Review: Tarot Spells by Janina Renee – 3.5/5

Tarot Spells by Janina Renee. 1994. Llwellyn. 3.5/5 – Meh

Warnings: None except very slight “negative energy will come back to you” mentioned once.

A good book and accessible for everyone. Reads as light ceremonial or ritualistic but can be easily adapted. However, poor formatting, uninspired card choices, and cookie cutter (and sometimes boring) spells leaves me wanting more. Excellent for inspiration however and worth adding to a collection of spell books. The 2001 version might rectify many of these problems.

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Friendship Candle Spell [Spell Saturday #56]

Friendship spells are less common than love spells which is a shame because we, as humans, enjoy having love of all kinds, including friendship. This spell’s good if you have an idea of the kind of friend you want but can’t seem to attract someone like that.

Friendship Candle Spell by This Crooked Crown

What you’ll need:

  • Pink or red candle
  • Printed out selfie / photo of yourself
  • Fire-proof bowl
  • Friendship-drawing herbs or oils such as gardenia, sweet pea, or rosemary (optional)

Dress your candle in friendship drawing oils, herbs, and/or energy. A candle shaped like a person is a good choice for the candle but optional. You can use a regular candle for this spell.

Place your candle on top of your printed out selfie and place that inside the fire-proof bowl. This is done for safety reasons.

Light the candle. Spend some time thinking or talking about the kind of friend you’re looking for. Do you want someone who will go with you to the beach? Someone affectionate enough for platonic cuddling? Be as vague or as specific as you’d like.

Once you’ve described the person you’d like to be friends with, say something similar to the following:

“Candle before me

Speak to the heart of the one I seek

Bring to me a friend that is loyal and true

Let their heart speak to mine

And bring them to my side

As a beloved friend.”

If the candle hasn’t already done so, tilt it slightly to the side to let the wax drip on your selfie.

Be sure that you’ll have time to watch the candle burn or at least keep an eye on the candle. You’ll need to burn the candle about halfway down or past the waist of the person-shaped candle. Once the candle’s burned to this level, blow it out and keep it safe until a friend like you’ve desired has appeared. If they do not appear within a reasonable time-span (which is up to your discretion), dispose of the candle in the garbage and try again with a new candle, if desired.

Note:

  • Please remember to use fire safety!
  • Remember to adjust the wording to suit your needs!

Happy casting!

 

Spirit Destinations: When Spirit Worlds Connect to the Physical World

The astral worlds are not a free-for-all. Not all of them at least. Anyone who has dealt with the fae are definitely aware of this but many other places outside of fairylands have rulers that hold territory. Knowing you’re in someone’s territory can be tricky and knowing where those territories begin and end, especially because they change all the time, is a full time job. My best advice is to assume you’re trespassing and be polite as possible if confronted (and run away if you need to).

But there’s another territory to think about. Another weird thing that can happen. Sometimes the astral spirit worlds and the physical worlds mesh together.

Sometimes you step into a place here in the physical world and you think, “oh crap, this is connected to the spirit worlds, somewhere”. You might even feel unsafe and need to hightail it out of there. And other times it’s the best place ever to meditate and be safe.

This is one of things that you’ll know if you’ve experienced it because it’s often a defining moment for you. One you’ll remember. It’s also similar to fairy tales and legends of wild hunts and faerie proceedings.

 

When Spirit Worlds Connect to the Physical World by This Crooked Crown

 

What are the signs?

There are numerous signs that indicate that a particular area is experiencing a merging or an overlap. Some of the signs appear for other things like a psychic attack so be aware of that possibility and look for multiple indications that the spirit world is overlapping into the physical world.

As always, if you feel like you’re being hunted, stalked, or in danger, leave the area immediately and go to a safe place where you can calm down, ground and center yourself, and get something re-energizing to eat.

  • A weird energy signature
  • An immensely powerful energy
  • Feeling yourself being drained of energy
  • Feeling your energy hum
  • Feeling an increase in energy, like adrenaline, but is likely difficult to control
  • Nausea
  • Headaches
  • Pressure in your head or body, especially forehead
  • Surge of emotions, images, sounds, or smells out of nowhere that are not your own
  • Hearing voices or music or sounds without a discernible source
  • Smelling scents that are out of place and without a discernible source
  • A sense of flightiness or lack of control like intoxication
  • A feeling of dream-like fog
  • Feeling of being small or in front of something large
  • Being overwhelmed emotionally or spiritually, like a wave overtaking you
  • A feeling of open-ness in a small that should not feel that open
  • A feeling of disconnect, like watching yourself do something outside of your body
  • Feeling watched or not alone
  • The feeling of immediate danger
  • Time is working too slowly, too quickly, or you seem to be out of time
  • Becoming lost in the physical space
  • Objects, pathways, walls, and other things seem to move or become blocked when they weren’t moments before

 

 

What triggers these connections? 

