and let the angel of the Lord persecute them.
-Psalm 44:7 (for protection against police, immigration enforcement, and those who would bring such trouble down on your home):
But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us.
Sator Squares:
As featured in my piece Protection Work in Folk Magic: Herbs, Spells, & Charms for Protecting Yourself & Others, the Sator Square/Rotas Square is a versatile protective tool that can be used to many ends, including to keep unwanted people away from your home (and, yes, we're going to use it here to keep away immigration or law officers).
The Sator Square / Rotas-Sator Square is a palindromic word square used as a magical charm or amulet. It’s been around for quite some time (with the oldest known square possibly being from as early as AD 50) and has been found to have been used historically throughout Europe, Africa, Asia Minor, and the Americas. As to its origins and intended purpose, no one knows for sure, but the Sator Square has come to have a number of magical uses, including as a tool for curing ailments, aiding in childbirth, putting out fires, and, in fitting with the theme of this piece, in protection magic.
Medieval Sator Square etched into a wall; Oppède-le-Vieux, France.
There are many variations of Sator Squares / Rotas-Sator Squares, but the most common forms consist of five rows of five words, each with five letters, arranged in a 5x5 grid. The Rotas-Sator Square (in which rotas is the word listed first, pictured below on the left) was the more common in pre-medieval use, but the Sator Square (in which sator is listed first, pictured below on the right) became far more prevalently used than the Rotas-Sator variation at some point in medieval Europe.
Rotas-Sator Square (left) and Sator Square (right).
In Appalachian and some Southern folk practices within the United States, one can use a Sator Square for protection. To do so for one's home simply write the square onto a paper or cloth or carve the square into wood/etch it into clay and mount the square somewhere within the home — above the mantle, near the front door, above a window. It's said to repel unwanted company of all sorts, as well as offer various protections.
Corncob Charm:
In Kentucky and Tennessee (and perhaps other regions of the US), it's said that one can use dried corn cobs to deter police from coming onto one's property.
What you'll need:
A dried corncob
Nail (if hanging)
Yarn/string (if hanging, preferably red or black)
What to do:
One can either hand a dried corncob (usually from a string, which is sometimes braided) on their doorpost or one can bury a dried corncob at each of the four corners of their home.
Penny Charm:
Penny charms to discourage the attention or presence of law enforcement aren't at all uncommon in the South.
What you'll need:
4 or 9 pennies (some customs specify 'Indian Head Pennies') / (different customs call for different amounts; see below for more information)
What you'll do:
Some variations of this charm call for placing the pennies in a row underneath your doormat. Some call for nailing or gluing the pennies above your front door. Some call for burying the pennies at the property of your boundary or at the front gate.
As to whether one should use 4 or 9 pennies, it depends. Where I'm from, I'd always been told that 9 were used, but in some other Southern regions, the custom is 4 pennies, and in Jake Richards' 'Doctoring the Devil' it's specified that 4 pennies are used unless the house in question is home to illegal undertakings or business, in which case, 9 pennies are preferred.
There has also been a shift as to whether it's necessary to acquire Indian Head Cents or not. Traditionally, the Indian Head Cent was used (at least in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia), but I've seen this work done with regular pennies as well. Nowadays, the Indian Head Cent is harder to come by and buying them just for this work can cost quite a lot. If it's more accessible for one to use regular pennies, then know that you're not the first and won't be the last to do so.
Against Intruders
Garlic:
Yes, garlic has made a second appearance! What can I say? She's a powerful little ally.
Garlic is used for protection across countless countries and customs. This particular method of protection against intruders and unwanted company can be found in English folk traditions, various forms of folk magic in the Southern United States, Jewish folk magic, and several branches of European folk practices.
What you'll need:
Garlic strands, bulbs, or braids (dried or fresh)
What you'll do:
Hang garlic at your door. This can be outside of your home or inside and is usually done from the woodwork around the door but can also be done near the door or on a porch rail. In some English variations, the garlic is hung from the mantle or above the fireplace or near a kitchen window.
'A bunch of garlic hanging from a ceiling.' (via Orestis Christodoulou); 'A pile of dried grass.' (via Maxim Tolchinskiy)
Dust & Dirt:
In Louisiana's branch of conjure and hoodoo, it's said that one can keep intruders away from their property with simple methods and few ingredients.
