Free Spells - New Year's Eve Spell

Although my Yule spell was essentially a New Year's spell - based on New Beginnings - I still like to do a little something for New Year's Eve so thought I'd share it with you.

I'm a big fan of writing things down, probably because I love writing! But also because it's such a cathartic activity and can be very personal too. This is why I very often include a statement of intent in my spells.

So, for a little New Year's Eve Spell I like to write down a small list of things I want to leave behind. I then hold it over my cauldron and light it, place it in the cauldron until it is fully burned and gather the ashes.

At midnight, or as close to as is possible, I then take a handful of the ashes and walk into the garden and saying:

Away
Without delay
Make room for the new day

Blow the ashes into the night air and pat your hands clean.

Fran xx

Merry Christmas!

Just wanted to wish you a Happy Christmas - hope you're having a lovely time! :)

Blessing to all!

Fran xxx

The Yule Spell Tarot Reading

You may or may not be interested in the tarot, but in case you are I thought I’d include the tarot reading I did on Sunday to give you an idea of how readings can contribute to your spells. Very briefly, the cards I pulled were:

Card 1 - What this year has taught me - The page of swords. To be careful of others, observe them closely if you don’t know them well. Dealing with them will need grace, goodwill and manners.

Card 2 - My weaknesses - 8 of wands. Not acting quickly enough and procrastinating instead of doing!

Card 3 - Next year in general - 4 of swords. A more peaceful year, not as fraught as last year (Music to my ears!!!) This time of rest will allow me to build strength.

Card 4 - 1st quarter of 2010 - 5 of wands. Shows inner struggles. I would expect this actually as it’s hard to make yourself change. We’re often set in our ways for a reason, it brings comfort on some level even if it is not good for you.

Card 5 - 2nd quarter - Ace of cups. Being creative and resourceful.

Card 6 - 3rd quarter - 7 of pentacles. Success will be around me by this time but I am not to start relaxing too early or resting on my laurels.

Card 7 - 4th quarter - Knight of pentacles. Determination but not stubbornness.

Card 8 - Where my strengths will grow - 9 of pentacles. Getting more organised, seeing success financially.

Card 9 - Where the hurdles will be - 4 of cups. Being too quick to give up when inevitable problems arise. Look for the positive signs of the situation however small.

Card 10 - How to overcome the hurdles - Hermit. Think it through, reflect, don’t just mope.

Card 11 - What new energies should I be prepared for - Judgement. Clarity when making decisions and increased speed of thought. New beginnings too - woohoo!!

Card 12 - Conclusion - 8 of pentacles. Work at it, it’s not all going to come at once.

This reading gave me some very helpful pointers. I wrote my statement of intent around sustained determination, increasing my output and not worrying about what can go wrong - not necessarily areas that I would have thought to include had I not done the reading. I’m now feeling extra excited and raring to go!

Fran xx

Yule Blessings!

Just a quick one to wish you a Happy and a Blessed Yule! I'm hoping to post the results of my Yule tarot reading tomorrow and will let you know how my spell goes.

Have a great day/evening!!!!

Fran xx

Free Spell - Yule

I have finished my Yule spell! I’m really looking forward to it this year, I’ve got some high hopes and some interesting ideas I’d like try out. So, here we go - here’s how my week is going to pan out.

Tarot Reading
As mentioned here, I will be doing a tarot reading on the Sunday (20th). I will be using a 12 card spread to show the following:

1st card - what this past year has taught me.
2nd card - what my weaknesses are
3rd card - what next year holds for me in general
4th card - card for the 1st quarter of the new year
5th card - card for the 2nd quarter
6th card - card for the 3rd quarter
7th card - card for 4th quarter
8th card - where I will see my strengths grow
9th card - where I will find hurdles to my progression
10th card - how to overcome these hurdles
11th card - What new energies should I be ready for
12th card - conclusion and outcome

With this information I intend to write a statement of intent for my spell work the following day. This means writing down my hopes as well as some promises to myself that I will endeavour to work on.

Yule Altar
Around the room, I am hanging candles in jars. This has a soft but conscience altering affect on the room and builds some very warm, comforting energies. It is the perfect environment for working on change which can be unnerving in many ways. You will want to feel safe with the new path you are taking.

