Green Witch's Guide To Easy To Find Plants And Stones And Their Basic Uses

🔔 BELLS IN WITCHCRAFT 🔔

Bells might just be the earliest form of superstitious practise that I remember. My baba attached three sakura-patterned suzu bells on my schoolbag as a kid, purportedly for good luck and protection from evil spirits – and Japan is far from the only place to have associated bells and bellringing with mystic practise. They’ve been used worldwide to ward off evil and carry messages – and in a more metaphysical sense, sound is the movement of energy through substance. Sounds have the potential to work powerful magic.

Here are some of the ways I’ve found utilising bells to be helpful to my craft. While I’m more likely to use traditional suzu type bells, your own background, path and culture will likely have its own types of bells – and as ever, bells can be ornate antiques or they can be a bottle cap in a tin can, as long as they’re used with intent.

GETTING STARTED

🔔 As with so much of the craft, if you’re new to the witching bell, it’s a matter of exploration and experimentation. Get a “feel” for what works for you and the specific bell you’re using.

🔔 It’s good practise to ensure that the bell itself is cleansed, warded and protected – you don’t want anything nasty tapping into that power. All witching tools can do as much harm as good, intentional or accidental.

🔔 A good way to begin incorporating bells into your craft is infuse them into any typical ritual that you’re comfortable with, or even just a prayer or moment of contemplation at your altar if you have one.

🔔 Give the bell a soft ring while focusing on the energy it’ll ripple and move, try to track the movements it creates and what it touches. The tone it’s sending out.  The most primal and versatile use of the bell – and what many of the below come down to – is simply another manner of physically channelling energy, giving it shape and direction.

PROTECTION

🔔 “Passive” bells such as windchimes or small bells attached to belongings you don’t want disturbed are a starting point. They will scare off some forms of spirit all by themselves, especially if appropriately blessed, charmed or enchanted. Or cursed.

🔔 Gently tolling can draw energy into a ward or circle you are forming and enforce its protective properties, or for a simple cleanse, letting the sound travel to every corner of the area you are protecting. It’s a little more “cutting” than a smoke or incense cleansing, which I view as more “gentle” forms of cleansing. Both have their uses.

🔔 Harder tolling is, in my opinion, one of the most powerful ways in which to enforce a banishing – however, it’s best to you know what you’re doing with the bell before you go bashing it about.

DISCERNMENT

🔔 Bells can have quite the effect on your perception and awareness. Ringing and then stopping, listening to the silence left in its wake, can bring you new perceptions or make things you’d previously missed obvious. Let it attune your mind and senses to something new, whether that’s in your thoughts or something with a little more presence. Visualise travelling with the sound, taking heed of the energies it touches and disturbs. Take note of the echoes – you’ll learn what they mean with experience.

🔔 A set of windchimes can let you know if something is passing through or if there’s some unusual energy afoot – and, yes, it may also just be letting you know that it’s a particularly breezy day, but that’s witchcraft for you.

CONJURING

🔔 This can be as simple as calling good energies to witching tools, spell jars, tarot decks, crystals, altars and shrines, your favourite teddy bar, anything at all.

🔔 With spirit work, it can truly help to magnify your “calling”. This can range from gently bringing your latest offering to the attention of your friendly neighbourhood house spirit – all the way to trying to catch the attention of something more. Be mindful, however. As I said, I consider bells pretty powerful tools and a call that’s too loud is not good spirit work practise for the spirit worker’s own sake. It can really help coax something out of hiding if you’re gentle with it, though.

COMMUNING

🔔 Some use bells to mark the beginning and end of a ritual, and I’ve read that in Wiccan practise an altar bell can be used to invoke the Goddess, although as a non-Wiccan, I’ll welcome corrections on that if I’m wrong.

🔔 In my experience, very simple forms of communication via bell work a lot better than anything too complex – “come here” and “stay away” have already been covered, and other than that they can serve as greetings or signals of a start or end of some practise or ritual, the opening or closing of a door, etc.

🔔 They can also serve as a warning or a litmus test regarding spirits, a signalling of your presence and awareness, lack of fear, or willingness to defend – but be prepared to deal with whatever responses these garner.

BINDING

🔔 Bindings are where you most often see that famous (clockwise) circular motion of the bell, embodying the meaning of the spell. This can be a simple binding to seal a spell or charm or enchantment, or a spirit-binding.

🔔 Personally, spirit-binding is something I do as little as possible simply due to my beliefs holding the autonomy of spirits in very high regard. However, sometimes situations arise that call for it, and I’m aware that not all bindings are unwilling. Far from it – and some spirits are dangerous when unbound.

🔔 As an animist (believing that all things, including inanimate objects, contain a spirit of their own), I consider gently nudging a spirit back into its physical form a sort of semi-binding, and that can be useful.

I’ll leave you all with a note that I am an urban apartment-dwelling witch through and through, so I understand that we can’t all be jangling away at all hours. I myself have a glass windchime in my front window that makes a distinct but muted sound when disturbed by passers-through, and highly recommend wooden ones also. I also only use my small and relatively quiet suzu bell for my crafting – one given to me by my baba herself.

Feel free to add any of your own findings, and happy tolling.

My Biggest Problem

Miso isn’t my biggest problem anymore. I know you’re gonna be like, 

“Bullh*ck, misophonia is the worst thing that ever happened to me, it’s ruined everything, ect.!!” 

But, my young, young dudes, I have some news. Adulthood is surprising as h*ck and has a lot of bumps and turns and I never anticipated in my whole of angsteenager existence that there would be life after miso.

For example, if anyone’s watched the video (x) I posted a hot while ago, they’d see that I’ve come out as ftm transgender and I’ve left home. I got engaged in December to @living-with-miso, my longtime Tumblr crush and we’re getting married next month.

 My type 3 Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) exploded into wondering each day if I can walk or use my hands. 

My computer broke. I need to buy socks. The milk in the fridge is expired.

And I know that mostly sounds like, 

“Gee, thanks Stephan, so you’re saying everything gets worse?” 

but man, I actually would say I’ve never been happier. 

You see, when you move out, you move away from the people who trigger you the most in the world: your family. You may have new people who trigger you, like a roommate, but eventually, you’re gonna be in a situation where you can more or less have total control over your environment. Make sure you choose a life partner that accepts every inch of you, and don’t settle for anything less.

When you grow up, you’ll be able to manage your life in a way you can control, to an extent. You literally don’t even have to attend classes in person anymore, almost anything is available online! Yeah, you’ll have days where you just want to rip your ears off and replace your hands with chainsaws because you need to attend job training, attend a family BBQ, or hurriedly make an Irish exit to said BBQ, but that’s not going to be the majority of your life anymore.

And that’s where I’m at. I’m out from the influence of more “adult” adults at the age of 22 and am finally the captain of my own life. 

Which is terrifying, but empowering. I decide if I can attend gatherings, I decide if I want to leave, I decide if I want to stay inside and live on the internet, I decide if I can live with my partner, and I decide if I want to eat cookies for breakfast unless Ashley is home and and tells me no cookies for breakfast (#marriage). 

And if anyone (other than my future wife) has a problem with the way I live my life or make decisions, guess what? I can decide to take my Scissors of H*ck You and cut them right the h*ck out of my beautiful rainbow life.

I may not have the power to decide whether or not I have misophonia, whether my hands work on any given day, or whether or not I have sensory meltdowns, but I can decide how I handle these things.

So I guess my point today is that miso life gets better once you’ve grown up. If you can make it that far, you’ll be happier. And god, I wish my teenage self had known how happy I would one day be. Thank god I decided to stick around.

So stick around, guys. Your life may look like shooty macaroni art, but it’s just practice at this point. One day, you’ll be Bob Ross and decide when and where your next happy little tree goes.

Stay Brave Out There, Stephan [soon-to-be] Vomacka

Closeted Witch Masterpost

Hey all:) I decided to whip up a quick masterpost with some of my favorite resources for the secret witches out there! I’m planning on adding some more later, but I wanted to get this up anyway. 

Tips & Tricks & Masterposts

Concealing Your Craft

Closet Witch Masterpost

Secret Witch Masterpost

100 Secret Witch Tips

Secret Witch Tips

Closet Witch Tips

Closet Witch Tips

Secret Witches

Discrete Witch Tips

Alibi Tips

Easy Containers 

Candle Alternatives

Hiding Pendulums 

Clever Alter Ideas

Digital Alter

Making a Portable Alter

Lunar Ritual Tips for Closet Witches

Unconventional Spell Components

Protection Correspondences

Sigil Tip for Closet Witches

Random Tip 1

Random Tip 2

Random Tip 3

Random Tip 4

Random Tip 5

Random Tip 6

Random Tip 7

Possibly Useful Sigils 

“My Grimoire is protected”

“I Am Protected”

“Protection”

“I Will Aquire a Safe Living Space”

“This Item Will Remain Safety Within My Reach”

“The Topic of ____ is off-limits”

“I Am Free From the Control of My Parents”

“My Parents Will Love and Accept Me for Who I Am”

Sigil Nullifier 

Easy-to-hide Witchcraft 

Infused Water

Teas for Divination

Playing Card Divination

Palmistry 

Milkshake Magic

Make a Sigil ;)

Audio Sigils

Laundry Magic

Stichomancy

Color Magic

Colormancy

Nail Polish Magic

Witchy Garden

Astrology Birthcharts

Coffee Magic

Hot Chocolate Magic

Aromatherapy Magic

DIY Tarot for Closet Witches

50 Simple Charms

Super Simple Potions

Artsy Witch Ideas

Emoji Magic

Tea/Coffee Reading

Casting Glamours 

Shower Cleansing 

Resources

Useful PDF Books

Other Books

More Book Recommendations

Even More Book Recommendations!

How to Research

Other

Fun witchy crafts

Cute witchy worksheets

Tricks for Broke Witches

Advice for Baby Witches

More Advice for Baby Witches

Witchcraft Masterpost 1

Witchcraft Masterpost 2

Witchcraft Masterpost 3

Witchcraft Masterpost 4

Witchcraft Masterpost 5

Witchcraft Masterpost 6

For anyone going through their initial breakout on accutane:

I know it looks really bad & it hurts. You’ve never seen your skin look so bad but I promise it will go away. Take a shower, wash your hair, don’t forget to put on lip balm & drink lots of water. Your skin is going to look amazing in no time. Don’t lose hope. You’re beautiful and don’t let spots on your face determine your beauty. Be patient.

Lady Adelina!

My witchy iOS apps.

Wow! I’ve never gotten more than MAYBE 15 notes in my many years on tumblr. Thanks, witch fam!

UPDATED*** Here are some app links for @valicorne​ and others who requested. They should all be free. Some of these are also in the Android Marketplace, and for those that aren’t, there are comparable ones.

And my mom has a baller sigil making app on Android I envy: Sigil Automatron. Anyone know of a comparable one for iOS? (I don’t want just a paint or photoshop-like app, but one specific To making sigils)

Not all the full names show in the screenshotted app view, which is why some of you struggled to find them. Sorry!):

1. Tarot Card Memorizer: Pretty self explantaory. This is a nice reference when you’re trying to learn card meanings.

2. Pendulum Charts Free - a plethora of charts. I like using that on my iPad, not super useful on a smaller screen, aka my iPhone. Can also use to reference for making your own charts on paper, or woodburning like I’m working on.

3. Golden Thread Tarot - Really nice free eversion of great physical deck. Nice for witches on the go, or witches on a budget.

4. Crystals And Gems - Handy reference guide for both physical and metaphysical attributes.

5. Mighty Timer - temperature, time, and amount of tea you need for the perfect cup. Great kitchen witch app, especially if you grow some of your own herbs for tea, like I do.

6. TimePassages - Free daily horoscopes, meanings, planetary bodies glossary and then some paid options for chart downloads.

7. Herbs Guide - Herbs for health and cooking. ***never take any information found on the Internet or via apps as medical advice. Seek professional medical help if you have an issues. This witch is very pro-science and modern medicine, despite making teas, tinctures, and herbal salves. Those are merely supplements to help relieve symptoms.

8. Dreamboard - my favorite digital dream journal

9. Runes - pocket advisor - Get one, two and three rune readings. Also helps you learn the meanings of elder futhark runes. 10. SkyView Free -This overlays constellations and other astronomical information when you open the app and point it at the night sky. Uses your camera and GPS to know what it’s looking at. Works inside, too. I impress the heck out of people when I whip this out at stargazing events.

11. Best Essential Oils and Aromatherapy Guide Pro - This app, containing six broad sections - guides, application, single oil, oil blends, aromatherapy and weight loss. Again, this is not to be used in place of proper nutrition and medical attention, and be very careful when using essential oils. All need to be diluted with carrier oils, and some are dangerous if you’re pregnant, etc.

12. Spellcaster - tarot cards, horoscope and pre-written spells. Not my favorite, but fun to flip through.

13. Celeste -LOOOVE. Celeste allows you to calculate a natal chart, which you can view on a zodiac wheel. You also get a description of all the planets in signs, not just the sun sign.

14. Star Chart - This is similar to skyview. I haven’t played with it too much so I can’t vouch for it quite yet. I think I prefer the skyview interface.

15. Free Candle - Different candle options, and you cna blow them out. Great for on the go candle magick/meditation, and for those who aren’t allowed to use candles in apartments/dorms/etc.

16. The Pocket Pagan - “This unique Pagan app includes a map of the USA and Canada filled with Pagan, occult and New Age stores, a handy correspondence guide for quick magickal look-ups, and a calendar that shows you the next full moon and Sabbat dates. Quick links can help you find the latest news, blogs and videos too. One little widget shows the real-time moon phase too.”

17. Moon - current moon phase - Love this. Very simple interface for when you JUST want basic full, new, waxing, waning moon info.

18. Herbs in Magick - The application contains information about more than 200 herbs and their magickal use. No internet connection

Ritual Music for Space Witches

Some spacecraft and telescopes are equipped with sensors that allow them to record radio emissions from various celestial bodies. These recording can make for excellent background “music” for meditation or during rituals. I like to work with the planetary hours and playing the radio emissions from the planet I’m working with is a great way to draw in and harness it’s energy. 

I’ve complied a list of some of these recordings. I’ve only included videos 30 minutes or longer so that you won’t have to restart them mid-ritual.

The Sun

Mercury

Venus

Earth

Mars

Martian sandstorm

Jupiter

Saturn

Saturn’s  rings

Uranus

Neptune

Pluto

The Moon

Enceladus 

Europa

Callisto

Ganymede 

Cosmic background radiation

Short videos:

Pulsar

Quasar 

a collection of country homes that I would very much like to live in 💫💐🌼🌿✨

MAGIC MEMORY AID

Sprinkle ground cinnamon and cloves into some honey—rosemary honey, if at all possible.

Add a few drops of pure vanilla extract.

Inhale the fragrance and let the dish sit beside you for a minimum of an hour while you’re studying.

Just before the exam, slide a sprig of rosemary through the scented honey and rub it against the back of your neck.

Taken from Judika Illes’s Magic when you need it.