Tag: spells

Uncrossing Oneself

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Rootandrock’s musing post got me thinking. I have several clients that come to me in need of an unhexing, counter-curse, or exorcism. I almost always recommend a cleansing because that helps open oneself up and clears out the muck. Sometimes though that isn’t enough and an uncrossing is needed.

What is an uncrossing?

Rootandrock said it best but essentially sometimes we are so use to living with the bad stuff that even when it’s going we don’t know how to live without that bad stuff so we keep repeating the same patterns and behaviors we were doing before – and essentially creating our own bad stuff all over again. This cycle must break. This is what an uncrossing does.

I tend to like to combine unblocking spells and techniques as well, as many of my clients want to be able to reconnect with the spiritual. Unblocking is just like it sounds – breaking the blockages are typically caused by too much negative crap in your life weighing you down and making you feel fuzzy. Sometimes they’re caused by curses or spirits. Realistically, unblocking spells are a subcategory of uncrossing techniques but that’s not really the point here.

So how do you do the thing?

Mundane measures:

Cleaning.

I always recommend a deep cleaning of the house and your living and working spaces (including your car!) during deep cleansings. The same goes for uncrossings. This isn’t just sweeping and mopping the floor. Change the atmosphere of your living and working arrangements as best you can to help yourself.

This doesn’t have to be an expensive process.  Just burning a scented candle, baking a delicious dessert, opening up the curtains and letting in a lot of natural light would help. Rearrange rugs, art on the walls, and/or furniture. Clean out your cupboards and get rid of anything you don’t routinely use (especially if it’s unhealthy) if you can. Focus on areas that you first see when you walk into a room – counter tops, tables, chairs, the floor.  Sort though your closet and donate what you don’t need (or refashion it).

For those of you who want a more permanent solution or can purchase things, add mirrors opposite of windows to extend and expand the natural light of the room and increase the size of the room. Have a different set of curtains, blankets, rugs, and even pictures to rotate in and out seasonally.

Why do this? It shakes up the energy of the room. Many magical practitioners don’t do this often if they can help it because it messes with the energy of a room. I did it just the other day – rearranged every corner of my house – and my servitors and spirits grumped about it for half of the next day. It also breaks up routine and adds something new to your life without having to do something.

I’m stuck! Having trouble doing this? Is your house too cluttered? Afraid that it would take too long or is a hopeless cause? Are you simply not able to get up the energy to do this? Check out Unfuck Your Habitat (especially if you don’t have the energy or your home is too cluttered) and HabitRPG (for you gaming type).

How do you do it? I use to be a huge mess until I was seriously shamed by an aunt as a kid. It made me want to show her I could be better than she expected. Since then I’ve been pretty neat. That being said the UFYH method of 20/10 (20 minutes of cleaning and ten minutes of rest) is a heralded miracle. I tend to do 20 minutes of one thing and then 10 minutes of something else and then start the next 20 minutes on the original thing (which is excellent for those who HAVE to keep at it or have ADD/ADHD) or I do 10 minutes of cleaning, 5 minutes on the internet, etc. I burn incense and candles to change the smells of the room. In the summer I put away my rugs and comforters and leave the windows open to let air in. In the winter, I put down lots of area rugs (mine were rescued  and repurposed), double up on curtains to keep the warmth in (and let the act of pushing those curtains aside to let in precious light feel all the more important), and lay on blankets in both size, warmth, and texture to give the room a better feel. I also find getting things off the ground helps with cleaning. IKEA is a great inspiration for this. Things feel less dirty when done this way. I recently did that with my under-the-stairs closet with a simple screwdriver and it was brilliant. It was customized, creative, organized, and really let me use every square inch of the space. Another huge thing I do is Do-It-Yourself projects. I’m a big DIYer and I love repurposing things. I find creating and making things for yourself lets me learn new skills, build a solid connection with whatever I’m making, and learn to love it (and myself) more. Every time I get a compliment on something I’ve made, I feel awesome.

Take a vacation

I don’t just mean book a cruise to Bermuda. Even taking a Sunday afternoon to sit or walk through a large park and breath in the fresh air is enough. Leave your cellphone on silent and maybe bring a sketchbook or a book to read. Combined with a spa day (even at home spa treatments) and a luxurious breakfast, fresh and crisp lunch, and satisfying dinner this can replenish you. The most important bit is to break your cycle.

If you’re a super busy officer worker and you live your life by a strict schedule, don’t schedule a thing during your vacation – go with the flow. If you’re the opposite, keep a strict schedule and have some sort of reason to keep to that schedule. Breaking your cycle of bad behavior is key. It will not be easy. You’ve formed habits and connections with these bad behaviors. You’ll have to actively work to change them.

Why do this? Routine is easy to follow. When the routine is broken, we begin to look at the whys, hows, and whats of things. This is important. If you continually have no energy and change your diet accordingly, but never do anything with the potential new energy, you’ll feel restless and caged. Similarly, if you do the same workout routine three days a week, you’ll never work out or strengthen other parts of your body. Change things up and inspire yourself. Decompress and stretch your body and spirit.

I’m stuck! Set up a reward/punishment system. For example, I use HabitRPG for a reward/punishment system to keep myself on track. If I’ve done something really good, I’ll make a special dessert for myself or buy myself something. If I’ve done something bad, I do something I don’t like such as weeding the garden, an hour at the gym, etc. (Although, this means I cement the idea that those activities are “bad” – so there’s inherent flaws in the system.) If the reward/punishment system doesn’t work for you, or you can’t think of a good enough threat, rope in a friend or set up alarms on your computer/cell phone to pester you to break the routine.

