Witch Moms ™

This is not a competition. Take it slow, enjoy the journey. You do not need to learn every crystal correspondence within a week.

Keep a journal/Grimoire/Book of Shadows if possible. Fill it up as you go. Do not just put the information somewhere to wait until you “have time” or “have more energy” (although these, and many more, are understandable reasons). It is less work to do a little all the time than try to catch up all at once.

You don’t need to be anything to be a witch. You are one, regardless of your gender, skin color, religious interests… If you think you’re one, you are. Witchcraft is a path, a tool, not a religion.

Wicca and witchcraft are not the same.

It is totally okay to take breaks. Setting aside your craft doesn’t mean you can’t come back and continue where you left off.

YOU are the most important tool. You do not need that expensive cauldron, or those rare herbs that have a double-digit price. Of course, supplies are needed for more complicated/powerful spells to help you out, but they are not necessary.

If your path changes, that is okay! If you were first interested in spells but then decided to focus more on deities and their worship, that’s okay!

On that note, it’s also okay to not know what your path is.

Like all people, witches have their opinions about various things. Listen carefully to both sides, research, but in the end make your own opinion that fits with your morals and worldview. Neither side is necessarily wrong, but both can be true.

Trust your gut/intuition. It knows a lot. If someone says X has Y correspondences, but in your opinion has Z, then this is true to you.

When researching things, remember to be critical and not trust everything you read blindly. Cross-reference.

Educate yourself on closed religions, slur words, racist symbols, appropriation of cultures and their words (see:smudging, chakra…) Do not be angry at yourself if you have used them before - you are always learning and growing as a person.

When in doubt, ask. The community is friendly and many are more than happy to help you. Asking never hurts, but don’t treat others as your Google.

Do not abandon science nor common sense. Witchcraft is powerful, and certain areas have direct influence (using herbs, for example), but it does not replace healthcare, therapy, or otherwise being healthy.

Practice safety. There is a reason why people tell you in rituals/spells/etc. to do things to protect yourself. When doing witchcraft, you are dealing with great powers and energy - sometimes that might be malicious.

Also, some general things like fire safety, checking for crystal toxicities in various substances, and herb properties are important to keep track of - these are physical things that can seriously harm you; and definitely work. Do not doubt that.

Do not lose yourself. While witchcraft gives us great power, it sometimes makes us lose ourselves. One might become so absorbed in their path that they forget things like eating, checking on friends, doing hobbies, and so forth. This path is part of your life, but your life does not consist only of the path.

Energywork is not my specialty, but you could try talking to @stormwaterwitch @heatherwitch @moonrisemagick or @heathen-of-the-north - Aesa <3

Energy Work Masterposts

-> https://witchofthewyrd.tumblr.com/post/167213164147/witchcraft-101-core-concepts-energy-work

-> http://sylvaetria.tumblr.com/post/138095634944/energy-work-masterpost(There’s a good amount of broken links on here, but there are some that do work. And at the very least, the titles of the broken links give you topics to research or ask around about. The original post I believe was by thesigilwitch, sylvaetria made an updated version where more of the links work.)

-> http://snwitch.tumblr.com/post/120066238166/energy-work-masterpost

Energy Work Explanation -> http://sylvaetria.tumblr.com/post/155552594393/secular-magic-energy-sources(If you are not familiar with the term UPG, it’s short for Unverified Personal Gnosis. In less science talk, it’s the concept that an individuals spiritual insights (or gnosis) may be valid for them without being generalizable to the experience of others. Something that might work for one person, might not be the best for another, and just because Method A worked for Person A does not mean that is only true method.)

Energy Tethers -> http://sylvaetria.tumblr.com/post/160089151078/energy-tethers-101

Also just a little thing that helped me out when I first started was to do exercises where I expanded and shaped my energy. I liked to listen to music during school bus rides and used the rhythm of the songs to play around with my energy a bit. Also if you are interested in the aura reading aspect of energy work, try to exercise your minds eye ^_^

Hope this helps your understanding of energy work and gives you some possible leads on what to do next :)

PLEASE always do your research before handling any crystal in any way. Some crystals contain trace amounts of potentially harmful elements if handled or ingested in excess amounts (and some not so excessively). For this reason, it is extremely important to be aware of what you are handling and how to appropriately handle it. 

