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Hey @goshdarnitmaria, so happy to hear that you are new to Champions! Let me give you the rundown!

This is Kamala Khan:

But you might know her as Ms Marvel

She’s awesome, and was the one who first suggested the formation of the Champions. If you’re not already reading her series, I’d suggest that you do, because there’s no way I can even begin to tell her story. 

Kamala is an Inhuman. She can grow and shrink and stretch, and is a badass melee fighter. Over time, she’s learned from her mentors like Captain Marvel and Iron Man about responsibility and teamwork, and she’s pretty much the one holding the team together (in my opinion).

Next up, Miles Morales:

Also known as Spider Man!

Miles is actually from the Marvel Ultimate universe, and was brought here by the events of Secret Wars (along with his parents and some friends. Its pretty unclear tbh). 

Miles was bitten by a radioactive spider in an experiment designed to replicate the powers of Peter Parker, and he’s picked up those powers and a few extra. Along with wall crawling and web-slinging, he can shoot electric shocks from his fingertips and hes got some cool one-ops too. 

Then we have Sam Alexander: 

You may have recognized him as Nova

Sam also has a long backstory, and it revolves around his dad, whose helmet he used to become Nova after his father disappeared. 

The helmet gives Sam the power of flight, as well as some energy blasts and some other cool stuff. Sam provides the comedy for the Champions, and a solid ground to hold the team together (when he’s not making jokes at their expense).

Now, these three had been a part of the All-New All-Different Avengers, and they’ve known each other for some time. They’re good friends, and they’ve each had a few crossover issues. 

In Champions, they meet up with Amadeus Cho:

(who I now realize is shirtless like 99 percent of the time)

And you’ve seen him as the Totally Awesome Hulk

Amadeus is officially the 8th smartest person in the world, and he was smart enough to cure Bruce Banner of the Hulk. However, he transferred the powers to himself, and now he has full control over the Hulk’s powers. 

He’s the guy in the group that hosts the party, and makes sure that everyone has a place to crash after its all over.

Then there was Viv!

Viv Vision (who doesn’t have a superhero name, I guess), is Vision’s daughter. She’s had her own story (just read the Vision comic. It’s terrifying. and awesome), and now she’s got her own group. 

She can phase through walls, fly, and so much more. She’s the best.

And last, but certainly not least, Scott Summers:

AKA Cyclops, this Scott is actually stuck in the future and not his future evil self. He used to roll with the X-men, but now he’s joined the Champions. 

Scott shoots lasers from his eyes (I know, they’re actually concussion beams. but lasers sound cooler), and he is actively forging his own path through life. 

So yeah, that’s the Champions!

You know what I love?

Pirate romance.

You know what’s really hard to find in good quality?

Pirate romance.

So, here is my list of pirate romance and love stories that actually do justice to pirates, ladies, and don’t involve any (God bless it) cringe-y Treasure Island “pirate speak.”

Frenchman’s Creek - Daphne DuMaurier

Jaded by the numbing politeness of Restoration London, Lady Dona St. Columb revolts against high society. She rides into the countryside, guided only by her restlessness and her longing to escape.

But when chance leads her to meet a French pirate, hidden within Cornwall’s shadowy forests, Dona discovers that her passions and thirst for adventure have never been more aroused. Together, they embark upon a quest rife with danger and glory, one which bestows upon Dona the ultimate choice: sacrifice her lover to certain death or risk her own life to save him.

DuMaurier is often credited with the early stirrings of the modern day romance novel, but Frenchman’s Creek is without a doubt a love story, not a romance novel. If you’re looking for a HEA, this is not going to be your cup of tea. 

Her prose is moody and ethereal - a perfect match to the windswept isolated countryside setting. It’s a story about an unhappy woman’s personal and sexual awakening in the arms of the ultimate gentleman pirate. Almost everything happens off-page, but DuMaurier does manage to make the removal of a single earring painfully erotic.

Dona is complicated and often unlikable in her decisions, but she never backs down from who she is and when it matters, she makes the right choices. Jean Aubrey is fun, interesting, and thoughtful without needing to be in the finest clothes or the smartest man in the room. He has a tic for drawing birds, which softens him from being a scary pirate without turning him into a teddy bear.