What you'll need:
Goofer dust (also called gopher dust/gopher's dust/goofer's dust)
*there are various ways of making goofer dust and it depends on where you source yours as to what exactly it will consist of
Alternatively, if you cannot acquire goofer dust, one can use graveyard dirt on its own or combined with any of the following ingredients —
Ash
Salt
Coal dust
Iron shavings/iron dust
Brick dust
Eggshell powder
What you'll do:
Simply spread the dust either around the boundaries of your property or (if you haven't the ingredients to spare or would like to limit how much you're putting out due to the presence of animals or wildlife you don't wish to expose to any of the ingredients) at the boundary of your gate, your doors, or your porch.
Against Witchcraft
Horseshoe Charm:
What you'll need:
A horseshoe (used)
Tinfoil (optional)
Nails
What you'll do:
Hanging a horseshoe over the front door or the main entrance to one's home is believed to both secure luck within the household and protect against malicious magic sent to the home or to any member of the household. Iron horseshoes are believed to work best, and some practices within Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia also call for wrapping or dressing the horseshoe in tinfoil before hanging it about the door.
SOURCES & FURTHER READING
'Backwoods Witchcraft: Conjure & Folk Magic from Appalachia' - Richards, Jake
’Conjure/Doctors: An Exploration of a Black Discourse in America, Antebellum to 1940’ by Brown, David H.
’Cunningham’s Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs’ -Cunningham, Scott
'Divination, Magic, & Healing: the Book of Jewish Folklor' - Isaacs, Ronald H.
'Doctoring the Devil: Notebooks of an Appalachian Conjure Man' - Richards, Jake
Jewish Magic and Superstition: A Study in Folk Religion’ - Trachtenberg, Joshua
'Lowcountry Voodoo A-to-Z' - Marsh, Carole
'the Master Book of Herbalism’- Beyerl, Paul
’On the Origin of the Rotas Sator Square’ - Fishwick, Duncan
'Silent as the Trees: Devonshire Witchcraft, Folklore, & Magic' - Gary, Gemma
'Southern Cunning: Folkloric Witchcraft in the American South' - Oberon, Aaron
'Sticks, Stones, Roots, & Bones: Hoodoo, Mojo, & Conjuring with Herbs' - Bird, Stephanie Rose
’the Voodoo Hoodoo Spellbook’ -Alvarado, Denise
'Traditional Witchcraft: A Cornish Book of Ways' - Gary, Gemma
Finally migraine free after two days straight and headache free after a week! These were in addition to mundane efforts (rest, hydration, nourishing food, EO roll-ons and arnica CBD cream) and prescription + OTC medications. I did create a new sigil and add that on as well, but didn’t get a pic.
My muscles are relaxed
Ease my migraine
Ease my neck pain
My headache goes away
My back is relaxed and free from pain
My pain is manageable
My shoulders are relaxed and free from pain (not pictured)
If you’re looking for a more discreet way to use sigils to help with symptoms, here are a few tips:
Draw somewhere that can be easily covered
Draw with oils, balms, pain cream or lotion.
Draw with water and let it evaporate, or by tracing your finger on your skin
Draw on the inside of a bandaid (also nice because you can place it wherever you’d like if there’s a certain spot the pain feels worse)
Draw on a piece of paper and keep it on your person
I will say I personally find these more effective if they’re physically on your body, but I’ve definitely had sigils work while drawn on paper and in my pocket. There is something to be said about the gentleness of drawing on your hopes for ease and improvement, and the tangibility of something you can see when so much of your suffering and efforts feel invisible.
Winter Wakening: Magically Preparing One's Hearth & Home for Winter
by Keziah Zibelmann
The days darken, the nights grow longer, and, in the northern hemisphere, the season of winter is upon us. While it's a time of spiritual vulnerability and of increased need for protection for one's home and health, winter is also a season of great magical significance. The height of the dark half of the year is seen by many magical practitioners as a time to settle in, to focus on introspective pursuits, craft-building, spirit work, and magical endeavors closer to home, physically and symbolically. Doing so sometimes requires an intentional preparatory stage, in which a practitioner magically prepares one's self, one's home, and one's practice for the winter season.
