Gearing up for Central NJ Pagan Pride

August 15, 2012 By 2 Comments
Vending goodies bagged and tagged.

So I'm gearing up for my very first actual vending event this Saturday at Central NJ Pagan Pride (where I'll also be doing a free workshop on poppet magic!).  I've been sewing and spelling a variety of poppets, cat toys and pocket charms for this event for weeks.  Yesterday I got them all bagged and tagged.  Today's goal?  Bag/bottle and tag everything herbal or salt based.  I grow a crazy amount of herbs in my garden and I've been harvesting and drying for the last few weeks.  I've been … [Read more...]

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Mercury Goes Direct: Ways to Brush Off the Retrograde

August 8, 2012 By 12 Comments
Photo by rajeshodayanchal

Mars might be the planet most in the news this week, but today is all about Mercury!  I don't know about you, but this past Mercury in retrograde was a doozy for me!  Despite my best intentions I found myself biting my tongue, getting into petty squabbles and ducking for cover.   I'm very pleased that Mercury is going direct today, though it doesn't start moving forward until Saturday.  So how can you shake off that wonky mojo left over from the retrograde?  Here are a few … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Health and Healing, Household, Magic, Pagan Tagged With: , , 12 Comments

Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes!

July 31, 2012 By 24 Comments

This past week I took a netcation.  It was sorely needed after a week of arguing with folks online over a variety of things, needing to get a ton of things done (none of which actually got done), feeling stressed out and overwhelmed.  During my netcation, I read four books, got coffee with a friend, cooked a few great meals and contacted a few places in my community about volunteer opportunities (which are harder to join in than I'd ever thought they'd be!).  I also stressed about taking a … [Read more...]

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A Pagan Housewife’s Garden

July 10, 2012 By 9 Comments
Photo ©Kris Bradley

We have a fairly small yard, much of it on a slant that keeps us from doing much with it.  We have no back yard; the bulk of our property is on that slanting hill on the side, facing the road.  Not exactly the best set-up for large, lush, rambling gardens.  We have, however, adapted, and created a row of square foot raised beds that produce an amazing amount of edible, culinary and magical herbs and some of the best produce you can sink your teeth into.  I can't actually take much credit for … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Food and Cooking, Gardening, Health and Healing, Household, Magic, Pagan Tagged With: , , , , , 9 Comments

A Pagan Blessing Bowl

July 5, 2012 By 12 Comments
Photo Courtesy of the author

This past full moon I had several things I wanted to set out under the powerful rays of the full moon.  As I placed them all in my blessing bowl, I realized that I'd mentioned this tool several times before, but I hadn't ever really posted about it.  My blessing bowl is a tool that I've been using for several years.  It's basically a wooden bowl in which  I place a variety of things that I want to ask deity to bless, or that I want to charge in the light of the sun or the moon (depending on … [Read more...]

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Blessed Summer Solstice

June 20, 2012 By 1 Comment
Graphic courtesy of the author

To all who celebrate, a blessed Summer Solstice!  Or a blessed Winter Solstice for those in the Southern Hemisphere. Every Summer Solstice  (also known as Litha) our family drives down to the ocean - the place where I find the perfect balance of the elements: sun, sand, gentle ocean breeze and water.  While we are there,  I bottle up several jars of ocean water, adding a few found shells and smooth rocks found along the shore line.  One jar will stay on my altar throughout the … [Read more...]

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Poultices and Plasters

March 22, 2012 By 10 Comments

© Kris Bradley Now that spring is here and summer is getting closer every day, it's time to start turning to fresh herbs and what to do with them.  And with better whether comes more time spent outside, more chances for bumps, bruises and stings. So today we'll take a look at one way to treat such things*, poultices and plasters.  So first up, what are they, and how do they differ? Both forms are applied right to the skin and can be used for inflammation, bites, stings and help … [Read more...]

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Introducing Children to Tarot

June 2, 2010 By 29 Comments

The Popess, card from the so-called Visconti-Sforza tarot deck drawn by Bonifacio Bembo, ca. 1450 I received my first deck of tarot cards when I was twelve years old, a gift from my sister.  I still have and use that deck today, thirty years later.  If you have tarot cards around your home, it's likely that sooner or later your children will show some interest.  Here are a few ideas on how to introduce you kids to tarot. Ages 3-6 Create coloring pages with tarot themes or … [Read more...]

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Couple Magic: Love Spells?

August 5, 2009 By 30 Comments

  If you’ve ever visited any sort of pagan message board, sooner or later you are bound to see someone coming “spell begging” for a love charm. Usually someone young, who believes themselves desperately in love with someone who does not notice them (poor dears!). And, of course, the pagans on the board will tell them that messing with love spells is infringing on someone’s personal choices, and not something to be messed with – the consequences in the end will bite you in … [Read more...]

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“Ghost” Plates

September 20, 2008 By 10 Comments

I have a plate rack on each side of my dining room window, and a shelf that runs over the window and around the wall. Here's the left side: And the right: (I can't for the life of me figure out why the wall came out so different in each shot, lol! Must be the way the light is coming at an angle through the window.) Here is a bit of the plate shelf: Hmmm, I wonder what the plates could be spelling out? I tried to get a shot of the whole thing, but to get far enough … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Household Tagged With: , 10 Comments