This is not meant to induce fear, but instead to educate. Most of the crystals here are listed to be cautious of internal use with a few being cautionary for external use.  Please pay close attention to this list when you are working with raw  specimens. Tumbled/coated crystals aren’t typically harmful, with a few exceptions such as Realgar. NOTE: Before making any elixir or charging any water, it is a good idea to double check for any possible toxicity that may occur. Using several stones in combination can cause an elemental reaction between the stones that can potentially be dangerous.

When in doubt, do your research.

Actinolite

Fibrous form is a type of asbestos. Not recommended for elixirs.

Adamite

Contains Arsenic (Arsenate) and trace amounts of copper which is toxic.

Ajoite

Contains Aluminum, Copper.

Alexandrite

Contains Aluminum.

Amazonite

Trace amounts of Copper which is toxic.

Amblygonite

Contains Aluminum.

Andaluscite

Contains Aluminum.

Atacamite

Contains poisonous/toxic copper.

Auricalcite

Contains Zinc and Copper which is toxic.

Aventurine

Contains Aluminum.

Axinite

Contains Aluminum, Iron.

Azurite

Contains Copper, Toxic.

Bastnaesite

The chemical makeup of Bastnaesite does contain toxic elements which can react when combined with water.

Beryl Group (Aquamarine, Goshenite, Heliodor, Morganite)

Contains Aluminum.

Brazilianite

Contains Aluminum not recommended to use in its raw form.

Bronchantite

Copper Hydrated Sulphate, Toxic.

Boji Stones (Kansas Pop Rocks, aka Concretin)

Contains Sulfur, Pyrite and/or Marcasite which is toxic (*also could be a fire hazard).

Chalcopyrite AKA Peacock Ore

Contains copper and sulfur which can be toxic.

Chrysoberyl

Contains Aluminum.

Chrysocolla

Contains poisonous/toxic copper. Safe for handling but not for use in elixirs.

Cinnabar

Contains mercury which can be poisonous/toxic Wash hands after holding. Do not touch hands to eyes or mouth while holding.

Conichalcite

Contains poisonous/toxic copper.

Copper

Contains poisonous/toxic copper.

Crocoite

Contains poisonous/toxic levels of Chromium. Do not touch hands to eyes or mouth while holding. Do not ingest.

Cuprite

Contains poisonous/toxic copper. Wash hands after holding. Do not touch hands to eyes or mouth while holding.

Dalmatian Jasper

Contains Aluminum.

Dioptase

Contains poisonous/toxic copper. Safe for handling but not for use in elixirs.

Dumortierite

Contains Aluminum.

I’m a witch and I’m broke! Here are some ways I practise my craft. (Mostly free Internet resources I’ve found helpful, plus a couple of my own ideas chucked in.)

Astrology

Explore astrological birth charts on Cafeastrology! All you need is your birth date, time & location. Diving straight in & doing charts for you & your friends is the best way to learn how to interpret natal charts.

If you are new to astrology and need to get to grips with the basics of the zodiac, you can use sites like iZodiacSigns to give you a basic rundown of the signs & the traits with which they are most commonly associated. I even find Wikipedia’s Astrological sign page useful as a quick reference—it clearly lays out the signs, their associated elements, polarities, & modalities.

Astrolocherry cannot be beaten for her wise, empathetic insights. I would recommend her to anyone, particularly those who feel sceptical re: astrology or struggle to identify with their sun sign, as her analyses are always compassionate & avoid lazy stereotypes. 

A basic guide to the 12 Houses of the Zodiac.

Tarot

I highly recommend the Golden Thread app, especially for beginners! It’s simple, beautiful, free, available for both iOS and Android, & all the cards come with neat, accurate explanations.

