Resources for Mending Clothes

We toss out over 80 pounds of textiles each year. These textiles are often made of plastic materials (polyester, nylon), made in unethical conditions, dyed with harsh dyes that often get put into the rivers, etc. Even a single cotton shirt releases carbon emissions and uses tons of water. 

So the best thing to prevent the unsustainable growth of the fashion industry is to make sure that your clothing lasts as long as possible. To do so, mending clothing is a must. So here are some resources to help you learn how to do various things, such as sewing a button, to tailoring clothes, or even upcycling old clothing into new styles. 

* How to sew on three different types of button

* How to hand sew on a patch on a torn pair of jeans

* How to sew up a hole in an old shirt

* How to sew a simple T-shirt

* How to upcycle old clothing into new clothing

* More upcycle and sewing techniques

* How to repair a damaged sock

* How to do an invisible stitch

* 3 different stitches to work with for different results

* How to make a T-shirt smaller so it fits you better

* How to make repairs to your shoes

These are just a few of the things that you can do in order to make sure that your clothing lasts for a long time. Nobody wants to keep buying new clothing, as it is expensive and wasteful. 

So making alterations to your clothing, or fixing small holes hen you see them can be hugely beneficial to your wallet, to garment workers, and to the environment in the long term. 

Thank you, @ blimpeh on Twitter for this warning! ZERO TOLERANCE FOR TERFs and transphobes. Also don’t exclude male and non-binary witches! That’s not the witch way.

I will always reblog warnings about this book. I've seen way too many people post pics of this book because it's "aesthetically pleasing" or whatever. Lister is a fucking terf and doesn't deserve the revenue from people buying her book.

Instead, consider checking out this website for a list of lgbtq+ positive/inclusive works. Here's a sneak preview of a few of the books mentioned above.

I know I recently reblogged the original post about Witch, but these resources were too great to pass up

I’m not even trans but I bought that book thinking it was gonna give me some cool insight , just to open it and read about fucking pussy powers and I -

^^ This! Witchcraft in general has heavily gendered language, mostly IDing with femininity, wombs, and so on that I've always found disturbing and alienating.

Yeah, y’all remember what I was saying the other day? About how we still need to weed this “Only Cis-Women Can Be Witches” bullshit out of the pagan community? Because it’s still a thing that some people are trying to insist upon?

-expansive Ta-Da gesture- There you have it.

Thanks for the queer-friendly book recommendations!

How to Make a Corn Doll

When I visited Salem last year (like a madwoman) I purchased a jet black corn doll sold in one of their museums as a souvenir. Though I believe these are more popular to make for Lughnasadh, I'm entranced with the idea of making a version for Samhain by dyeing corn husks (sold on the international food aisle in most grocery stores) black (or orange if you prefer) during the preparatory soak. Perhaps they will take the place of a wax doll, or function as temporary watch guards in my windows. Presuming my cats don't carry them off.

Courtesy of the NC museum of history Colonial History in a box kit 

Had a fun conversation with a coworker this week. The person in question has been curious about my craft since I mentioned that I was a witch. (And yes, I’m fortunate enough to be in a position that I can be “out” at work, but I still don’t advertise.)

Following the usual questions, including “Are you a Wiccan,” “Do you ever do bad magic,” and “You’ve never cast a spell on ME, right” we had a pretty nice conversation about the very basics of what I do. And I explained that no, I don’t generally cast spells on people unless they ask.

“Well then, what DO you do?”

I told her about the wards that keep my home safe, the sigils that help to maintain the health and harmony of the people and animals who live there, the chant I use for finding my keys, and the various charms hanging around the flat. I told her about singing up the garden seeds in springtime and the confidence glamours in my makeup. I told her about the blessings I mix into the food I make and the cleansings I perform when I shower.

She kind of looked at me for a minute, then said, “You know, I’ve seen witches in movies and stuff for ages, but you’re the first REAL witch I’ve ever met. All this stuff you’re saying feels like it should sound like really ridiculous. But the way you talk about it, it makes total sense.”

