You’re healing every time you
get out of bed because there’s something you’re excited about.
don’t think about people who left.
clean the clutter in the room and dishes in your sink.
smile at yourself and random people.
do something kind and out of the blue to make someone happy.
work out or meet with friends even though you have no energy to.
calm yourself down when your thoughts race.
remember to drink water.
don’t dwell on things you can’t control.
do things good for yourself, even though you have no motivation.
tell yourself that you’re growing from this, and you won’t feel like this forever.
reminder that everything is working out. the universe is 111% working in your favor. you are powerful, you are beautiful, you are love. everything is going to turn out better than you could've ever imagined for yourself. you are exactly where you need to be to grow further into your power
Today’s mood: live in a forest cottage, make magic potions and grow herbs in the garden
I made this to relax before bed and bring in sweet dreams and happiness the next day. This is good after a stressful day or when you want a good nights sleep.
What you need
-3 chamomile tea bags - relaxing, peace, happiness
-water (I used normal water but you can use rain or moon water for more of an effect)
-milk
-honey - to sweeten your dreams
-cinnamon - to bring happiness into the next day and to remind you that the sun always rises the next day
Steps
I. Fill a mug ¼ full of water and pour it into a pot. Put the chamomile tea bags in and simmer the pot to let them seep
II. Let the tea get really strong. Maybe simmer it for about 10 minutes
III. Fill the mug about ¾ full of milk and pour it into the tea. Make sure to leave the tea bags in.
IV. Add in honey and stir until devolved. Once your milk tea is warm, pour it into the mug and sprinkle cinnamon one top
V. Hold the mug in your hand and change it with calm and happy energy
I hope you enjoy this delicious milk tea! Have a wonderful day 🌼
The Signs and Scents
♒️ Aquarius (January 20th - February 18)
Cardamom, spearmint, mist, marzipan, cold air, palo santo, citronella, geranium
♓️ Pisces (February 19 - March 20)
Rain, lavender, the sea, warm showers, blankets, berries, soap, chamomile
♈️ Aries (March 21 - April 19)
Pine, bonfire, orange zest, lemonade, black tea, cinnamon, rosemary, frankincense
♉️ Taurus (April 20 - May 20)
The after rain smell, fresh cut grass, earth, rose, sage, freshly cut hay, floral tea, cedar wood
♊️ Gemini (May 21 - June 20)
Vanilla, honey, apples, steam, pepper, the moment before it rains, thyme, toast, freshly lit candle
♋️ Cancer (June 21 - July 22)
Coffee, blankets, coconut, sparklers, wildflowers, thunderstorms, tree sap, cucumber
♌️ Leo (July 23 - August 22)
Melon, incense, honeysuckle, mango, blown out candle, wood, star anise, beeswax
♍️ Virgo (August 23 - September 22)
Cotton, bread, mountain air, bergamot, lily of the valley, forests, tea tree, grass
♎️ Libra (September 23- October 22)
Warm towels, lemon balm, top of babies head, pumpkin, ylang ylang, dryer sheets, myrrh, cider
♏️ Scorpio (October 23 - November 21)
Jasmine, wine, freshly lit matches, ginger, chai tea, hot spring, juniper, cherry
♐️ Sagittarius (November 22 - December 21)
Timber, leather, lilac, fall leaves, eucalyptus, fresh paper, lime, maple trees
♑️ Capricorn (December 22 - January 19)
Old books, oranges, fir tree, grandmas house, campfire, patchouli, fresh coffee, nutmeg
stir your morning drink (coffee, tea etc) with intent
pull a tarot card each morning for the day ahead or night for the next day
wear crystals or jewellery you’ve enchanted
wear certain colours that correspond to certain things
incorporate kitchen witchcraft into your everyday cooking
bid you deities or spirits good morning or good night
create a playlist that makes you feel witchy and listen to it
listen to witchy podcasts
meditate for a few minutes to ground yourself
admire nature from your window even if it’s just a distant tree or even the clouds
make a quick sigil and carry it with you (sigilscribe is a great website to quickly create sigils if you don’t have time to make one for yourself!!)
