😌🌟

No. Not that kind of Ward. My Bad.

Recently on a lovely little forum I frequent someone asked for a crash course on Wards and Warding and seeing an opportunity to teach not just this person but multitudes of people I decided to take it on myself and talk to you all about wards. 

If you are curious about how to protect yourself from the supernatural nasties, please read on and discover all there is to know about protecting yourself. 

A Disclaimer: I am one person and my opinions (which I have in abundance) may not reflect the opinions of other witches, in general, or other people who call themselves hearth witches. In fact, they probably won’t, because I’m an asshole. I have a bizarre sense of humor that doesn’t convey well in text and I rant about shit I don’t like. A lot. If you don’t think you can handle that, maybe don’t read anything I write. Ever.

Charms, Enchantments, and So On

At the risk of sounding like a broken record—you can add a charm or enchantment to anything. I’ve said that before, but I don’t think I’ve ever actually talked about how. So…by request, I’ll doing that in this post. 

[Note: My inbox is always open for requests. Notes, too, though it’s not likely I’ll be able to find them again. If there’s something you want me to write about, feel free to ask. The worst I can do is say no. Or forget.]

Step One: Choosing Your Mundane Object

Like I said, you can put a charm on anything. And I pretty much mean anything. You may want to suit your object to your needs. For example, if you’re wanting to create a charm to help you stay grounded during meditation, you might use a small stone, a ring, or a figurine of an ‘earthy’ feeling animal. If you’re making a charm to help a friend through a tough time, you may want to use a friendship bracelet. Gamblers may want to use a pokerchip or a rabbits foot. To attract a love, you could charm a tube of lipstick. And so on. 

For the examples in this post, we’re going to imagine using a thimble 1) because that was the most mundane thing I could think of, and 2) because a lot of my witchcraft involves sewing in one way or another. 

Step Two: Cleansing the Object

This may not be a necessity in every case. A brand new tube of lipstick, for example, may not need much cleansing. And an heirloom locket may already have the right energy for a protection charm. 

But let’s say our thimble is an antique and you’re not really sure about its history. So it would be much better to clear out the old energy before you tried to charm it. There are numerous ways to go about this. To name a few—however, please note that the ones marked with an * require some research as they aren’t safe for all stones or surfaces: 

Water (or Salt Water)* - Submerging the item in water or a salt water mix to cleanse it. 

Moon/Sunlight* - Letting the item sit in light for a period of time to clear out negative energy.

Smoke cleansing - Swinging the item through smoke to cleanse it. 

Dirt Cleansing - Sounds counterproductive, but many people believe that burying an item in a new pot or a marked space in the garden for several (usually three) day will rid it of negativity. 

Visualization - Most commonly, writers instruct to do this by seeing a white light coming over the object and clearing the negativity away—but you can visualized whatever you want. 

Step Three: Actualizing Your Charm

Step three is the ‘ritual’ (in quotation marks, because I never consider anything I do a ritual, but you can make it a part of one) that adds the charm to your item. Typically, I start a project like this in my kitchen just because it can get messy. If you want to make it into a big event, it’s not hard to set up a temporary altar on a kitchen table. 

Once you’ve got everything ready and have creating the environment you want to work in, you can get down to your actual ritual. Again, there are so many methods for that, I could never give you an all-inclusive list. But I can give you some easy ones:

A Spoken Charm - For this, write out a reading that states the intent of your charm. If you like, this can call on a outside party (like a deity or spirit) for help, but it doesn’t have to. (For example, if my thimble charm was meant to protect me during astral travel, I might write something like ‘Brother Coyote, I bless this charm to keep me safe from astral harm.’) It doesn’t have to rhyme as long as it works. 

A Written Charm - Almost the same as a spoken charm, but I would write out my intent, stick in in an envelope with the object, and leave it for a certain number of days. Alternatively, you could also write out your intent and burn it. Actually, there’s lots you could do with a charm on paper. 

A Box Charm - Take the item and put it in a box with other items that you think represent the energy you want your charm to have. Tuck it away somewhere and leave your item to collect the energy. You may want to verbally list each item along with the traits it adds to your charm as part of your ritual. 