Siren - Cheryl Sawyer

Jean Laffite is a pirate with a brutal reputation. A black-eyed sea gypsy, he is legendary for his plundering of ships and seduction of women. Léonore Roncival, a pirate’s daughter, is mistress of the Caribbean island of San Stefan. Léonore, too, inspires whispered innuendo. Her island is rumoured to be awash in treasure. Her beauty is said to lure men to the peaks of ecstasy–and to their doom. Even the ruthless Jean Laffite can’t ignore her call … Determined to eliminate this rival on the high seas, Laffite comes to raid her home. There he faces a battle of wits that he never foresaw, and risks his heart. As the aftershocks of Napoleonic war reach America, the passionate conflict between Jean and Léonore drives them between two nations, into the Battle of New Orleans …

I loved this. Sawyer is thorough in her historical details and seamlessly weaves the absolutely true story of American pirate Lafitte with the fictional Roncival and her story. They are both pirates, though Roncival commands an island instead of a ship, and they have independent stories. Siren is a solid study in two independent people choosing to support each other, which is so satisfying.

Sawyer doesn’t hold back on one of the ugliest parts of piracy: the role of pirates in the slave trade. Lafitte is no hero, but he does evolve and grow with the narrative. 

Siren had twists and turns that I did not see coming, and kept me turning the pages.

The Blue Diamond - P.S. Bartlett

Ivory Shepard didn’t want to be a pirate when she grew up but she didn’t plan on being orphaned and alone at thirteen with her three cousins either. After a Spanish raid in Charles Towne left them with nothing, Ivory held her cousins together, trained them to fight for their lives and led them to a life of quiet refuge on the banks of the Ashley River. Out of reach of the hands of unscrupulous men, they found life on the farm a tolerable substitute for the traditional alternatives life would force onto them—until the night the pirates showed up. Setting foot on that first pirate ship was nothing compared to the life of freedom and adventure awaiting them, once Ivory and the girls were through playing nice. Only one man believes he can stop her and he won’t need a ship full of guns to do it. 

Not a perfect novel, but a fun story that features a quad of badass ladies leading the way. There is a strong balance of action (that good high seas pirate stuff I love), female friendships, and romance without ever veering too long in any one area. I like action *with* romance, and this book delivered.

Maddox is sort of the stereotypical romance novel pirate - something of an overdressed fop, which is a trend that I understand but don’t really care for. BUT the relationship between Ivory and Maddox is entertaining. It waivers on clunky at times, but when it’s natural, it’s so natural it almost gives me flutters.

TW: implied rape in flashbacks

Cinnamon and Gunpowder - Eli Brown

The year is 1819, and the renowned chef Owen Wedgwood has been kidnapped by the ruthless pirate Mad Hannah Mabbot. He will be spared, she tells him, as long as he puts exquisite food in front of her every Sunday without fail.     To appease the red-haired captain, Wedgwood gets cracking with the meager supplies on board. His first triumph at sea is actual bread, made from a sourdough starter that he leavens in a tin under his shirt throughout a roaring battle, as men are cutlassed all around him. Soon he’s making tea-smoked eel and brewing pineapple-banana cider.     But Mabbot—who exerts a curious draw on the chef—is under siege. Hunted by a deadly privateer and plagued by a saboteur hidden on her ship, she pushes her crew past exhaustion in her search for the notorious Brass Fox. As Wedgwood begins to sense a method to Mabbot’s madness, he must rely on the bizarre crewmembers he once feared: Mr. Apples, the fearsome giant who loves to knit; Feng and Bai, martial arts masters sworn to defend their captain; and Joshua, the deaf cabin boy who becomes the son Wedgwood never had.

I got this on a recommendation and what a recommendation. Like Frenchman’s Creek, Cinnamon and Gunpowder is not a romance novel. It is however a beautiful love story that left me ugly crying. 

One of the best parts of a good pirate novel is the squad of diverse malcontents and misfits that is the crew, and boy oh boy does this novel deliver. I fell in love with each member of Mabbot’s crew and they’ve all left an impression on me.

Written in the first person as a journal, the style was a bit hard for me to dig into, but the writing is so strong it didn’t take long for me to become fully invested. If you like food and sailing, this novel will hit all your happy places. The story is exciting and emotionally compelling from start to finish, complete with well developed, messy, sympathetic characters.

For the record: middle aged-to-older eccentric lady pirate captain? Who is also allowed to be in a romantic relationship? Sign me the frak up.