How do you do it? I take a roadtrip. This happen every couple of years but a roadtrip gives me hours of just me by myself and lets me decompress. If that doesn’t work or isn’t available, I go to the ocean. It’s an instant fix. I don’t live by a schedule or routine so forcing myself to adhere to one, even if only for a few weeks, is a huge change.

Stop buying things/start buying things

This obviously will only apply to some of you.

I know when I’m broke, I spent absolutely zero money on anything. That keeps me home and stressed due to lack of money. To break this cycle I save even as little as 50 cents a week and buy myself something – a new shirt, a coffee, whatever. It brings a little bit of pleasure and makes everything that much more special.

When you’re a materialistic person and buy a lot of stuff – stop. There will always be sales and you’ll probably be able to find whatever you want to buy on Amazon or eBay at a later date. Stop trying to fill the hole in yourself with stuff. If you go out a lot, stay in and try a new recipe or bake a frozen pizza or something. Change up your life.

Why do this? We live in a very instant, very demanding, very materialistic world. Switching off your impulse to buy things (or to hoard what little money you have and have the lack of ability to buy and keep up with the impulse buys) creates a new change in behavior at what is now a fundamental level of society – money and how we spend it. As mentioned above, it creates the break in behavior and allows you to evaluate how, what, what, and when you’re doing something.

How do you do it? I hoard money. When I have it, I spend it. I’m not a saver. However, because I am my own source of income, I hoard my money now and dislike spending it unless I have a cushion to fall back on – which is rare in this economy. So every couple of months I buy something new. New fabric or yarn for a piece of clothing I want to make, a new pair of shoes, pick up a new hobby, or join a club or event.

Change you.

This one’s a bit harder and would be if you seriously need some uncrossing. Changing you is the hardest part. There will always be bits of you that will never change. However, it can be a superficial change. Get a new haircut, buy, make, or restyle a new wardrobe, toss clutter that has sentimental value but things you wouldn’t miss (let’s be honest, there’s stuff most of us keep that might remind us of an event or thing but isn’t the only thing we have from great grandma – that’s what I’m talking about). If you can’t toss it, box it up and stick it in a closet. If you don’t miss it or think of it by the time you rediscover the box again, get rid of it. I pretty much only keep awards, yearbooks, etc or things I can use again (theatre programs I’ve designed as a part my resume). Change your style, if possible, or the way you walk, talk, or act in public. Again, this will not be easy and will be a difficult choice to make.

Why do this? If you’re so caught up in muck that you can’t break free, shed your skin and start anew. It sounds as harsh as it’s meant to be. This potentially is the most difficult advice I could offer because it requires you to discover a new you. It’s more than a breaking of the cycle – it’s breaking the old your and birthing a new one.

How do you do it? I’ve only done this a few times and each time it was making a truly difficult choice to modify my behavior. One time it gained me friends and a whole new lifestyle. Another time was to break the toxicity that lifestyle contained. I regret neither but it was hard at the time to deal with the overwhelming new situation – breaking through my shyness and expressing my opinions to strangers and then to break away from fair-weather friends and toxic situations. (And no, I know not everyone can remove themselves from toxic people or situations but it you can do so.)

Magical and spiritual measures:

Petition an entity, join a new religion, or become a follower of a new deity.

Sometimes we need help. Petitioning  a deity or joining a new religion is a great way of getting a helping hand. It’s not just deities but also spirits, saints, and other beings. This is a very common practice but if you aren’t doing it or haven’t in a  while, it may be time to give it a try.

Working with these beings can be as simple as asking for a blessing or sign and then receiving it. Ask for guidance or a path to follow, the power and strength to succeed on that path and finally the physical, mental, and spiritual health and will to do so.

Any deity or spirit can be a source of help but the following are especially known as potential sources of unblocking and uncrossing assistance or to see a better way of dealing with the problem (just be wary of cultural appropriation):

  • Papa Legba (source 1)
  • Ganesha (source 1)
  • Hecate (source 1)
  • Ogun (source 1)
  • Yemaya (source 1)
  • Anubis (source 2)
  • Dosojin (source 2)
  • Akasagarbha or Kokuzo (source 2)
  • Lubana (source 2)
  • Sarutahiko (source 2)
  • Amaterasu
  • Uzume
  • Amatsumara

Why do this? As mentioned, sometimes help is needed. Perhaps you need someone to throw you a floating device when you’re drowning. It’s not weakness to ask for help.

I’m stuck! If you’re not getting answers when petitioning a specific deity, send out a general, universal distress call but be VERY sure to read all the fine print before agreeing to anything. Please also remember that a deity can be communication with you without you directly hearing their voices or receiving a obvious sign. Deities can live within the everyday – you just have to find something that strikes you as meaningful.

What do you do? I’ve worked with a malevolent spirit before as well as two Norse deities indirectly and pop culture entities. The deities and pop culture entities were gentle guidance in an off-hand manner – I found solace in their stories than them as beings. The spirit and I came to an agreement of sorts but that’s not really a story I want to tell. I don’t tend to turn to deities when I’m in trouble. I’m independent however I’ve taken a lot of inspiration and guidance from the aforementioned. I literally could not say where I would be without the pop culture entities. I never worked with them as spirits or deities but their stories helped create the person I am today.

Divination.

Typically divination is used to diagnose a problem but it can also be used for insight to figure out way around a problem. Meditating with the meaning of a card or using the card’s deep meaning to help you understand a way out of or through your problem. Some cards can be used to progress through the problem (the Tower for example is a personal favorite). Some people even use cards in spells. If you do you can literally choose cards from your current status moving in realistic steps towards your uncrossed goal.