talk to the moon, say goodnight before bed
spring is just like *wildly oscillates between feeling a gut-wrenching melancholy and happily basking in the sun like a cat*
a side note before we start, there is an amazing video that personally inspired me by a witch (herspeak) that you can watch here! i will include some of the information she gives in her video in this post for those of you who don’t have the time to watch!
first off… grimoire? book of shadows? whats the difference? what on earth even is a book of mirrors?? wait… there’s even more??
well first lets quickly talk about the different types of books!
grimoire: a textbook of magick, a reference book filled with anything you desire or need to remember (lists, correspondences, how-to’s, spells)
book of shadows: for wiccans/pagans, this can be seen as more religious, but it is typically more known for its personal/spiritual journal aspects (religious or not); some may use it for references also
book of mirrors: a book of reflections, for recording experimentation and its results including successes and failures (some like to keep their book of shadows pure with only successes)
book of light: a book used usually by wiccans/pagans that is used by eclectics, referring to light as knowledge; used for notes and information often to be shared whereas a book of shadows is personal and private (sort of makes me think of a less organized/personal grimoire)
the tree: a seax-wica (an anglo-saxon paganism) version of a book of shadows
book of ways: a devotional book for wiccans/pagans
(of course all of these things are up to further interpretation!)
back in the day when witchcraft was more ruled by covens, only one spell book was required for each coven, but now that witchcraft is often a solitary and/or personal path, witches are often encouraged to have their own! most witches will have either a book of shadows or grimoire. some witches will have both, and some will have one book that includes the aspects of both and call it one or the other.
let’s start with the basic thing nobody talks about… the book itself!
what should you use? well first off, you don’t need some big, expensive, and fancy leather book straight out of hocus pocus. if its so fancy that you aren’t going to work in it, don’t use it! you could use…
a sketchbook
you could make a book (a traveler’s notebook is a great idea)
an online book
a binder and insert pages
an old thrift store book and paint over the pages
you could even write and paint on paper and paste all over your walls and work space and make a room your ‘book’
you could choose something that relates to your field of magick if you have a defined one, get creative!
make sure your book a reflection of you. but remember, we are what makes books come alive. reading is what makes languages have purpose. without you there to read it, your book is meaningless. the connection between you and your book is beyond special from the first moment you begin working!
so where on earth do i start? if you already have one, what’s holding you back from working more?
well what interests you? if you don’t know yet, here is a wonderful masterpost of types of magick! find what you like, what sounds cool to you, what resonates with you, research it! (maybe make an entry about it and your discoveries!)
once you know your interests, don’t waste time on things you aren’t interested in. if you don’t care about herbal magick, don’t write down a seven page list of all herbs and their properties. i personally had to retry creating a grimoire a few times in order to learn that lesson.
so how do i bond and grow comfortable with my book? how do i create a connection? how do i give it my personal touch?
do what makes you happy.
create your own aesthetic. maybe ask friends around you what your aesthetic seems to be if you don’t know yourself. don’t follow that big ole leather book stereotype unless you like it. if you do, another great idea for aging your pages are coffee and tea stains on your paper.
sleep with your book under your pillow! bond with it like you would your tarot deck. carry it around throughout the day. let it become a companion.
your book isn’t just a place to write about your craft, infuse your craft! if you like lunar magick, bathe it in moonlight. if you like herbal magick, spray your pages with an herb and water mix.
don’t stress about organization or a table of contents yet. you can put an index at the end when you know you’re done. its your book so you’ll probably have a sense of where things are anyways, but if you’re forgetful like me, use some labelled bookmarks!
in fact, don’t stress about it at all if you can! your book shouldn’t stress you out. mistakes happen. keep negative energy away. you and your book are a conjoined, powerful force! you can paste over pages, paint over them, or even just rip them out. in the wonderful words of herspeak in the aforementioned video, nothing is special until you say it is.
remember, it might take a couple tries to get it right, and that’s okay! you might have to make a couple throughout your lifetime to hold all the knowledge you learn, so no worries.
