- Serena 8 Comments

my magickal morning routine

my magickal morning routine

As I’m still living the full-time work-from-home life for the moment, I thought it might be good to share my morning routine now that I’ve made an effort to incorporate a few more spiritual components to it! This is still not my dream routine, but I just can’t make myself wake up early enough to do all the things I want to do before I start working, so this is what we’ve got.

The whole process only takes about a half hour to an hour, depending on what I have time for, so I think parts of it are pretty doable even if you have a job to get to first thing in the AM (those hours-long morning routines alway kill me – who can possibly wake up that early?! I would consider myself a morning person, but above all I’m a BED person, and once I’m in there I’m not coming out until I have to.)

I will throw in the disclaimer that this is what my routine looks like on a good day. Let’s not kid ourselves, I don’t do all of this every single day. Sometimes I oversleep and the only routine I have is the internal screaming going through my head as I frantically respond to the emails that have already piled up. So like, take this with a grain of salt.

As much of my morning routine takes place in my office/workspace, I have this idea of getting a “morning routine candle” to light as I’m going through my process and blow out afterwards as a special little extra touch. I haven’t done this yet – I want a REALLY big, nice-smelling candle so it’ll last a while and be super calming – but I figured I’d share that idea with you in case you wanna do that, too. You’re welcome.

So let’s jump into my magickal morning routine!

my magickal morning routine

1. coffee or tea

The first thing I do in the morning is get some caffeine into my system. I prefer tea but sometimes it’s just a coffee kind of day, you know? I usually brush my teeth and feed the cat and all that stuff while my beverage is brewing, and then I take it into my office to drink/use as a photo prop for Instagram pics (no shame!)

2. essential oils

Since I don’t currently have a nice-smelling candle, I like to pop an essential oil blend into my diffuser to invigorate my nostrils first thing in the morning. (Essential oils obviously have a whole lot of other benefits aside from just smelling nice, too!) I’ll either use one of the blends I already have (I use Young Living oils) or make my own by mixing and matching single oils, which is always fun!

My current favorite blend is 2 drops each of Thieves, Orange, Ginger, and Cinnamon Bark. Seriously smells like a craft store around fall-time. So good! Let me know if you have a blend you’re loving right now, I want to try them all!

my magickal morning routine

3. gratitude

I have an adorable little gratitude journal from Kikki K that makes it really easy to make time for being grateful. I’ll write down three things I’m thankful for that day and take a minute to think about them. Starting the day with a mini gratitude ritual, as cheesy as it sounds, really does help me get int he right headspace and focus on what I have rather than stressing about what I don’t.

4. daily draw

I draw a few tarot cards for myself almost every day! I don’t always write them down (I should) and I don’t even always do this as a personal reading – sometimes I just use it as an opportunity to study the cards and spend some time with them. I use oracle cards a lot, too, especially if I just want some quick wisdom to carry throughout my day. I love this part of my routine because even when things are chaotic, it gives me a chance to connect with a tool that’s important to me and my practice. (And it feels witchy AF.)

my magickal morning routine

5. journaling/planning

This is where things start to go off the rails if I’m in a rush. In a perfect world, I’d have all the time I want to journal. I have a little art journal that I make collages in, which I find super calming and also fun. (Planning a post on it later this month, woo!)

However, sometimes by the time I’m done with all the other stuff it’s getting close to noon and I’ve done diddly squat for my freelance work, which doesn’t really leave me a lot of time to get crafty. Luckily, I also have a planner that’s near and dear to my heart and covering it in stickers provides enough of a therapeutic benefit for me to be able to get on with my day. I like to decorate my planner with washi tape because it’s super easy and quick but looks like you put a lot of time and effort into making it cute.

My planner is this Frank Garcia for Prima one, which is ridiculously expensive but super cute! I’m okay with investing in planners since I use mine every single day of my life. I bought it when I still had a full-time job and would probably never spend this much on a planner again, but I’ve no regrets about having it now!

6. guided meditation

I really love guided meditations! Sadly, this is one of the first things to go out the window if I’m in a rush. Sometimes I come back and do it in the afternoon instead, but more often than not I just totally forget. I’m working on it though, because meditation is honestly, truly so calming (and so good for you!)

So that’s my morning routine! After that I’m ready to kick some butt and get things done.