The Rebel Pirate - Donna Thorland

1775, Boston Harbor. James Sparhawk, Master and Commander in the British Navy, knows trouble when he sees it. The ship he’s boarded is carrying ammunition and gold…into a country on the knife’s edge of war. Sparhawk’s duty is clear: confiscate the cargo, impound the vessel and seize the crew. But when one of the ship’s boys turns out to be a lovely girl, with a loaded pistol and dead-shot aim, Sparhawk finds himself held hostage aboard a Rebel privateer. Sarah Ward never set out to break the law. Before Boston became a powder keg, she was poised to escape the stigma of being a notorious pirate’s daughter by wedding Micah Wild, one of Salem’s most successful merchants. Then a Patriot mob destroyed her fortune and Wild played her false by marrying her best friend and smuggling a chest of Rebel gold aboard her family’s ship. Now branded a pirate herself, Sarah will do what she must to secure her family’s safety and her own future. Even if that means taking part in the cat and mouse game unfolding in Boston Harbor, the desperate naval fight between British and Rebel forces for the materiel of war—and pitting herself against James Sparhawk, the one man she cannot resist. 

Pirates and spies and family drama, oh my. This is a fun read that featured action on ship and on land during the American Revolution. 

Thorland put in work researching the time and setting (on and off land) and it shows. The subplots and supporting characters are well developed and interesting without overpowering the plot. Thorland does an excellent job fleshing these stories out and using them to further the primary story rather than distract from it. It even features a secondary LGBTQ character with a complete storyline, which is an important part of history - ESPECIALLY naval history - that is often overlooked, ignored, or glossed over.

Fic recs:

I would be remiss to not include these two stories, especially since the first one is also the read that got me scrambling to find more pirate-themed romance once I knew what I was missing.

These are both Black Sails fanfiction and both about the ship that was never to sail, Billy Bones/Abigail Ashe. You don’t have to be a fan of the show however to appreciate the high quality romance on display here. These stories are so well-written, they honestly put 90% of the pirate romance genre to shame. I consider them better than most of the published novels on this list. 

I would, however, seriously recommend googling Tom Hopper as Billy Bones in Black Sails. This is not the weird smelly old guy you’re picturing if you’ve only seen Treasure Island. 

As I said above, pirate romance has a tendency to write heroes who are overdressed and effeminate. While I understand that that’s appealing to a large portion of readers, it isn’t *to me*. I live for the rough, overdue for a bath and a shave, dressed for function and calloused to match heroes. The Black Sails corner of fanfiction is rife with that. 

(links in the titles)

A Tide of Hope - @seren-pen

“My point being, unless my crew decides that they don’t want to give me up for dead, and if what you say is true and no one will come looking for you, then we are very much stranded on this island.”

Abigail Ashe awakens to find herself shipwrecked on an island. However, she is not alone.

Shipwrecked! is easily one of my favorite tropes, and the author gets all the details you’ve ever wanted about surviving that scenario without crossing into a grim survivalist story. The relationship develops naturally and is so pure™ it could scrub a deck. It’s watching two people I really, really like get something they both deserve, and it’s infinitely satisfying. 

Pretty independent lady who sacrificed her standing in society to do the right thing shipwrecked alongside her long-ago crush, a handsome, honorable, pirate with a code of morals that puts Arthurian knights to shame (let’s pretend that fourth season didn’t happen, k)? Just kill me. Bury me in the sand. 

This is, tragically, on hiatus, however she did put the writing on pause at a natural break in the story. There’s no happy ending (yet!) but the leave off feels natural and their time on the island is resolved.

I’d never demand an update, but I am patiently holding out hope that one day she’ll pick this up again. It’s seriously one of my favorites and I find myself re-opening this story and re-reading it when I really, really want a good happy pirate love story.

Setting the Stuns’ls/Doldrums/Setting the Stormsails - @primarybufferpanel @sheliesshattered

When word reaches Nassau that Captain Derrick of the Nemo has kidnapped Abigail Ashe, daughter of the Lord Governor of the Carolinas, and intends to sell her to the pirate crew offering the highest bid, Captain Flint and his crew take matters into their own hands and mount a rescue.

Though she is no longer a prisoner, Abigail’s journey is far from over.

This story is a break from Black Sails, and dear God it’s a good break. Prim and well-bread Abigail Ashe ends up a prisoner on a pirate ship, then rescued by the only pirates scarier than her current captors. In order to protect themselves, they take her back to Nassau until they can arrange to return her to her father. Living with these men her father called monsters first on their ship - where she learns the ins and outs of sailing! - then in their homes forever alters Abigail’s view of the world. She cannot return to her old life knowing that everything her father has fought for is wrong. Her inevitable return is made all the more complicated by her growing feelings for a certain tall boatswain assigned to watch after her on the ship and on land. 