Why do this? Primarily, it helps identify and offers solutions to the problem. As a secondary measure it can be used directly to affect change on yourself as a spell.

I’m stuck! Get a reader to do a reading for you. In fact, ask a few different readers for advice, if you can. There are plenty of people that will give a free reading.  Try it yourself, if you’re able. Find people use use different techniques if you’re only selecting tarot cards.

What do you do? I’m a seer so I do divination daily. However, I’ve used the aforementioned spread to work through a problem and help write a spell for change. (I personally don’t like using my cards in spells as it adds energy the cards don’t need.)

Chakras and Reiki

I’m not trained in Reiki (although I know the basic principles, premises, and techniques) and there’s a lot of information out there. I recommend seeking out a certified practitioner. I can name a few very good ones for you. Otherwise, Google is your friend. Reiki is a defined practice with a specific education, rankings, and certified teachers and practitioners. The theory of of Reiki is more widespread but actual Reiki is pretty defined.

You can also cleanse your chakras and enable you to move forward. There’s a variety of ways to do that and, again, I recommend a certified Reiki practitioner or taking a Reiki class.

Why do this? Cleansing the body and chakras is a good way of resetting and refreshing the body. Reiki can also heal you which would be ideal for those with bodily afflictions.

I’m stuck! Please seek a certified Reiki master.

What do you do? As mentioned I’m familiar with Reiki as a practice so I usually do a session for myself. If I really needed a cleansing or assistance, I would contact one of the Reiki masters I know and have them assist.

Astral Uncrossing and/or Spiritual Uncrossing or Meditation or Shadow Work

This is especially useful it you’re being afflicted by a spirit or entity. You must first cross into the astral/fade/spirit realms, find the source of the negative muckery, and destroy it. Sometimes this will involve diving deep into the afflicted person’s psyche and spirit to rid them of the affliction. If you’re doing this on yourself, you’ll have to either lucid dream or meditation to achieve a deep enough state to rend yourself apart, rid yourself of the negativity, and patch yourself up. This is similar to Reiki’s techniques and . It’s not unlike Reiki in a cleansing but instead of energy, it’s more forceful and takes place either in your mind or in the astral. it can be very harsh and cautious must be made of clearing out too much negativity too soon as you’ll need to recover.

For meditation and shadow work, you’ll need to dive into yourself in a deep meditation state an discover the parts of you that are “bad” or “negative” and either come to terms with them or change them in ways to better yourself.

Why do this? This is, as mentioned, useful for when this is a state afflicted on you or it has set deep inside of you. This is excellent for people who are powerful spirit workers or are more powerful in their mind or in the astral than elsewhere.

I’m stuck! Some practitioners may assist you in this. Guided meditation may also be useful.

What do you do? Depending on the circumstances I either tear into the issue in the spirit realms or use my Mind Room (read: Mind Palace) to clear out the junk and fix myself.

Select Spells and Techniques

These are spells and techniques used specifically for uncrossing and unblocking. If you haven’t already tried a  cleansing spell or technique, try that first.

Uncrossing Oil (source 1, page 1056-1057)

  • Essential oil of hyssop
  • Essential oil of angelica
  • Essential oil of frankincense
  • Pinch of sea salt
  • Pinch of black pepper
  • Pinch of cayenne pepper
  • Sprig of rue
  • Sliver of fresh garlic
  • Section of broken chain
  • Castor oil and jojoba oil base

Add ingredients. The chain and angelica are the most important elements. Angelica has photosensitive properties so be careful of the sun if you use it on the body.

[Crown’s Notes: You can absolutely mix this spell up. I use different oil bases and herbs in my recipe.]

Crown’s Too Heavy a Cross Spell

Make a cross with two sticks and some twine. If you’re really burdened, add more sticks. Really pour your problems into the sticks as you make it. Douse is in Uncrossing Oil (recipe above). If there’s a specific area being affected, brush the over the area. Envision your negative energy and experiences as you set it on fire and watch it burn.

Uncrossing Spell: Rosemary (source 1, page 614)

This spell breaks a curse and will also lift the Evil Eye.

  1. Put nine drops of essential oil of rosemary in a glass of rainwater
  2. Add nine drops of Uncrossing Oil.
  3. Stir it up and place it in the window. Leave it there for three days.
  4. On the fourth day, sprinkle this water throughout the house, concentrating on corner, dark spots, and any areas that feel “creepy”.
  5. At the same time, add rosemary essential oil and Uncrossing Oil to your bath water.

[Crown’s Note: Be sure to only use a few drops of essential oil and Uncrossing Oil. If undiluted, most essential oils can be damaging to the body.]

Unblocking Spells (2) (Source 1, page 1014)

When your cross is too heavy to bear and you’re sick of being in such misery.

  1. Collect a bowl of rainwater or seawater. You can keep it in reserve. it’s hard to plan to do this spell: you will know if and when the right time arrives.
  2. Cry into the bowl of living water.
  3. When you can’t cry anymore, take the water and feed a plant with it.
  4. Nurture this plant; tell it your desires and dreams.
  5. Write your wishes on a piece of paper and bury them together with a small crystal beside the plant’s roots.

[Crown’s Notes: It could be a local tree if houseplants aren’t your thing. Pick something strong so it can carry and share your burdens.]

Scents and materials to use:

  • Benzoin (burn as needed to remove blockages)
  • Citrus (as described in the cleansing post, but all the citrus scented or flavored things! watch for the sun and photosensitivity)
  • Vetiver (boil, steep, let cool, add to bathwater for nine consecutive days)
  • Devil’s Shoestring (boil, strain, let cool, pour over yourself, air dry, for seven days)
  • Larch (burn to unblock yourself)
  • Peridot (charge and carry)
  • Sardonyx (charge and carry)
  • Quartz crystal (charge and carry)
  • Frankincense (burn as needed)
  • Rosemary (charge and carry or burn as needed or add steeped liquid to bath water)
  • Wahoo bark (infusion)

OK! I’ve done an uncrossing. Now what?