Spirit worlds connecting to physical worlds can happen in any number of ways. These connections are not permanent and some will disappear even a few hours after it appears. You can remove a connection with enough time, effort, and energy but it would be a hard-won fight.

Anywhere can be connected at any point in time to the spirit worlds but it often happens when no where is there and therefore there isn’t conflicting energy. Or they are areas with lots of potential but nothing happened. Or they’re areas of high energy. Liminal places, like crossroads, rest stops, buildings with lots of empty hallways (schools, offices, abandoned buildings), and bridges are common targets as well. Any place you’d expect spirit activity is particular susceptible to this kind of phenomena.

These are a few ways that the spirit worlds and physical world can become connected. Keep in mind, these aren’t the only ways and not every method will works for every area. Some places seem more susceptible to certain methods than others, likely due to energy reasons.

  • A land spirit makes the connection or holds significant power in that place
  • It’s a height of power and energy for some reason and thus easily accessible to spirits
  • A human dreams or recreates that space in the spirit world
  • They are so similar of places in looks, energy, or history that they merge for unknown reasons
  • Spirits gather there for unknown or multitude of reasons, thus making the physical world more like a spirit world.
  • A practitioner connects them for easy access to the spirit world
  • A practitioner has cast a lot of energy or spells recently or invoked a spirit, opening the way for this sort of thing
  • There’s been a wild hunt style procession recently through that area
  • Construction, death, powerful emotions, trauma, or other events can cause havoc, not unlike ghosts getting riled up during a home remodeling.

 

 

What to do

What you can do with an area that is connected to the spirit worlds is up to you. I recommend leave it alone. It’s probably not hurting anyone (except you might see a rise of headaches and emotions in that place) and it will often go away on it’s own. As mentioned above, you can try to get rid of the area but you must be very sure of yourself and your ability to manipulate the spirit energy in order to do this properly. You can patrol or guard the area, making it sacred, and thus keeping outsiders from going into it.

Most of the time, if you leave the area (and spirits inside the area) alone, they’ll leave you alone. They’re essentially just visiting.  However, if the spirits begin to get aggressive, you may want to step up and remind them that while the area IS theirs, most humans cannot see or sense them and therefore do not know to stay away. You could even banish them from this realm, leaving the territory connected or go ahead and sever the connection. Whether you do not this or not is up you. It’s personal choice.

As for myself, I typically leave spirit connected areas alone. I might go and remind aggressive spirits to play nice or I’ll have do something about them but most often, I leave them alone. So long as they’re not actively hunting humans, I have no problems with them. I find such areas a delight to visit because I truly love the spirit worlds and knowing I can connect to them here in the physical world at times is something I find absolutely amazing.

 

Modern Check Money Spell [Spell Saturday #55]

Ever wish you could just write a check out to yourself for free money? Who hasn’t. This spell is designed to do just that. It’s built specifically to encourage the right amount of money to come to you by a due date.

This is a classic spell. I’m not reinventing the wheel here. I’m sure there have been practitioners writing themselves checks since forever. But, uh, checks are kind of out of fashion these days and I can honestly say that I don’t think many of my readers even know how to write a check. I think I write a single check a year and I always have to look up whether I’m forgetting something every year. It’s a thing. Anyway, because checks aren’t often used, this spell style needs to be updated to modern times.

Remember to double check your magical paradigm. Mine says that the more constraints you put on a spell, the more magic has to work to create it. So ask for a million dollars by tomorrow and it’s less likely to happen than, say, twenty dollars by tomorrow. Your paradigm and experiences may claim different but, uh, kick some money back towards me if you do land a million, OK?

Modern Money Check Spell by This Crooked Crown

What you’ll need:

  • Basil
  • Mint (any kind)
  • Cinquefoil (five finger grass)
  • Clover
  • Coins
  • Boiling water
  • Writing utensil
  • A check or invoice-like print out

First gather a pinch of each herb and let it steep in about a cup of boiling water for at least fifteen minutes. Put coins along with the herbs. Let cool and strain the herbs and coins, keeping the water. Put the coins back in the water and put aside. If you want, you can further enchant the herbs/ water to bring you money.

While the herbs are steeping, find a writing utensil. Typically you’d use a pen or pencil but there’s a good chance that it won’t write well when dipped in water so you might be better off using a toothpick or paintbrush to write with. The ink doesn’t need to be visible so what you write with doesn’t matter.

You’ll also want to find a check or invoice print out. This should be a blank check, but if you’re like me and can’t remember the last time you wrote a check, print out a invoice or money transfer template. You can do this by taking a screen shot of the transfer money page of your online banking or downloading a blank invoice template.