This writing team knows their stuff about sailing. All the details are there without it being an overwhelming infodump. It’s all worked seamlessly into the story. They have stayed simultaneously true to the show and true to the mores of the time period, which has lent itself to being the ultimate slow burn. It’s so well written and the Romeo and Juliet angst of a pirate falling in love with a territorial governor’s daughter is poignant. There is no need to reach for reasons to keep these characters apart, so the conflict never feels forced or contrived. 

The conclusion is still to come in the third part, Setting the Stormsails, and I cannot wait to read it. 

Someone call IXII - I need to report a vicious murder.

Of my peace of mind.

Friends, I have read a LOT of romances. Hundreds. And, thus, hundreds of sex scenes. But I hereby declare myself deceased. Because Piers just melted my brain in what may be one of the hottest scenes I’ve read in an age. That scene in the guardhouse? Oh yeah.

I think it’s the dynamic that makes it SO my sort of scene? Maybe it wouldn’t work as well for every reader. But I am a dead woman for sure.

James always does this to me. Her heroes frequently have these little power play moments that just – unf.

I can’t go on. Leave me here to die.

And, honestly? I’ve just read the first two chapters of The Rogue Not Taken and I am hooked. 

Two chapters in and:

The heroine has criticised the aristocracy’s profligacy, cultural appropriation, and contempt for other cultures (in an era-appropriate tone). The highly gendered power dynamics have been pointed out. The way those in power will close ranks to protect their own, even when those people are flagrantly violating every moral precept society supposedly stands for, that’s been made very clear. 

A philandering, adulterous duke has been pushed into a fish pond

Our heroine just gave a massive (metaphorical) middle finger to the creme de la creme of London Society and stormed out

A marquess with a scandalous reputation has climbed down a rose trellis, after tossing most of his clothing out the window

He nearly brained our heroine when he tossed his boot out

She’s taken the opportunity to hold his boot hostage, and made him offer his carriage as a getaway vehicle to get it back 

And all in very sharp, evocative, highly entertaining prose.

Readers, I smashed the ‘1 click buy’ button. I have no idea how this is going to turn out happily, because this is possibly the most highly charged introduction to a romance novel I’ve ever encountered. But I’m gonna have fun. *rubs hands in delight*

Legend (1985) 

The Last Unicorn (1982)

Ladyhawke (1985)

Labyrinth (1986)

The Secret of Nimh (1982) 

The Neverending Story (1984)

Red Sonja (1985)

Masters of the Universe (1987)

Return to Oz (1985)

Highlander (1986)

Conan the Barbarian (1982)

Krull (1983)

Excalibur (1981)

Clash of the Titans (1981)

Dark Crystal (1982)

The Princess Bride (1987)

Willow (1988)

Here it is, babies! The complete list of everything we’ve written on how to get a job, a raise, a promotion, and stay sane at work.

Use it wisely.

Love,

Kitty & Piggy

Getting a job:

Ask the Bitches: What the Hell Else Can I Do to Get a Job?

How to Write a Resume so You Actually Have a Prayer of Getting Hired 

How to Write a Cover Letter like You Actually Want the Job

Prep Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself: Getting Ready for a Job Interview

What to Wear (and What Not to Wear) to a Job Interview  

What to Do When You’re Asked About Your Salary in a Job Interview

How to Find Remote Work: On Getting the Elusive Work-From-Home Job by Piggy

High School Students Have No Way of Knowing What Career to Choose. Why Do We Make Them Do It Anyway? The Actually Helpful, Nuanced, Non-Bullshit Way to Choose a Future Career

Myers-Briggs Personalities and Income

Freelancing and side jobs:

Should Artists Ever Work for Free?

Stop Undervaluing Your Own Work, You Darling Fool

Romanticizing the Side Hustle

The Ugly Truth About Unpaid Internships

Freelancer, Protect Thyself: The Importance of a Fair Contract

Ask the Bitches: My Boss Won’t Give Me a Contract and I’m Freaking Out

Workplace benefits:

Workplace Benefits and Other Cool Side Effects of Employment

Your School or Workplace Benefits Might Include Cool Free Stuff

Take Advantage of No-Copay Medical Care

Dafuq Is a Retirement Plan and Why Do You Need One?

