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witchy tips for the adhd student

School is starting up again and I know that it’s a hard time for a lot of ADHD students like myself! So here’s some tips, mundane combines with otherworldly, to help get you through the term! ***But please do not use these instead of taking your medication. It’s there to do it’s job, these are there to help it along the way.***

use blue for focus, light purple/lavender for knowledge, and yellow for memory in your highlighters for your notes. not only are these witchy correspondences but using different coloured highlighters will help organize your notes, and help you remember them better.

drink black tea while you’re studying or in class. caffeine is said to help us ADHDers focus since it’s a stimulant, but it’s also said to banish boredom.

keep azurite, fluorite, sapphire, or smoky quartz in your pocket to fidget with in class. these are all stones that help with focus and learning so their correspondences will help you while you have something to fidget with.

burn incense associated with focus and learning while you study, if you can. the scent will also help you remember and associate with what you’re studying.

spell jars for focus and memory are great to keep in your pocket/bag

@orriculum had this fabulous idea for charmed pens which would be great for studying and give you something to fidget with in class

write sigils for focus/memory in the back of your notebooks

lastly and most importantly and not very witchy, STUDY IN INTERVALS. the BIGGEST AND MOST HELPFUL TIP my psychologist ever gave me was study in intervals, study for 10-15 minutes, take a break for 10-15 minutes. executive dysfunction and the adhd mind does not like the idea of sitting down for hours and doing one thing. so don’t even try. it won’t work. you’ll be much more successful with studying in intervals.

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How I make spellcandles

I was making a spell candle for the Imbolc ritual I’m hosting for the coven tomorrow and figured: why not turn it into a little tutorial? So here is my version of the spell candles!

What you need: (note: I made a candle for creativity and inspiration, so everything matches that goal. Change herbs, colours and stones to match any goal you want/need!)

🕯 a base candle, either white or a colour that works for your goal

🕯 through-and-though coloured candles for dripping in colours that match your goal. I usually use two or three, in this case yellow for happiness and inspiration and orange for creativity

🕯 herbs, I used basil (creativity), rose (passion/motivation), mistletoe (fertility for ideas) and mugwort (creativity)

🕯 small stone chips, I used aventurine, citrine and burnt amethyst (all for creativity)

🕯 oils, I used jasmine (creativity)

🕯 ribbon and charm (optional, but pretty!)

🕯 baking paper to protect your work surface

Start with carving some words or symbols into the candle. Today I used a bindrune for creativity, the runes kenaz (inner fire), wunjo (happiness) and gebo (gift).

Now drip the first colour. Make sure to first go around the edges for the pretty drips and then fill in the top.

Next are the herbs, stones and oil. Simply sprinkle them on top and arrange the bigger pieces so they are spread out a bit. Press the stones gently down into the still soft wax for sturdyness.

Drip the last colour, making sure to set but not drown the herbs, and tadaa! One pretty spellcandle! But wait, there’s more!

Tie the ribbon around the candle with one knot.

Slide on your charm and knot again, fitting it snuggly against the candle.

Make a pretty bow and trim the ends,and you’re done!

Burn it during your spell (note: remove the ribbon before it catches and reuse it!), place it on your altar or even make them to give away as gifts!

Also, feel free to tag me if you make one with the tutorial, I’d love to see them! 🌙

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Witchcraft for kids: How to fill a child's life with magic

If there's a child in your life that you want to introduce magic to, here are some small and simple ideas:

Enchanting their blanket and letting them know

Making wishes on dandelions

Using mythology as bed time stories

Painting sigils on their ceilings with glow in the dark paint (they get to see the sigil and actually see that it's charged and used as they sleep)

Tea parties

Pearl earrings for good luck, wisdom, and wealth

Knot magic applied in hairstyles

Celebrating the equinoxes and other celebrations

Creating a fairy garden

Putting a rosemary plant on their desk to help them remember what they studied

Teach them phases of the moon and their importance

Teach them florist things and geology

Take them to the beach

Let them decorate and keep an altar in their room

Give them some basic spell books

Put honey for sweetness and milk for strength in their baths or other herbs (just make sure it's safe for their skin and to be ingested)