Now dip your writing utensil in the water and fill out the check, money transfer, or invoice as completely as you can with the water as the ink. If your form doesn’t have a “due by” date, then use the “date” line as when you want the money. If you need to put an item on the form, just write whatever you need the money for. Rent, bills, to buy shoes, whatever. Let the paper dry completely. Dispose of the water by pouring it on your doorstep, washing the floor with it, or pour it down the drain. Keep the coins and don’t spend them if possible.

Once dry, put the paper in an envelope and put the envelope somewhere out of the way until after the “due by date” passes. After the “due by date” passes, bury or burn the envelope and paper entirely.

Common Money Spell Ingredients by This Crooked Crown

Notes:

  • Use fire safety if you burn the paper.
  • You do not need to use all the herbs in this spell. You can just use basil or mint and you’ll be just fine. Alternatively you can use any money drawing ingredients you have.
  • Don’t drink the water if you put coins or stones in it. Please don’t do that.

Money in the Spirit World – Astral Currency & Trade

Money in the Spirit World

 

Here’s some real talk: shit costs money. This is true with your spirit dealings as well.

Historically, money has been used in multiple cultures as offerings to spirits. (Also, historically paying the people who dealt with spirits, such as practitioners, was and still is a thing.)

However, it’s not always about the amount of cash you can put out. Trading expensive goods is also something that’s often used. Are you giving that expensive alcohol as a gift – or a bribe? Or is it really for services rendered on your behalf?

Offerings are made for a lot of reasons. They can be made from a place of love or fear. As a perfunctory action to something you’re excited to share. There’s lots of reasons to give offerings. It’s not necessarily part of a commerce-based action. You can simply do it to please the spirit or deity you’re with.

But, what about commerce? What about actions made that are not an offering? How do you trade with spirits? How does money work in the astral? To be honest, it’s not that much different with how money works here.

 

 

Commerce isn’t always going to be based on coins or paper money. In fact, most of the time, it isn’t. If you’re operating in a territory controlled by a specific ruler, that territory may offer currency, like any country would. But that currency will probably be worthless outside of that territory.

Trading services or items is probably one of the easiest ways to get something. Can you draw? Suggest that. Can you cast a spell or create a magical item? Did you find a pretty astral stone or grow a particular herb in your astral home’s garden? Try that as a means of trade.

Of course, you can always trade information. Information is, almost always, the most appreciated sort of currency. Tell someone where to a particular river, give directions to someone, mention where you last saw a particular spirit. Even gossip and rumors have their own weight and merit. Best of all, you can use the same information gained with different people and some people will pay very highly for information. The more desperate they are for that information, the more you can charge. It’s a very good idea to keep an eye on what kind of information you have to share and how much that’s worth to some people.

 

Another option is to get a job. This probably is the least liked option but is certainly going to get you what you want. If you do take on a job for someone, be sure that your terms are agreed upon in a very plain fashion. You will do X for Y and that’s it. Courier is a very popular job for dreamers and spirit walkers like us.  You can also be a freelancer of any skill you’re good at or even a mercenary. The tie-less kind of jobs are quite suitable for us as we aren’t consistently able to access the astral.

 

 

If you have you own territory or home, you can grow, make, rent, or create something there to sustain yourself. Maybe you’ll grow herbs or you have the only water for miles. You could be the only person in the area that can heal or has light or a safe place to sleep at night. Trade for these commodities and go from there.

You can also see if a local spirit has work for you to do. Working under the service of a spirit ruler or any spirit will be like working in you regular day job. The only exception is the work will probably be different and there probably isn’t a lot of rules in place. Make sure that you know your rights and how to get out of the job if you no longer want it. You can even make agreements to when your job ends if you don’t want it with the person that hires you right off the bat. Help yourself and make these demands and agreements at the start so you don’t have to worry about it later.

You can also make agreements to do something in the physical realm for the spirit. This works very well for us and it’s utterly unique to use dreamers and spirit walkers. Spirits can’t do this for one another usually so it gives us a unique advantage. However, I’ve found that the more you pay attention to a spirit while in this realm, the more control they have over this realm. For example, if a spirit asks you to make them a shrine in the woods and some kids find that shrine, it may give that spirit more power here because more people believe in them. It’s hit or miss as some spirits don’t work in the manner.

There’s pros and cons to each of these methods. You’ll have to talk to people and have a good grasp of people in order to trade information. Working under a spirit ruler may gain you some enemies because of your association but you’ll probably also be under their protection. Grow herbs to sell and you’ll have to actually, you know, grow them. Weigh your options before you decide what to do.

 

 

As a rule of thumb, it’s best to make trades and arrangements in front of a third neutral party. There are even mediator spirits you can hire for this specific purpose. But, anyone can serve as a third part. These third parties will verify the agreement of the trade (or whatever) and if one side of it is broken, then actions can be taken.