A Jar/Pot Charm - Fill a small jar or pot with herbs that fit your intent. Stick the item inside the jar, seal it up and leave the herbs to energize it. You may want to verbally list each herb and what you want it to add to your charm as part of your ritual. 

A Tarot Charm - Select a few Tarot cards that represent your intent and tuck them away with your item. (Alternatively, an envelope of Tarot cards COULD BE your item.) You may want to name each Tarot card and your interpretation as a part of your ritual. 

Afterthought: Removing a Charm

You can use this charm to protect yourself, or give it to someone else for protection. If you create this charm for someone, however, do so with their permission. Needed:

A small pouch, bag, or sachet. If you do not have one already, you can make a simple one out of some cloth with a needle and thread. Purple or black are good colors to use.

Anything that represents protection: a small pentacle charm; protective herbs such as basil, bay, cedar, cinnamon, clove, dill, fennel, geranium, lavender, mint, oak, pine, parsley, rosemary, or sage; protective stones such as amethyst, quartz, or any black stone; and anything else you’d like to symbolize protection.

A candle or two, preferably white, black, or purple.

Gather all the materials for creating the charm bag. Cast a circle and light the candles for protection. Charge all the materials with protection, imagining a strong, bright, protective purple light surrounding and filling them. Slowly, with intention, put each ingredient into the pouch. Bless each with loving, protective energy. When the pouch is full, tie it tightly and chant:

May whoever keeps this charm Be protected from every harm Cast off all the bane and ill So may it be, as is my will

I got an ask about how I do knotwork and ended up writing a novel, so here’s the rebloggable version that might be helpful for others.

I’m a pretty forgetful person, very “out of sight, out of mind” type, so knotwork and jewelry spells are one of my favorite methods of spellwork. A visible reminder helps keep focus on the intent so remembering to do mundane things to work towards the goal isn’t forgotten after the spellwork is done. I’ve found it very practical to be able to “wear” the magic. The basic idea behind the spell is that you’re locking in your intent with each knot. Binding spells are great with knotwork, as you can visualize what you want to happen while physically binding and knotting the cords/strings/ribbons together.

Here is an example - I made this spell bottle for a friend, who needed a bit of help meeting new friends. After I put in the regular spell ingredients, I sealed it with a braid-pattern friendship bracelet. Using red for courage, orange for motivation, and yellow for communication, I visualized each part working and weaving together to bring my friend that little push he needed to meet new people. You can get very complex with just using string and cords, especially if you do friendship bracelets or macrame. Look for a pattern that flows with your goal. Are you trying to ward something? Find or create a pattern that features symbols that you associate with warding. I would make something like this: (image source)

Maybe you’re planning a trip to the casino and you want a good luck charm. Take something you associate with success or “lucky” and incorporate it into something wearable. Personally, I would attach a small bell to whatever jewelry I make for the luck part, not unlike these:

(image source) Now, if you want to get even more intricate with your spellwork, you can start using beads made from stones and crystals that have meaning for you. A common and simple charm to attract love would be to wear a string of rose quartz beads. Add in knotwork to bind it all together with a string color that represents what you’re trying to attract. Here’s an example of of a shamballa style bracelet, made with rose quartz and pink cord that could be charged with the intent of attracting love: (image source)

Because everyone gets sick, even witches! Witchcraft does not replace proper medical care, and please be cautious when using herbs and do proper research*

Teas and potions:

Sore throat potion

Sore throat sage tea

Cough/cold tea

Mama’s cold curing tea

Cold banishing potion

Feel better tea spell

Sick witch’s brew

Flu and cold buster

Soothing tummy tea

Vitamin C healing potion

Syrups:

Easy DIY cough syrup

Soothing lemon cough syrup

Simple elderberry syrup

Magic cold syrup

Food:

Swamp’s immunity boosting noodles

Faye’s patchwork soup

“I am not getting sick!” broth

Spells:

Simple sickness spell

Simple healing spell

All-purpose recovery spell

Christian witch healing spell

Healing/cleansing spell bottle

Bath magic:

Anti-nausea bath

Healing milk bath

Healing bath

Shower meditation

Odds and ends:

Cold and flu remedies

Lil’ witch tips for sickness

Immune system sigils

Herbs for a sick witch

Onions

Coriander seeds

Eucalyptus 

Basil

*Resources for herbal interactions:

U.S Department of Health and Human Services

AAFP

Potential Herb-Drug Interaction Chart

Checking for Possible Herb-Drug Interactions

This challenge is to collectively create a six word story for each card within the tarot deck.

