Sun digs its heels to taunt you~

Giant Isopod stimboard for anon

Aesthetic Stimboard: Nature/Foxes/Candles (requested by: @quillsgarden)

For all my witches out there, here's a handy list of the 2023 dates for the major holidays, full and new moons, and special events. I've listed my sources at the bottom. Dates and times for all events are calculated for Eastern Standard Time, USA, Northern Hemisphere. Adjust for your location as needed. Enjoy!

WOTY Holidays and Solstices

February 1-2 - Imbolc

March 20 - Spring Equinox / Ostara

May 1 - Beltane

June 21 - Summer Solstice / Midsummer

August 1 - Lughnasadh

September 23- Autumn Equinox / Mabon

October 31 - Samhain

December 21 - Winter Solstice / Yule

Full Moons

January 6 - Wolf Moon ♑

February 5 - Snow Moon ♒

March 7 - Worm Moon ♓

April 6 - Pink Moon ♈

May 5 - Flower Moon ♉

June 14 - Strawberry Moon ♊

July 3 - Thunder Moon (aka Buck Moon) ♋

August 1 - Sturgeon Moon ♌

August 31 - Blue Moon ♍

September 29- Harvest Moon ♎

October 28 - Hunter's Moon (aka Blood Moon) ♏

November 27 - Frost Moon ♐

December 26 - Cold Moon ♑

Fun Fact: The title of Harvest Moon is given to either the September or October full moon, whichever falls closest to the autumn equinox. In 2023, as in 2022, that month will be September.

New Moons

January 21 ♒

February 20 ♓

March 21 ♈

April 20 ♈

May 19 ♉

June 18 ♊

July 17 ♋

August 16 ♌

September 14 ♍

October 14 ♎

November 13 ♏

December 12 ♐

Special Events

May 5 - Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

August 30 - Blue Moon

September 29 - Penumbral Lunar Eclipse

Mercury Retrogrades (in case you need them)

Dec 29, 2022 - Jan 18, 2023

April 21 - May 14

August 23 - September 15

Dec 13, 2023 - January 1, 2024

SOURCES:

Moon Info - Full Moon 2023

Calendar-12.com - Moon Phases 2023

Full Moonology - Full Moon Calendar 2023

Yearly Horoscope - Mercury Retrograde 2023 Dates and Times

Your Zodiac Sign - 2023 Astrology Calendar

The Pagan Grimoire - The Wheel of the Year: The 8 Festivals in the Wiccan Calendar

=

if i miss anything or get anything wrong, don't be afraid to correct me!

i live in the Northern Hemisphere, so some of these dates are based on that

sorry for the long post!!!

RETROGRADES OF 2023:

MERCURY RETROGRADE:

December 29, 2022 - January 18, 2023

April 21, 2023 - May 14, 2023

August 23, 2023 - September 15, 2023

December 13, 2023 - January 1, 2024

VENUS RETROGRADE:

July 22, 2023 - September 3, 2023

MARS RETROGRADE:

October 30, 2022 - January 12, 2023

JUPITER RETROGRADE:

September 4, 2023 - December 30, 2023

SATURN RETROGRADE:

June 17, 2023 - November 4, 2023

URANUS RETROGRADE:

August 24, 2022 - January 22, 2023

August 28, 2023 - January 27, 2024

NEPTUNE RETROGRADE:

June 30, 2023 - December 6, 2023

PLUTO RETROGRADE:

May 1, 2023 - October 10, 2023

FULL MOONS OF 2023:

WOLF MOON:

Friday, Jan 6

SNOW MOON:

Sunday, Feb 5

WORM MOON:

Tuesday, Mar 7

PINK MOON:

Thursday, April 6

FLOWER MOON:

Friday, May 5

STRAWBERRY MOON:

Sunday, Jun 4

BUCK MOON:

Monday, Jul 3

STURGEON MOON:

Tuesday, Aug 1

BLUE MOON:

Thursday, Aug 31

HARVEST MOON:

Friday, Sept 29

HUNTER'S MOON:

Saturday, Oct 28

BEAVER MOON:

Monday, Nov 27

COLD MOON:

Wednesday, Dec 27

NEW MOONS OF 2023:

Saturday, Jan 21

Monday, Feb 20

Tuesday, Mar 21

Thursday, Apr 20

Friday, May 19

Sunday, Jun 18

Monday, Jul 17

Wednesday, Aug 16

Friday, Sept 15

Saturday, Oct 14

Monday, Nov 13

Tuesday, December 12

FIRST QUARTER MOONS OF 2023:

Saturday, Jan 28

Monday, Feb 27

Wednesday, Mar 29

Thursday, Apr 27

Saturday, May 27

Monday, Jun 26

Tuesday, Jul 25

Thursday, Aug 24

Friday, Sep 22

Sunday, Oct 22

Monday, Nov 22

Tuesday, Dec 19

LAST QUARTER MOONS OF 2023:

Sunday, Jan 15

Monday, Feb 13

Wednesday, Mar 15

Thursday, Apr 13

Friday, May 12

Saturday, Jun 10

Monday, Jul 10

Tuesday, Aug 8

Wednesday, Sep 6

Friday, Oct 8

Sunday, Nov 5

Tuesday, December 5

HOLIDAYS OF 2023:

Samhain (All Hallow's Eve, Autumn-Winter Cross Quarter Days): Oct 31 - Nov 1

Yule (Winter Solstice): Dec 21 - Jan 1

Imbolc (Ground Hog's Day): 1 - 2 Feb

Ostara (Spring Equinox): Mar 20

Beltane (Mayday): May 1

Litha (Summer Solstice): Jun 20

Lammas (Lughnasadh): Aug 1

Mabon (Autumnal Equinox): Sep 21 - Sep 29

Lemon

Purification, love, and friendship are just a few of the most popular uses for lemon in magical practices. As well as longevity. It’s most associated with summertime, and with its bright yellow color and summertime associations you’d think it’d also correspond with the sun, but it’s actual planetary correspondence is the moon.

🍋 You can add a slice of lemon to your moon water, to use for cleansing second hand items, charms and other objects.

🍋 Add a slice of lemon to tea being shared among friends to strengthen the bonds of friendship, or in a purification or cleansing tea.

🍋 Hang dried lemon slices to bring blessings and good luck into your home.

🍋 You can use lemon peels (and the flowers from lemon trees) in love spells; most notably in spells involving platonic love.

🍋 Add dried crushed lemon peels to any poppet for magic related to friendship, blessings, luck, happiness, and self love.

🍋 Add lemon to your bath during a full moon to help boost manifestation spells or rituals. You can also do this when making moon water too.

🍋 Use lemon seeds in spells intended to “grow” or manifest something related to love or friendship. Or in spells that you foresee will take a bit of time to manifest.

Lemon is also known for being high in vitamin C, which helps boost your immune system. It’s used in teas and elixirs to help fight against common colds and flu. It’s high in dietary fiber so it’s also known to help aid in healthy digestion. It’s high vitamin C content also helps promote a healthy heart and liver.

Moon Phases

New Moon- dark magick, beauty and health, money, new beginnings, rejuvenation, banishment, new projects, soul searching, seclusion, midnight magick, binding, decision making

*waxes into full moon

Waxing Moon- growth, attraction, getting things done, follow through, production, healing, creation, friendship, love, drawing courage, luck, inspiration, power, production, motivation

Full Moon- divination, protection, light work, psychic abilities, light works, romance, knowledge, blessings, decision making, prosperity, guidance, fulfillment

*wanes into new moon

Waning Moon- removal, protection, cleansing, repelling, breaking curses, release, mending relationships, warning

Blue Moon- rituals, protection, guidance, power boost, divination, obtaining goals, positive change

Blood Moon- ridding oneself of bad habits, prophecy, spirit conjurations, protection, manifestation, balance, transformation

Super Moon- There is a huge increase in the Moon’s energy, allowing for a heightened ability in any form of magick.

Lunar Eclipse- any type of lunar magick for any phase. Lunar eclipse shows all of the moon’s phases at once.

Abundance- waning to full

Breaking bad habits- waning

Reversing bad luck- waning

Beauty and health- full

Bindings- waning

Blessings- full

Career advancement- waxing

Communication- full

Breaking curses/hexes- waning

Divination- waning and full

Ending addictions- waning

Energy raising- waxing

Exorcism- waning

Overcoming fear- waning

Fertility- waxing and full

Forgiveness- new

Friendship- waxing

Garden planting- waxing

Attaining goals- waxing to full

Good luck- waxing

Growth of any kind- waxing

Harmony- waxing

Happiness- waxing and full

Healing to increase health- waxing

House blessings- full

Inspiration- waxing and full

Intuition- full

Jinx breaking- waning

Love magick- waxing and full

Love spells (reversal)- waning

Increasing wealth- waxing

Banishing negativity- waning

Banishing nightmares- waning

Obtaining things and goals- waning and full

Overcoming- waning

Peace to end hostility/war- waning

Power- waxing and full

Prophetic dreams- full

Protection- waxing

Psychic matters- full

Sexual desires- waxing

Spirit conjurations- full

Strength- waxing to full

Transformations- full

Travel- waxing

Wisdom- waxing and full

An eclipse takes place when one celestial body passes in front of another, obstructing the light we can see from it here on Earth. Since eclipses always take place during the most powerful phases of the lunar cycle, eclipses are great times for extra powerful spells! To find out when you’ll next be able to view an eclipse, take a look at this website.

Solar Eclipses take place during the New Moon.

A partial solar eclipse takes place when the Sun, Moon, and Earth are not quite perfectly aligned, and the Moon only covers a portion of the Sun. 

A total solar eclipse takes place when the Sun, Moon, and Earth are perfectly aligned, and the Moon passes right through the Sun’s center, creating a bright ring of visible sunlight.

Intents: destroy the things that are holding you back, starting something new, healing, drawing something to you, shadow work, balancing the conscious mind and unconscious

Ideas for extra powerful spells: Take note of the planetary placements and see if there are any other planets conjunct/aspect with the Sun and the Moon. Draw on those energies as well! Use as much planetary energy as possible to give power to your new beginning.

Tips for Safe Viewing:

NEVER LOOK DIRECTLY AT A SOLAR ECLIPSE. EVER.

View through a solar filter

View through Welder’s goggles with a rating of 14 or higher

Some telescope companies offer metal-coated filters that allow safe viewing of the Sun through a telescope

Build your own pinhole projector

Lunar Eclipses take place during the Full Moon.

A total lunar eclipse occurs when the entire Moon is covered by the darkest part of Earth’s shadow, its umbra.

A partial lunar eclipse occurs when part of the Moon is covered by Earth’s umbra.

A penumbral lunar eclipse takes place when the Moon travels through the faintest part of Earth’s shadow.

Intents: healing, protection, finishing projects, illuminating the unknown, balance, manifestation, peace

Ideas for extra powerful spells: Again, draw on the planetary placements - but since the Sun and the Moon are in opposition during a full moon, this time see which planets are conjunct/aspect with the Sun and the Moon individually. A lunar eclipse is a great way to balance opposing forces in your life and you can draw on the energies of other planets to help resolve the solar and lunar forces!

Tips for Safe Viewing:

I'm starting to work on more complex spells again, but this time I'm writing down my knowledge!

Here are some questions to ask yourself when creating a spell:

Intent

What is the aim of this spell?

Preparation

How will you prepare the space and physical items of the spell?

Spell Type

What kind of spell will you be using?

State of Mind

What state of mind would be best for this spell?

Protection

What precautions have you taken and could/should you take more?

Raising Energy

What’s the best way to raise/build/gather energy for this spell?

Directing Energy

How will you direct the raised energy into the spell?

Grounding

How will you get rid of any excess energy?

Cleansing

How will you cleanse before and after the spell? (If cleansing is a part of your practice).

Results

This post will go over what is needed for a spell to be created!

This is a page from my grimoire and by no means is this a set-in-stone situation. Take what you will and leave what you won't.

Desire or intent. This is the whole point of the spell. What is the desired outcome, what do you want to achieve from this spell?

Planning of ingredients, spell structure, time, and location. This includes the verbal or written aspect of the spell if any.

Protection, there’s really no reason not to have a safeguard on your spell in my opinion but this isn't true for everyone. Do what feels right for you.

Raising, gathering, or building energy for the spell. Energy is how you get your spell to work. This can be done by chanting, breathwork, borrowing energy, and more.

Directing energy into the spell. Self-explanatory, gotta get it in there somehow. Basically just getting the intent/desire from inside you to inside the spell so that it can work its magic (pun intended).

Release any excess energy if needed. Grounding is a good way to do this.

Clear and concise ending; this could be a phrase, word, or physical act that indicates the ending of the spell. It’s best when everyone and everything involved knows when you have ceased doing the spell.

Extras:

It’s a good idea to record your process and results of the spells you create and cast so that you have a reference for future spells; also you can figure out what went wrong or right.

I personally think it’s a good idea to put a fail-safe in a spell, I usually do this by stating it out loud: i.e. “If I take apart this spell bag then the spell will cease.” or “If I do this spell in reverse the spell will cease/reverse” and so on.