There are also spirits that work like money lenders or even currency exchange. These spirits will vary wildly in temperament so you might wind up dealing with a very nasty spirit or someone who is a complete sweetheart. Currency exchange will usually have a direct price – you bring 8 X and get 5 Y. The spirit making the exchange will take a small percentage of the trade for their own payment.

Keep in mind that breaking promises or agreements is considered extremely bad. Note, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use a loophole to your advantage. Faeries are really the experts at this – they won’t do something outright against the agreement but they will find every loophole ever and use it instead.

Theft is an additional problem to remember. Items, even those in the astral, have energy and some people – even some practitioners – can track that energy like a bloodhound. So if you steal something and someone is skilled in tracking energy, they could hunt you down.

 

 

Not everything you can trade or do will be useful so cultivating many skills or keeping items around like some pack-rat RPG hero can help you figure out exactly what to offer at the time.

It’s tricky to get the hang of so don’t be surprised if you get up getting proverbially robbed during a deal. It happens. Live and learn. Like in real life, it takes time and practice to develop a good system of deal-making.

Why should you jump through all these hoops? Well, not everyone can create everything in the astral. And some items require knowledge to create that you don’t have. It also fosters relationships within the community. Plus, some things are just easier to buy than make.

The astral is a truly fantastic place and spirits of all kinds exist there. Some will have wildly different ideas of what’s useful or worth currency. Ask questions politely and you’ll probably do just fine.

5 Things I’m Currently in Love With

Life has been kicking my ass. Last month (and the month before that) was filled with stuttering posts due to a variety of reasons. Long story short: Life got in the way of… life? Weird sentence is weird.

Anyway, here’s five things I’m totally in love with right now.

 

01 Cherry Blossoms

I mean, I love flowers any day of the week but right now I am constantly staring at my flowering trees and blooming garden. Right now I’m very lucky because I have two cherry trees in my front yard – the Yoshino white and the Kwanzan pink. The Kwanzan always flowers after the Yoshino (and lasts at least two weeks longer???) but there’s this sweet spot where both still have flowers and everything is awesome forever.

I always love cherry blossoms so I’m super happy at this time to just stare at them all the time. Like, all the time.

Also, little known fact, for my 21st birthday I asked for a cat and a cherry tree. I got Kiki and my Yoshino tree. One of my better birthday requests, to be honest.

 

 

 02 Aromatherapy

I’m not actually all that well-read when it comes to aromatherapy. I mean, I could probably blab about it for an an hour or more but a lot of that comes from my herbal knowledge rather than aromatherapy knowledge.

A couple of weeks ago I scored an aromatherapy mister for a song and have been using it nightly. It’s really been helping me sleep when I’m suppose to be asleep and even helped clear up my lungs a bit (which is good because they’re kind of rubbish after an infection years ago).

I’m looking forward to diving into more research on aromatherapy in the coming days. Yay for new stuff to read about!

 

 

03 Cooking

This is a weird one. I do a lot of baking but not a lot of cooking. However, last week my mother went away and that meant that I could use my brother as a taste tester without feeling guilty that I was making something my mother didn’t want to eat.

So far, every recipe I tried came out a complete success. Most of the recipes I tried came from the World of Warcraft Cookbook but I also tried my hand at making stuff that I love but no one in my house has ever tasted before (like curry!). It was fun and encouraging. I guess I’ll be stepping outside of my normal baking and trying to make something more than cupcakes or cookies more often.

 

 

04 Backbends

I don’t talk about my exercise regiment very much because I’m either all for it or being a slacker. (I’m not super consistent and that’s something I’m trying to work on). Anyway, the other day I accomplished a backbend that I haven’t been able to do in years.

Actually, let me rephrase that. I’ve always been able to do a wheel style backbend with some warm up but I use to be flexible enough to do a wheel backbend without any warm up at all. (I’m naturally that flexible in that direction) but years of computer sitting and driving without consistent practice made that go away. I know I can recapture that original flexibility if I keep working on it.

Also, don’t be me. Warm up before you try complicated physical moves. I’m a bad example of what to do with your body. Seriously. Don’t be me.

 

 

05 May Day

May Day is a thing for me. But it’s a weird thing. Many pagans and practitioners practice May Day or Beltaine celebrations. Mine are far more low-key and not based on the Wheel of the Year. I think I celebrate May Day because the first of May is when you can finally start seeing a lot of flowers blooming and it really starts to feel like spring in my area.

I’ll spend much of this May Day cooking, put out some offerings, and put away some winter clothes and blankets. Simple things but they make a difference on an individual and household level.

I hope when I get enough land sometime in the future that I can set up a May Day pole. That’s a “someday” goal I have.

 

 

So that’s the five things that I’m totally loving right now. What about you all? What have you been staring at in awe and love? What have you been occupying your time with?