The Major Arcana.

The Fool - Chasing butterflies named Cause and Effect. @xdreadkittenx

The Magician - His eyes revealed a forgotten truth. @tarot-dreams

The High Priestess - The veil that hides spirit murmurs. @leelahel

The Empress - Within her womb life’s beauty resides. @intuitive-rose

The Emperor - Security and structure requires strong leadership. @agents-of-fortune

The Hierophant - Alone in silence, growth in spirit. @callmenull

The Lovers - An embrace heals wounds, for awhile. @alethiomancer

The Chariot - Hands on the reins of destiny. @witchketa

Strength - The grace of mind shall persevere. @crescentdiviner

The Hermit - Wisdom will always come from within. @odettestarotbliss

Wheel of Fortune - Every pattern holds a delicious treasure. @witchmoonwings

Justice - Honesty opens and closes many doors. @torque-witch

The Hanged Man - Open mindedness means having different perspectives. @afrocentric-divination

Death - Mystery of life carved from eternity. @haitred

Temperance - Flourish with patience and emotional balance. @luzklarita

The Devil - Terrible magnetic power enthralls us all. @damekitty

The Tower - Chaos and destruction allows for rebirth. @theearthisawitch

The Star - Even in the darkest nights, hope shines. @tarot-cards-and-tea

The Moon - The darkest mysteries have come alive. @allthequeenstarot

The Sun - Beautiful joy within the bright rays. @waywardzephyr

Judgement - All will be brought to light. @inaybele

The World - Somehow, everything fell cleanly into place. @will-o-the-witch

This challenge, as well as including reading based activities, also has a few that are more geared towards beginners and do not necessarily require a deck to do.

I encourage you all to post your readings/activities as replies, I’ll read them! :D 

If you’d rather make your own posts, use the hashtag #wyntercrafttarot so that I can see it!

Most card draws are meant to be one card, but you can draw as many as you like.

Day one:  Start a tarot journal to document your readings.

Day two: “How can I improve my ambition?”

Day three: “How can I move forward?”

Day four: “How can I reach my goals?” 

Day five: “Is there something I should be striving for?” 

Day six: “How can I jump my personal hurdles?” 

Day seven:  Read this link.

Day eight:  Watch this video.

Day nine:  Watch this video.

Day ten: Try using a tarot app that you haven’t used before!

Day eleven: Try drawing one (or more) cards in your art style.

Day twelve: Memorise five Major Arcana cards and their meanings.

Day thirteen: “How can I improve my relationships?”

Day fourteen: Do a past/present/future spread.

Day fifteen: If safe, sit in a library/public space, spend some time with your cards. If someone asks you about them, teach them some things!

Day sixteen: Try doing a Celtic Cross spread.

Day seventeen: “What is something I can look forward to this upcoming month?”

Day eighteen: “What should I be searching for?”

Day nineteen: “What should I focus on?”

Day twenty: Give your deck(s) a good cleansing and charging.

Day twenty one: Make a deck wish-list.

Day twenty two: “What do I need more of in my life?”

Day twenty three: Design a few cards for yourself, they can be anything!

Day twenty four: “General advice?”

Day twenty five: Try giving someone else a reading or two, instead of yourself.

Day twenty six: “What can I do to improve my craft?”

Day twenty seven: “What will the rest of the year bring?”

Day twenty eight: “What should I take from this challenge?”

Day twenty nine: “Any final words?”

The Light.

a tarot spread for litha.