Do you have a morning routine? What do you like to do? Let me know in the comments, I’d love to know! <3

- Serena 6 Comments

affordable witchcraft: 7 inexpensive essentials

affordable witchcraft: 7 inexpensive essentials

Hey friends! So a lovely commenter mentioned on my Witchcraft Tips for Newbies post that it might be a good idea to write a post about simple and inexpensive rituals that would be accessible for beginner witches (thanks Delfin!). I thought that was an awesome idea, but I’m actually going to break it up into two posts! This first post is going to be about inexpensive materials you either already have or can find at the dollar store/in your backyard to use in your practice, and the next post will be two simple rituals you can use them for (one for the new moon and one for the full moon!)

As much as I love posting Instagram pics of my deck and crystal collections, the honest truth is you don’t need any materials at all to be a witch. None! Just you and your intentions. The other truth is that inexpensive or handmade materials are just as good as expensive store-bought ones, and sometimes even better if you’ve poured your love into making them. So while I think these materials are relatively cheap and easy to come by, don’t think you need all of them or even any of them to get started in your craft.

This post might make some traditional witches mad because I talk about digital resources towards the bottom, but I believe witchcraft should be accessible to everyone who wants it and I don’t believe in gatekeeping. Learning how to be a witch from the Internet doesn’t make you any less of a witch than someone who was raised by witches and joined a coven as a fetus (or whatever.) It’s okay if your journey doesn’t look like someone else’s, and it’s not okay to poo-poo someone’s practice because they took a different path than you. Every witch is a real witch so let’s just get along!

Without further ado, let’s get started!

affordable witchcraft: 7 inexpensive essentials

1. Candles

Candles are my #1 witchcraft essential. I love burning candles not only for the energy and power they lend to a spell or ritual, but because they look really witchy and cool. That’s probably not the most important reason to have them, but the mood is important in witchcraft! However, you don’t need any of those giant drippy taper candles or whatever that you see on Instagram (even if they’re gorgeous). My favorite candles to use in spells and rituals are tea lights from the dollar store. It was literally $1 for a pack of them and I use them ALL the time. Tea lights are great because you can let the candle completely burn down as part of your spell or ritual if necessary without having to worry about guarding it 24/7 for days until it’s done so you don’t burn your house down. It gives you a couple hours of burn time which is more than enough in most cases!

2. Sticks and stones and nature stuff

Witchcraft is essentially a nature spirituality, so what better way to decorate your altar or sacred space than with nature? Crystals are pretty, but they can be expensive. A pretty stone from the backyard – or even better, from a natural place that has meaning to you – can serve as an equally powerful representation of earth on your altar (although they won’t necessarily have the same vibrational qualities as crystals, but tbh there are some pretty cheap smaller stones on Etsy if you’re desperate for crystals in your life.) You can make your own wand out of a stick and use pebbles to shape out a pentacle on your altar (or whatever shape you want!) You can use fresh flowers as offerings to your deities or just for decoration. Tools don’t have to be expensive – the original pagans couldn’t exactly hop on Etsy and order a custom-made altar cloth. If you want to buy fancy things for your practice, that’s totally fine and you should do it, but know that you don’t NEED those things in order for your magick to work.

affordable witchcraft: 7 inexpensive essentials

3. A notebook and a pen or pencil

This is super important. You’re going to want to keep some sort of record of your witchy journey – what spells worked, what didn’t, what rituals you did and when. But the thing is, you don’t need a fancy grimoire to make this happen. The cheapest notebook from Walgreens will work just fine. If you’re a perfectionist like I am, you can always use the cheap notebook to take all your messy notes and transfer the important ones to a fancy book later when you can afford one that you like, but don’t let the lack of a fancy notebook keep you from writing things down. No one ever has to see it but you!

4. Water

Water is a super versatile tool and it’s free from your sink! Although purified water is ~best~, who has time for that? You can make “purified” water on your own by adding salt to it. You can use this as a cleansing spray (adding essential oils if you want to make it smell nice) or leave it to charge under the full moon to make moon water. You can collect rain during a storm if you want stormwater, or collect it from a lake or ocean if that has meaning to you. You can put some water on your altar as a representation of the element or sprinkle it around your space when you’re casting a circle (if you’re into that.) Basically water can be used for as many things as your imagination allows, so don’t underestimate what you can do with it!

affordable witchcraft: 7 inexpensive essentials

5. A picture frame

One of the easiest ways to decorate your altar or sacred space is by framing an image of something that’s important to you. This could be a depiction of a deity that you work with (since statues and other representations can be expensive!), a picture of a place in nature that makes you feel serene, a picture of the ocean if you’re a sea witch… the possibilities are endless! I personally keep a framed print of my favorite tarot card in my workspace just because it makes me happy to look at it. There are no rules, but a simple picture frame can easily become a lovely centerpiece for your sacred space.