How do you feel? Better? No different? Either can be true and if you feel don’t feel different that doesn’t mean it isn’t working. Your next steps could be any of the following:

  • Healing spells
  • Protection and warding spells (for you and your home)
  • Luck spells
  • Financial assistance spells
  • Binding and banish spells (if a person or entity is involved)

Sources:

  1. The Encyclopedia of 5000 Spells.  Judika Illes.
  2. The Encyclopedia of Spirits. Judika Illes.

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Cleansing Yourself

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Cleansing yourself (or other people or your home) is the spiritual equivalent of “did you try turning it off?” (Meditation, of course, being the equivalent of “is it plugged in?”)

Even though it is such a common remedy for so many things, it is often one of the things people just don’t know how to do or only know one method of. This intent of this particular post is to list and describe a few common cleansing practices. For some folks, this will be basic 101 stuff and others may find revelation in this. Wherever you fall in that spectrum, hopefully this is an interesting read and it helps you some.

First, safety tips: Don’t use anything you’re allergic to. It’s very likely a quick 40 seconds google search will give you an idea whether the mixtures suggested elsewhere or even here will be harmful for you. Use common sense and be safe.

Secondly, before you do anything. Stop. Just stop. Stop checking your phone, reading this sentence, or listening to music. Just stop everything. Now breathe. Drawn in a deep breath. Yes, good. Now hold it for a few seconds. Great. And release. Feels better, doesn’t it? Do this a couple of times. These few moments will mentally break you from whatever chaos is around you and help you re-evaluate what needs to be done.

Now, onto the cleansing methods.

The Water Method

The easiest method by far is taking a shower. Take a few minutes to soak in the hot water and get a steam going before dialing the water temperature down to as cool as you can stand, close your eyes (feel free to lean on the wall if you’re worried about falling), and clear your mind as best you can. Take a few deep breaths and start to envision all the black muck and problems you’re facing falling away like the water. Start this at the top of your head and envision it slipping down your body, gaining more muck as it goes. Envisioning the water going black as you do this and that black water going down the drain. Keep doing this until you feel light and can breath easier.

This method historically is used in many cultures. In Japan, there are specific rites of cleansing and purification that require the person to stand under a waterfall. Most of us don’t have a waterfall handy, so the shower works. I personally use the shower method most often but the best way for me to be cleansed is to go to the ocean and just stand in the water. I don’t have to swim, precisely, but just soak my feet (and maybe splash about in the incoming waves) and I am instantly and enormously better. A cousin of mine uses a specific lake. Many users like to do this with a bath but I don’t often recommend because you’re sitting in the sullied water without something to counter the taint. Essentially, bathing and allowing the water to take the problems from you is a strong spiritual cleanse.

If you’re using a shower or bath, the water method is very easily combined with herbs and bathing salts for cleansing. Even bathing in salt water (which you can make by dissolving sea salt into water) will be extremely helpful. Adding essential oils or herbs to the bathing salts, or just alone will help enormously. (Don’t put essential oils directly on your skin without diluting them first.)

My favorite combination is using citrus essential oils, juices, or dried zest to this effect. A drop of two of lemon juice or bergamot essential oil in a bath or among bath salts will do wonders. A quick warning though is that most citrus is photosensitive. So bathing in lemony water will cause the skin to burn more easily. In short: Don’t bath in citrus anything and then go spend a day in the sun. You’ll burn and dehydrate your skin which will cause even more problems.

Mints, like spearmint, peppermint, or common mint, or even eucalyptus can be used in a similar fashion for a cooling bath. This bath is actually really great if you have an upset stomach or headache so I use it when getting over being sick.

Some people go so far as to bath in sage or other cleansing associated salts or herbs. I find these tend to be very startling spiritually when used in this manner so I recommend them only when there’s a serious problem at hand.

There’s about a hundred thousand different recipes out there. For herbal books based on beauty care Rosemary Gladstar’s Herbal Recipes for Vibrant Health or Stephanie Torres’ Organic Body Care Recipes are recommended. For those interested in cleansing salts or scrubs and don’t want to make them, I offer them in my shop on and off again.

If you want to use herbs in the shower, take a mesh bag or cheese cloth 1/4-1/2 stuffed with herbs and tie it on the shower head. Wash as usual. Just be careful as some herbs have dyeing, drying, or irritating properties on the skin and eyes. Talk to your licensed herbalist. Keep a bowl of clean water beside the shower in case you get irritants in your eye so you can do an eyewash. Alternatively, you can steep the herbs in warm water and cool it, leaving it aside in a bowl. Take that bowl into the shower with you and use it with a shower sponge (bath scrubbie or bath puff) or wash cloth.

This can also be used to clean the house. I tend to use these herbal salt water recipes for my cleaning buckets, floor washes, window cleaning, and so on. Works beautifully. I even toss salt and a drop or two of essential oil in my washing machine to encourage various things.

The Egg Method

Eggs are spiritually powerful. Not only are they unbirthed young, they contain a lot of healthy materials for us. Since they are unbirthed animals, they can be used to absorb hexes, curses, or just general negative energy. Roll the egg over every part of your body that you can reach. Once done, take the egg to a crossroads far away from where you live (an intersection will work, just don’t get hit by a car) and break the egg. Really throw the egg with some force away from you. Leave a different way you came and go home. I generally recommend following this method up with a luxurious bath or shower.