How to Save for Retirement When You Make Less Than $30,000 a Year 

Navigating the workplace:

My Secret Weapon for Preparing for Awkward Boss Confrontations

Are You Working on the Next Fyre Festival?: Identifying a Toxic Workplace

Woke at Work: How to Inject Your Values into Your Boring, Lame-Ass Job

Looking Weird at Work

Short Hair DO Care: Why Is Short Hair Still Controversial?

How to Successfully Work from Home Without Losing Your Goddamn Mind (Or Your Job)

Getting a raise:

Salary Range: Are You Asking for Enough?

A Millennial’s Guide to Growing Your Salary

The First Time I Asked for a Raise

You Need to Ask for a Fucking Raise

Should You Increase Your Salary or Decrease Your Spending?

Getting a promotion:

Santa Isn’t Coming and Neither Is Your Promotion

How I Chessmastered Myself into a Promotion

Job Hoppers vs. Career Loyalists: I Want to See Numbers! 

The Fascinating Results of Our Job Hopping vs. Career Loyalty Poll

Confession: I Hate My Job and I Don’t Know How to Leave It

automobile

changing coolant

changing oil

changing tire

jumping a car

plumbing

toilet running

basement flooding

replace a faucet

clogged drain

electrical

replacing light switches

blew a fuse

installing overhead light

earth vs. neutral vs. live wires

home

patching drywall

finding studs

like i recently had to change my car battery and freaked out cause i thought id electrocute myself but turns out new batteries come with directions and its the easiest shit in the world so long as you can lift the damn thing. 

These will be a combo of low energy and bedridden activities! Please note that absolutely nothing is required in order to honor the seasons besides witnessing them and trying to admire the things they bring <3

Imbolc:

Purification, spring cleaning, home and hearth. Winter to Spring.

Light a candle or turn on an electric candle.

Open the curtains to let light in. 

Crack open all your windows to let in some fresh air.

Visualize a light cleaning each and every room in your home.

Spray a cleansing spray throughout your bedroom.

Clean an area in your home, big or small. (It could be as simple as making a pile of trash so it’s easier to move later.)

Wash your bedding or rotate your blankets and flip over your pillow.

Change your pajamas.

Bathe yourself (either in the tub or sponge bath style). Infuse some herbs/flowers into the water!

Low energy Imbolc + Imbolc masterpost

Bedridden witch: Cleansing + Bath Magic

Ostara: 

New life, growth, celebration of lusciousness. Spring. 

Water your plants and whisper blessings to them.

Plant something new! It can be as simple as a beansprout in a paper cup.

Open the curtains to let light in. 

Crack open all your windows to let in some fresh air.

Spray floral water in the air and on your bedsheets.

Have someone bring you some spring flowers.

Draw flower designs or in pastel colors.

Make some herbal/floral tea or infusions.

Burn incense or smoke cleanse.

Drink lots of water.

Ostara masterpost

Bedridden witch: Garden + Pastel

Beltane: 

Peak of life, renewal, fire. Spring to Summer.

Wake up earlier than usual to enjoy a full day of light.

Make flower crowns with real, fake or paper flowers.

Braid something (your hair, a bracelet, ribbons, etc.)

Make sure sunlight and fresh air can reach you.

Enjoy some fresh fruits, nuts and seeds.

Drink tea or water infused with fruit.

Decorate with/wear/create things with bright colors

Light a candle or turn on an electric candle.

Decorate a new pot for your plants (painting, sharpies, ribbons, etc.)

Write a list of things you would like to release and burn them (alternatively: tear it up and place in a glass of water).

Beltane masterpost

Bedridden witch: Nature + others linked above.

Litha: 

Sunshine, joy, celebration. Summer.

Make sure sunlight and fresh air can reach you.

Try to be awake and witness both the sunrise and sunset.

Pour an offering of water for the plants (indoors, outside or out the window).

Decorate with flowers and crystals.

Have a picnic (outside, on the kitchen floor or in bed).

Enjoy locally grown fruits and veggies.

Find a way to incorporate honey into your day (scrubs, food, tea, etc.)

Burn beeswax candles.

Listen to music that just sounds like summertime.

Make sun water or sun tea.

Bedridden witch: Elements + others linked above.

Lammas:

First harvest, gratitude, abundance. Summer to Autumn.

Eat grains and local veggies.

Eat bread or your closest alternative.