6. Pinterest

I LOVE Pinterest for witchcraft because it makes everything so easy. Not only is it a great resource for hacks and spells to do on the cheap, but I use it to make vision boards all. the. time. As much as I wish I could be a crafty person, I’m just not, so I prefer digital vision boards to the IRL variety. You can also use Pinterest to make boards dedicated to your deities or to keep a virtual Book of Shadows of a sorts. You can make the boards private on Pinterest so only you can see them and you can have as many as you want! It’s a great source of information and an awesome manifestation tool.

7. Tumblr

Who needs books when you have Tumblr? (My book-loving heart just died a little, but hear me out.) Books about witchcraft and Wicca can be hard to find in physical stores and potentially expensive if you order them online. While there’s a lot of great wisdom to be found in books, there’s also a lot of wisdom on the Internet for free. I really recommend Tumblr as a good place to learn about witchcraft – while of course there’s misinformation out there, there’s also a lot of really great tips, links to resources that people use and love, recipes, examples of grimoires and altars, etc, etc. You can also use your Tumblr blog as a little virtual record of your practice, which is nice. Basically Tumblr lets you see what real people are doing, which can be helpful as you sort through all the mess of resources that are out there. Also, while sometimes people go overboard, Tumblr witches are a lot more woke to the issues of racism, sexism, and cultural appropriation that unfortunately crop up in the witch community pretty often. It’s good to learn early on that these things aren’t okay rather than having to un-learn them after they’ve unwittingly become a part of your practice.

So there you have it! Like I said, you don’t need any of these things to be a witch but if you want them, they’re not very expensive. I hope this post was helpful! If you have any other inexpensive tools or recommendations, be sure to leave them in the comments! <3

- Serena Leave a comment

6 witchy ways to celebrate earth day

6 witchy ways to celebrate earth day

(before we start… have you registered yet for Practical Magick for Modern Witches? You only have a few days left to snag a 15% discount! Check out this post to read more about it, then register right here!)

Earth Day is tomorrow! This was never a holiday I got excited about as a kid, but now as an adult I’m all over it. Love me some nature!

Witchcraft is, to me, very much a nature-based spirituality: we work with the moon, herbs, the elements, crystals, and so many other gifts from nature in order to make our magick happen. It seems only fair that we celebrate Earth Day in return!

Aside from the ol’ reduce, reuse, recycle, here are 6 witchy things you can do this Earth Day to give back to the planet and appreciate the nature in your life!

6 witchy ways to celebrate earth day

1. Plant an herb garden

Or a tree or whatever you want, but herb gardens seem like the witchiest idea. Growing your own herbs is magick in and of itself, and plants that you tended and raised from seeds will give you a major boost in your spellwork (or, you know, in a killer lasagna.) This has been on my to-do list for a looooong time, and this might finally be the year I get around to it!

2. Create an outdoor altar

If you have a yard or even just a balcony or porch, creating an outside altar is a great way to give yourself a sacred space in the great outdoors. It can be temporary or permanent, but be sure that whatever materials you use are safe for the environment! You can use things like rocks, flowers, sticks and branches, garden accessories, string, or whatever you might have lying around. This doesn’t have to be anything fancy – it’s just meant to give you a place to take your practice outside and honor the earth.

3. Meditate outside

Whether you have an outdoor altar or not, take your meditation practice outside on Earth Day! Feel the sun on your skin and appreciate the moment. Try to pinpoint how each of the four elements is at play – dirt, dew, the breeze, sunlight, all of these are an expression of the elements.

6 witchy ways to celebrate earth day

4. Go green

Okay, so this is easier said than done, but hear me out. So many of the products we use every day are contributing to the destruction of the planet. It sounds extreme, but between the waste created during their production, the chemicals they release into the atmosphere, and the trash left behind when the container is empty, so many of our household products are anything but harmless! I hope you’re recycling already, but it’s time to take it a step further. Take a look around your house and see what products you don’t mind swapping out for a greener alternative. For me, the first step was laundry detergent and dryer sheets. I swapped them out for some natural detergent and wool dryer balls from Young Living (if you want to order some yourself, just ask! I’m a distributor, I can give you all the deets.) Next on my list to tackle is hand soap and dish soap. Even things like turning the lights off when you leave the room or carpooling to work can help. Little changes don’t take a lot of effort, but they add up in a big way towards reducing your carbon footprint! And if we want this planet to be there for us, we have to be there for her, too.

5. Gather plants and herbs

Wildcrafting is a fun way to gather plants for your own use and learn about your local environment at the same time! Just be sure you’re doing it safely: don’t harvest plants from any areas it’s not allowed or that might have chemicals present, and don’t take so much that you end up damaging the ecosystem. Stay away from roads (exhaust from cars can contaminate the plants) and don’t tresspass! If you don’t want to actually gather the plants, bring a notebook along and sketch what you see instead.

6. Volunteer

Many nature preserves or gardens have volunteer program to help maintain the area, especially on Earth Day. See if there’s something like that where you live and sign yourself up! If there aren’t any formal volunteering programs around you, you can still get out and help the planet. Head to a local park or waterway and pick up whatever trash you find.

 

So those are some easy ways to celebrate Earth Day! I personally am planning on doing 2, 3, and 6 for sure (and maybe more from this list if I end up having time!) I’m also reading Braiding Sweetgrass (affiliate link) which is all about creating a mutually beneficial relationship between humans and nature, the way that Native peoples did before us white folks came along and ruined everything as usual. It’s really good so far and I really recommend it if you want to think a little more about this stuff!

How are you celebrating Earth Day? Doing anything fun? I’d love to hear about it!

- Serena 2 Comments

announcing: practical magick for modern witches, an e-course

practical magick for modern witches

As you may have heard if you subscribe to my newsletter, I’ve joined forces with The Witch of Lupine Hollow to create Practical Magick for Modern Witches! This is a brand new course all about helping modern witches connect with their practice.

When I first discovered witchcraft, I wish I’d had a course like this to help me along. It’s not dogmatic, it’s not a rulebook, and there is zero enforcing of our personal spiritual beliefs. Rather, it’s two modern witches demonstrating some everyday ways to have a spiritual practice without breaking the bank or running away to live in the woods!

Even if you’ve been practicing for a while, this is a great opportunity to see some fresh perspectives and re-energize your spiritual routine. Plus, you’ll have access to ask us questions about anything and everything magickal! (Not that you can’t already do that, I guess, but whatever.)
Practical Magick for Modern Witches is a six-part course with content focusing on:

  • Modern sacred spaces
  • Kitchen magick (with recipes included!)
  • Connecting with nature in an urban setting (like working with crystals and the moon)
  • Practicing spells and magick
  • Modern meanings of the Sabbats
  • Grimoires

Each section features at least three lessons on everything from altars to crystals to gardening (no matter how small your patio or apartment balcony may be), all with a contemporary, urban focus. You’ll also find videos, quizzes and journal prompts to guide you through the course. Both of us have contributed half of the course content so you’ll find the perspectives of two witches with differing but complementary modern practices.

The course officially opens on the New Moon on April 25, 2017 and will be $45.00 for unlimited lifetime access. Sign up NOW and you’ll receive 15% off the cover price – that makes it only $38, but not for long!

I’m so excited to be sharing this project with you at last! Tell your friends and fam and let’s make it a party. We can’t wait to work with our fellow modern witches – see you in class!

- Serena Leave a comment

ways to celebrate the new moon

ways to celebrate the new moon

We all know that I’ve been blog-crushing on The Witch of Lupine Hollow for like, ever. (Cottage witchery with no cottage required? hello yes sign me up!!) After I mentioned in my Witchy Wishlist post that I’d been eyeing her Moonglow workbook for a while, she was nice enough to send me a copy to use and review and wow, it’s gorgeous! It got me thinking a lot about how I celebrate the moon and how I really want to be more intentional about it – usually it’s more like “oh dang, new moon tonight, guess I’ll take a bath or something.” Moonglow gave me a bunch of SUPER awesome ideas so I thought today I’d share a few easy ways you can make the most of the new moon’s energy and really celebrate in style!