Review: Oracle of Visions

Oracle of Visions

 

Oracle of Visions by Ciro Marchetti © US Games Systems

Status: Reading with it

Best for: Everything. This deck loves questions and claims that it can do it all but it is less specific than other decks.

Favorite cards: 20, 30, 40

Acquired from and date: A birthday gift from my father. June 2015.

 

Oracle of Visions

 

This is one of those decks that is so beautiful but is less useful than one might imagine. The cards are colorful, bright, and brilliant but do not have a distinctive meaning. You can use them as prompt cards and they’re excellent for a whole host of intuitive usages.

The imagery here is definitely fantastical and reminds me strongly of dreams – some things just won’t make sense in a mundane way. But if you view the card as a dream, suddenly it starts to become more believable.

There are 52 cards in the deck and, while keywords and descriptions are given in the included book, the cards are numbered. This encourages you to come up with your own meanings for the cards.

Quick note, my images are darker and fuzzier than the cards are themselves. It’s really hard to get photos of just how beautiful this deck is without perfect lighting. My photos do not do this deck justice.

 

Oracle of Visions

 

The artwork is, without a doubt, Ciro Marchetti’s work. Beautiful and vibrant, the art is exactly what you’d expect if you’ve seen Marchetti’ work before. There’s often simplistic backgrounds with a humanoid figure as the main attraction to the card. the cards are very detailed so sometimes you’ll discover new things about a card that you didn’t see before.

One of the things I love is that circus arts / carnivals are featured prominently with this deck. Masks, especially that of the jester are everywhere. Tightrope walkers and even implied aerial silks are seen within the deck. Dancers, actors, and other members of the arts are also featured. It’s the theme of the deck. If this is your scene, then you’ll love the deck. If not then you’ll want to stay away.

Additionally, there is a lot of nudity or partial nudity in the deck. At least half the images feature a cloth draped woman and at least one has frontal nudity. By and large, the art consists of women but there are a few masculine figures present. Animals such as horses, fish, birds, and apes are also featured.

There is a distinctive lack of POC in the deck. There are a few vaguely Asian women but none facing forward. They are either in profile or shown from behind. This is a shame as fantastical as this deck is apparently POC are more fantastical? Such a shame.

 

Oracle of Visions

Because of the coloring this deck is dark but with bright pops of color. All the cards have a black border with a gold thing including the card number. The cards are large, 5 1/2 inches by 3 1/2 inches. The card stock in on the thinner side but that’s a benefit as this deck is on the large side and if the card stock was thinner, I’d have difficulty shuffling it. Breaking in the deck has only helped with the shuffling and the cards have stood up remarkably well over time.

The cards are somewhat glossy so I often end up taking photos in indirect light or low light to avoid reflections. While this isn’t an issue for most people, it can be extremely frustrating when you just want a quick but pretty photo to drop on instagram.

One thing to know about this deck is that there aren’t any set meanings. The cards are merely numbered, not named, so you’ll need to dive for the book for every card meaning or use the images to come up with the meanings. Ciro Marchetti encourages the reader to come up with their own interpretation of the cards, a system I truly love. I always have my own interpretations of any deck but this one encourages it.  This also means the client and supplicant can derive their own meaning from the cards. Mermaids may hold special meaning to you and therefore the mermaid card (middle of the image to the left) means more to you than it would another person. It also means that meanings may shift and change as you shift and change as a person.

 

Oracle of Visions

 

The deck comes in a thicker cardboard keepsake box which has withstood the test of time. The LWB is actually quite good but I think this deck could have benefited from a larger sized book because of how often you may reference it – all the time or not at all. Weirdly, the LWB doesn’t come with a spread. I don’t mind this but at the same time, it’s definitely something I find I like included in the LWB. The book gives a brief intro on how to interpret the cards and several pages on the deck creation process. These pages are included in the back of the book.

When it comes to the spirit or essence of this deck, I find that I often have multiple “voices” talking to me. It’s more like the characters in the deck are the voices of the deck rather than there’s one uniform voice for the deck. That’s fairly unusual for me to run into in my experience. It isn’t necessarily a bad thing but I find that these “voices” aren’t actually helpful when it comes to the readings. They’re more like noise or a bunch of people talking at once but way off in the distance.

I feel like this deck is far more useful if you’re in the mood to use it. It’s fun and fantastical but it also has a lot of darker images and themes implied. The idea that carnival or circus folk can be sinister comes to mind here (and that’s a negative stereotype that continue today). If you’re in the kind of mood to see double meanings or the seeking out meanings beyond what’s originally presented, then this deck is a great choice.

As mentioned I don’t use this deck as often as I thought I would primarily because I don’t often find reasons to use it. Clients want clear cut answers and this deck doesn’t often them. Instead, it’s like a person than answers a question with another question or side-steps a question with half of an answer. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because the answers are there you just have to dig deep for them. Most of my clients are not readers themselves so this process isn’t a good choice for them. In personal readings, I’ll either use this deck extensively or not at all for that same reason.

That isn’t to say it isn’t a good divination deck. It certainly is. But it’s not your typical ask-and-answer deck and that needs to be kept in mind when considering this oracle.

 

Oracle of Visions

 

Overall, I love this deck but I find I don’t reach for it very often. Because I’m not one to dive for the book every time I want to draw a card, I’ll need to study the image to find out a meaning and when I draw cards for myself, I’m usually using personally defined keywords.

That being said, this is one of the those decks I use often to create writing prompts for myself or to help define a character in my fiction writing. I also like to use it for meditation or catalyst draws to change things up.

Is it good for beginners? No unless you are highly intuitive. I find most beginners want a deck with set meanings that are clearly defined, even with oracle decks. This is not that deck. Is it still an awesome deck? Yes. Established readers or Marchetti fans will love this deck. Don’t get me wrong – if you’re a beginner and love the art, pick it up. It can be a great teaching tool for increasing intuition but you may find that it’s not as useful for readings as you might imagine.

 

Oracle of Visions

 

 

 

Oracle of Visions by Ciro Marchetti © US Games Systems

Home’s Energy Dedication Spell [Spell Saturday #54]

Spring cleaning? Just moving into a new place? You’ll want to make sure that home is happy, right?

This spell is good for people who want to bring their lives and homes into focus. Some people create their homes to be an oasis of something – productivity, happiness, zen-like peace, relaxation, or fun.  If this sounds like something you want to do, then this spell will help dedicate your home’s energy to just that. You’ll still be able to live and work as normal but there will be a definite air towards whatever you want to focus on.

Home Energy Dedication Spell by This Crooked Crown

What you’ll need:

  • A representation of the key focus of your home
  • Sunshine water (optional)

The first thing you’ll need to do is to consider what is the key focus of your home and how you want to represent it. Do you want to have fun? Then a printed photo of you having fun is a good choice. Want to bring peace, then write down a meditation instead. Want to be known as the neighborhood baker? Write your favorite recipe down. How about studious? Print out a school curriculum. You get the idea. It needs to be a piece of paper that represents what you want to do most in your home. If you’re a business owner and casting this spell on your shop space, then use paper money.

Whatever you choose to use, make sure that you spend a lot of time thinking and remembering good times when writing it down. If you’re using a photo, then write on the back of the printed copy what you loved about that time. If you’re using money, cleanse the bill and hold the money thinking or telling the bill how you want to bring more money into the business / home.

Once you have your representation, clean and cleanse your home. Use whatever techniques you want. You just want your home in the freshest possible condition.

Stand in the heart of your home. This will be the place where you spend the most time and are happiest. Where your family and housemates will meet up. It could be the living room, kitchen, etc. For business, it should be the place where you create your products or your counter where sales are packaged up.

You can write down the representation onto the floor / wall / permanent counter in the sunshine water. (Make sure that water doesn’t actually show on the floor / wall / counter, as it sometimes can.)

Once you finish with the sunshine water, you can slip the paper into the ceiling or under the floor. (Try the basement or attic). If none of those options are available, place it under or on top of a piece of furniture that doesn’t move from that room.

Now stand in the middle of the room (as much as possible) and spend time with the home’s energy. You can meditation, say a prayer, or chant a happy home. The dedication is done.

Notes:

  • Sunshine water is water that has soaked up sunshine. It’s super easy to make. You get a clear jar of water and stick it in direct sunlight where it cannot be touched by shadow. Bring it in before dark.

Happy casting!

Alarm Spell [Spell Saturday #53]

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I am not a morning person. When I have a deadline to reach or an appointment to get to, I will need all the alarms in the world in order to get me out of bed. It’s a Thing.

This spell will probably not help with that.

But this spell can be used to let you know when something’s going down. It can protect your room from trespassers or let you know someone’s poking around where they shouldn’t be.

 

Alarm Spell by This Crooked Crown

 

What you’ll need:

  • A trigger item such as a ring
  • The place or thing you want to guard or be alerted to
  • Mugwort-rose infused oil (optional)

 

First, create a infuse mugwort and rose infused oil. This is an optional step but it can be a useful one. If you can’t or don’t want to do this, just skip to the next step. To create the oil, steep mugwort and crumbled rose petals in a light oil like sunflower oil for about a week. You can steep them for longer if you like. When the oil is ready, dress you trigger object with the oil. You can also use water instead of oil, steeped and boiled like a tisane tea if oil will damage your trigger item.

Go to the place that you want to protect. Sit comfortably with the object or place you want to protect. Allow your energy to flow out and encompass the space or wrap around the object in question, such as a diary. Focus on creating positive thoughts and creating a warm, safe, and secure place.