Start a new project like crocheting or knitting. This is also a great time to finish that project you’ve been avoiding.

Read an entire book, start to finish or finish a book you put down and forgot about.

Infuse berries into water.

Wear and decorate and create with browns, golds, dark greens, oranges and yellows.

Drink rich teas.

Decorate with sunflowers.

Make a mug cake (x)

Low Spoon Ways to Celebrate Lammas

Mabon:

Second harvest, balance, abundance. Autumn.

Drink apple cider or juice.

Decorate your home to make it look more like Autumn (fake or real leaves, acorns, paper cutouts, etc.)

Eat things like breads, nuts, grapes, pomegranates, pies, apples and root vegetables.

Wear/decorate/create with oranges, reds, golds and browns.

Write down all of the things you can think of that you’re thankful for.

Apple magic

Drink warm drinks like coffee or cocoa and add warming spices (cloves, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.)

Create a picnic/feast wherever is reasonable, with a little bit of everything.

Pull up a video of leaves falling or a fire crackling.

Mabon masterpost

Samhain:

Final harvest, honoring ancestors, reflection. Autumn to Winter.

Spiced apple cider

Pumpkin pie, pumpkin spiced-things, pumpkin seeds.

Decorate with small pumpkins, paint them or draw on them if carving is too high-energy.

Create an altar honoring loved ones who have passed on, either a material one or a photo album online.

Pull up a video of a burning fire or light candles.

Turn off all of the lights and sit/lay in darkness.

Visualize your wards and boost your home protection.

Do spirit work/leave offerings for the spirits.

Burn incense/make a spray that smells of spices (cloves, basil, etc.)

Watch spooky/witchy movies.

Yule:

Creating, sharing gifts and feasts, warmth. Winter.

Create an apple pomander with cloves or spiced orange slices.

Watch videos of fires burning or snow falling.

Decorate with evergreen boughs, holly, pine cones, etc.

Make rosehip, peppermint, vanilla, rooibos or spiced tea.

Step outside/open a window to feel the cold air (if you live somewhere warm, do this in the early morning/night).

Handcraft gifts for loved ones or write heartfelt cards/letters to the people you care about.

Put birdseed outside/a bird feeder by your window.

Make a simmer pot, or use this idea to create a scented spray.

Wash your face with snow/cold water.

Drink hot drinks.

Yule masterpost.

Bedridden witch: Winter + others linked above. 

You may also like:

Bedridden Witch Series

Spoonie Witch Masterpost

Chronically ill witchcraft: For your symptoms

A spell is a manifestation of intents, ingredients, and influences combined to bring about an intangible effect. However, there are a number of different of types of spells, intents, and methods. 

CURSE— A spell designed to cause a person or place harm or misfortune of a grand scale. Occasionally used to protect when it used against a concept, “cursing out” infections and medical problems.

HEX— Commonly thought as similar to a curse, though it comes from a German word for witch. Commonly interpreted as a weaker curse, or a midpoint between a jinx and a curse on a scale of annoying to devastating.

JINX— A spell to cause momentary bad luck or annoyance, but can occasionally come back to bite someone later. Usually paired with irony, or used to bring about the opposite effect of what someone says out loud or hopes for.

BANISHING— A type of spell, designed to get rid of something specific, whether it be a concept, a person, spirit, or otherwise, and to keep it away.

WARDING— A type of protective spell in which you create and put up magical walls, usually against a specific thing, such as spirits or negative people, but could be used for evangelicals and teenagers that theoretically loiter on your lawn.

BINDING— Similar to banishing. Instead of removing a person, object, or situation from your vicinity, you prevent a person or creature from performing a particular action.

GLAMOUR— Often used for beauty spells, are a type of spell used for creating an illusion over a person or object. They can be used for a number of purposes, to make someone more attract, or to make an object harder to find, or a person be more or less likely to be noticed.

CONSECRATION— The ritual blessing of an object or place by cleansing it and instilling with a specific energy. Cannot be done to living creatures.

POTION— Any drink made to have a magical effect.

JAR SPELL— A spell made and contained within a jar, often herb sealed with wax.

TO BIND- wrap in black thread, drip wax over, or seal in a jar and hide it in the dark.