The new moon is a really great time to set intentions and get real about what you want to manifest for yourself in the coming weeks. Usually what I’d do is think about my intention and light a tea light candle on the windowsill, surrounded by any crystals or tarot/oracle cards that might be relevant. For example, if I wanted to focus on healing, I might put the candle on top of the Healing card from my Animal Kin oracle deck and surround it with fluorite crystals. I let the candle burn down completely, releasing my intention into the world. It’s a simple ritual that serves me well, but it’s not very festive – it’s gotten a bit routine at this point and I find I’m sort of just going through the motions a lot of the time. This obviously isn’t doing the new moon justice!

ways to celebrate the new moon

Moonglow is broken down into sections about the different types of things you can incorporate into a new or full moon ritual for yourself, such as candles, meditation, divination, and so on. There’s information on each type of activity and how to make it work, such as what tools to use and why you might want to use certain things at certain times. It advises that you pick a few elements that work for you and combine them to form your own personalized ritual, so I decided to give it a shot!

Meditation is one thing I’m always trying to include more of in my spiritual practice, so I decided I definitely want to make that a part of my new moon festivities. Divination is a HUGE part of what I do, so that’s a given, and I like the crystals and candles that I’ve been using so far. Taking all this into consideration, my new moon ritual for this month will look like this:

  • Choose an intention for the upcoming lunar cycle. I personally have been focusing a lot on healing, calming, and finding peace, so mine will focus on these things.
  • Choose a few crystals that are relevant to my intention as well as how I’m feeling at the moment. If I’m feeling particularly negative I might choose smoky quartz, or if I’m stressed I might go with amethyst, things like that.
  • Sit in a comfortable position, holding the crystals in my hand. Meditate with a mantra that’s relevant to my intention – such as “I am calm” or “I am in control of my emotions.”
  • Choose a tarot deck that feels right in the moment. Draw three cards to discover how to make the most of this moon cycle and how I can work towards my intention.
  • Place the cards on the windowsill along with any oracle cards that might be relevant. Place the tea light candle on top of the cards. Arrange the crystals around the candle and the cards.
  • Light the candle, envisioning my intention rising with the smoke and being released into the world. Sit quietly with the candle for a while and reflect on my intention, what I’ve learned so far, and where I’d like to go. Keep a notebook on hand to write down any important thoughts.
  • I won’t sit there the whole time, but once the candle has burned out I’ll clean up the space, put everything away, and do a smoke cleanse of the area with a calming lavender incense.

That’s WAY cooler than just lighting a candle, right? I’m so excited to do my ritual – not only will it help set the mood for the weeks ahead, but it also makes for a calming and relaxing evening! I can’t help but think how amazing I felt after making a real ritual out of the summer solstice. If I could feel that fantastic twice a month, on the new and full moons, then why the heck not?

Moonglow also has workbook pages for each new and full moon of the year, so you can write down what you did and keep it for future reference!

ways to celebrate the new moon

If you love a little moon magic, I would definitely give Moonglow a whirl. I think it would be amazing for a budding witchling who’s still figuring out what kinds of things work for them OR for anyone who feels a little stagnant in their spiritual practice – the tips in the book can be used for any kind of ritual, not just for the new and full moons, although they’re definitely geared towards the moon cycle. I feel like this workbook really inspired me to actually DO something with the moon and not just go through the routine like I always do, and I’m really pumped to get more specific with what I incorporate – maybe fall-colored candles once September rolls around? or using things from nature to make it more seasonal? So many possibilities!

While I was sent this workbook for free to review, all opinions are 100% my own – I’d never recommend something to you that I didn’t truly love. I especially like that this workbook breaks down every moon of the year for you, so you can use the worksheets again and again and easily keep track of how you’ve celebrated each specific new and full moon! If you’re interested, you can pick up a copy of Moonglow at The Witch of Lupine Hollow’s Etsy shop here just in time for the new moon next week, and don’t forget to check out her blog – SO many great witch tips. LOVE IT.

How do you celebrate the new moon? Do you usually do a whole ritual or do you keep it simple? Let me know in the comments, I’d love to know! <3

- Serena 7 Comments

the w word: what witchcraft means to me

the w word: what witchcraft means to me

For having a blog about spirituality, I sure have done a good job of tiptoeing around what my spirituality actually is.

I mean, you can probably guess. I’ve alluded to it before, always stopping just short of saying “this is it!! here I am!” I usually refer to it in joking terms, partly because I don’t take myself too seriously but also because I guess I take myself a little too seriously, too. You can’t just throw around the word “witch” without people having some kind of a reaction, whether it’s “me too!” or “um, you think you’re Harry Potter?” Some people object to the term (and the witches, for that matter) for religious reasons, and honestly I didn’t want to make anyone feel awkward or unwelcome on my blog because they don’t agree with my particular path. Some things are universal and I like to think that many of my posts can be applied to any spirituality without conflict. But I feel like it’s at the point where I’m limiting myself on purpose because I don’t want to push people away and well, sometimes you gotta just risk the pushing.

So, witchcraft. It’s a term I struggle with too, really, both in real life and online. There are so many connotations, so many preconceived notions and mental images of warty green women cackling around a cauldron that it’s hard to take someone seriously when they call themselves a witch.  Obviously I am not one of these warty green women – I think I’m pretty normal in the grand scheme of things. So then what is witchcraft and why does it even matter?

Well, another reason I’ve avoided labeling myself publicly as a witch is that I don’t have a good answer for those questions. It can be so many things, and at the same time it doesn’t have to be any of them. It can mean believing in auras or energy, it can mean communing with spirits, it can mean meditation, tarot, crystals, herbs, yoga, spells, paganism, incense, candles, you name it. And at the same time none of these things necessarily mean that you’re a witch – in fact, people from all walks of life and all religious backgrounds use some of these things in their spiritual practices without it being weird at all. It can also mean Wicca, which needs its own explanation; for my purposes we’ll just say that while I dearly love my Wiccan brothers and sisters, that’s not how I would define my practice.

To me, witchcraft is owning your place in the universe and knowing that you’ve changed the world just by being in it. It’s believing you’re worthy of good things and recognizing that you have the power, through your intentions and your actions, to bring those things to you. It’s being in tune with nature, respecting the planet, celebrating the changing of the seasons and reflecting on how far you’ve come. It’s getting in tune with your higher self, sometimes using tools such as tarot or meditation, and listening to your intuition instead of fighting it. Some witches use wands, some have altars, some cast circles or dance naked under the moon – and some simply think good thoughts into their coffee and call it a day.

There are so many different ways to be a witch that it’s impossible to name them all, but at the end of the day I think it all comes down to knowing your power and making things happen instead of letting life happen to you. You don’t have to do it every day. You might not need your practice all the time. You might do all or none of the things I’ve described and that’s completely fine. But there’s a strength that comes from knowing who you are and I gotta say, I’m feeling that way more than nerves about publishing this post right now.

To my friends who are traveling a different path, I promise I’ll never try to isolate you. I respect all beliefs and I feel that they can all coexist, that WE can all coexist if we focus on what we have in common. I think a lot of the things on this blog are relevant to many different spiritualities, and heck, even if yours doesn’t have a name you might be able to relate – no pressure to label! But I also understand if witchcraft is too weird for you and you need to bow out now. No offense will be taken – I thought all this stuff was hella weird when I first found out about it, so I feel that.

Most of you are probably like “omg you have not been subtle about being a witch at all and everyone already knew all this,” but I think it’s important for me to put it all out there so we’re all on the same page – and so y’all know a little more about what I mean when I talk about my practice! I’m planning a lot of posts that are more true to my path and hopefully you like them – I’m pretty pumped to start digging a little deeper.

If you want to learn more about witchcraft, be careful. A lot of the more mainstream books and authors contain a lot of cultural appropriation, misinformation, and opinions presented as fact. I would actually recommend that you make a Tumblr blog and browse through the “witchcraft” tag and similar ones! While of course you always need to check your facts when you just read stuff on the internet and of course there are some not-so-nice folks out there, my experience has been hugely positive and I’ve been exposed to SO many different kinds of witches – the possibilities are endless! And of course, you can always drop me a line. I’m far from an authority, but I can probably help talk you through some stuff and direct you towards resources that are specific to what you’re into.

If you’re sticking around, I love ya. Thanks for being the actual best. I won’t pressure you, but I’d love to hear a little about your spiritual path – does it have a name? how did you find it? Leave a comment if you don’t mind sharing!

- Serena 3 Comments

witchy wishlist: july edition!

witchy wishlist: july edition!

Oh man, I’ve been getting serious about budgeting lately and let me tell you, this gal is NOT a fan. There are SO many pretty witchy things out there right now and I’m just itching to do some online shopping!! I’ve been good, though (for the most part…) and I’ve decided that if I want to buy something, I need to wait two weeks and see if it would still make my life better if I had it. So much of my spending is impulsive, and this has really helped so far! But it doesn’t help me wanting the thing in the moment, so I decided to make a little “shopping list” of the things I have my eye on right now to a) look at them some more b) share them with you and c) maybe talk about them if you’ve been wanting them too! So without further ado, these are the things that have my fingers itching to click the “add to cart” button lately…

(Just so ya know, the Amazon links are affiliate links. I’ll mark them with a little * so you know! This just means that if you buy the thing, I’ll make a small commission and you won’t pay any more than you would otherwise. That’s it!)