If you want to delve further into the traditional Rider-Waite card meanings, Biddytarot should be your first port of call. You can copy their quick card descriptions down into a notebook/grimoire to help you learn them better!

Autostraddle has an LGBT+/queer friendly tarot column called Fool’s Journey! A great read, encourages you to interpret the cards in non-traditional, subversive ways, & recommends a variety of more creative/abstract, less heteronormative/white decks for your wishlist. 

You can use websites like Free Tarot Reading if you don’t fancy asking one of the thousands of tarot readers looking for practice on tumblr dot com.

Other Forms of Divination

Numerology! I used this site to find basic meanings. You can use numerology to analyse your birth date, the meanings within a plain pack of playing cards, or a set of dice!

Runes! There is a great post going round about different rune meanings. Making your own set of runes is a fun craft activity, and you can use almost anything! I’ve seen DIY runes made from pebbles, bits of porcelain, sea glass, & crystals (fancy). Just use whatever’s cheap and readily available!

How to make and use your own pendulum.

Scrying is free and worth a shot!

Spell Ideas

You want to make cute, aesthetically pleasing charms like the ones you’ve seen on Tumblr, but you can’t justify spending your grocery money on new crystals, fresh herbs, fancy containers or jewellery making equipment, right?

Containers: old jam or coffee jars, medicine bottles, wine or beer bottles, mini spirit bottles, lotion bottles, old lipstick tubes, jewellery boxes. If you don’t have a bunch of these lying around the house, somebody you know will, & they’ll grateful for you to take them off their hands. Upcycle!

Kitchen herbs (salt, pepper, rosemary, sage, garlic, mint, cinnamon, coriander/cilantro, etc. - obvious but effective & all available from your local supermarket) 

Materials: beads, ribbons, glitter, sequins or buttons according to colour correspondence (old things you’ve been hoarding for years may carry magickal energies of their own!), rocks/pebbles with sigils painted on (I’ve even used nail polish!), glass, sea glass, & mirrors (good for curse protection).

You can make your own mini ‘altar’ out of anything: jewellery boxes, a shoebox covered in wrapping paper, etc. Old Altoid boxes are popular on Tumblr among USians. Draw or print out pictures or symbols you find soothing or invigorating & tape them on the inside; spray some perfume or essential oils. Use it to store a few special magickal items for luck, and/or your grimoire.

Speaking of which—a grimoire can be anything. My first one was an A5 notebook & it was very scribbly. Now I have a jumbo binder covered in Buffy stickers. 

Candles—whatever you have to hand works, including LED. I use tea lights because you can get a giant bag from the pound shop. You can add essential oils to them if you want more of one specific type of energy. 

Also easy & free to do: making moon water (by leaving a cup of water to charge by the light of the moon), & collecting rain or storm water. These can be used in spells. I personally dab moon water on my wrists every day like it’s perfume, & I believe it gives me inspiration, creative energy, & keeps me in touch with my intuition.

If you’re reading this, you probably know how to make sigils, but here is a good post anyhow. Powerful, effective, fun & cheap.

Sprinkle salt water around your room/apartment/whatever and chant your intent to protect it from negative energies. Bam, you’ve just put up some magickal wards.

Make playlists on Spotify, YouTube etc., of music to evoke the mood you wish to create for the rituals you are doing. 

REMEMBER:

Intent really is everything. We as witches have the power to give items magickal significance. You can pick up an old stick & call it a wand, & that’s equally as valid as using a masterpiece special fancy wand for £100 off Etsy. You are not less of a witch because you can’t afford certain materials.

I have to admit practicing witchcraft isn’t always easy, especially when you are still in the broom closet. At first, you’re scared people will judge you, or just find you weird. It’s hard to celebrate a pagan holiday when you live with people who don’t know about your spirituality, or live in a very religious neighborhood. To help my fellow witches celebrate the coming of Imbolc, I’ve decided to list 15 simple ways to have a discreet holiday practice.

These are not recipes, but ideas - what meal could serve what purpose. They are simple, so you either should have your own recipes for them, or find them on the internet easy enough. 

Happy cooking!