I will lay out my altar space with a barest minimum. My reason for this is to ensure that I do not carry over any energies from the past into my aims for the future. I am planning a 7 candle semi circle, I will complete the circle with my arms as I sit opposite, creating an intimate space between us. The candles will be 4 red and 3 green with tumblestones of red aventurine and malachite placed in between each one.

I am covering the altar with green velvet and will be placing bark, holly and pine in the middle, bound together in red ribbon to combine and strengthen the energies. I will also have a green apple which is going to be a central part of my spell. I’m really lucky in that a friend of mine is the actual apple grower! I have total faith therefore that it has been grown in a natural environment - and a trip out to the orchard is always lovely J The significance of the apple, in case you’re wondering, is that it is at the very last of its “life”, the harvest has finished. I will enjoy the season’s bounty but also prepare for a new one.

Yule Spell
First, light the semi circle of candles going from left to right. Say:

These brightest of flames
Lights the fire within
Its passion proclaims
A new life will begin

I will then read out my statement of intent from the previous day’s tarot reading (which I am going to write on red paper), focusing on building excitement as well as conviction!

Then taking the apple in my hand, I will say:
My apple is bounty
Ripened by the waning sun
My abilities are plenty
Growing and just begun

My aim is to discover
And to enhance all areas of my sphere
My potential I will uncover
The path ahead is to become clear

For the following 7 days I am going to light one of the candles for 5 minutes, repeating the first section of the spell. Then I will open up my mind to images, thoughts and any inspiration that comes to me to aid me in this new beginning.

As ever, there is so much that you can do to adjust this spell if you want. I always fully recommend the personal touch, never more so than when you are looking for new beginnings and self discovery.

Good luck and brightest blessings!!

Fran xx

Yule Diary 4

Ok next is psychic awareness in my Yule spells plans. I intended to focus a lot more on this than I actually am as I’ve decided to postpone much of it to the New Year. This is a time factor more than anything as psychic development is a matter of understanding yourself, the tools and methods you use to tune in with and how to develop some discipline so that you can do this at will - this all takes time.

So I’ve decided on a tarot reading and some pendulum work the day before Yule. With the tarot reading, I’m going to do this for myself with a general aim of seeing what next year has in store for me. Looking at the main areas, I will then ask the pendulum to draw me towards the most productive areas, the areas where I have most work to do etc. and see what comes up.

I’ll give you an example of how I did this before. In a previous reading, I got some great cards indicating success around me. However there was also some guidance showing me not to take this for granted and to continue to put in as much as effort when things started to go well. To get more clarity I used the pendulum to confirm the major weak areas asking ‘does this relate to the course I’m doing’ then ‘does this relate to my project at work’. Once I can see more precisely what I’m dealing with, I’m better placed to be more specific with my spell. I would strongly advise keeping notes throughout, it’s surprising how much information you get and consequently forget soon after!

Yule Diary 3 - Using Red & Green in my Yule Spell

I’ve been fleshing out the colours aspect of my Yule celebrations and I’m feeling happy that I’m starting to see some shape forming - good job as it‘s just around the corner. I’m also happy that I decided to do this instead of Christmas shopping :) Here’s what I’ve come up with so far.

Using Red in a Yule Spell
Red can represent blood. This may sound a bit off-putting or icky but I like to use this symbolism from time to time to help me realise what the main driving forces in my life are - the lifeblood. It’s about recognising my strengths and realising what takes me forward. There is almost always something in everyone’s life that they can look back at with a sense of pride and excitement. It could be anything from winning a race, singing or discovering you’re really good at crosswords! It doesn’t matter what it is, it’s the fact that you realised that this is what gave you a buzz, made you feel alive and worthwhile.

So much of life seems designed to grind you down and there’s so much that we have to deal with that may not play to our strengths. Turn back to the ‘natural you’. You can achieve so much, and often so much more quickly, when you embrace your innate abilities rather than deny or belittle them. Spend some time thinking about what these memories and experiences are for you and write them down.

I’m going to be using some or all of: red paper, red candles (naturally), red ribbon, red aventurine. (Oh all right, maybe a little drop of red wine too!)

Using Green to Keep you Keen!
As for green, this gives staying power to the spell. Where red is a standing ovation on the night, green is your loyal fan! It helps you to remain hopeful and keep up your faith in those moments when you feel weak. This is why evergreens were bought into the homes of our ancestors during the bleak winter months - to remind them that more fruitful times were ahead. I don’t want my Yule spell to just be a feeling of elation on the night and a few weeks of feeling really productive. I want to see real change and continued growth.

For green, I’m thinking: green candles, holly, malachite, green apples (locally produced), green velvet.

Some Names of Famous Witches

Further to my ramblings on the Pendle Hill Witch Trials last week, I have since been dragged into an endless game of trying to remember the names of famous witches! It all came from the fact that despite witches having had a terrible press throughout history, most people would be hard pressed to name any really famous ones. So, without further ado, I will now waste 2 minutes of your time:

Names of famous witches - real
Granny Boswell - Cornish Witch
Tammy Blee - Cornish Witch
Pendle Hill Witches - 12 were accused - most famous are those from the 2 families of Demdike and Chattox
Elisabeth Sawyer - The Witch of Edmonton, hanged in 1621
Joan Wytte - Cornish witch known as the Fighting Fairy Woman of Bodmin
Dolly Pentreath - Cornish witch who cursed people in the old language of Cornish! (Which was her native tongue, incidentally)


Names of famous witches - fictional
Wicked witch of the East - Wizard of Oz
Hermione Granger - Harry Potter
Sabrina - Teenage Witch
The Three Witches - Macbeth
Samantha - Bewitched (although Endora deserves a mention too!)
Meg - Meg and Mog
Jealous Queen - Snow White and the Seven Dwarves
Halliwell sisters - Charmed

As you can see, the real ones are somewhat less well known than the fictional ones! I’m sure I speak for most of us when I say I identify most with Meg.

For Kelli - How to Deal With an Obsessive Friend or Acquaintance

Kelli asked me the other day if there is anything that can be done to help distract the thoughts of someone who was becoming borderline obsessive with her. The answer to this is most certainly yes! I have worked on a few ideas and so there is a selection depending on how you want to approach this problem. The first few suggestions focus on building some necessary barriers and gaining some extra protection for yourself. The next approach is one of sending positive energies to the person in question, giving them the opportunity to feel better about themselves and need you less! There is nothing to stop you from combining the two and in fact, if time allows I recommend it.

First, I just want to say a quick few words on how to work with spells that involve other people, particularly when there are some negative energies around…

Notes on Dealing With Other People’s Energies
One factor that I feel is far too rarely taken into account with new spell casters is that you must always consider the power of the energies (or person) that you are ‘up against‘. Someone’s behaviour may be causing you to be upset but if they are convinced that they are in the right it will give them strength. You must acknowledge this in your bid to turn the situation round - determination is a powerful energy and you must match it. For this reason, don’t try to use witchcraft as a magik shield. It is not an external force but an internal one. Ingredients, tools and environment all play their part but their part is to build YOUR energies. You are the essential ingredient. Don’t approach spells when feeling the victim or when feeling weak. Work on yourself first if this is the case.

How to Build Inner Strength and Protection
So, with that said, onto how to start changing the situation!

Surround yourself with candles and meditate. Six is good number of candles for me - I don’t know why but I just feel comfortable - but you could also use your numerology number if you wish to. This is in order to re-establish your personal boundaries which can feel under attack when being surrounded by the energies of an obsessive person. They cross lines and fail to recognise your rights to be yourself and due to insecurities, will often get a power rush from trying to change you. Sitting in amongst the candles using meditation will allow you to do 2 things - reflect incoming energies back out again therefore giving you a break and a chance to revitalise. And once within your protective circle you can think about your strengths, positive friendships, personal thoughts and all the things that make you feel good about being you.

If you find meditation difficult and that your mind wanders, say:
I am safe within
I am strong without
Tied to my kin
My friends are devout

I am unshaken ,
Unchanged
And unique to the core

I bid you well wishes
I am closing the door

If you have any, keep some yellow aventurine with you, particularly when the negative person is around. This is perfect for power struggles in general and also helps to calm the nerves. With a clear head you are more likely to come across as someone she is not going to be able to get to! (You can take this into the candle circle above too.)

Perfect for this time of year! If a negative person comes to your house, place some mistletoe in the doorway or above you in the room where you’ll mainly be.

Wear a talisman - something that represents the Gods and Goddesses can help you feel you have an ally.

Sending Positive Energies
Kelli asked about distracting the problem acquaintance which is an excellent approach as it better for solving the issue in the long run and also lends itself to creating positive energies - which I’m always in favour of!

A pendulum can be very useful here. Mostly used for divination it can also send positive energies to people. Take a piece of paper and draw some basic images of what you feel she would benefit most from concentrating on, eg a heart for her relationship, a smiley face for self esteem. Ask the pendulum what its answer for ’yes’ is today. Establish the direction it moves in and then hold the pendulum over each individual picture you’ve drawn, asking it to send positive energies to her in the form of its ’yes’ direction.

You can also write a small list of all of her positive traits down, read them aloud and then smile to yourself. With these positive thoughts in mind, burn the paper in the flame of a white candle and place it in a bowl to burn completely (although don’t be worried about what it means if it goes out! Just light it again.) This releases these kind thoughts to her and enables her the opportunity to focus on herself and start fixing and problems she has. This may need to be repeated a few times.

If she comes to your home, burn cinnamon incense around her, preferably allowing the smoke to drift away through an open window - it‘s very cleansing. This can also be done in her absence using something personal to her to connect and re-establish your energies before sending them away again. However, don’t try this if you don’t feel strong enough or experienced enough as you could be bringing her even closer to you which defeats the object!

Lastly, but very importantly, you may find some changes in her behaviour in the weeks after your efforts. This can be a result of her feeling unsettled by changing feelings or being resistant to these changes. Remember that an individual’s free will is paramount and that it is up to them to accept what you send them. Try again if you find she reacts negatively with emphasis on your own protection and strength building.

To Kelli - I hope this helps to ease the problem and I will be thinking of you :) xx Love, light and blessings

Yule Diary 2

I’ve been trying to narrow down my main aims for my Yule/Christmas spell and I must tell you it hasn’t been easy. It’s a bit like trying to cut back on your list for Santa, there’s just too much temptation! Yule offers a huge array of opportunities for change - and change can cover just about anything. Therefore, it’s very important not to try and cover too much, thereby diluting your efforts and wasting such a fantastic chance to make a difference. Anyways, here’s what I’m planning on working with (or at least my thoughts so far):

• I’m using green and red for colour. This may be the obvious choice but it’s got just the right combination of energies so I’ve got no problem with that. Red is great for its ‘kick up the backside’ qualities and green as it has real staying power. It’ll ensure that this is not just a quick fix spell but more of a transition into a new way of life.

• Yule is a time for psychic awareness and so I’m going to try and use this as, seeing as I’m also a tarot reader, I need to be constantly working on improving myself in this area.

• For ingredients, I’m thinking of trying to include pine (because I have some), bark (because I don’t have an open log fire for a Yule log sadly), bay leaves (for prosperity and abundance) and holly (for the traditional evergreen). Talking of holly, this is something I have used for years due to having a neighbour that had a holly bush in their garden. I don’t live nearby any more but I’m keeping an eye out for another local source! But I recommend using any local available ingredients, it gives a sense of being at one with the earth and it‘s energising.

• Hanging candles and tea lights in jars - as much for decoration as well as to encourage some nice, bright energies. I bought them a few years ago from a cheap shop and have been in love with them ever since. They are in red and green as well as clear so are perfect for the job.

I mentioned above that I am thinking of using bay leaves because I already have some. Seeing as this is a time to welcome in the new, you might as well use up any of the old you have lying around! Don’t be afraid of being a little creative, you don’t need to stick to just traditional Yule items and ingredients.

So, I’ve got some ideas to work with and a few thoughts on the structure. Now I just need to fill in some details!

Pendle Hill Witches

As an English witch, I like to occasionally travel to places of historical relevance to witchcraft. Sometimes it makes me sad of course as it often unveils tales of persecution and hangings for these poor, often totally innocent women. Often I get a real buzz out of going somewhere so steeped in a history that is relevant and which feels personal to me. And most common of all, I come away frustrated at the lack of genuine, solid information.

The reason I mention this is because I was chatting to someone last night (originally talking about the article I posted the other day!) that I visited Pendle Hill with - erstwhile home to one of the most famous witch trials in the land. I’ve been a couple of times now and I can’t get enough of the atmosphere - dark, foreboding and gloomy it is also a place of great beauty and charm. A wonderful mix in other words. I fully recommend Witches Galore too - a shop I was totally LOATH to leave!!

The Pendle Hill Witches Trial is a fascinating tale and one that is worth reading up on if you’re the history buff type (which I am - shame my memory fails to allow me to be a clever clogs with it!). If you are a witch or Wiccan yourself, one thing that will strike you is that it is incredibly difficult to see any recognisable forms of witchcraft in any records or accounts from the time. All that comes through is prejudice and scapegoating.