“It does make sense. It’s just a different kind of sense than you’ve been used to.”

“….I think I need to read one of your books.”

It’s always to feel like you’ve reached somebody. 😊

for all of you guys getting anxious about the environment and pollution

y’all deserve to hear the good news too, and yes i fact checked these.

if this stuff keeps happening things will get even better, and the only thing stopping us really are those big companies who don’t want to pay the money to switch to more eco-friendly energy sources. i know the media tends to cause fear and stress about this stuff for a lot of people, but there really is hope.

easy things we can do: 

The Witch’s Alphabet, Theban Alphabet, The Runes of Honorius. This text is known by many names. This language is still used today by some Freemasons, Witches, Pagans, Druids and Occultist. This text is believed to hold much power within the symbols. Many witches and occult practicers use these symbols in their magick.

Uses: Books of Shadows, Witch Jars, Spells, Hexs, and Summons.

Use wisely.

Blessed Be!

~Rayne

Happy Pesach

As said by this IFL science article

SOURCE & LISTEN TO THE SONG

rad-teatrees

this is so worth listening to 

ways to start feeling again

house cleaning magick

a great way for a witch to multitask is to combine house cleaning with house cleansing magick; incorporating green witchcraft into your household cleaning supplies and methods can greatly benefit the energy within the home.

☾ giving the floors an initial sweep with a regular broom can be followed by a final sweep with a besom, to send any mischievous energy out with the dust. if you don’t have a besom, or don’t want to risk dirtying it, you can mark your broom with some sigils for purification and banishing harmful energy.

☾ lavender-lemon-rosemary natural cleaning spray

for surface cleaning, a homemade herbal cleaning spray is a useful option. you can use this to clean surfaces in the kitchen and bathroom, and it has great energy cleansing properties. you will need:

✳ 8 oz. distilled white vinegar (protection and fire magick)

✳ 6 oz. distilled water

✳ 2 oz. rubbing alcohol or vodka

✳ 5 drops lemon essential oil (spiritual opening, purification)

✳ 10 drops lavender essential oil (peace, harmony, happiness)

✳ 5 drops rosemary essential oil (protection and removing negativity)

mix everything together in a spray bottle and get to work!

☾ sadness/stress-be-gone herbal room spray

a homemade herbal room spray is a relatively easy way to incorporate magick into your house cleaning. this particular recipe is also an excellent alternative to smoke cleansing, if you have smoke sensitivities. you will need:

✳ 1 tbsp. witch hazel (relieving sadness, warding off evil)

✳ 1 cup distilled water

✳ 10 drops sage essential oil (powerful cleansing)

✳ 10 drops rose essential oil (domestic peace and happiness)

✳ 10 drops chamomile essential oil (reducing stress, restful sleep, calmness)

mix together and spray for magick aromatherapy on the bed, the dining table, or anywhere that needs an energy lift.

☾ handling mold (and unwanted energy) with homemade clove oil

if mold grows in the kitchen, bathroom or elsewhere, clove will kill the spores and eliminate the health risks associated with mold in the air. in the magickal sense, clove is known for its exorcism and banishment qualities, making it a cleanser in both the physical and metaphysical sense. to make clove-infused oil, you will need:

✳ 1 tbsp whole cloves (exorcism, banishing, cleansing)

✳ 1 cup olive oil

✳ a rolling pin or coffee grinder, and a small spray bottle

either grind the whole cloves in a coffee grinder or roll them out in a ziploc bag with a rolling pin to break them up. place the cloves and olive oil together in the jar, and close it. let it sit in a dark place, like a pantry, for two to three weeks; strain the cloves out and pour the oil into the spray bottle.

spray the oil on mold or mold-prone areas and let it sit for 20 minutes or so before wiping it off.