In this piece, I'd like to share some ways in which one can make ready for winter witching, works that are rooted in my own traditions and beliefs, and works that come from the region I grew up in, but which are also easily adaptable to fit anyone's practice. May these works serve and inspire all in need of them.
Kindling the Hearth Spirits:
Hearth spirits, also known as household spirits, house spirits, and house and hearth deities and gods, are spirits connected to the hearth and home, often endowed with the property's protection and the safeguarding and blessing of the residents, or even of a specific member of the household. My use of the term spirits here applies to deities, fae, folkloric figures, guardians, and the broader realm of non-human entities.
The belief in hearth spirits can be found across many cultures, creeds, and traditions around the world. Some magical practitioners place great importance on maintaining strong connections with their hearth spirits, and doing so can, indeed, be an invaluable asset to one's magical craft, as hearth spirits can look after these practitioners, their families, and their homes, and are known to bring more blessings than just protection — e.g., good fortune, health, guidance, divinatory aid, et al.
Kindling the hearth spirits — that is, tending to one's hearth spirits, honoring them, paying them attention or care, or forging a connection with one's hearth spirits — is considered by many a magical essential, and can certainly strengthen one's magical works centered around the safety, upkeep, and blessing of the hearth and home. When it comes to winter workings, in particular, hearth spirits have been utilized for general protection as well as seasonal specific protection in many traditions. Some households may even have specific spirits tied to each season.
Making Space for Spirits:
This section will focus on reaching out to hearth spirits, seeking their partnership, or inviting hearth spirits into the abode, especially for practitioners who are unfamiliar with how to do so. For those who have already fostered relationships with their hearth spirits, they may wish to skip ahead to the next section on winter work with hearth spirits.
When one seeks to awaken, entreat, or forge communication with one's hearth spirits, it's common to start with setting aside a place in the home for the hearth spirit. While this is often at or near one's fireplace (if one has a fireplace), it can be anywhere in the home, though a central 'heart of the home' location is preferred in many cultures. Ancient Romans had home shrines for their hearth spirits [1] and guardians, with some using niches carved into the walls of their homes inside of the home or outside of the home near the entrance, or in working areas, such as kitchens or gardens. Some traditions, particularly Buddhist practices of Southeast Asia, opt for the building of spirit houses outside of the home on one's property or even in communal plots in one's neighborhood [2]. For those strapped for space, there are many tales of hearth spirits residing in pots, barrels, and similar vessels, and many modern magical practitioners who still utilize such items, along with things like vases, bird houses, or dollhouses to offer as a designated space for a hearth spirits to call their own.
After you've chosen your space, one should clean the area first and make it inviting. One of the simplest ways to do this is by offering light, placing a candle or lamp specifically for the spirit or deity in that area. Other common offerings are food and drink, pleasant scents in the form of oils or incense, artworks and/or statuary, trinkets, amulets, sacred herbs, and the like. How you build your space is entirely up to you, as how you interact with your hearth spirit will likely be led by your own familial and ancestral, regional, religious, cultural, and/or magical tradition.
You may have a hearth spirit already attached to your home or family, in which case you can call directly out to them and build their space catered to them. Some practitioners, though, prefer to call upon deities from their religion or faith, often deities associated with fire, the hearth and home, or domestic affairs, though some may also call upon other deities with specific and significant ties to their personal path or their family. Others may seek, instead, guardian spirits and/or house gods to take up residence in the home, which was common throughout many regions and religions, and is a custom practiced at least as far back as antiquity.
If you're unsure of what kind of hearth spirit to call upon, I recommend researching hearth spirits within one's religion or within the folklore pertaining to one's background. There are many different options from every corner of the world — deities, domovoy, jack o' the bowls, hobs, guardian spirits and angels, heinzelmännchen, and brownies, to list but a few.
[left: The Kobold, Chim, helps the kitchen maid, by Gustav Doré (1862) for Mythologie du Rhin; middle: Heinzelmännchen by Oskar Herrfurth, approx. 1926; right: Silesian statue depicting a Domovoy (photographed in 1918) for the Mythology of All Races, Vol. 3 by Jan Hanuš Máchal and John Arnott MacCullock]
Once you've made space for the hearth spirits, you can try to gain their trust or favor by leaving them gifts and offerings, treating them with appreciation and kindness, and politely asking for their help in specific tasks, such as looking after the home and keeping it safe. Different hearth spirits may have different tasks they're associated with. Some, for example, are known to aid in cleaning and upkeep but not with magical protection, while others are known to tend to far broader responsibilities and dole out blessings. Some spirits require payment for their assistance as well and have specific gifts (usually particular foods and drinks) they prefer to receive.