don’t just copy and paste other peoples’ information into your book, that isn’t how you learn. take note of things that are important to you. are you memorizing or understanding? allow yourself to understand. if it shines and you find it important, write this information in your own words and in a setup you enjoy.
you don’t have to be an artist to make a beautiful book! your book is already beautiful, unique, and magickal because its yours!
here’s some ideas for pages in your book!
correspondence lists. i definitely think color correspondences are important for just about every witch! what do these things mean to you? how do they make you feel and what do you relate them to? do this with other things you find interesting!
devote a page to your sun and moon sign or maybe you and your partners signs and how they interact.
create a protection sigil just for your book.
make a page about your totem animal/spirit animal. please don’t appropriate these terms though, you can also use daemon, patronus, eomkin, or even just your personal corresponding animal.
you could make a page for each holiday, its history and dates, and add a paper pocket into the page filled with recipes.
you could collage things that make you think of a deity you like whether you’re secular or whether you participate. if enjoy and appreciate a deity, give em a page! if you worship or work with one or many, dive in much deeper and show how that relationship affects you.
paste in pictures from books or parts of posters that show what magick means to you.
practice spirit work? draw the spirit! collage the spirit. find art that makes you think of the spirit and pop it in there.
press plants you find, tape them in, bring a little greenery into your book. label them if you like. give them your own names if you don’t know your plants well.
write your dreams out, decorate in a way that feels right, use colors according to how it made you feel.
draw out the ingredients you want to use in a spell/potion/oil. dab a bit of the creation on the page.
make a page for your familiars. list any spells for them, where you found/adopted them, their breed and things about them, what’s their favorite snack, and if your familiar is cooperative, maybe try to get a paw/nose print!
make a pendulum chart.
find one of those adult coloring books. tear a few pages and stick them in either randomly or maybe in a page about meditation. when stressed, use it as a meditative practice.
chakras, what they mean to you, correspondences, and which you may need to work on. here is a fun test you can take that tells you if your chakras are under-active, over-active, or open.
any fictional/real witches or wizards that stood out to you? why?
write about magickal experiences you had as a child you can’t explain today. what about imaginary friends and were they imaginary?
get geeky. make spells about video games! inspire spells based on favorite characters and abilities or get inspiration from your favorite playable mages! get really creative with this one.
make a page about past lives if you know of any.
what do the elements mean to you? what are your favorites? which do you feel connected to?
stick envelopes in there and put recipes, spreads, all sorts of things in there to save some pages! utilize fold out pages for long chunks of information.
do you cast circles? what do you use? what do you think the energy looks like? the color? the shape if you don’t see it as a circle? draw the seen and unseen.
make a page about your spiritual or psychic gifts. how did you discover them?
make a list of things to research. cross them out as you do.
print out aesthetically pleasing pictures you find portray you and your craft. collage your personal aesthetic/witchy moodboard
i could list on and on, but i hope i’ve given you some creative inspiration! make your book what you want! keep researching and gain inspiration from others if you’re ever lost. feel free to message me if you ever have questions!
happy casting!
I’ve been practicing witchcraft for five years now and haven’t yet made a book of shadows. I’ve put it off because I’m afraid I won’t be able to make it perfect, but I’m finally going to do it and accept that it won’t be perfect. Any tips before I start?
☀️ 🍊 I made this with the thought for my fellow Solar Witches! 🍊 ☀️
You’ll need:
Spray bottle
Cooking Pot
Sun Water : protection, healing, happiness, strength, comfort, warmth
1 stick of cinnamon: protection, warmth
Orange peels: Optimism, vitamin C
Rosemary: protection, warmth
1 tbs of Salt: Protection,
Here’s how you make Sun Water!
How to make:
Gather your ingredients and utensils
Pour your Sun Water into the cooking pot and turn on the stove
While the Sun Water is boiling, put all the ingredients in!
Let it boil and let the ingredients infuse into the water until you can smell the distinct smell of cinnamon and oranges
Let it cool down before you pour the water into the spray bottle
Good luck! here’s a photo of mine: