UPDATE on tomorrow’s Reddit AMA: It will begin at 3PM EST instead of 1PM. Mark your calendars and be sure to join us on Reddit for a trip back through time with Harry!
Never take an old broom into a new house, as bad luck is sure to follow. It must be a new broom, and first carried across the meadow, to avert any ill from entering the home.
@hiker88said, “I’ve been thinking of getting a hand made broom for a witchy friend. Any suggestions or comments?”
Sure! I’d suggest making it if at all possible. They aren’t very hard to make and instructions can be found online. I think there might even be some posts about how to make one here on tumblr.
The basic principle of it is gathering two or three handfuls of sticks and binding them to the handle. Depending on your method you might be bunching the sticks into groups, attaching them together, and shoving your handle in. Or you might be soaking the sticks in warm water, tying them to the handle facing up, then folding them over so they point down and tying them again.
They’re traditionally Ash or Oak wood for the handle, Birch twigs for the bristles, and bound with Willow (soften in warm water) but you could make it out of anything! Switch out the bindings for cording or twine. Swap out the bristles with a woody herb like mugwort. Make an entire mini version using herbs like lavender or rosemary- whatever you want, it’s your gift to your friend!
At the very least, decorating an already made broom would be a wonderful touch to the gift. You could use color thread, feathers, stones, bones, or charms to decorate it. Carving it or using some kind of wood-burning tool might be nice as well! After the broom was finished (no matter if you made or bought it) I’d give it a quick but gentle sweep to celebrate its creation before gifting it.
Take a goose quill and cut it off where it begins to be hollow. Then, from each nail on both hands and feet scrape off a little to put into the quill and stop up the quill lest any spill out and undo the charm.
Next, find a tree that bears no fruit and bore a hole on the east side of it. Put the quill into the hole and close up the hole with bung made of pine wood. Three strokes must be used to close up the hole and it must be done in the morning of the first Friday on a new moon.
The timing of this ritual is crucial, for the new moon is believed to exert a force down and inward, driving the illness into the tree. The movement of the sun westward reinforces the same movement of the illness into the tree. Fridays are often linked with healing due to the healing of the world beginning on Good Friday when Jesus died for the sins of man.
@etmagick “ “Scrape off a little” what? Am I like scraping the skin off my palms and feet to stuff the quill with or ?? Otherwise, thanks for sharing.”
Scrape a little of your fingernails off and stuff it into the quill. Make sure to get some shavings from each finger and toe. You don’t need much though.
Pro tip: if you ever accidently make a comment or two that verges on too witchy in front of people just laugh and blame it all on your weird, superstitious Catholic family.
Works like a charm
@feathered-skeleton “yes okay but what if I accidentally say it in front of my weird, superstitious Catholic family?”
Well depending on your specific situation you’ve got a couple of different options:
You can leanfurther into the Catholic vibe. If you practice Catholic folk magic at all this will be super easy because you’ll likely already use a bible and have religious objects in your workspace. Some people can get away with saying the things they say and do are old Catholic traditions that they’ve learned from various members of the community/a faith leader/through research.
Laugh it off! Turn everything into a joke. I do this with people who are less likely to believe my comments about “just having a weird family.” I go so over-the-top with my “spooky” comments and a wink that no one would believe I’m still half serious.
If your comments are along the lines of different mythologies or botany based- say it’s just a new hobby. Relate weirder things back to options 1 and 2 but overall try to pass things off as part of a new hobby. My family thought it was weird that I would collect herbs and books on folklore but when you’ve always been kinda a weird kid, they’re more likely to brush it off.
Life “in the broom closet” as it were is never easy but you’ll get through it! And if you ever need someone to chat with or need more specific help my inbox is always open!
Anyone have any book reccommendations for southern folk witchcraft thats not focused as much on bible-centric beliefs? Im having trouble trying to find resources that arent super full of bible references
Is there a particular reason you want to specifically practice folk magic but also avoid the Christian bible?
I don’t want to come off as flippant with that question. It’s sincerely asked because resources will be much more difficult to find if they are both hills you’re willing to die on. It won’t be impossible but everyone has different boundaries so you might be able to get away with more if your limits are looser.
For example, I’m not southern but my craft is based in the folklore of my area. It’s an area which is heavily Christian. I’m not, but I also acknowledge the power that a tool like the bible has in certain workings. It’s also worth noting that just because something might come from a “Christian” source doesn’t mean there aren’t roots that dig even deeper.
If you truly want it to be southern, andfolklore based, and not Christian I would research stories and folklore of the area. Distill them down to their bones. Experiment with what works. Journal your findings. Get to know the local flora and fauna and the energy that resides in them and the land itself. Though to be fair, this is always my advice when it comes to locally based witchcraft.
Best of luck!
My reason for wanting to take the southern folk route without the christianity is because my family has lived in the deep south for a very long time, so i want to get closer to my roots, but Christianity has always rubbed me the wrong way. Depending on how reliable/apaptable the source its not really a deal breaker if it includes Christian themes because i recognize that Christianity is deeply intertwined with southern folklore and i want to respect that part of history. Also, im 100% planning on getting to know my area more and educating myself on the local stories! Thanks for the advice i appreciate it so much!!
I’m glad to hear that you’re already planning on learning more about your local area! I feel like that gets overlooked more often than anything else when it comes to folk magic. As for book recommendations, I don’t have a ton because most of my practice came locally but I have a few. As always, take everything with a heaping dose of salt and always try to check against multiple sources.
Okay! Onto the books:
If you want Southern folk magic and don’t mind Christian influences and bible talk, Jake Richards’s Backwoods Witchcraft is nice. I’ve also always loved The Silver Bullet, and Other American Witch Stories by Hubert Davis and Aaron Oberon’s Southern Cunning: Folkloric Witchcraft In The American South makes a nice addition to the Silver Bullet.
Forfolk magic in general, some people like Gemma Gary’s work. Her book The Devil’s Dozen: Thirteen Craft Rites of the Old One is nice but I have mixed feelings on her writing style. A friend of mine has all her books though and loves her.
A Grimoire for Modern Cunning Folk: A Practical Guide to Witchcraft on the Crooked Path by Peter Paddon is nice for “beginner” trad craft work. And while I’ve never read it, I’ve heard Nigel G. Pearson’s Treading the Mill: Practical Craft Working in Modern Traditional Witchcraft is worth checking out and is in the same traditional vein.
Like I said before, good luck with everything! Building a folk magic tradition isn’t the easiest but I wouldn’t trade my practice for anything.
You’re the best! I’m so grateful for your support and I hope my posts inspire you, so we can make small changes everyday for better future (by the way: it is my 100th post!)
What do you think about 2k Q&A? Feel free to send me a question about anything anytime! | smallzerowaste.tumblr.com/ask
Since I came out publicly about being a late discovery adoptee I’ve had a lotttt of questions about my views on adoption and have had plenty of adoptive parents email me personally about certain things. I am pretty open about this subject and thought it would be easier putting a single post together to answer the top questions. If you have more you would like me to address please comment or email…
The honor!! I can’t believe I’m only seeing this now ＼(°o°)／ Thank you so much for the tag @hemmingsbirdy♡ I hope you finish your fanfic soon, I would totally love to read it!!
Favorite Color:Black
Currently Reading:World’sWorst Best Boyfriend by Durjoy Dutta (btw Childhood best friends (lovers)-to-enemies-to-lovers?! Am I in heaven?) and The Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo.
Last Song: Dandelions by Ruth B.
Last Series: One of Us Is Lying (I don’t watch a lot of shows and I last watched this last year)
Last Movie: Your Name
Sweet, Savory, or Sour:Sour!!(My mom makes a shitload of sweets and cakes and chocolates so I used to have a sweet tooth but then I got kind of sick bored of it
Currently Working On: A DamiRae fanfic which is going to be really special
Put your music player of choice on shuffle and list the first 10 songs
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What is your preferred writing implement? (eg. Blue pen, pencil, green pen)
Favourite month and why?
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Name 3 items you could pick up from where you are.
What brand logo is closest to you currently?
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A musical artist you love that isn’t well known
A musical artist you love that is well known
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Last person you talked to, and through what you talked to them
First colour name you can think of that isn’t in the rainbow
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What musical artists have you seen perform live?
Does virginity matter to you?
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Last 3 blogs on your dashboard, not including any of your own
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Here we are again with another survey…Maybe this blog is popular enough to submit one successfully?
Well, I’ve already got an answer for #5. My cousin is Josh Rand. My dad, his uncle, wrote the vast majority of Stone Sour’s first songs, including Through Glass.
Becca Fitzpatrick’s ‘Dangerous Lies’ publishes today, so we put Becca through our Hashtag Reads Quickfire Q&A.
While writing…
Do you stay at home, write in a café or go somewhere else?Stay at home. I always write in my office.
Do you have a go-to snack? Peanut M&M’s.
Do you re-read constantly as you go along? Yes. I’m not supposed to (according to many writers), but it works for me. Sometimes you have to make your own rules.
Favourite…
Colour?Red
Number?Six
Young Adult Author you’ve read recently? Susan Ee
Movie?The Waitress
Character from Dangerous Lies? Carmina Songster
Random questions…
If you could give your book a theme song, what would it be? I recently stumbled upon “Burning House” by Cam, and I was like, “This is Stella’s song!“
Name a book that you weren’t expecting to like as much as you did. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
If you had to go on the run where in the world would you go? Scoraig in the Scottish Highlands.
Top tip for teenagers Love yourself first and foremost. Wake up every morning with the mission to help someone. If you look for ways to help people, the opportunities will present themselves.