☾ grounding magick: mopping with basil

basil is perhaps the most historically significant herb in the realm of witchcraft, as witches were said to drink basil juice before flying on their brooms (or astral projecting) to strengthen their magic. magickally, it can help with protection, prosperity, dispelling fear and weakness, psychic power, and promoting emotional awareness and mindfulness. as a result, it makes an excellent addition to mop water when cleansing the floors, which offer the vital grounding and stability of your space.

boil some basil in water and add to the mop bucket, or use a few drops of basil essential oil. to make a ritual out of it, mop in order of cardinal direction, north-east-south-west.

Ostara quick honey and milk cake recipe:

🍰 Cakebox mix (vanilla or butter)

🍵 Replace water in recipe with milk

🍯 Add ¼ to ½ cup honey

🎂 Follow normal cakebox mix instructions

🍓 Decorate with fruit, flowers, and powdered sugar when you’re done

🌼 Enjoy your easy ostara cake 🐣

Rose Petal PSA

I see a lot of witches drying rose petals for floral arrangements or even making rose water from them. Please keep in mind that roses grown for florists are over treated with pesticides and fertilizers. Anything made from these petals isn’t safe to ingest. 

If you’re doing work that requires making a rose preparation for ingestion or topical application that will be absorbed into the skin, you’ll want to get rose petals from a shop that sells for these purposes. 

Or grow your own organically. Old fashioned varieties rather than the hybrid teas you see in flower arrangements are usually grown for these purposes because they grown more easily without intense treatments. 

THIS IS IMPORTANT Y’ALL. As a witch who worked at a florist, whenever I ‘cleaned’ the roses for sale (taking off excess leaves, slicing off thorns, etc), I would immediately wash my hands afterward. The chemicals were so bad I would feel immediate irritation and would have skin issues if I didn’t scrub clean every 30 minutes or so (I aimed for 1 wash after every 12). It’s especially worth noting that roses from florists are often (almost always) flown in from other countries where the laws about pesticides are a lot more lax. Originally we got ours from a grower in Colombia, which wasn’t too bad, but I believe we switched to Ecuador and holy moly I don’t know what the company we got it from used but it was strong. As in ‘The smell of the chemicals hit me like a wall as soon as I opened up the dozen, despite them having traveled all the way from Ecuador in a freezer’ strong. It was so bad I legitimately had worries about how handling the roses would effect my long term health, and gods above and below I felt for the workers over there that had to deal with these pesticides regularly and up close. Also, if you buy your own rose bush to use for ingestion purposes, DO NOT use the petals off of it for the first year UNLESS you got it from a organic nursery. Because most places do spray the roses with pesticides and fertilizers from seedling on up, and it will take a year for all that stuff to work it’s way out of the plant’s system. If you need rose petals to ingest ASAP, I would strongly suggest checking out tea shops. Many local or online sellers have rose teas that are lovely, and either have rose hips (which might not be as fancy as petals and have a more citrus-y flavor, but are the fruit borne from a rose and thus symbolic as all hell) or rose petals mixed in with their teas. This are absolutely edible, and are easily accessible to boot. Signed, a ex-florist and Rose Nerd.

I really hope people see this because it is very important. Roses from the floral section are not intended for consumption. I have found whole rose buds at herb stores, Asian grocery stores (in cooking sections), and tea stores. I would highly suggest going to those places for roses. They may also sell tea with a high quantity of rose petals which you can use in place of pure roses. Another note: jasmine tea is not tea with dried jasmine. Most jasmine varieties are not edible and you can’t use dried jasmine in tea unless it is a variety specifically marketed as being edible (jasmine sambac aka Pikake)

Reblogging this immediately because my most popular post is ‘How to dry rose petals the lazy way’ and I completely forgot to mention this.

Curse Breaker Bath

This one actually came to me in a dream last night.

Draw a bath and add your ingredients, letting the herbs steep for a few minutes before adding the milk last. Let yourself soak in the bath, visualizing the negative curse energy being sucked into the water like ink running off a page, the milky white color filling your aura. Let the water drain, taking the curse with it, and shower regularly after. You can enchant your shower soap for extra cleansing power too.

where are my fellow hysterical women who would have either been a) an oracle in ancient greece or b) burned at the stake in medieval times…..make some noise ladies