the witch next door

A candle and crystal offering for Litha ☀️

Crystals offered: clear quartz, rose quartz, fire quartz, carnelian, aventurine, and a lot of little citrine chips.

(Please ignore my crafts in the background 😅)

In Aphrodite's name, did you speak from the place of love today?

In Iris' name, did you choose joy today?

In Hestia's name, did you make time for stillness today?

In Athena's name, did you use your knowledge for good today?

In Artemis' name, did you call out all that was wrong today?

In Hermes' name, did you show compassion today?

In Hypnos' name, did you let yourself rest today?

In Ares' name, did you choose to pause before reacting?

In Apollo's name, did you use your talents today?

In King Zeus' name, did you have faith today?

Happy Summer Solstice, however you celebrate it!

enchanting my favorite scissors so they never get lost

egg shell powder around the perimeter of the house and inside every room

horseshoe and sachet above the exterior doors

rings of all sorts of metals, gems, and enchantments

so much tea

glamour dust in my beard brush

ask my plants to keep me on schedule

my cats vibe check everything

casual energy healing when i know my friends are struggling

hoard tiny mementos (ticket stubs, arm bands, handwritten notes, a stray cat whisker, gifted trinkets, etc., misc.)

placing sigils on the wall behind hung paintings with energy that matches the feeling the painting evokes

sigils on sticky notes blatantly all over the house

sigils on containers of food

Sometimes a ritual is a good way to express gratitude, today i expressed gratitude for among other things these wild strawberry plants i grew from seed. They give me strawberries all year round and the strawberries are one of my favourite offerings. I show gratitude to the plant by taking care of it and i tell it what it's fruit is being used for. I have been using more direct language in my offers / gifts as to signify that these are gifts and who they belong to now. I am attempting to find more ways to offer and gift on a regular basis.

When offering something to muiltipe others i personally like to start with whomever i associate that thing most with. In this ritual i expressed gratitude and gave gifts to three others and ate a strawberry myself and gave one to my rabbit. [only pictured the strawberries gifted to the others]

You also need skills other than witchcraft. There's botany, since gathering your own plants for spells is an easy way to advance. Reading comprehension is extremely important, every witch should be able to read and understand books like the bible. You need to be skilled in at least one form of creation, wether its cooking, baking, drawing, writing, whittling, literally any skill were you make something. The Act of Creation is extremely powerful and spiritual, and you need to understand how to make something before you learn how to break it.

If you want to advance your craft, you have to advance yourself. Also, its impossible to advance in your craft or your life if your not being honest with yourself. Life is a preformance, but you need to preform only for yourself. You are your own audience, critic, and fan. I feel like there is a epidemic of people who only react to the world instead of acting in the world.

You are how the universe perceives itself, you actively change the universe with your mindset and perspective. I feel like we all have this learned helplessness that we need to follow the path that is expected of us, when Witchcraft is about being the harbinger of chaos. You need to quit listening to people, question literally everything from the politicans to the stars and to the god. The purpose of life is to control the self and by extension the world around you. How can you do that when you are being controlled by something else.

[part 1]

Make a sewing station in honour of Hestia.

Start a home apothecary for Demeter.

Put stacks of books around your reading place in honour of Athena.

Make a wall frame arrangement of your family photos for Hera.

Dedicate a shelf in your bathroom for a "spa day" essential for Aphrodite.

Make a music station, with a record player, CDs, and your instruments for Apollo.

Have a travel essentials bag always ready in honour of Hermes.

Over the Hedge Flying Salve

This formula is for a salve to aide in spirit walking, dream work, spirit travel, and visions.

This is an intermediate to advanced process. You can undertake it if you're a beginner, but I, personally, would have been slightly overwhelmed when I was a beginner if I had tried to do this right out the gate, so I'll be labeling it according to that.

Herbs needed:

- Olive or Grapeseed Oil - Beeswax pellets/shavings - 3 tbsp Vervain - 3 tbsp Yarrow - 2 tbsp Bergamot - 2 tbsp Chamomile - 1/4 c. Mugwort

Items/Tools needed:

- Amber Jar + Lid for oil infusion - Metal tin to store salve in - Large Pot - Wax Melting Bowl/Pitcher (Any metal thing that can sit in a pot of water safely. Preferably with a classic handle that can resist heat. What I use for reference.)

The Oil Infusion Process:

Start by making your oil infusion by combining all your herbs into your amber jar, and adding enough of your oil to cover them completely. You'll let this sit for 2-6 weeks-- or if you follow the lunar cycle you can infuse it for a time that is significant to your practice. (I like to personally charge this on my altar during the infusion process.)

Once your infusion has set for the allotted time, drain the herbs through a cheesecloth. (While a strainer can work in a pinch, cheesecloth is best as you can squeeze and really get out all that goodness.) Also, you don't have to use all of the oil you make in this salve. There's more than enough to set aside some and use it for other things. It should keep for a year before it's best to simply make a new batch.

The Salve Process:

Using a 1:3 ration (1 part beeswax to 3 parts oil), measure out your appropriate amount of beeswax and add it to your boiler system to begin the melting process. After the beeswax is melted, add it to your metal tin. (Note: hot wax + cold glass = shattering; if you'd like to use a glass jar for this be mindful of fire and heat safety.) Take your infused oil and add the appropriate amount to the beeswax and mix well. Let this cool and set into a salve like consistency. *Remember to test this out on a small patch of skin first to make sure you have no allergic reactions.

Et voila! You have your flying ointment that should last a year, just as the oil.

Method for ointment making derived from The Crooked Path by Kelden. Formula, however, is my own.

While these herbs are safe to use, do your research and make sure none of these herbs have any effects with any conditions you may have. :)

@classicstober day 6: The Moirai aka. the Fates. Three goddesses feared by mortal and immortal alike. Clotho, who spun the thread of fate. Lachesis, who allotted each mortal their length of time on this plane of existence. And Atropos, whose dread shears cut each thread.

Sometimes the fates are depicted as beautiful goddesses, other times they are a trio of crones, in more modern depictions, it has become popular to depict them in the neopagan style of maiden, mother, and crone. I chose to give them theatrical masks to diversify them as well as give them a more mysterious appearance. For my design I imagine their faces, as well as the fates they deal in are unknowable to all… Even the other gods.