This can also be done with a stone. Alternatively, you can toss the egg or rock into live water (ocean, river, etc.)

The Smoke Method

This is your smudging or herbal stick burning. Burning incense also falls into this category. In general, you pick up cleansing herbs or incense and burn it, carrying the burning whatever throughout the house  and over your body. Leave a door open so if there’s a spirit that’s being chased out, it can leave.

Similarly, candles can be made with cleansing properties and burned for the same results.

This obviously isn’t recommended if you can’t burn candles in the house, have sensitive smoke alarms, or are allergic to or sensitive to smoke.

Detoxification

There’s a lot of bad information out there for detoxification. Talk to your doctor or licensed herbalist for information on how to detoxify yourself. This is less cleansing of the spirit and more of the body. Still, you would be amazed at how detoxifying your body helps the spirit. Be careful and vet each and every recipe you try since there’s so much bad information out there.

One recipe I use fairly often. I tend to drink this between breakfast and lunch every couple of days. Generally people make this recipe in warm water as a tea. I don’t bother. I just pour a cup of room temperature filtered water and call it a day. And yes, the pepper and cinnamon is really necessary. Capsaicin and cinnamon have a lot of great properties when used in small doses so I highly recommend them both.

  • 3 tbsp lemon juice or 1 lemon
  • 1 tbsp honey (raw is better but whatever works best for you)
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1/8 tsp of cayenne pepper (optional)
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)
  • 1 cup water

Drinking a tea of nettle and green tea is another method.

All of the above being said, you’ll find when googling that a lot of detoxing recipes can also be used as weight loss treatments. Please don’t do it. The above has some evidence of assisting in weight loss but when combined with a balanced diet and exercise. You’ll lose weight by only consuming the above for how ever many days but you’ll gain it all back afterwards. It’s really hard on your system. Additionally, if you begin to experience or are prone to acid reflux, stop taking it and switch to milk or cream to calm the reflux. Vinegar, in large quantities, will be acidic on your system without something to counter it (hence why I use so little apple cider vinegar.)

You could also bathe in the above, but as previously mentioned, lemon juice can make someone photosensitive. The recipe, if used on the hair and skin topically often, can even be used as a dyeing method. Yes, really. I use lemon juice in my hair oil recipe and it has lightened my hair over time (which I’m fine with). Something to note.

So these are just some of the methods you can use to cleanse yourself.

For more reading, you can go to the following links over on tumblr:

 

Braided Rope Spell for Increasing Business, Good Luck, or Whatever Else

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Braided Rope Charm for Bringing Business, Luck, Prosperity, etc.

A simple household charm that just about anyone can do. This is more of a technique than a flat-out spell and is easily altered to your needs.

Heads up for enchanted shit in the pictures and sigils that may be in the background. I’ve included a sort of step-by-step how to below.

 

My entry way staircase with the new spell rope.

First gather your materials. Here I’ve created one to help with business so my choices were a fine mesh gauze gold ribbon and a red silk ribbon, seven bells (five gold, two silver, one blue), and a key. The gold and red ribbons stand for wealth, and the bells were enchanted for various things (example: “may the hearer of the bell always have wealth”). They key is because my business is a home business. It’s braided in to keep the business and home in wealth, protection, and prosperity. Additionally, adding an object on the end gives the rope weight and doesn’t allow it to be swung so easily. Your materials may vary of course but bells (or some type of noise-maker) is required for this particular spell.

As for length or size, that depends on preference. The above rope is a little over five feet tall, larger than I am, but that was by choice. I’ve made similar ones at smaller lengths with no reduction of spell power.

Hanging up your braid, or attaching it to a solid surface, can save a lot of trouble and keep the braid from spinning or unraveling. This is especially true with long braids. The longer the braiding materials, the more you’ll have to ensure that the bottom doesn’t get tangled. Swing the strands out with flourish to keep them tangle-free.

I used a three strand braid for this rope, although I tend to use a four strand braid normally as that gives more substance. There’s subtle details of this particular spell I won’t go into because those are private but there is a specific reason why I chose these materials, this braiding technique, and those bell colors.

I looped the top around a cup to get an even loop to attach the rope to. I have a drop ceiling so mine’s simply attached to a bent paperclip. You can probably use a smaller loop if you’re attaching it by a nail or something.

I typically chant while braiding. Don’t get all discouraged. My chants are typically blunt commands. “This will bring prosperity”. Once I get a few inches braided, I slid a bell onto the smaller red ribbon, and braided around it. When I added the bell, I would declare whatever the bell was enchanted for “All that hears the bell ring, shall have wealth and health” or whatever. Then I keep going.

Once I got to the bottom I tied the end off, added in the key, and worked a braid using the key as the third “strand”, fully incorporating my key (and thus my home) into the spell.

 

The first bell is in place and moving onto the second. Using a clasp like the one above can save the rope from unraveling and causing a headache.

 

Tied off at the bottom but before adding the key. Tying off can also allow you to incorporate new stands as needed. Ignore my ugly hand.

 

 

Use the key as the third “strand” and braid around it. At the bottom of the key tie off and you’re done.

And you’re done! I tied it off and stuck it by the door (as seen in the first image)

Because this one’s set for business, every time I make a sale, I’ll ring the bell. In the past I’ve used a household one for luck and protection that I rang before leaving the house every day.

Other ideas:

  • Add charms, beads, or whatever to the braid as you go for your intent.
  • Soak the ribbon or braiding material in enchanted oil or water to absorb more of a kick
  • Write sigils or spells on the braiding material
  • Don’t like braiding? Macrame, crocheting, or knitting work just as well!
  • Enchanting the bells to ring when there’s danger is really common and a great way to make a protection rope.

 

Crown’s Valentine’s Day Master Post

Happy Valentine’s Day / Lupercalia everyone!

Now, I don’t really celebrate either of these holidays so they’re only important to me as many of my friends and family do celebrate them or are affected by them so when I was asked (albeit some months ago) by makeyourownstuffwork to share some love spells “focus on creating a space for love to grow, rather than forcing an imitation of love” as part of a master post I was pretty excited. This post was written quickly but I’d been thinking on it for a while. For my tumblr followers, you’ve seen most of this post (and for wordpress followers, the links go back to tumblr. Eventually I’ll move all these spells over here) but I’ve added some content that I wanted to add last night and didn’t get the chance to and clarified my wording as I was rushed the first time around. Editing is a marvelous thing. Anyway, for those interested, here’s the original tumblr post.

Love spells aren’t strictly my forte. I’m capable of them certainly and they’re said to work wonders according to my clients but I have a friend who is hands down the best person I’ve ever met at spells relating to love and sex so I have my standards pretty high on this sort of thing. I personally don’t use love magic for myself often for a variety of related reasons but mostly because I’m happy being alone. Like, I’m actually happy and prefer to be by myself. Also, I’m not the kind of person to take bullshit and independent like the sun is hot so men seem intimidated? This is in addition to my romantic life’s pretty much a series of me liking someone who doesn’t feel the same way and for people to like me quite a bit but me not return the feelings. I digress….

I really appreciate a love spell. I love the way they have different meanings to different people and the little twists and turns can change something beautiful and freeing to something ugly and chaining. Love spells are traditional and common. Every folklore book ever will have at least one love superstition in it and it’s a pretty good chance that superstition can double as a spell. It’s also one of the number one requested things from clients and I adore performing them on the regular for clients. I’m not the kind of person to shame or judge someone for wanting to be loved or needing to use spells, dating websites, or whatever to fulfill that need. I likewise hate slut shaming. Essentially my belief is love however and whomever you will so long as it’s consensual.

First, before I get into what you’re really here for, let me tell you about why there’s so few love spells in my post and instead focused on spells that will help you in love. As said above, there’s a million love spells out there. Literally. So I find that spells that will help with dating are more useful. These are a series of suggestions and spells for those inclined to try. They might not be straight-up love spells but they’ll go hand-in-hand with your average love spell beautifully.

Self Care! This isn’t just adding enchanted bathing salts to your bath or casting a glamour. You also need to take actual self care for yourself. Even if you’re by yourself, dress up if you want to and take a crapload of selfies. Even if you’re not up for it tonight, you can use your selfies for a spell later (or not). If not, roll around in your sweats and Netflix all night. Be happy. It’s the most important thing. If you are dress yourself up, feel free to slap on some glamours. Glamours don’t just work for others but for you too. (When I feel like crap I put a glamour on myself to focus on the things I like about myself). Bathing in love attracting scents or herbs is a great ideal but watch out for herbs that have unwanted or poisonous effects. Brush up on your protections and be sure to remind yourself how fucking fabulous you are. (This is also something those who don’t have plans to do. Because you are awesome; potential lovers just haven’t seen you yet.) And hey, don’t forget to take any medications or vitamins and to eat a little bit before going out.

For Beauty. Worth, Valerie. The Crone's Book of Charms and Spells. pg. 37There is a talisman for beauty if glamours isn’t your thing. This one is from The Crone’s Book of Charms and Spells by Valerie Worth. Located on page 37 is reads as follows.

“For Beauty

Upon the first face of the talisman shall be depicted a small disk with five rays, as a star, flanked by the crescent Moon and fiery Sun. Upon the reverse shall be written, in characters well formed, these words:

Morning star

And evening star

By thy light

I grow fair.”

For those who are not adept at poetry, essentially write the above charm on the back of a a drawing similar to the one located to the above left. You can use any materials. I tend to use paper but I’ve also embroidered it on things and painted it on leather and glass.

Some spells worth glimpsing though:

Spells for eloquence or a honeyed or silver tongue are also a great idea. Like Honey. Deer’s tongue, honey, sugar, or wearing silver or gold should help with eloquence. If you have anxiety, these may also help you out. Combine these sorts of spells with spells for bravery, courage, confidence, and truth (spells against deceit) to really boost your natural skills.

Use your perfume or cologne to your advantage! Check the ingredients and notes against an herbal or essential oils magical meaning or purpose list to ensure you’re wearing the right one for the night. Better yet, enchant it to your purpose.

Wear amber, rose quartz, rubies, and a myriad of other stones for attracting love. The list is long so check your jewelry and google up their folklore or magical usages.

Carry with you dried herbs or other materials and charms related to love. Examples of this are: rose petals, cinnamon, gardenia, catnip, jasmine, iris, lavender, mint, rosemary, strawberries, vanilla, cloves, sugar, orris root, myrrh, camphor, hibiscus, and hyacinth. Don’t forget you can wear prints with these flowers on them too! Some herbs and flowers are geared more towards certain genders for mythological or plant physiological reasons. Do a quick wiki check first to make sure you’ve made a proper choice.

Use color symbolism to subtly attract love or a date. Red and pink are popular, but cream colors as well as silver and gold are also good. Black is also stunning. Avoid gray as it’s the color of doldrums and invisibility.