While I'd love to talk about hearth spirits in further detail, I don't wish to derail from the topic of this piece, which is winter specific magical tending and preparation of the home (hearth spirits and their traditions and folklores have their own piece coming to Sheydmade very soon). So, with a very basic introduction to hearth spirits out of the way, the next subsection will focus on how hearth spirits can be of assistance during winter.
Magical Aid from Hearth Spirits:
Calling upon hearth spirits for a little extra help during the winter season is no new thing. Winter was always a time of uncertainty, when misfortune — such as a winter storm damaging the home, illness befalling the household, or not having enough food in store to last the winter when one couldn't hunt, farm, or forage as much or as easily as one could throughout the rest of the year — could very well be a matter of a life or death. Many regions saw households put their faith and trust in hearth spirits in hopes to avoid such calamities.
Offerings were often made to hearth spirits at seasonal turning points and harvest festivals, and this is still a commonplace practice amongst those who work with hearth spirits. Many give seasonal goods to hearth spirits and give a portion of their bounty in the form of serving them a take of the food prepared in the house or crafting and/or procuring offerings. As winter approaches, some seek extra assistance from their hearth spirits, and so they may give extra offerings or even write out or speak their requests.
Here is one simple way of calling upon a hearth spirit for support during the winter, a method that I helped an old and dear friend carry out in preparing for winter for the first time in a new home: When lighting the first fire of the season in her fireplace, she spoke aloud a greeting and blessing for the hearth spirit as she built the flame. She had already set aside a place specifically for the hearth spirit on the mantlepiece and invited the spirit to make itself at home there. After the fire grew, she added cinnamon sticks to the fire as an offering. As she added them, she said aloud her requests — that the home be protected from winter weather and any spiritual threats or malevolent forces, that illness and injury could not cross their threshold and enter the home, and that the household know happiness and good fortune through the darkening days. That night, she placed a cup of sweet milk with nutmeg, cinnamon, and honey on the mantle as an offering and left a small lamp lit there for the spirit. She made a point to offer food, drink, and incense regularly, and spoke words of gratitude toward the hearth spirit over a designated candle throughout the season. These are all very simple ways of kindling one's hearth spirits, that is, of maintaining a relationship with the spirits and properly thanking them for their help.
Now, one doesn't need a fireplace to call upon spirits. The same simple method can be done with with a candle, speaking one's greeting as the candle is lit, making offerings with incense or the burning of aromatic herbs, and speaking one's requests into the candlelight as you appreciate its warmth.
The requests listed above — for protection, good health, and good fortune — are commonly made throughout the year, but perhaps most especially during winter. With some hearth spirits, one can make very specific requests, such as 'see that the roof holds up' or 'don't let the pipes freeze' or 'keep the chimney clean, safe, and in good condition.' These are all practical matters which different types of hearth spirits have been known to be associated with. There are, though, also spiritual matters that one can ask for help with, such as guidance and insight, spiritual protection, and even strengthening of one's spells and magical workings.
Working with hearth spirits can be a wonderful addition to one's practice and, when it comes to bringing magical protection to the hearth and home, can provide a strong and stable foundation to build upon.
General Protection:
Many magical practitioners renew or refresh their magical protections or wards every season, and winter, when many of us are spending more time at home than we may otherwise, is certainly no time to neglect the magical care and protection of our abodes. Magical protection of the home and hearth for winter can be done in a variety of ways, such as making use of winter plant allies or autumnal allies one might still have at hand, crafting protective works and amulets to meet one's specific needs for the season, and, of course, looking to traditional methods of magical protection for winter.
For some, a magical (and often also practical) cleansing is preferred before installing any new magical wards or protections, though many magical works for winter can serve both cleansing and protective purposes. It's entirely up to the practitioner and their personal methodology.