1. The Heart.

The heart of the sun is your center. This is where you hold all your truths. Do not live in fear any longer. Let this card be your constant reminder that the time has come to be the person you truly are.

2. The Air.

The rays of the sun can be felt all around you within the warm summer air. Let this card be your constant reminder that you have been reborn as a being of strength and unwavering positivity. When you feel the warmth of summer, remember you are a new creation.

3. The Light.

Britt’s Third Eye Tarot 

Britt’s Third Eye Tarot invites you to lift the veil between the conscious and subconscious mind. Each cared, filled with eye-popping colors and imagery, calls on the mysteries of the soul, illuminating the path to self-exploration.

Size: 2.75’’ x 4.75’’ (70mm x 120mm)

Number of cards: 78

Card stock: 300gsm (smooth)

Packaging: Custom tuck box (UV coated (gloss))

Buy your copy of the deck for $45.15 HERE (-:

Rahdue’s Wheel, a 78-card spread.

If you were wondering what this would be like, wonder no more.

Since my best friend and I have a great deal of magickal motivation and are clearly insane, WE COMPLETED THIS READING.

It was roughly 5 hours of direct cardwork and reading, but we took breaks for food and rest, so the total time spent, between taking the cards out of the box and putting them back in, was about 9 HOURS.

(Photo ft. bad lighting and my unbrushed hair.)

I had the privilege of choosing the cards, setting them up, and giving the reading for my much-beloved @haemoferedoll, who was a very patient and open querent.

By the end of the reading, we were decidedly exhausted.  My eyes were blurry, my head was swimming, my brain seemed to have deteriorated into rude, viscous mush, and my throat felt raw and sore from having talked so much.  Even my joints were achy.  I was basically an old crone by the end of it.

But, oh, let me learn you a thing.  THIS SHIT WAS  

E N L I G H T E N I N G.

The cards spelled out a clear story, with significant life lessons, warnings, and even illuminating information about past lives.  I’ve honestly never had a reading with such clear and definitive messages.  It was like the veil just parted to let the universe throw us some handy-dandy-4-1-1.  

For real, the cards were super specific and helpful.

Actually, after we were done, I was told that the reading was “more helpful than years of therapy.”~.  Potential hyperbole aside, I think the reading really did assist real and significant progress for my friend, which I’m wicked pumped about. 

IF YOU WANT TO DO THIS READING YOURSELF, I say to fuckin’ go for it.  It was a great experience as a diviner, an awesome chance to practice, and very affirming of my ability, and @haemoferedoll found it really helpful.  

However, PLEASE read all of the detailed information on the spread and how it works BEFORE you start the reading. If you don’t, you’re gonna have a hell of a bad time.  

Also, be aware that a significant portion of the reading revolves around past lives. If that doesn’t align with your personal beliefs, I would suggest you either skip those parts of the reading, or replace them with specific questions of your own.

ALSO.  I’m pretty sure this reading doesn’t NEED to last so long.  I was extremely thorough, and I’m very picky with choosing cards, so just the process of setting up took almost an hour.  

I also personally went into a lot detail with helping my friend interpret the cards and their story.  If you simply do a quick overview, I bet the reading would be way faster and much less of an ordeal.

For me though, the “ordeal” of it made it an experience.  It was absolutely worth the effort for what I got out of it.

TL;DR: We did the thing.  We liked the thing.  The thing was exhausting.  If you do the thing yourself, do the thing your own way and be smart about it.  

So I’ve touched on the idea of reading vertically briefly in my other posts but I wanted to put together one that goes into it a little more deeply.

When I say “read vertically” I mean considering the card as part of other cards with its same number, including the Major Arcana cards. It looks like this:

How to Understand Vertical Themes

Cards of the same number tend to have a similar higher level narrative theme.

Fives are my favorite example for this because of how much this layer of meaning can add to interpreting them. In the Rider-Waite Major Arcana, we have the Heirophant (5) and the Devil (15) – cards about the material world either being in balance or wildly out of balance.