As much as we’d like to say it doesn’t happen, drugging people’s drinks is totally a thing and something you need to be extra careful of. Similarly, drinking too much can be (incorrectly might I fucking add) used as an excuse for rape. (It’s not). Here’s a tip against both. Wear or carry a unicorn related item with you. Unicorn horns are supposedly good at eliminating or curing poisons. As a bonus, unicorns are in folklore powerful and fierce creatures. Summon up the spirit of one for assistance it someone just can’t take no for an answer. In general for this, it the charm suddenly calls attention to itself or someone pays sudden attention to it, toss your drink and get a new one, possibly ditching your companion, call for help, and get to safety. It’s better safe than sorry. Have beef with unicorns or none are handy? Use Carmelite water, devil’s shoestring, hyacinth crystal, bezeor stones, or invoking Oshun against poison.

Overindulgence with alcohol on dates is not uncommon so here’s some tips. Magically, carry amethyst. Don’t drink and drive. If you’re going out with a group, have a designated driver and buy them their non-alcoholic beverage of choice all night and hand your keys over.

As said above, summoning up or invoke something (tiger, unicorn, deity, dragon, servitor, whatever) to protect you if someone just can’t take the fucking hint. Being polite only goes so far. When I’m in trouble and I’m not capable of defending myself (rare but it does happen, especially in situations as described above) I summon my servitor which is to protect me even if I’m unconscious and if I’m in holy-shit-I’m-going-to-die trouble I could call upon my family’s guardian (it’s a long story) or my ancestors but I’m a fighter. I prefer to defend myself. Don’t risk yourself unnecessarily. Call for help if needed.

If the night goes sour, have a a few protection spell at the ready and be sure to have someone on speed dial to call. I recommend fake phone call apps (some even will call at scheduled times) as well as Circle of 6 if you need an out.

Glamours for invisibility, to not be noticed, to avoid attackers, etc.

Of course, all of that implies that you actually, you know, have a date. So here’s some love spells and like posts. Remember! One of the best ways to find a lover is to actually meet people. This may be you signing up for online dating or you leaving the house and hitting the town. If one isn’t working, try the other. You have to try in order to reap the benefits.

Witches and Dating

On Target-Specific Love Spells

Apple Love Spell

Divine. Use whatever divination techniques you prefer but divine the answers to a few basic questions: What are you looking for tonight? What are you looking for long term? Where should you go to get it (look for specific ssymbolism and see if any nightlife hotspots match up)? Anything in particular you should look for. And see if a new love interest is going to happen. Don’t take the results as set in stone. They aren’t.

White bark birch trees are traditional for new beginnings, among other things. Here in New England, some cemeteries have birch trees planted around or near the graves to foster the spirits to move on. If you happen to have or can find birch bark (don’t strip the tree, especially in winter, you’ll hurt the tree) write in red on the bark whom you’re looking for in love. It could be as simple as “bring my true love to me”, “bring me someone who will treasure me” or like sentiments. Be as complex as you’d like. For those who are into blood magic, write this spell in your blood. Now kiss the bark, hold it close and really feel the love you want to feel. Then burn it.

Creating a fetch or servitor (Egregores and Constructs or How to Create a Servitor (or, rather, what to consider when making one)) may take time but can be useful in leading or fetching someone to you. Here, I’d recommend giving a list of requirements of what you’d like the person to be to the fetch. This requirement list can be as short and long as you’d like and as shallow or deep as you need it to be. Maybe you need to have someone who will love you fiercely or you’d prefer someone who’s up for a few nights of fun with no strings attached. For those concerned about consent, be sure to add commands like “make sure they’d be willing to date me” or “it’s of their own free will”.

Make a poppet. If you’re looking for a certain kind of person, make a poppet and stuff it with things representative of the person you’re looking for. This could be a lot of fun and a very creative project. Looking for someone with a big, soft heart? Make a big red heart stuffed with soft filling of felt and stick it inside the poppet. Looking for someone with certain physical qualities? Draw or stitch them onto the poppet. Think outside of the box for some things. If you’re making a poppet and can only think of liquids to fill it with, grab a small bottle, fill it, and put the bottle inside the poppet. Keep the poppet close and tuck it in with you at night.

Play out your dream. Poppets are great and all but video games are awesome. Load up your favorite simulation game like the Sims and create as close to you as you can get in the game. Now make someone who is your ideal lover and play out a life of meeting, getting together, and going to whatever extent you’re looking for in said lover.

Almost everyone sees the moon. Beg the moon’s aid in finding someone. Pour a libation of clear liquid (water, snow, vodka, whatever), and tell the moon the type of person you’re looking for. Then look for signs of the moon to indicate whether the petition worked. This is best done on a full moon (like tomorrow at the time of this writing) and outside.

Enchant a magic ring. I recommend finding a ring that has some sort of association with love (maybe has a rose quartz or is in the shape of a heart) and twist it three times on your finger towards your heart. As you do this, say the kind of person you’re looking for (your true love, some to love you, etc.) This is best as a spell you put a lot of energy into and maybe dress the ring, if possible, in love attracting oils and keep it when not stored with a lock (or a bit) of your hair and some love attracting herbs and stones.

Those of you that work in the astral may wish to try this: There are spirits that serve primarily as matchmakers. Some feast on loneliness and others on love. Ask around among your astral contact or write a note and post it somewhere in the astral asking them to get in contact with you. Whichever you get in contact with, be sure to be polite and concise when speaking to them on what you’re looking for. Be sure to mention you’re looking for a lover in the physical realm, where your body is, if that’s what you’re looking for. Offer them up something good – don’t be stingy. I’d suggest making a second offering in the physical as well.

Petition deities. Don’t just tap deities of love or fertility but any deities that have taken a shine to you or are patrons as they may be more willing to help. Be sure to make your offerings generous.

That’s all I have right now. Best of luck to everyone and have a happy Valentine’s Day and/or Lupercalia!