What also amazes me is that it obvious that some of the accused were clearly not even witches at all. They were extorting money out of ignorant locals to make a living and in many ways perpetuating myth and stereotypes in order to frighten people into paying for their services.

So, the more I read and experience in my visits, the more I just see examples of the attitudes to witches that have remained throughout the centuries. Sadly, what I don’t see is hardly anything that I can learn from and include in my own work. There will have been witches at the time, maintaining the Pagan ways and focusing on the good and pure energies of the universe. It’s just a shame that so much of their wisdom has been lost and overshadowed.

Yule Diary

As mentioned before, Yule is a time for new beginnings and much of the traditional celebrations centre around this fresh, exciting energy. Many spells encourage change and try to open up opportunities. I often try to add something in my spells to help unblock energies also.

This is because there can be all sorts of underlying reasons why you may not be moving forwards in your life as you should be - a fear of leaving the past (with the associated memories) behind, worrying that you are not up to the challenges that lie ahead or you may simply be averse to change. It is always worthwhile spending a little time considering how you feel about your new plans. What makes you feel nervous and what are the obstacles. If you tackle these, your Yule/new beginnings spells are more likely to work for you.

Over the next few days I’m going to be thinking of the best Yule witchcraft ingredients, colours, wording etc. But in the meantime, I need to start being totally honest with myself!

Witchcraft interview

Hiya, just thought I'd share this nice interview with members of a coven in the north of England. I thought it was really positive and insightful - although I would like to add that some of us like pointy hats!

Yuletide Time!

Is Christmas on its way? I’d hardly noticed! ;)

To you and me of course this means the Winter Solstice - Yule! It doesn’t feel like 5 minutes since I was writing about my Samhain/Halloween plans but already there’s more to do. I’m certainly not complaining though, I absolutely love this time of year and I could do with working some more on my Samhain led focus!

I’m going to do the same thing again, posting all of my plans as I go along, sharing the final spell when I’ve completed it. I’ll also include some of the Yule traditions celebrated by others so this may give you some ideas or inspiration for your own merry making :)

In the meantime, here’s some little nuggets of Yule info to warm the cockles:

• Winter Solstice for 2009 is 21st December. (I’m planning to spread out my spells, rituals and honouring between the 21st and the 25th, for convenience sake as much as anything. Don’t want to be a stick in the mud on Christmas Day either!)

• This is the longest night of the year - it’s all uphill from then on! The sun will be returning to us (in the shape of longer days), bringing life, food and light back into our lives. The fire of the traditional burning of the Yule log represents the sun.

• Mistletoe, holly and ivy were all brought into Pagan homes due to them being evergreen and therefore representatives of the greenery that was to return in the coming months.

• In many Pagan traditions, the winter solstice is the new year.

• This is the time in the Wheel of Life when the God is reborn to the Goddess so birth and regeneration is celebrated.

• Oh, and apparently there’s also always been a tradition of exchanging gifts. Don’t know what happened to that one, eh?!

Happy Shopping Blessings! x

Very Simple Free Love Spell

Another free spell for you! This is mostly a love and passion one but actually can be used for any occasion when you want to bring someone closer to you. It is a candle spell and I personally like to use 1 black and 1 white spell candle to represent yin and yang. Equally you could also use 1 red and 1 green as I find these very effective also - depends what you‘ve got handy!

It’s a very simple love spell. (I wrote an article on the candle craft of Wicca and witch spell casters and in it there is some info on how to anoint and prepare candles for spells.) Take the candle you’re using to represent you and carve your initial into it. Then do the same for the other person involved with the other candle. It needn’t be big lettering or deeply carved, it’s more there as a symbol and the process of carving it in is building energies within you.

All you need do now is heat the wax at the bottom of the candles and then press them together, so they’re side by side and sealed - and light them! You can prepare some wording for this, a declaration of your feelings, but I do not always do this. I am content with the power of the light, heat and wax melting together and becoming one.

Most candles today do not leave any wax behind of course but if yours do, keep it for a few days to prolong the energies around you.

As ever, I feel obliged to point out that love spells are not about bending the free will of others. Love is a special feeling, one to be cherished. So always work with its beauty rather than trying to force your feelings onto another.

Blessings as ever,

Fran xx