PRACTICAL WINTERIZATION MEETS MAGICAL PROTECTION
I live in an older house (125 years old, to be exact), which means that I have to physically prepare the home for winter before it gets too cold or stormy to do so. I like to include magical protections in my winter house prepping. Here are a few easy ways of doing just that:
If one has to prepare pipes for winter by lining them with pipe wrap or similar pipe insulation, one can use that time to mark the pipes (with chalk or a marker) with a protective amulet or sigil crafted to protect the pipes and keep them from freezing.
If one has cracks to seal or holes and/or leaks to patch before winter, it's the perfect time to perform a cleansing beforehand and then reinforce one's wards during and after the patching and sealing has been carried out. This ensures there is no lingering, damaging energy or malevolent forces, and also now no way for them to reenter the home.
If one has a fireplace that needs inspecting or cleaning before winter, then just after inspection, cleaning, or repair is an ideal time to set wards at one's fireplace. This can be done with the hanging of amulets, the drawing of magical boundaries, and through the assistance of hearth spirits. Speaking of, if one has hearth spirits attached to their fireplace, one should always provide them a safe place to hideout in, should they have need of it, when inspections or work are being done on the fireplace. This can be done by inviting the spirit into a vessel for safekeeping.
Having one's heating ducts, vents, and/or furnace checked and cleaned presents the perfect opportunity to "gather" all of the negativity that the house has seen and the household has endured, all illness or mental strife or disharmony, and assign it to the dust and materials that are to be removed from the house. As those materials go, so, too, goes the bad stuff. Now you have a house primed for any other magical cleansing you need to get to before setting your magical protections for winter.
Winterizing windows or doorframes with insulation strips, thermal curtains, or other forms of door and window winterproofing is a great time to mark the window and doorframes with protective sigils, amulets, or symbols. One can even stitch amulets or sigils into their winter curtains.
FIRE
Fire as a means of protection is seen across countless cultures and traditions all around the world, and there is certainly no shortage of magical protective works that utilize fire's symbolic and practical strengths. Fire is known as a symbol of life and creation, as well as being a simultaneously purifying and destructive force, all of which can be put to good use in protection magic.
Fire has always been an essential tool for survival and health in winter. It offers light in the darkest days of the year and heat to warm our homes, and is believed to burn away negative energies and repel harmful forces. I can put it in no better words than those of the great Joshua Trachtenberg —
'Light was one of these protective agents, due, no doubt, to the circumstance that demons shun the light, and also because of the purificatory and expiatory virtues of fire, the source of light.' [3]
Magical works for protection can be as simple as having a fire lit in one's home. Yes, it can be as easy as that, though there are many ways to add onto this.
Bonfires & Fireplaces:
Bonfires can be burned as a means of protection, particularly during festivals, gatherings, or sacred points of the year, such as was done for Samhain gatherings in Ireland. Kicking off one's winter preparations with a bonfire can be ideal for those seeking to grant their property protection, particularly from potentially harmful spirits and energies.
As with bonfires, lighting a fire in one's fireplace can be an easy and practical means of protecting the home and those within, and this can be done on a far more regular, even daily, basis.
[left: Fireplace by Jayden Wong; right: Bonfire by Toa Heftiba]
Burning Specific Woods, Herbs, & Plants:
One can add on to the protective benefits of their fire by utilizing further protective allies, such as logs and kindling from specific trees, dried herbal bundles or loose herbs and plants, and scents.
Trees one can use in protection works: Logs and kindling from these trees can be a perfect addition to one's protective fire —
Ash
Birch (also excellent for casting out harmful and malevolent spirits and entities)
Hickory (not typically associated with outright protection, but rather with luck and legal protection; so, for anyone in need of an extra boost of protection in legal matters or matters involving officers, courts, or lawyers, hickory can be an excellent addition to such protection work)
Maple (another wood that isn't associated with protection in its own right, maple wood can be burned with protective herbs or scents to boost the longevity of their protective powers)
Oak
NOTE: According to Twin City Fireplace and similar companies and sources, ash, oak, birch, and hickory are all among the best woods to burn in one's fireplace for long-lasting fires and consistent flames and heat, while pine and spruce (many a witch's winter favorite), unfortunately, are among the worst to burn due to higher production of creosote (a substance which can lead to chimney fires). PLEASE KEEP FIRE SAFETY IN MIND when planning your magical protection works for winter. For more information on burning different wood types please see these sources: Twin City Fireplace; CAPO Building Specialties; and Lumber Jack's Kiln Dried Firewood.