How to Make a Poppet

3 Comments

Now, I’m going to be upfront:

  • This post was written during the process of making a poppet for cursing. While this post can be used for ANY poppet for ANY purpose.
  • Is image heavy; many of the photos are shaky. This is common when I photograph my spell work. I don’t know why but I have my suspicions.
  • Features photographs of charged ingredients, sigils, and spells.
  • Talks about curses
  • Features a mini how-to break glass safely.
  • This is an attempt to be traditionally neutral. I do things different than others and thus my own methods bleed through. Remember to work within and adapt to your own cultural background, paradigm, and practice.
  • Trigger warnings: blood, glass, curses, Gov. Rick Perry, poppets, sigils, spells, energy, charged items, etc. I’m sure there are others I’m missing but there you go.

This is a follow along using simple ingredients. It starts with how to make the poppet, talks about filling it, making the face and personalizing it, and then finishing it up. Away we go.

Continue reading →

Witches, Jars, and Burying ‘Em

[Witches, Jars, and Burying ‘Em tumblr repost June 4th, 11pm]

I can’t be the only one that sees how many witch jar spells tell you to bury said jar in the ground and winces. Why? Because reasons, that’s why.

Don’t roll your eyes. Read on.

2016-03-29 22.09.35

Here’s a few reasons why burying all the witch jars you make can be a pain in the ass:

  1. It can break. Broken glass can eventually make its way to the surface and that barbeque you’re having can turn into a trip to the hospital. This is especially dangerous if the glass was coated with or holding poisons, rust, metal, or other harmful materials.
  2. Finding the jar again. Let’s say you want to undo a spell. Or you just need to find the damn jar after you buried it. If you didn’t mark it, you’re going to be playing the guessing game on locating it in the earth.
  3. Too many jars makes for a full garden. Think about it. Bury six jars in small space then try to plant a garden over it. You can do it, absolutely, but that’s a lot of earth being taken up for a spell.
  4. You’re burying a perfectly good glass jar. I hate using glass jars for spells. I prefer to use and reuse glass jars until I can’t any more. By can’t I mean they shatter, are given away, hold poisons, or contain a smell that can’t be dispersed.
  5. It isn’t your land. (Maybe) You’re renting? Live in an apartment? On campus? Maybe you shouldn’t be burying shit in places you don’t own a deed to.
  6. Someone else could dig it up and find it. And how much would your plan suck then?
  7. Glass doesn’t decompose. Technically called devitrification (if I remember correctly) only some glass actually “breaks down”. In this process, the glass crystallizes as typically seen in art glass, crazing, warping, etc will occur before the glass actually becomes so fragile it will break. This occurs over long periods of time. Some types of glass can be broken down with chemicals such as hydrofluoric acid. But most glass we use, such as silicates, don’t break down naturally.

So what the hell am I bringing this up for and what am I suggesting otherwise? Because I find a lot of people are bottling things up and shoving things in jars as a matter of course. It’s just what you do. And, that might be personal practice and belief coming into play but it’s not necessary. Easy and convenient but not necessary most of the time (from what I can see).

arsp 01

Ask yourself this when gathering ingredients for a spell:

  1. Does it need to be buried? Does it really? Are you sure? There isn’t some other way to solve the problem?
  2. Is this a short term spell? Maybe burying it in a potted plant is better.
  3. Does it need to be liquid? You can soak herbs in vinegar, hot sauce, protection oils, water, etc. without needing to fill a jar. It might even be easier to soak said herbs then leave them for the spell’s target to stumble upon. Hell, you could even spritz some vinegar/water/oil/etc on it and it would probably work (depending on your paradigm and all that).
  4. Does the spell need to be contained? Sometimes spells don’t need to be contained. Sometimes you need them to leech into the soil, earth, and world. If it doesn’t need to be contained, perhaps you should try putting it in a paper bag or a “biodegradable” bottle (most of these aren’t fully biodegradable and don’t do it in five years as advertised so keep that in mind) Jars contain things. Why would you put something in a jar if you want it to get out?
  5. Is it a funeral? A lot of the time I see “bury this” spells is because you’re suppose to be given it a funeral. If you aren’t doing that, then you may want to rethink burying it.
  6. Is it a secret? I don’t bury my protection witch jars. Instead, I hang them up. I put them on display. I let the world know this place is protected. Besides, it also serves as decoration. (Obviously, if you’re in the closet or the spell has a secret purpose, this isn’t an option).
  7. Will some other container make do? I paper bag half my “bury this” spells. Especially if they don’t contain liquid. And the ones that do sometimes don’t need that much liquid. Instead of shaking the jar, I’ll shake and squish the bag instead.
  8. Can you reuse the jar? One your spell has gone off, are you willing to dig up the jar and use it again? I’m not talking about the ingredients. I would bury the organics and bring the inorganics to a recycling station or dump. I’m talking about the jar itself. This comes down to personal belief and practice. I go either way on it personally but to each their own.
  9. Does it need to be sealed? Many witches seal their jars in wax. Why not make a container of wax instead?  Or seal a paper bag or whatever. It’s still sealed and yet you’re not burying glass.
  10. Does it actually need a jar? Many jar spells don’t need to be jar spells. It’s for convenience. You can pour hot sauce or vinegar over paper to curse someone. You don’t always need to stick it in a jar.

I’m not talking about just curses. This applies to ALL spells. And sure, I still make spell jars. It’s easy to make a jar. It’s harder to deal with a spell when it’s messy and everywhere. And I’m not saying everyone should suddenly not use jars. But I hope this little spiel has given at least one person a second’s pause before they reach for that glass jar and consider an alternative.

In the end, this is going to come down to personal practice, personal belief, and convenience. Do what you do and I’ll do what I do.