This weekend I was blessed, I got to go to Salem, Massachusetts the witch city capital of the world. My only friend who is a practicing witch @eclectic-earth and I stayed the historical Hawethorne Hotel.
I spent close to $300 . So worth every penny I got the Witchcraft Theory and Practice by Ly De Angeles, Angelite Pendant, Chalice, ENDLESS amounts or herbs, Protection oil, Archangel Gabriel Oil, and @eclectic-earth got a beautiful piece of moldavite.
Such a blessed weekend full of the energy I needed to feel. I love Salem it will always be my home.
*Smudging is a ritual from a closed practice, please research this before buying that shell, feather, and sage bundle from 5below… stay aware!
Alternatives to smudging: smoke cleansing (literally just get incense cones or sticks!), sound cleansing (get a bell or play cleansing frequencies), deep cleaning (vacuum, open the windows, wipe everything down), and your words (declaring your space sacred & protected)!
*Support your local crystal shops, farmers markets (if the season permits), and don’t be afraid to askquestions: such as, where items are sourced!
*Now is the time to for introspection, grounding, cleansing, spending time outdoors, home cooking, self care (beyond that face mask), meditation, decluttering, reorganizing, andgrowth!
Hey there witches! I’ve covered water infusions aka Hydrosols before, but it’s time to move onto the hard stuff: alcohol
A tincture is an extract which has an alcohol base. Traditionally, these were herbal infusions used for medicine, but for today’s topic, we’ll be talking about tinctures in all forms, but it’s up to you as to what’s for consumption, and what may be used as a perfume, floor wash, or ritual spray etc.
Tinctures can be a lot easier to make because they have a cold infusion method, as in no heat source is used to speed the process. Alcohol absorbs plant matter and dissolves quite easily, so heating it is a dangerous step not necessary for the occasional infusion.
What can be made into a tincture?
Flowers
Berries
Leaves
Roots
Stalks and barks
Spas and resins
Seeds
These can be dried or fresh.
Especially for flowers, some fragrance doesn’t carry once the flower withers, so using fresh can be super helpful if the fragrance is important!
What do I do to make one?
Take your container like a mason jar
Fill with plant material about halfway*
Add in your alcohol**
Shake and let infuse***
Strain and decant into its new container
Now it’s simple, but you do have to make some decisions like if you’re making individual tinctures or a blend. Individual tinctures can be blended later of course, but takes more containers and individual checking than throwing it all together. Go by instinct and research until you’ve got the experience.
That sounds simple, but I want some more tips:
Break apart or cut up ingredients so more of the matter gets mixed and infused. It releases fragrance, juices and gives more surfaces for the base to interact.
Shake your tincture while it’s infusing every day. You may want to infuse for a day, a week, or a full cycle of the moon, you do you!
If you’re using a mason jar or other metal lid container, a piece of Saran Wrap/cling plastic can protect the lid from corroding.
You can get a high proof alcohol and dilute it with distilled water.****
If taking internally, do so with care, and dosage is usually only a few drops at a time. Check with your doctor before starting any regiment.
If you want to make a ritual tincture for a salt bonfire, the alcohol has to be minimum 100 proof or it won’t catch fire. Don’t burn yourself.
I have a ginger tincture I use for upset stomachs. Just a few drops in mineral water and it settles right down (think ginger ale).
For tooth aches, I use a few drops of clove tincture in warm water and swish around. Plus my breath smells great afterwards.
Just remember, it’s concentrated, and in a lot of cases may not taste great by itself, just like if you took a spoon full of vanilla extract. Start small, dilute, or use in ritual.
A lovely alternative to those who cannot smoke cleanse and/or who do not like to. Spray cleansing is as simple as mixing a few ingredients into Moon Water and setting the intention of ushering out negativity, exactly what smoke cleansing does.
Supplies: • Spray Bottle •Moon Water • Witch Hazel (A Tincture would work best) • Dried Lavender & Lavender Essential Oil • Eucalyptus Essential Oil • Dried Rosemary • Clear Quartz • Amethyst
Directions: In the spray bottle, add the dried Lavender, Rosemary, Clear Quartz and Amethyst. Then add equal parts Witch Hazel and Moon water until the bottle is just about full. Add a couple of drops of the essential oils before capping the spray bottle and gently shaking to combine. The longer the spray sits, the more infused the dry ingredients become with the liquids.
I know in my previous post, I mentioned finding your birth card. But what IS your birth card exactly? It’s the card in the Major Arcana that represents you as a person in tarot. In this post, I’ll teach you how to calculate that quickly by using your birthday!
1. Take your birthday and write it out as follows (for this, I’m using a random date) mm-dd-yyyy: 06 - 22 - 20 02
2. Add the numbers together as such: 06 22 20 + 02 —– 48
3. If you get a double digit number HIGHER than 22 (the number of major arcana in most standard decks), add the numbers separately again until you get a number lower than 22. 4 + 8 —- 12
So, the example here has a Birth Card of 12 which is the Hanged Man, which is the 12th card of the Major Arcana!
*Note: There are some cards that correlate to zodiac signs, elements, etc. I just gave the easiest example relating to numerology.
Every now and then, we could all use an added boots of luck in our lives. Be it for that job interview, sales for our small business, whatever the case may be. For me, luck and prosperity go hand in hand, and together they make a dynamic duo. If you need an extra boost in your current situation, try out this jar!
Supplies: ✤ Jar ✤ Basil ✤ Bay Leaf ✤ Cinnamon ✤ Ginger ✤ Green Candle
Directions: Layer all your supplies into your jar neatly, in whatever order you see fit. All the while, think positively about drawing luck and prosperity into your life. You DESERVE this after all. Listen to some upbeat music, create it in your work space, even wearing green while making it could also be a fun option. When done, seal with green wax and keep on hand either in your work space or near your front door!
Never sure what to ask your deck but you feel the urge to work with it? Here’s a small, simple list of questions to get you started:
Career: - What do I need to know most about my career? - How can I move my career forward? - Is my career the right choice currently?
Family: - What do I need to know the most about the situation with my ___ ? - What do I need to do about the situation involving my ___ ? - Is ___ holding me back from being my best?
Love Life: - How can I move my love life forward? - What do I need to know the most about my love life? - What would be the best way to draw romance into my life?
Travel: - How will the trip go? - Will I learn something new along the way? - What opportunities will arise on this trip?
Self: - What am I not seeing/What am I ignoring? - What are my strengths/What are my weaknesses? - What have I learned?
Other: - What’s trying to come forth in my life? - What blessings are being draw into my life? - What’s the best way to communicate ___ ? - Is there something I should look out for? - How do I go from ___ to ___ ?
I don’t make personal posts often but here is my little Sage buddy. Growing quite nicely on the window sill in the hallway. The seed packet is there so my grandmother has something to reference for watering if I’m not around.
Please don’t cast circles using Salt outside, especially in the soil. Salt is absorbent and takes water away from plant life, therefore effectively killing off most things.
There is a reason why in the Ancient Near East (Egypt, Mesopotamia, Armenia, etc), Spain, Portugal, etc it was so common to SALT THE EARTH of conquered cities, or even convicted criminals, to prevent re-inhabitation . It destroys soil nutrients, absorbency, and heavily delays and/or stops plant growth all together.
So please, my Witchy Siblings, seek safer alternatives when working outside. Cast a circle in stones or branches. Draw one into the soil itself. Use a biodegradable material like eggshells instead. But please, do NOT use Salt.