Teach them basic palministry

Go feather hunting

Go foraging with them

Burn incense or get a diffuser for their room

Speak your chants, spells, and correspondences out loud

Make them a jar spell for peaceful sleep

Plant jasmine outside their window for health, happiness, and relaxation

Bake bread with them

Teach them to meditate and ground

Make them rose and honey tea when they feel lonely and sad

Have them keep a dream journal

Teach them how to read playing cards

Make them amulets for safety and love

Draw sigils on the tags in their clothes

Paint their nails a color to match what you want to bring into their life (ie blue for calm, red for love, white for peace, etc)

Use glow in the dark star stickers and recreate some constellations inside

Cleanse their room or teach them how to

When they have bad dreams, place some amethyst and salt under their pillow

Bring the color orange into their room to bring in energy and joy or blue to bring in calm and peace

Place an iron nail in the floor under their door and above their windows to keep out fae

Hand down your grimoires

Plant an oak tree in your yard to provide a place to play and also to bring strength into your home and as a place to worship deities associated with the tree

Teach them about curses and the like

Get them an authentic dream catcher

An opalite necklace for confidence

Shark tooth necklace for strength

Teach them to love and respect the Earth

There are so many more things you can do but this is just a basic list! Please share your favorite witchy things for children!!!

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Predict the Weather in a Cup of Coffee

This is a long standing trick used by farmers and backpackers alike. 

Watch the bubbles when you pour your cup of coffee. Bubbles gathering in the center indicate a high-pressure system, which makes the coffee’s surface convex or higher in the middle. Since bubbles are mostly air, they migrate to the highest point. High-pressure means sunshine and cloudless skies.  Same if the bubbles push to the edges quickly.

If the bubbles form a ring around the sides of the mug, however, the surface is concave and indicates a low-pressure system. Expect rain or overcast with in 12 hours. If bubbles slowly move to the edge of the cup the weather will clear soon enough.

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witchy-woman’s spell jars.

Y’all are requesting spell jars I already have, and i realized they are properly buried in my blog so here’s what we have so far (plus the other posts like recipes and tutorials) 

Updated – July 31st 2017

J A R S

“I Can Do This!” Motivation Jar

No More Nightmares Jar

Anti-Anxiety Jar

“Quiet My Mind” Focus Jar 

Protection Jar

La-La-Love Jar

Happy AF Jar

Broken Hearted Jar

Clean & Cleanse Jar

Prosperity Jar

Creativity Jar 

Divination Jar

Samhain Jar (letting go and setting new intentions)

Self Love Jar

Lucky Star Jar

Job Hunting Jar

Long Distance Love Jar

The Fool: New Beginnings Jar (tarot series)

L G B T Q  S E R I E S

“I appear more masculine” masterpost (including spell jar) 

“I appear more feminine” masterpost (including spell jar)

O T H E R  P O S T S 

“Where Do You Buy All Those Tiny Jars???” list with links.

How I Seal My Spell Jars tutorial

Sweet Tea recipe/tutorial

Homemade Yeast Bread recipe 

Witchy music playlist (spotify link included)

Grimoire Organization (my personal favorite post, honestly.)

Witchy Movies & TV masterpost

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Throwin’ the Bones

Of the divinatory techniques with which I am familiar, bones are my personal favorite. Yes, they have that very witchy vibe – but it’s more than that; the bones are honest. They don’t sugar coat, and while they have to be interpreted, once you know how to read them – there’s little room for interpretation. They are very direct and are much better suited to answering yes or no questions than tarot. With a little imaginative methodology, there few questions the bones can’t answer. And even fewer they won’t answer (as tarot cards can be known to do). A few examples of things I think the bones are better at answering than tarot: questions involving time, questions regarding health, sickness and maledictions; they present a broader grasp to any given situation – incorporating things outside of the question presented and how these things relate to the question or the reading, showing the interconnectedness of life – and how these things all relate back.

Our countless cultures have countless methods for collecting and reading the Bones – and I can only rightly attest to my own methodology: one in which the Bones need not necessarily consist solely of bones, but a collection of gathered trinkets and curios, all with their own meaning, their own story and their own energy. My collection consists of: bones (bare and painted), coins, stones, shells, jewelry, twigs, buttons, animal teeth and other squabbles. The only rule I implement is that the item can be easily gathered and (safely) tossed without breakage or injury (save your razor-blades and glass shards for witches’ bottles!).

Collecting the Bones and Bobbles

Most any small bones will do, though its recommended that you use bones that haven’t been cooked, as cooked bones have a tendency to get very brittle – especially in the case of chicken, which is quite common. In my collection I have a number of different animal bones: most are chicken, but I also have some raccoon and possum bones, as well as teeth and claws. I built a “base” of bones, but am continuously adding or replacing as I see fit.