BANISHING

chili (cayenne pepper, black pepper, chili - generally spicy things)

lemon-infused water (lemon is a repellant, and water is uncrossable for some entities)

sugarfree coffee with cinnamon (coffee and cinnamon are both banishing ingredients)

curry (cayenne pepper, black pepper, chili - generally spicy things)

PROTECTION

caprese salad (basil, tomatoes)

margarita pizza (basil, tomatoes)

apple pie (apples)

corn-on-a-cob (corn)

mint tea (mint)

herb soup (rosemary, basil, mint, thyme, bay leaf…)

HEALING

apple pie (apples)

golden milk (milk and turmeric)

elderflower tea (elderflower)

mint tea (mint)

onion syrup (onion and honey)

chamomile tea (chamomile)

lemon-infused water (lemon)

ginger tea (ginger)

nettle soup (nettle)

pumpkin soup (pumpkin)

pumpkin cookies or bread (pumpkin)

curry (turmeric, garlic, onion)

LUCK

cinnamon rolls (cinnamon)

orange juice (orange)

chamomile tea (chamomile)

corn-on-a-cob (corn)

pineapple juice (pineapple)

poppyseed buns or bread (poppy)

HAPPINESS

orange juice (orange)

honeyed tea (honey)

mint tea (mint)

lemon-infused water (lemon)

vanilla-flavoured ice cream (vanilla)

sunflower seed buns or bread (sunflower)

sugar cookies (sugar)

PEACE

lemon balm tea (lemon balm)

lavender-infused water (lavender)

cucumber-infused water (cucumber)

vanilla-flavoured ice cream (vanilla)

PROSPERITY

milk with honey (milk and honey)

apple pie (apple)

pumpkin soup (pumpkin)

pumpkin cookies or bread (pumpkin)

chocolate chip cookies (chocolate) 

sandwich - any (bread)

fried rice (rice)

curry (rice)

If you live in the northern hemisphere, this guy should be a really familiar sight. For those of you who don’t, the Big Dipper is an asterism that makes up part of the full constellation Ursa Major. It can be used to find Polaris, or the North Star, which was an important navigation tool for explorers of all kinds. This is the first constellation I ever successfully identified and as such is pretty special to me, so I decided to take the meanings of the stars and translate them to a spread! As always suggestions for each position are down below, but the ultimate interpretation is up to you!

1.  Dubhe: Dubhe’s an neat one, since it’s a different color from the rest. As one of the two “pointer stars” it helps guide the way to Polaris. How can you change your perspective and keep an open mind? What tools can you use to illuminate paths you hadn’t considered before?

2. Merak: Merak is the second of the two “pointer stars”. It’s name is derived from the Arabic for “loins of the bear”. This position helps to ground the rest of the constellation, and gives insight regarding the issue with which you need guidance. What is the root of your indecision? What is the issue from which all these paths sprout?

3. Phecda: Phecda is an Ae star and as a result is surrounded by a thick layer of gas. For this reason, it represents challenges. What obstacles stand between you and clarity. What’s clouding your vision?

4. Megrez: This star is neat cause it’s surrounded by a disk of circumstellar matter! This position for that reason represents the surrounding environment. What supports are in your life that can help you at this juncture? Who can you turn to for help figuring out what to do?

5. Alioth: This star was a really important star in ancient navigation. It’s also got an A1p (for peculiar) spectral emission which means that there’s some unique stuff going on in its atmosphere. This position helps provide you with some clarity as to what direction you should go in. What factors of the correct path will give you the most security? What peculiar quality should you look for to indicate the most stable path? You’ll end up with a “favored path” after this.

6. Mizar: This star is part of a binary system, the second star of which serves as a test of skills for naked-eye observers. This represents potential stress that you might face once you’re on the path you choose. What factors will put you to the test? With what will you struggle as you walk your chosen path?

7. Alkaid: Also called Benetnasch, this is the last star in the constellation and represents the final destination of your chosen path. Why is it worth it to choose this option? What good will come of you making the decision to pursue this course of action?