Herbs and plant allies one can burn in protection works for winter: These can be burned (ideally dry) by adding them to one's fire or in their own firesafe pots and burners; and don't shy away from using the herbs you've dried and kept from previous seasons, as winter is the perfect time to make use of them when we have more limited access to fresh and new growth —
Bay
Cedar (while burning cedar wood in one's fireplace is not advised by chimney and fire safety experts, one can, for the purpose of protection work, burn small herbal bundles in which cedar fronds or stems are included)
Cinnamon sticks
Clove (also used for banishing, so it's ideal for spiritual protection and protection from malevolent forces and harmful works against you)
Dried orange slices (this makes for a good addition along with cinnamon sticks and cloves, for it more focuses on drawing in and attracting good fortune, health, blessings, and the like, whilst the other two are especially strong protectors, purifiers, and banishers)
Fennel
Hyssop (ideal for cleansing the home of negativity while also providing powerful magical protection)
Juniper
Rosemary
Star Anise (also packs a punch for purification work along with protection)
Candles:
For those who can't burn bonfires or have no fireplaces, candle work is a wonderful alternative that stills bring the protective and purifying powers of fire.
Candles places at windows serve as protective wards, repelling dangerous and malevolent energies.
Scented candles featuring the oils of protective allies, such as cinnamon, clove, rosemary, etc., particularly when made in the home or made with the expressed purpose of magical protection, are a wonderful and effective way of easily and discretely working winter magic to keep one's home safe.
Winter Décor for Amulets & Charms:
[left: by Pure Julia; right: by Jez Timms]
Personalized amulets and charms for protection going into and during winter can be extremely simple, using few items and allies, and even incorporating easy to access winter symbols. Common winter décor can also be repurposed to serve as a protective charm or amulet. Here are a few simple ideas —
Cinnamon Sticks
Cinnamon is a great protective ally and cinnamon sticks, which are already a feature in many types of winter décor, can be used in magical charms and amulets for protection in a wide variety of ways.
Include cinnamon sticks in a wreath for your front door, protecting the entryways of your home and all beyond that point.
Keeping bowls or jars of cinnamon sticks in the hub of the home (this is often the kitchen, living room, den, or on the mantle of the fireplace) is not only a beloved winter aromatic feature, but it also brings cinnamon's protective energy into the space.
Take two cinnamon sticks and tie them together using a red bow or ribbon, creating not only very traditional and easy winter décor but also a simple protective charm to hang from doors, windows, fireplace mantles, and even Christmas trees. These small charms protect the rooms they're in and create protective boundaries when placed at doors and windows.
Wreaths:
Wreaths are very commonly used in all seasonal décor, but no wreath is as famed or beloved as the winter wreath. Winter wreaths can be easily made or altered to incorporate protective tools in them. Tucking stems, twigs, fronds, leaves, or berries in them is a great way to do just that! One can include —
Cedar
Cinnamon sticks
Fir
Juniper
Pine
Pinecone
Rosemary
Garlands, Ribbons, & Bows:
Protective colors can be easily incorporated in one's winter décor, particularly the color red. Red bows, ribbons, berries, garlands, or lights are an easy way to work the color red into one's wreath, garlands and eaves on staircases, doorframes, mantlepieces, and porch rails. Red is a powerful color, and in many traditions and belief systems it's used to strengthen protective magic or used to banish or repel malevolent forces, negative energy, and even baneful magical work sent one's way.
One can also use natural garlands made from or including protective allies, such as pine, fir, or cedar, and one can add even more protection by adding pinecones, red bows, or bells.
Bells:
Bells are fun and wonderful protective allies all year long, but they're especially easy to work into winter décor and winter protection works.
Hang jingle bells or sleigh bells by a red ribbon or bow from a wreath and hang the wreath on the front door (or main entrance of one's home). If you hear the bells when the door isn't being handled, it means they've done the job of repelling an evil force or spirit and preventing it from entering the home.
The ringing of bells is said to both alert one to the presence of evil and cast it out. This is why some witches hang jingle bells from doorknobs and window latches throughout the home. For added oomph, use red or black braided or knotted cord, ribbon, or twine to hang them.
Garlands of jingle bells are a great way to bring a little protection power anywhere in the home, be that on stair rails, doorframes, mantlepieces, or even one's Christmas tree.