Did you know the Floret Oracle is available? You can find more pictures and links on my blog! ? Bloglink in bio ? #oracle

A photo posted by Chan (@limoniume) on

1. The Floret Oracle

Okay, I am so happy that Chan created an oracle deck!! She has been a HUGE inspiration to me throughout my online tarot journey and her aesthetic is just to die for. This deck is so her style and at ~$20, it’s really kind of a steal. I WILL be ordering this as soon as pay day hits, and her Tumblr is here if you want to check her out!

2. Moonology: Working with the Magic of Lunar Cycles*


 This book is basically everything I need in a book right now, tbh. I LOVE to celebrate the moon cycles but I end up falling back on the same few rituals every time. This looks like it’s full of so many new ideas and I can’t wait to check it out!!

Excited to announce the opening of the new Witch of Lupine Hollow shop – the inaugural item available is a 39 page new and full moon ritual workbook! Check it out on etsy #newmoon #fullmoonritual #newmoonritual #fullmoon #pagansofetsy #witchesofetsy #witchesofinstagram #printables #practicalmagic

A photo posted by The Witch of Lupine Hollow (@lupinehollow) on

3. New and Full Moon Workbook

Speaking of the moon, The Witch of Lupine Hollow has this 39-page workbook that’s all about working with the moon cycles and I’m dying to nab it! The summer solstice with its full moon was such a powerful celebration for me and now I can’t get enough. Using the energy of the moon to kick butt and get what you want?? Yes please. I can’t wait to see all the ways to celebrate that The Witch of Lupine Hollow has to share, because her blog is THE BOMB.

4. Divina Vol. 2*


 I’m pretty sure I’ve gushed about how dreamy the Divina journal is before, but now there’s a volume two and I NEED it in my life! For one, how gorgeous and classy is the navy cover? And for another, this one doesn’t have dates in it – perfect for people like me who journal diligently every day for a week and then forget about it for two years, whoops!! It’s a dream journal AND a divination journal, so like, basically everything I could ever want in a journal. Darla really hit it out of the park with this one. Now if only there was a pastel purple cover…

The sacred flow of abundance is a *thing*. Sometimes a sensitive thing… so the card had to be included in this magical tool for the #entrepreneurial soulful journey πŸ™‚ . . . As I am working on the guidebook for these #oraclecards I am spending a few days with each message… and this card could be a book in and of itself! I foresee online extras, creator souls! ✨#abundance #manifestation #selflove #lawofattraction #hustle . . β–½ Earth spirit, you are working within an energetic field of vast potential- A beautiful cloud of limitless joy, where your energy collapses around your observations… based on your observations… in order to match your observations. ∞ What is your current money observation? How do you feel about it, or how does it make you feel? How we perceive money affects how it flows in our lives… and sometimes we let our feelings about money box us into earning much less ? Money = energy, yes? How are the energetics of your abundant life doing? β–½ . β–½ Are you observing abundance in your everyday life? Or are you keenly aware of your scarcity as you #hustlehard to earn your abundance? β–½ β–½ Do you see the beautiful opportunities all around you? They are there, lining the edges of your life β™‘ β–½ β–½ How unshackled are your money beliefs, and are you ready to loosen them and let them go? ✨?✨ . . . . α’ͺIα‘Žk Iα‘Ž α—·IO! This card was designed with so much love, and well wishes for your prosperous, amazing life as you build your big sacred dream πŸ™‚ #tarot #spiritjunkie #tarotreadersofinstagram #loa #bosslady #bossgirl #lifecoaching #moneyflow #risingstrong#femaleentrepreneur#dreambig #makeithappen #entrepreneur #womeninbiz #solopreneur #soulpreneur#nevergiveup#success #spiritualbosslady #spiritjunkie #lightworker #sacredcreatorsoracle

A photo posted by Miz Pixie Chris-Anne (@pixiecurio) on

5. The Sacred Creators Oracle

Okay, okay, so I broke my resolution a little for this one – I have actually already committed to back this on Kickstarter. But I figured if I changed my mind I could always downgrade my pledge if I had to, so it still counts! At any rate, I HAVEN’T changed my mind – this oracle deck is perfect for soulful creatives and creators and I am IN LOVE with the colors/messages/literally everything about it. It’s so close to being funded, so if you want a little guidance in your heart-centered business pursuits, go and snag it while you can!