When you feel like you’ve done this, swoop your hand to circle the room, feeling the energy you’ve created. Once you’ve come full circle, touch that hand to the trigger object.

Say or think the following with your hand still touching the trigger object:

 

When you sound, I will know

Chime, ring, echo, call, tremble, or bellow

Make whatever sound you can in haste

To let me know someone trespasses in this space.

Allow your energy to dissipate and carry on with your day.

When the spell is activated, you should “hear” a sound. it might be an actual sound, like a ring clacking on a counter more loudly than it should or it might be something telling you in your heart that something’s wrong, like something tugging at your attention. You may also suddenly notice that trigger object when it shouldn’t really be the center of attention. (Example, if the trigger object is a bracelet and you wear several bracelets but suddenly all eyes are on that singular bracelet.)

Note:

  • The trigger object can be anything you like but is most commonly a piece of jewelry of some kind.
  • The trigger object can even be a piece of skin or your own body. You can use a finger as a trigger object and if that finger suddenly hurts or itches, then the spell’s been activated.

Happy casting!

 

 

Starter Plants for a Witchy Garden

Starting a witchy garden? Or maybe you’re just trying to add more magic to your cooking with fresh herbs? It can be so hard to know which plants to start with and which herbs to keep on hand.

Starter Plants for a Witchy Garden by This Crooked Crown

 

This “must haves” for your practice is going to vary wildly. It’s even going to vary on what purpose you might have for those plants. Are you keeping them around for their herbal benefit or magical?

Many people try out green or kitchen witchery only to run away from it or struggle with it. This largely comes from difficulties in knowing complimenting flavors and tastes (remember to taste your food when cooking folks!) and accidentally killing your plants.

I get you. I really do. I have a light green thumb – I can keep things alive but sometimes they just kick the bucket. My best plant right now is my aloe which I leave alone and it’s happy.  When it comes to kitchen witchery, rest assured, I’ve made plenty of stupid mistakes there too. I’ve heard the song of the fire alarm plenty of times.

Knowing what to start with and what to try is super difficult, especially when you’re just starting out. Here’s some tips for you new witchlings (and maybe a gentle reminder for us old-timers)

 

 

Start small

Those big beautiful gardens you see on Pinterest? Yeah, they’re not created in a single season or even a single year. Same thing with indoor gardens. Pick a plant or two tend to them. If they’re still alive and kicking a few months later, add on another plant. Plan for what you want. This also allows you to save up money for garden because it is not a cheap hobby.

If you have such a black thumb that you can kill off a plastic plant, rest assured that you’re not without option. You can use fresh spices. A farmer’s market is your best friend. Some farmer’s markets operate all year around and others are only seasonally. Check out your local ones and see what they offer.

Protip: Take a day and visit both your farmer’s markets and grocery stores. Sometimes farmer’s markets actually partially stock from farmers that also sell to your grocery stores. Or you’ll find that you don’t like that specific potato sold at that farm or discover that while the grocery store is cheaper then farmer’s market tastes better. Figure out where’s the best places to get certain things and you’ll save yourself the heartache of “aw, the radishes are so much better at this farmer’s market!”.

 

Growing versus buying

If you’ve been to online communities you may have run across the idea that plants you grow are more useful than buying herbs. This is only kind of true. (If you’re making a face, keep reading.)

My experience is this: If you’re a spirit worker, the plants you grow develop bonds and relationships with you because you’ll probably talk to that spirit. That plant will be infinitely more powerful – but probably only for certain things. You might discover that the plant you grow is really only good for protection spells. It’s not really going to help you with a luck spell.

But the same fresh or dried herbs you get from the market or store? Those babies can be used for anything they’re associated with rather than being shoehorned into whatever the plant wants to be used for. So they’re infinitely more useful even if you can’t control their quality.

That’s the other main argument: you can’t control the growing conditions, ethical conditions, and quality if you buy. This it true so I highly suggest to look into farmer’s markets to circumvent these things. You can also quickly google on your phone farms the food comes from to see how controversial or unlikable they are. You might be the weirdo standing there for five minutes staring at a head of cabbage but isn’t that better than working with something you don’t agree with?

Growing is, of course, cheaper except for the initial investment. But growing also requires a lot of…

 

Research

I feel like a broke record but research your stuff! This is especially true if you’re growing things. Just some simple research in how certain plants grows (or even that specific breed of plant) can entirely change how I care for a plant.

Research can also change how and why you grow a plant. I don’t use a lot of lavender in my practice but I do for my herbal medicine. So I’d rather grow it outside and harvest it than keep it inside. I use citrus in my craft for cleansing and for my herbalism. I grow mini trees in pots. Same thing with peppers. I grow them in pots so I can have fresh peppers for protection spells and curses.