A short list of “Bones” I like to include – most of which serve as my “base” bones:

Self Bone – used for the reader

Other Bone – used to represent another person or the person you are reading

Magic Bone – represents the need for or use of magic

“Evil” Bone – malicious or hateful acts, disadvantageous behavior

Love Bone – represents romantic love

Male Bone – represents male fertility, masculinity, sexuality or a man

Female Bone – represents female fertility, femininity, sexuality or a woman

Health Bone – represents physical or mental health

Wealth Bone – represents financial standing or monetary issues

Family Bone – represents familial connections or a family member

Fate Bone – represents destiny and your lifepath (I use a shell for this: open side up means an event can be altered, destiny is not set in stone; open side down, this path must be walked – prepare in lieu of fighting)

“Key” Bone – (I actually use a small key) which represents the key to any given situation, the remedy or problem at hand and its cause

This list is by no means comprehensive and I have many more bones in my collection with more menial meanings. This is simply a small list of options to be added to and adapted by whosoever casts the bones.

Reading the Bones

There is no right or wrong way to read the bones, there is simply your way and their way. Below I will dictate how it is that I do a general reading – again, this is just an example of one way, take and adapt to fit your own unique style or tradition!

Begin by collecting your bones into your hand. I keep mine in a leather pouch, but don’t like to toss them directly from the bag as it doesn’t allow for much control – i.e. the bones fall out either in a massive, unreadable pile or they fly out in such a scattered way nothing is close enough to read. Throwing them from the hand allows for a rather contained casting, and one that can be read easily. I do not include the Self or Other bone, instead, the Self Bone is placed before the caster and the Other Bones is placed either in front of the person you’re reading for or simply in the middle of the casting area. When reading for yourself, place the Self Bone in the center and discard the Other Bone.

Throw the Bones. This can be done on a square of cloth on which a circle (or any number of complex shapes) has been drawn or simply upon a flat table. If throwing in a circle, discard all bones that fall outside of it. These bones are null for the reading, though they can also be read as “far from the person’s mind/current situation.”

Interpret the Bones. This is done by noting the location and connection of the bones present. For instance, note the Love Bones proximity to the Other Bones and the Male Bone. This could be interpreted as being the male love of the querent – but if the “Evil” bones is introduced, this could symbol ulterior motives or a hostile or explosive relationship. Read based on both their proximity to the Other Bone – the closer, the higher priority the matter is – and their relation to one another. It’s very much like investigating a big puzzle, putting it together piece by piece to form a comprehensive understanding of their life or situation. Also not their relation based on the third dimension: x bone seems to be overlapping y bone – is the x issue eclipsing an underlying problem or truth represented by y? It depends. Only through practice will you find clarity.

Convey the message. I always like to spend a few moments making a variety of “hmm” noises when reading for others – it builds up their anticipation. Or you can throw in the occasional gasp or snarky smirk. Their responses are usually hilarious – even more so when yours are genuine! If you are reading on your own, it may be a good idea to sketch out a general map of the readings as opposed to taking a picture as often bones overlie others, which makes for a rather misleading photo representation. You might also find jotting down notes rewarding, especially in synthesizing a cohesive read.

Once you’ve garnered all the information you can from that particular toss, feel free to specify: take the bone/situation you wish to examine and toss the rest again over it/them, reading the others through that particular lens. I.E. Who is this person mentioned? What are their qualities? What is the nature of this love? What magic is being referenced here? Follow that rabbit hole as far as you wish, building your understanding.

Do not be afraid to adjust your style! Want to narrow down a time frame? Make a sort of timeline with the bones. Wish to determine the source of an ailment? Shape the bones into the form of a body. I find the bones allow for far more creativity and ingenuity than cards. And above all – TRUST YOUR GUT.

Photos: These are photos of my “base” bones when I first started reading; since then they have probably doubled (if not tripled) in number and do not incorporate my other animal bones, claws or teeth. 

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My kind of picnic! 😍

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Alright, sweeties! A bit of a different post from me today! I have been meaning to make this for awhile, since I haven’t seen anyone organize their grimoire the way I do, I thought this could certainly be helpful for someone!