5 of Pentacles is a card of sickness and poverty, 5 of Cups is reflective of losing a loved one or a breakup, 5 of Wands is work/goal oriented conflict with others or a hostile workplace, and 5 of Swords is about the kind of intellect that alienates you from others and arguments you win at the cost of your relationship with that person.

Within the Minor Arcana 5’s, we can see a theme of conflict, of desire and lack. When you take the Major Arcana into account it adds a new dimension – that these conflicts are a result of imbalance (the Devil) and are significant events in a person’s life that challenges them materially and spiritually (the Heirophant).

When 5’s are taken into consideration with the rest of the deck, we see they’re often the turning point from pure enthusiasm to deep commitment, when the crafter devotes themselves to the craft, when the lover must confront their own internal world so that they may try to invite another into it again.

That’s usually a lot more information than the few keywords that came in your deck booklet for each card (or the paragraphs of story if you shelled out for the proper book).

This will work better for some numbers than others but it’s always a useful lens to begin looking at your deck through.

Practice: Take each column and jot down key words, themes, symbols, or other ideas that seem to occur across all of them. Include the Major Arcana if you can but exclude them if it doesn’t make sense for your deck.

Reading Vertically in Practice

Here’s where I think reading vertically really shines.

We’ve all been there, we pull out a set of cards that on the surface don’t seem to be connected at all and you’ve got a querent sitting there patiently waiting for you to shed some light on their situation.

Reading vertically gives you another layer to investigate the cards, one that allows for more free associations than flipping through a book or going symbol spotting. Free association is the bread and butter of intuition work. It’s where your intuition gets to really come through.

The key is that while reading vertically is thematic, it’s still specific. Reading vertically isn’t going to give you themes like “love”, it’s going to give you “you’re at a turning point, you’re out of balance, and you better jump ship or redouble your efforts”.

I’ve often found it’s the layer that makes readings “feel spooky” to people I read for.

Practice: Draw cards at random or go in order and write down initial impressions, where the card falls narratively in its suit, and associations with others of it’s number. Then copy down meanings from the book that accompanies the deck. Compare.

Companion Books Are Useful, But Incomplete

The book that accompanies a deck is not the be all end all of card meanings. Decks have to be personalized in some way to the people who are reading them so there’s an interplay there. The author offers up their meanings, but you have to them meet them with your interpretations. For folks with a more academic bent, Hall’s encoding/decoding model of communication speaks nicely to how I understand and teach Tarot.

So that’s why I think it’s so important that people learning tarot do some amount of deep self-directed study beyond memorization of what’s in the book. It’s an incomplete picture otherwise. I offer up horizontal and vertical reading as a way to develop those personal associations and connect cards more deeply with your particular experiences/worldview.

That space between how the deck understands itself and how you understand it is where intuition can really flourish.

I hope this helps! If you have any questions, let me know!

*I do not claim my way is the one true way so take what is useful and leave the rest.

This is a masterpost of tarot & oracle card spreads. None of them are mine; this is solely a compilation of various spreads found on tumblr. I’ve broken them down into sections to sort through them with ease. This is not a full list, but do enjoy the spreads listed below. Note: Witchcraft is NOT a replacement for medical care. Seek the services in your area if you need help.

Enjoy!

Daily Spreads:

Good Morning Spread

Harmonious Day Spread

Daily Brew

Morning Mug

One Day At A Time

Love/Luck/Truth:

Soulmate Spread

Relationship Insight

how to make friends

Luck Ducky

Illuminate the Truth

Bat Tarot Spread

two halves of the same heart

confusion in a relationship

Love Tarot Spread

Single and Looking

A Way Back into Love

Where is my love life going?

Self Love/Self Care/Spirituality:

The New You

What’s Up My Dude?

The Unicorn Spread

Mirrored Heart Spread

Breathe Deeply

Inner Empress Spread

Shine Like a Star

Self-Love Spread

Self-Exploration Spread

May Your Self-Confidence Rise Like the Moon

Self-Care Spread

A spread for healing from hurtful words

Forgiveness Spread

For Gaining Closure & Letting Go

Let Your Soul Shine

calm the f@%k down

hierarchy of needs

Pyramid of Present Introspection

Unlock yourself

Walking Away

Stop Being Bad To Yourself

For Empaths

I Can’t F@%king Sleep

Up All Night

Reprogram your Subconscious

Higher Self & Purpose Spread

Spiritual Growth

Spiritual Check-up

Spiritual Progress

connecting with the gods/goddesses

The Baking Sun

Enlightened Perspective

Temper Temper

Loneliness Spread

Self Love Spread

Personal Protection Spread

Self Image Spread

Wholeness Spread

Aphrodite’s Pearl

Hidden Self

Change/Fear:

The New Adventure Spread

Evolve Your Blog

The Tree of Life & The Sprout of Fear

Go With the Flow: A Guide for Change

Keys to Courage

Terrified

Classic Tarot Spreads/Based on Tarot:

Classic Tarot Spreads

Star Spread

100 Variations of the 3-Card Spread

Simple and classic spreads

The Empress

The Fool

The Tower

Eviction Notice

The World

Connect with your Tarot Deck:

Bond with Your Tarot Deck

Hello New Friend (Tarot Deck)

Get to Know Your Deck

Pop Culture: 

Harry Potter Hogwarts Houses

Rapunzel Spread

Happy Little Trees

The Princess and the Pea

The Princess Bride

Brainstorming/Productiveness/Success:

Achieve Your Dreams

Plan Your Goals

Job Search

Solution Spread

The Right Choice

for busy motherf@%kers

Busy Bee

Toxic Workplace Spread

Quick Coffee Break

growth and goals

Problem Solving Spread

Focus Spread

Holiday/Specific Time Period/Date:

August 2017 Solar Eclipse

New Year’s Spread

Imbolc Spread of Growth

Imbolc Spread for Goal Setting

Valentine’s Day Spread

Valentine’s Day Self-Love Spread

Be Your Own Damn Valentine

Galentine’s Day Spread

Ostara Tarot Spread

For Beltane

Lammas Spread

Back to School Bag

Holiday Survival Spread

Tarot Spread for Yule

Neptune Retrograde

Embracing Mercury Retrograde Part 1 & Part 2

How to Survive Mercury Retrograde

Beginning, Middle, & End of the Month

New Moon Reflection Spread

New Moon Spread

New Moon New Start Spread

Full Moon Spread

Near to Distant future Spread

Creativity:

Paint Palette Tarot Spread

Protagonist Spread

Sunny Creativity

Storytelling through Tarot

The Artist Spread

Find Your Muse

writing tip

Realize Special Talents

Quick Tarot Fixes/Tricks:

Fix My Wifi

Goals & Desires

Stalker Stand Still

Spiderweb Spread

for when you’re stuck between two choices

Easy Tarot Tricks

The Hermit

doing the right thing?

fix a f@%k up

Wheel of Fortune

goals and desires

41 Quick Spreads for any situation

For When You’re Lost/Going through a Hard Time:

Putting the Faith in the Universe

Well, Now What?

Finding Balance

A Light In the Dark

Radical Acceptance

Fork In the Road

When You’re Laying On Your Bed Wondering Where the F@%K You’re Going In Life

What are my next steps?

Self-Discovery

When the World is Cruel

This Too Will Pass

Bottled Up

“Strongest Person I Know”

Difficult Conversation Spread

What the Actual F@%K?!

Past-Lives:

Pyramid of a Past Life

Past Life Spread

A Glimpse into Past Lives

Miscellaneous:

RGB Spread

Conquering a Bad Habit

12 Olympians Spread

Spread for Hobbies

Zodiac

Planetary Tarot Spread

Seven Sisters

Setting Intentions

The Lessons

How to Handle a Situation Getting Out of Hand

Remove the Blinders

I Want to Know You

Chakra Spread

What You’re Attracting in Life

Mending the Communication Gap

The Marigold Tarot Minor Arcana: Wands, 1-5 Amrit Brar 2017

the complete deck launches this summer, you can stay updated on my tumblr or instagram. you can also get early-access to art, news, and updates by supporting me on patreon!