TO BANISH- burn an effect to ash and sweep off the back door step, cast it out a window, or bury in the ground and spit on it

TO ENCOURAGE-  plant it by the front door/steps, bury by a window, or place it on a windowsill

TO HIDE- place in a jar painted black, cover with cloth and bury, or wrap with a ribbon

TO CLEANSE- bury it in a bowl of  salt, burn herbs and pass through the smoke, or lay it in a moonwater bath

TO GLAMOUR- leave under the full moon, hold its reflection over a mirror with herbs, or 

TO WISH- place before a candle and blow it out, drown a coin in water, or let seeds blow into the wind

TO COMMUNICATE- (with a spirit or deity) - anoint a candle, leave out offerings, or open the front doors and windows

TO WARD- leave part of the spell in four corners, draw lines around the protected area, or plant an object of projection in the north, east, south, and west edges

TO CURSE- spit on it, drag your nails down it, or stick sharp things in it

TO DISCOURAGE - plant or bury by the back door, or burn to ash

TO JINX- say it three times out loud, or say a word the same time as someone else

TO MANIPULATE - use wax, use poppets, or tie several strings to pieces of an effect

a witch’s broom, or a besom is tool used in witchcraft to cleanse spaces or purify an area as ritual preparation.  in the middle ages, it was used to apply flying ointment to the body to aid in astral travel, and even used in some hand-fasting ceremonies. it is associated with the air symbol. 

🍃 besoms are highly customizable!

you can have several for different occasions and purposes. the materials you use to build one can have an impact on what magics you use it for. a traditional wiccan besom is made from a hawthorne staff with birch twig bristles, tied together using willow.

if you are going to be using straw, soak the straw in water to make it more pliable. they will be less likely to snap and easier to weave in a pattern

🍃 staff 

a few posibilities for staff handles based on wood magic correspondances. can also be used for wands. 

alder -  weather magic, necromancy, courage and passion 

almond -  wisdom, prosperity, love magic, healing 

birch -  intuition, creativity, love, healing, protection 

elder - healing, protection, banishment

hazel - truth, divination

holly - purity, sun magic, strength, protection, luck 

oak -  protection, fertility, strength 

redwood -  “king of trees”, strength, protection, creativity, enlightenment 

rowan - defense, creation, travel

willow -  healing, protection, spirit work  

yew -  strength, change

🍃 bristles:

you can use twigs of any of kind of tree, which will have its own correspondances

dried herbs - lavender, sage, rosemary, baby’s breath, etc

dried flowers

bird feathers - corresponds to the type of bird, or simply air element if an assortment

🍃 soak it in a tea bath to allow it to take on new abilities!

white tea - air magic, purification, protection, clarity, realization, meditation, cleansing

green tea - fire magic, healing, love, catalysts, mindfulness, passion, sexual health and new energies

black tea -  strength, stability, endings, finished business, and banishment, expelling negativity. 

fruit related teas will correspond to the meanings of those fruits, strawberry for love, lemon for cleansing, etc. 

🍃 assembly:

gather your staff, bristles, and binding method of choice. you can either:

bind the bristles together and stab/push the staff into the center of them

bind the bristles around the staff

bind the bristles around the staff so the ends are in the middle, and fold them down so they face the correct direction, and bind again around them

🍃 other customizations:

runes/sigils can be carved into the staff handle 

knot magic - weave the bristles 

ribbons and color magic

various stones and gems can be embedded

there are plenty of ways to work to work a little magic into your day without doing a full on ritual, and your daily (hourly?) tea is one of them! here’s just a couple of suggestions with herbal correspondences.

mint -  for exorcism, healing, love, lust, protection, and wealth

peppermint -  for healing, love, psychic abilities, and purification.

spearmint -  for healing and love.

ginger -  for beauty, love, power, success, and wealth.

fennel -  for healing, protection, and purification.

licorice -  for fidelity, love, and lust.

cinnamon -  for divination, fortune, healing, power, prosperity, protection, psychic abilities, spirituality, wealth, and wisdom.

nettle - for exorcism, healing, lust, and protection.

vanilla -  for happiness, love, and lust.

anise - for, lust, protection, sleep, blessings, youth. 

lemon balm -  for healing, compassion, endings, fertility, happiness, healing, love, mental, psychic, success,and youth.

rosemary -  for exorcism, healing, love, lust, protection, and purification.

sage -  for protection, cleansing, and wisdom.

thyme -  for courage, healing, love, psychic abilities, and purification.

there are various blends or herbals teas, as well as with fruits and flowers, though often herbs can be steeped by themselves. what is known as chai tea, is traditional black tea mixed with cardamom, cinnamon and black pepper.