Using Stones and Gems

Have I posted something like this before? ... I'm looking for advice on grounding, and more importantly, shielding. I came across a small list of stones and their uses. (you may have to create an account to view the link.)

Shielding: Ruby
Protection: Agate, Amber, Sardonic, Tourmaline, any gem that is the color black also helps.
Grounding: Aconite, Hematite, Unakite

Other stones I'm interested in (based on description alone). I highlighted specifically why I would like them.

Adventurine- A good luck stone, especially in financial matters. Stimulates creativity, intelligence and perception. A great healing stone, it gives a sense of mental and emotional well-being.

Amethyst - increases vivid dreams, relieves depression, promotes calm, serenity, and spirituality. Helps with addiction and stress.

Resprays - soothes heartache and helps depression, promotes emotional balance, wisdom, and peace. 

Citroen - helps digestion and aids in mental and intellectual functions. Increases selfsame and energy. Balances and dissipates negative energy.

Coral - helps in childbirth and adoption. Wards off bad thoughts from others and promotes general welling. 

Emerald - a mind stone. Enhances memory, promotes clear and quick thinking, and right action stemming from right thought.

Jade - wisdom, mercy, humility, generosity, peace, and harmony. Protective and lucky when worn as jewelry. Place a bit under your pillow at night for restorative dreams.

Leopard Skin Jasper - aids in finding and achieving life's goals.

Malachite - strong stone which helps release negative emotions and protect from psychic attack..

Onyx - good protective stone. Also releases old relationships and keeps away general negativity.

Rodent - self-affirmation and selfless. Fosters ability to remain calm in arguments and resolve disagreements in a loving way.

Sapphire - promotes light, pure emotions - purity of mind, serenity, joy, and peace. Opens the mind to beauty and love. Clears the mind of unwanted thoughts.

Topaz - soothes physical pain, promotes peace and calms emotions, as well as promoting forgiveness. Promotes individuality, self-confidence, and creativity. Counteracts negative emotions.

Turquoise - healing stone. Attracts friendships, luck, and happiness. Releases shame and guilt.

STONE COLORS (they included it.. thought I would too)

Black - strong protection from negative energies. Reduces fears, obsessions, neurosis, and panic with a calm rootedness. 

Pink - promotes compassion, love and healing of emotional pain.

Green - cleanses and detoxifies the spirit, brings prosperity.

Blue - helpful with verbal, speech, and throat problems. Mental peace and patience. 

Watermelon - heals old emotional pains and brings emotional understanding.

Lotion bars (any flavor you like)

I don't use lotion. But this would be perfect for gifts, because I know people who like lotion.

I wonder if I'd use these if I used rose scent.. I love rose.. or lily!

Lavender (or your desired fragrance) Lotion Bars

Makes 3 - 2 oz. bars

Ingredients:
2 ounces Beeswax - shredded or grated
2 ounces Coconut Oil
2 ounces Shea Butter or Cocoa Butter
10 - 20 drops Lavender Essential Oil (or your favorite)
1/4 teaspoon Vitamin E Oil (preservative)

Instructions:
1. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the beeswax, coconut oil and shea or cocoa butter just until they become liquid. Immediately remove from heat. Let cool 5 minutes.
2. Stir in the essential oil and the vitamin E oil. Pour into 2 ounce molds. (I used some small copper jello molds I purchased at a second hand shop). Set aside until cool and solid.
3. Unmold the bars and store in a cool, dry place. (After cooling overnight I wrapped mine in plastic wrap)
4. To use, rub over skin and then rub in as you would any lotion.

Vinegar of the 4 Thieves

Vinegar of the 4 thieves has been around for centuries, in various forms and recipes. The legend goes that during the era of the Black Plague, 4 thieves were caught stealing from the houses of the dead, and sentenced to remove the dead bodies from houses to the crematorium. If they survived, they could go free. One of the thieves was an herbalest and came up with this preparation to keep them alive. It is true that many of the herbal ingredients have been used over the years as effective insect and rodent repellants. Over the years it has been incorporated into many magickal systems to be used for protection purposes.

Vinegar preparation for house blessings, protection, hex breaking, pest removal

1 Quart distilled white vinegar
2 Tbsp. dried sage
2 Tbsp. dried rosemary
2 Tbsp. dried lavender flowers
2 Tbsp. dried mint
2 Tbsp. dried wormwood, or 2 Tbsp. wormwood-containing absinthe
2 Tbsp. red wine
3 cloves garlic, smashed and coarsely chopped
1-Qt. glass jar with tight-fitting lid

Fill a 1-Qt. glass container almost to the top with the vinegar. Add the dried herbs to the container one at a time, infusing them with protective energy in whatever way your tradition dictates. Add the absinthe, if using. Pour the red wine over the safety pin and drop the pin into the jar. The wine is being used in this preparation as a symbolic substitute for blood. Tightly close the jar and give it a good shake. Store in a cool, dark place for two weeks, shaking the jar once a day. After the two weeks is up, strain the herbs out of the preparation and transfer to a new, clean, 1-Qt. jar, retaining the safety pin in the jar. Add the garlic and again tightly seal, shaking the jar. Continue to shake the jar once a day for 3 days, then strain out the garlic, again retaining the safety pin in the jar. Your vinegar is ready for use for protection magick, house blessings, hex breaking, and as a very effective bug spray (skin safe).

Am I a Kitchen Witch? I will be.. :)

So I think I may choose to dabble in Kitchen Witchery. I've been cooking more from scratch anyway, and healthy is on my mind more and more.

First kitchen witch link I read. This is about.com, I seem to go there a LOT for... everything.. from tips on the games I play, to 'how to' and craft articles. It's also the first link in google.. They suggest having something you can move around easily (like a candle, what I'll probably do) and put it atop the kitchen alter (aka the stove, since it is a modern day hearth) keep fresh herbs if possible, and read up on Feng Shui. Oh! And they mention finding a cookbook.. of Magickal Recipes. (something you can keep in your kitchen, not your BOS)

First link had more info on WHAT. Second link has more info on HOW. They include recipes for Beverages, Bread, Breakfast, Campfire Recipes, Casseroles & One-Dish Meals, Lotions/Potions and Crafts, Magical Desserts, Main Dishes, Salad, Side Dishes, Snacks, Soups, and Stews. Though they don't have a ton of recipes, it gives me a great starting point (FOR FREE!)
*see below for revision*

But wait, there's more!

I'm also in the process of searching Llewellyn for 'kitchen', 12 results. Half of those books look promising, two of those "promising" were novels (interesting, but not what I want). I ended up wanting five, but saving seven links just to look over later.. Like I said I need FREE.

Books I saved include:

1. Celtic Folklore Cooking
2. A Kitchen Witches Cookbook

1. OMG this looks fantastic! The author went to Ireland four times in search of people who still use their ancestors recipes, and she published not only the recipes, but stories that go along with them, and appropriate holidays associated with them..

Ok so I'll shut up and go save the links to the shirts I want from Anne Stokes..


*EDIT* So I just noticed on the second link I posted, they're ending their website in November 2014 with a link to another version of the site. On first glance they look about the same, but I feel the need to post both.

Celtic Goddess for Kids

Oh my gosh! I found a fantastic page on facebook, called Southern Hemisphere Pagan, and this article is copied and pasted from them.. I wrote none of it. This is a beautiful article though. (the photo was used in the article too)

Fauna II by KayleighJune on deviantART

Damara (pronounced “duh-MAR-uh”) is a Celtic Goddess of the British Isles, known to rule over youth, innocence, and the imagination. Damara is also recognized as Queen of the Fairies and the protector of the inner-child and children in general. She rules over maintaining their purity along with keeping their sense of wonder and faith toward the world around them.

Garland Day, on May 13 (Northern Hemisphere), is a holiday that is only celebrated in very few small English villages. It is related to the Damara, Goddess of fertility who was worshipped in Britain. She is associated with the month of May. Her name means ‘gentle’ and is considered sweet and a rather docile Goddess. She helps bring peace and harmony to families within quarrelsome households. She was also deemed the protectress of young children and entrusted with keeping their sense of wonder and faith toward the world around them.

It is no wonder that Garland Day is a day for the children of the village. It is a day that they usher in the arrival of Spring by weaving flowers, garlands, and depositing them around the village, sometimes leaving them on the doorsteps of strangers or hanging them from poles. By doing this, the villagers believe that they will receive the blessings of Damara and will be ensured a bountiful harvest the upcoming year.

Damara’s themes are fertility, health, luck, kindness, abundance. Her symbols are flowers and green items. Damara’s message is one of guiding children. If you have your own children, spend some time with them, perhaps playing and enjoying their company. Take care of your own inner child too! Go on and have some fun today! Reconnect with that sense of awe and discovery that you felt when you were a child and learning about the world and he universe. Believe in fairies, believe in angels, as they are all around.

Source: Goddess-guide.com
Debbie Wolf Reeves
http://goddesses-and-gods.blogspot.com.au/2011/09/goddess-damara.html365 Goddess: a daily guide to the magic and inspiration of the goddess by Patricia Telesco
Image: http://kayleighjune.deviantart.com/art/Fauna-II-342617065

Witchy Update

It's been a minute since I posted. Anyone who actually read this, I'm sorry but it's a lot easier for me to keep up with a pen and paper BOS than it is a blog.

So yesterday was a Super Moon and I didn't get to do any rituals.. Last month I froze negativity out of my life as well as specific negative people. It's been working so far, so last night I did include request for it to be renewed it in my prayers..

I also asked to be revisited by a Goddess who I technically worshiped while I was Christian and didn't realize it until She started changing me to act more like Her. Freaked my little Christian self out when I realized what was happening. Anyway, I apologized to her for my previous reaction, and asked her to visit me again.

Grounding. I've grown so much in Grounding. I am reading THE ELEMENTS OF RITUAL by DEBORAH LIPP and she explains it so well. She also emphasizes centering. Grounding and Centering are not the same, but they co exist in the same ritual. She opened my awareness of what I was doing and what the point is of grounding and centering.

I have previously stated that I don't care much to learn magick. The more I understand, the more I realize.. magick is unavoidable. Simply staying positive, and being grateful for the gifts of life, is creating positive magick. Magick is the energy you have in your body right now, it is the spirit in you, love, passion, even hatred. Magick is everything and everywhere. Even Christians use it, with every prayer and every breath of hate... Learning to use magick correctly and how to harness it is not essential to being a Pagan. But experiencing Paganism without Magick is like trying to be a lake with no rain. A lake is just a valley with no rain.

Anyway. I felt the need to express I'm still here, I'm still Pagan, I still love my Lord and Lady.