These are just a few very simple, easy ways of working magic into the mundane to safeguard your home and ready it for the long stretch of winter ahead. I hope all those who use these methods or find inspiration from them know security, good health, and safety throughout the season. Happy winter witching, everyone.
To cite this article:
Winter Wakening: Magically Preparing One's Hearth & Home for Winter (2025); Zibelmann, Keziah
SOURCES & FURTHER READING: Most of this article features ideas and customs practiced by the author, based on the author's own customs, or based on the traditions the author grew up around in their region. Some suggested reading for topics touched upon in this piece, though, are listed below, as are the sources for some of the folklore mentioned in the above article. Readers are welcome and encouraged to do their own reading and research and come to their own conclusions.
Cunningham's Encyclopedia of Magical Herbs (2008); Cunningham, Scott
Jewish Magic and Superstition: A Study in Folk Religion (1939); Trachtenberg, Joshua
Russian Folk Belief (1989); Ivanits, Linda J.
Survivals in Belief Among the Celts (1911); Henderson, George
The Mythology of All Races, Vol 3. Celtic and Slavic (1918); MacCulloch, John Arnott and Máchal, Jan Hanuš
CITATIONS:
[1] The Houses of Roman Italy, 100 B.C. - A.D. 250: Ritual, Space, and Decoration (1993); Clarke, John R.
[2] On the Ground: The spirit houses of Bangkok keep watch over a frenetic modern Thai city (2019); Bengali, Shashank
[3] Jewish Magic and Superstition: A Study in Folk Religion (1939); Trachtenberg, Joshua [chapter 11 'the War with the Spirits,' section 'Magical Defenses,' pg. 159]
I made a series for The Wheel of the Year many years ago but I realize that not everyone follows it and dividing suggestions into the four seasons as well might be more helpful for some!
Spring 🌿
Collect the first rain of the season and keep it in a jar
Drink floral or fruit teas
Burn floral or fruit scented candles
Light a candle or turn on an electric candle.
Open the curtains to let light in.
Visualize a light cleaning each and every room in your home.
Decorate with dried, fresh or fake flowers.
Spray a cleansing spray throughout your bedroom.
Clean an area in your home, big or small. (It could be as simple as making a pile of trash so it’s easier to move later.)
Bathe yourself (either in the tub or sponge bath style). Infuse some herbs/flowers into the water!
Water your plants and whisper blessings to them.
Plant something new! It can be as simple as a beansprout in a paper cup.
Meditate and imagine yourself out in your favorite area in spring.
Make a terrarium.
Spray floral water in the air and on your bedsheets.
Watch for and welcome the returning birds
Learn about local plants.
Crack open all your windows to let in some fresh air.
Bedridden witch: Garden edition
Summer ☀️
Make sun water/tea
Drink fruit teas, infused water or juices
Burn floral or fruit candles
Decorate with flowers and crystals.
Wake up earlier than usual to enjoy a full day of light.
Try to be awake and witness both the sunrise and sunset.
Decorate your windows with rainbow prisms.
Make flower crowns with fresh, dried or paper flowers.
Make sure sunlight and fresh air can reach you.
Enjoy some fresh fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds.
Decorate with/wear/create things with bright colors:
Decorate a new pot for your plants (painting, sharpies, ribbons, etc.)
If you can, put a bird feeder outside your window or just watch them as they fly by.
Pour an offering of water for the plants (indoors, outside or out the window).
Have a picnic (outside, on the kitchen floor or in bed).
Find a way to incorporate honey into your day (scrubs, food, tea, etc.)
Burn beeswax candles.
Listen to music that just sounds like summertime.
Autumn 🍂
Collect the first rain of the season and keep it in a jar
Drink spiced tea, apple ciders
Infuse berries into water.
Burn spiced, woodsy or autumn scented candles
Eat things like breads, nuts, grapes, pomegranates, pies, apples and root vegetables.
Start a new project like crocheting or knitting. This is also a great time to finish that project you’ve been avoiding.
Wear and decorate and create with browns, golds, dark greens, oranges and yellows.
Decorate your home to make it look more like Autumn (fake or real leaves, acorns, paper cutouts, etc.)
Create a picnic/feast wherever is reasonable, with a little bit of everything.
Pull up a video of leaves falling or a fire crackling.