First, let’s talk about the book itself! I don’t use a blank book or a notebook. I wanted a graph paper notebook this size, but just couldn’t find one! So, after watching this video, I was SO inspired, I could just MAKE the whole thing! So, we went out and bought a used book, a pack of graph paper and a glue stick. This was SO freeing because I make pages before I put them in, I write in pencil, then I go over it in fine Sharpie pen, erase pencil marks, and then glue the page in when I’m finished. That way, I don’t have this fear of “messing it up” (even though I think messing up things is part of the fun sometimes!).

So if you like to be organized, I might be stressing you out. I understand. Organization is something I love and need in my life. I’ve seen so many folks using binders for their grimoires, but it wasn’t my style. I wanted it to all be sort of chronological, but also organized??? My answer to this– COLOR CODING. Ever section (energy, astrology, spells, candles/incense, etc) has a different color that I make on the side facing outwards, along with the category written on the side. This way, if I’m looking for something in particular, I can flip through and find it, no problem!

Secondly, I use ENVELOPES. Alright, I love astrology. Astrology is something I want to have a lot about in my book, but also I don’t want to take it up my entire book with this. So envelopes were my answer for this! I water-colored each envelope in a color suit that felt fitting to each of the elements, and drew on the constellation, glued those bad boys in, and BAM, I have WAY more room to add things about signs because I can just stick ‘em in their designated envelopes. 

In addition, I like using/decorating with things from the internet, magazines, etc. This is YOUR book, your documentation of learning, your personal reference. Don’t be afraid to go off the ‘traditional’ leather bound, calligraphy written, beautiful grimoires if that isn’t your style! It doesn’t make it ANY less witchy or magical to use highlighters, friends! Don’t be afraid, no one can tell you what is right or wrong when it comes to YOUR grimoire!

Also, I would LOVE to see your grimoires, so tag me in your photos!! 

xoxo

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Beltane 2015: Strawberry Lemonade Cookies

Makes ~2 dozen.

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1 stick butter, melted

1 large egg

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon lemon extract

1 small bowl mashed strawberries (10 - 12 strawberries)

~ 2 cups flour, or until a thick dough is formed

Cooking spray

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350*F

Grease 2 cookie sheets with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, mash 10 - 12 small or 6 - 8 large strawberries until they are a liquid consistency.

In a large bowl, add 1 cup of sugar, 1 stick melted butter, and 1 large egg. Stir.

Add strawberries to large bowl and stir.

Add 1/8 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, and 1 teaspoon lemon extract to large bowl and stir.

Start by adding 1 cup flour to the mixture in the large bowl and stir. Continue adding flour, ¼ cup at a time and stir, until a thick dough is formed.

Roll dough into small balls and place evenly onto two cookie sheets.

Bake for 10 - 12 minutes.

Let cool and enjoy!

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As promised, and requested, a bottle sealing post!

A important reminder first– be careful when you’re using candles, don’t set your shit on fire. You can use any candle for this, I use different candles (colors and scents) depending on what I associate with the bottle I’m making (yellow & lemon for happiness, blue for sleep, etc.) you don’t have to do this, but you can. You can also use regular candles instead on tea lights, but tea lights usually melt faster for me.

Also, I don’t know (or actually care?) if this is the proper way to seal a bottle with wax, witchcraft doesn’t need to be fancy, and my personal craft is focused on using what I already have, and going out to purchase “special” items as little as possible, nothing wrong if you do, but I am a very small budget witch, and I like the challenge that comes with it. I happen to be a bit candle crazy, so this works well for me.

Okay, so here we go!

Set down a piece of paper if you don’t want to get wax on your stuff, light that little tea candle (or regular candle) and let it start to melt. I usually light my candle before I start putting together my bottle, so it is usually close to ready by the time I’m done.

Once the tea light is melted all the way (or big candle, deep enough to dip) I dip the top in! If you are using a bigger bottle than I am, you can remove the wick usually with a pair of tweezers, but I don’t like to do this because I never use all the wax, so it’s a waste if I take out the wick!

Pull it out, you can blow on it to help it cool faster, dip it again, out, blow on it, a few times until it’s pretty covered and the top is pretty solidly covered (pictured is after the first dip! But you can see how covered it was when I start pouring wax in the next photo)

If you want the drippy-witchy-wax look, (carefully) pick up your candle and pour wax over the bottle top (see why we put that paper down, now?) I usually smooth out the top with my thumb, gently while it’s cooling down. Once cooled down the wax on the paper usually comes right up, and I usually stick it back in the candle to melt down for later. 