Research can also tell you on whether or not you actually need a bunch of that plant. If you never use mint in spells but for rare occasions and never cook with it… then why are you growing it? Why waste that time? So what if everyone recommends it or uses it in their spells? YOU don’t and that matters. Develop your own list and needs for what you use in your practice. look through your spells and decide for yourself.

 

 

Those are some super basics. Ready for my go to list of plants for basic witchcraft?

Basil

Sex or sexual attention,  soothing fights between couples or family, dieting or fasting, health and healing, the home, sympathy, harmony, increasing money, good luck, to curse others, fire element, fertility, weddings, romance or romantic love, for attractiveness, exorcism or banishing.

Lemon Balm

For improving memory, easing depression or grief, lifting one’s spirits, for romantic love or romance, for clairvoyant dreams, health and healing, and youthfulness.

Lavender

To see ghosts or spirits, to attract men (especially sexually), for women’s strength or sexual attractiveness, to calm, to calm nerves or anxiety, against unwanted sexual attention, fertility or childbirth, for sleep, healing and health in general, air element, divination, purification or cleansing, for sex or sexual attention, easing depression or grief, relaxation, and for romantic love or romance.

Mint

For increasing money, prosperity, wealth, trade or increasing business, dieting or fasting, cleansing or purification, clairvoyant dreams, divination, relaxation, easing anxiety or nerves, health or healing in general, for improving memory, air element, for sex or sexual attention, romance or romantic love, and creating change or a catalyst.

Rose

Protection, peace, harmony, romance or romantic love, sex or sexual attention, soothing fights between couples or families, for newlyweds, for weddings, for women’s sexual attractiveness or strength, for sleep, healing or health in general, attuning or aiding psychic powers, for clairvoyant dreams, divination, clairvoyance or second sight, and against or wards off negativity, bad luck, spells, curses, or malevolent spirits.

Rosemary

Cleverness or mental clarity, focus, for confidence, against thieves or trespassing, for courage or against fear, purification or cleansing, improving memory, against nightmares, for rejuvenation or power / energy, youthfulness, women’s strength or sexual attractiveness, for beauty, for physical strength or endurance, romance or romantic love, to attract friends, healing or health in general, exorcism or banishing, protection, protection at sea, to invoke the sea, against unwanted sexual attention, boosting the five senses, clairvoyance or second sight, and against or wards off negativity, bad luck, spells, curses, or malevolent spirits.

Thyme

Wards off fatigue while traveling, victory, to win a battle or overcome an enemy, ease depression or grief, for courage or bravery, wards off fear, wards off nightmares, healing or health in general, for sex or sexual attention, to see faeries, funerary rites or to send off the dead, purification or cleansing, hex / curse breaking or spell breaking, for rejuvenation or power / energy, clairvoyance or the second sight, and against or wards off negativity, bad luck, spells, curses, or malevolent spirits.

Sage

Youthfulness, prosperity, wealth, trade or increasing business, health or healing, for improving memory, easing depression or grief, and earth element

Apple

Youthfulness, to know or enter the underworld or land of the dead, for romance or romantic love, for sex or sexual attention, water element, relaxation, for happiness or joy, for success, for gardening success, for rejuvenation or power / energy, health or healing, to use in place of a poppet or for image magic, and wood can be used to create magical tools.

Mugwort and/or Wormwood

Divination, scrying, to strengthen divination tools, for magic mirrors, for clairvoyant dreams, clairvoyance or second sight, to see ghosts or spirits, to contact or manifest spirits, air element, health or healing, for protection while traveling, wards off wild animals, wards off fatigue while traveling, and purification or cleansing.

Yarrow

Divination, clairvoyance or second sight, attuning or aiding psychic powers, romance or romantic love, for weddings, health or healing in general, sexual prowess or fertility, water element, for fair weather, for courage or bravery, wards off fear, for wisdom, purification or cleansing, for rejuvenation or power / energy, exorcism or banishing, and against or wards off negativity, bad luck, spells, curses, or malevolent spirits.

Peppers in general

Protection, against envy or jealousy (both directed at you and your own), exorcism or banishing, for curses or hexes, and fire element.

 

 

What did you notice about that list? Most of the list can be bought in stores or probably grows locally to you. All of it can be eaten (but please check your allergies and health warnings first!) It’s an excellent start and it covers a lot of things you might be trying to do.

(Side note, my list is from various numerous sources. Too many to list in a blog post. If you want to know where I got a piece of lore from, drop me a line and I’ll give you the source.)

Also, every single one of those plants can be grown in pots at least for a few years. Yes, even apples. There’s some intrepid farmers that make dwarf apple trees but you’ll probably do much better just planting it in the ground. Cayenne peppers, lavender, and roses will need fairly large pots in order to thrive (and do yourself a favor and put them on little rolling plant trays). Most of the rest can be kept in your standard windowsill.

Again, what you grow or keep around entirely depends on your personal practice and needs. Good luck with your gardening!