Have you seen these pretty things floating around the Internet, too? What’s been on your wishlist lately? β™₯

- Serena 2 Comments

how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

Happy solstice, friends! The summer solstice, also known by other names like the equinox, Litha, Midsummer, and “the longest day of the year,” is a pretty big deal for a lot of people, myself included! I think it’s important to celebrate nature and the changing of the seasons and since I’ve been looking forward to summer all through the cold Chicago winter, I’m super pumped that it’s finally here. (Southern hemisphere friends, I know you’re just getting into winter and… I’m sorry. Maybe this post will help keep you warm?)

There are plenty of things you can do to celebrate the summer solstice! You can spend some time in nature, leave a gift of birdseed or other snacks for the local wildlife (but be careful you don’t attract, like, bears), cook a meal using fresh veggies and herbs, light a candle and spend some time in reflection over the year that’s passed, or do a tarot reading to help you navigate the season ahead (using a fun and summery tarot spread, perhaps? πŸ˜‰ ). But as a gal who loves any excuse to dress like a woodland creature, I decided to make a flower crown this year to get in the spirit of summer! It was super easy to make and although it looks a little wonky and you can totally see the floral tape in spots, life is all about ~embracing imperfection~ (or whatever, just don’t make fun of my sad little crown, I tried!!)

So I made a little tutorial to show you how to make one, too. I used fake flowers because I wanted mine to last, but you can totally use real flowers with this same technique if you’d like. Learn from my mistakes and become the flower fairy you’ve always wanted to be!

 how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

What you’ll need:

– flowers, fake or real

– floral tape

– floral wire

– scissors

– your head

** A note about fake flowers: be sure you pick ones that won’t fall apart too easily! Some of the ones I thought were really pretty came disconnected from the stem really easily, and you need some stem to work with for this. You can use all different kinds of flowers if you want, but I wanted a more uniform look so I picked the same kind in a few different colors. ALSO, be sure you find flowers with a green stem! Preferable one that’s a similar color green to the floral tape and wire so it blends in better, but as long as they’re not wildly different colors you should be fine.

how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

Step 1: Take your floral wire and wrap it around your head where you’d like your crown to go. I wrapped it around twice to make it a little sturdier, and I’d probably recommend that you do it at least twice, too. Make it a little looser than the measurement of your head, since the flowers are going to bulk it up and make it a little bit smaller than the wire on its own!

how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

Step 2: Trim your flowers so that you have a few inches of stem to work with. Not going to lie, the greenery on these made them a pain in the buns to work with. If I do this in the future I’d probably pick a flower with just a plain stem but then get some added greenery to use to fill in gaps if needed. The greenery on these definitely had a cool effect, but made it super hard to tape down!

how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

Step 3: Wrap the entirety of your wire with the floral tape. Floral tape is weird and it seems like it won’t be sticky, but it sticks to itself and works out really well! This step is just to be sure the wires stay together and no sharp bits are sticking out to poke you in the head.

how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

Step 4: Start taping your flowers to the wire with the floral tape. I tried to cover the tape in the little leaves but you can still totally see it, whoops.

how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

Step 5: Work your way around the flower crown, layering flowers as you go so that they cover up the tape as much as possible. You can have fun with how you arrange them – I went with a simple alternating pattern because I wanted mine to be pretty even, but you could go crazy and mix-and-match if you wanted!

how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

Step 6: Once you’ve completed the circle, you can go back in and fill in any gaps with more flowers. Then you’re done! The floral tape isn’t the MOST secure thing in the world, but I wore mine out in the sun all day and it stayed together so that’s a good sign. I’m planning on fixing the loose spots with some good old-fashioned Scotch tape on top of the floral tape.

And here’s what it looked like on!

how to make a flower crown: summer solstice edition

I’d like to thank the Snapchat “pretty” filter for always making me look bomb. It was super fun to wear and a total stranger complimented me on it, so if YOU like getting compliments from strangers, you should probably make yourself a flower crown. And then send me a picture of it!! I’d love to see what you come up with!

Do you have anything fun planned for the solstice? πŸ™‚ Drink some summery lemonade for me!