Usually I stick mine in the fridge to cool down and harden (my house is warm bc we don’t control the heat) 

And ta-da! Your bottle is sealed up. Also, I think you could probably carve a sigil in the top if you’re into sigils (I don’t personally use them, but I imagine you could!) 

There we go, it’s super easy, no one taught me how, I just sat down and was like “OKAY, so how am I going to seal this without covering the whole damn bottle in wax????” and this is what I came up with! If you don’t want whatever is in your jar to move around (I usually pack mine pretty tight, so it’s okay) I would just pour the wax on top, it will be messier though.

If anyone has any questions, feel free to shoot them over my way! 

Have a beautiful day, babies. I hope this was helpful!

- a post for the anti-anxiety bottle pictured here is coming soon! -

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Hi sweeties! A new jar for you today!

Trouble focusing and concentrating/channeling extra energy into positive, useful ways is not a new struggle in my household. This jar was a request, but also something I found to be useful for people in my own home, so it was a joy to make, filled with love!

Let’s start!

sea salt - for purification

caraway seeds - for mental power

lavender - for peace and protection

rosemary - for mental power

basil - to dispel confusion, fears and weakness

With each added ingredient, focus that intent and love into each of your layers. The magic is in you and your intent, so don’t be afraid to spend time on each layer! Once you are finished, you can cork up your bottle and speak your intent into the whole bottle, definitely spend time concentrating and focusing while doing this, as it is the purpose of the bottle, infuse it with these things!

While doing so, you can repeat to yourself–

“Peace will come, focus will stay. My energy will be used in a productive way.”

After you are finished, you can seal up your bottle with wax, I have a tutorial for this here.

Feel free to tag me in your recreations! I love to see them! You can also find my other bottles here.

I hope this was helpful! I’m open for questions if you have any!

xoxo.

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Travel altar for my Sea Witch!!! All is handmade. Custom designs are available in my shop!!!

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Spider babies!!!!

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Some days it just all comes together and the perfect piece is born!! This is a home grown gourd that I transformed into a storage place for a set of runes I had made.

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A new goddess poppet created for a lovely friend of mine to go on her altar.

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Some new little pretties I made today... Soon available in my shop!!

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**Blends of the Seer / Drogues du Voyant**

« I say one must be a seer, make oneself a seer. The Poet makes himself a seer through a long, vast and painstaking derangement of all the senses. I want to be a Poet, and I’m working to make myself a Seer: you will not understand at all, and I hardly know how to explain it to you. The point is to arrive at the unknown by the dissoluteness of all the senses. »

***

« Je dis qu’il faut être voyant, se faire voyant. Le Poète se fait voyant par un long, immense et raisonné dérèglement de tous les sens.  

Je veux être Poète, et je travaille à me rendre Voyant : vous ne comprendrez pas du tout, et je ne saurais presque vous expliquer. Il s’agit d’arriver à l’inconnu par le dérèglement de tous les sens. »

[Arthur Rimbaud]

** The Seer Smoke / Encens du Voyant**

A blend of traditional plants to travel through the Veil. Aid in trance work, prophetic dreams, visions, and any divination work. An intoxicating smell with a thick smoke that can also be burnt as an offering.

Grind the following in a mortar and pestle until you get a roughly even mix. Add a drop of raw Dandelion Honey to stick your plants together. Burn on a charcoal disk.

- 1 part Myrrh

- (1) Piece of Fly Agaric

- 1 tbs Mugwort

- 1 tbs Wormwood

- 1 tbs Pomegranate Skin

- 1 part Elderberries

- 1 tbs Lavender

- 1 tbs Willow Leaves

- 1 tbs Poppy Flowers

- (1) Bay Leaf

** The Seer’s Oil / Huile du Voyant**

Close your eyes, then see. An anointing oil intended to assist in any divination work or prophetic visions. Lifts the veil. Increases psychic abilities, clarifies the Sight. Can also be used to make oracles, or consecrate divination tools.

In a base of olive oil (noble & devotional), pour the following through the hole of a Hagstone, then leave the stone to sit in your carrier oil. Cover with the Seer’s Sigil ashes.

- Pomegranate Seeds

- (1) Bay Leaf

- Mugwort

- Wormwood

- Elderberries

- Fly Agaric