Monday 3 January 2011

The Diary of a Witch: Back to Basics!

Merry Meet Everyone!

And Happy 2011 to you all!! OK, for those of you that follow me on Facebook, this may not come as a massive surprise to you all, but just to keep everyone else in the loop; let me explain the new direction that The Diary of a Witch is taking!! =)

For those of you who have read the Blog from the beginning you will know that part of the reason that it was set up was to try and bring some of the magical community together a bit more and over recent months it has felt, to me, that the blog has drifted away from that point! SO.....

...This year (as well is my usual posts) I will be trying to engage you all in pulling together and sharing your thoughts and ideas! So without further ado, on with the first (of many) projects!

The Diary of a Witch Project: Back to Basics:

To mark 2011, one of the new changes that will be happening at the blog will be to lend more assistance to the neophyte witches. I am sure that I am not alone when I say that I get a lot of questions from new witches to the craft? On top of that, part of the reason that The Diary of a Witch was created was to help the newcomers!

SO - I'm launching a new project "Back to Basics", which will be aimed at the Neophyte audience, and since one of the most frequently asked questions is: "which tools do I need to become a witch?" - this is what the first post will be about!
I currently have several witches on Facebook that are helping me on this one, and as soon as the information has been pulled together, a post will be coming online!!!

For those of you who aren't friends with me on Facebook yet, search me by email: themoonshinewitch@hotmail.co.uk

Until next time, Blessed Be! xx

Thursday 23 December 2010

The Holly King and The Oak King

Merry Meet Everyone!

...And a very happy Yule to everyone too!! So today I thought that I would retell the tale of the Holly King and the Oak King!

For those of you who aren't aware, The Holly King and the Oak King is a pagan legend that tells the story of the two ruling kings (and enemies) that battle throughout the wheel of the year. At the winter solstice (Yule) the Oak King battles with his counterpart, the Holly King. He kills him on this day and takes the throne. He he remains until the summer solstice (Litha).

Upon arrival of the summer solstice, the Holly King returns and reclaims the throne. Hence the wheel of the year and the cycle of life can continue....

... I wonder if like me, the take makes you look at these two trees differently? Also, I tend to find that they both seem to grow close to each other... In fact, I have both growing in my garden!

Let me know how many of you incorporated the two kings in your yule or litha celebrations? Until next time, Blessed Be x x

Sunday 12 December 2010

The Moonshine Witch Returns....

Merry Meet Everyone!!

How is everyone? Goodness, I haven't been online for some time now! Anyway, I am now back on my feet - I have had a series of problems recently including my health, a break up and a move of house!!!

That said, I am now settled in to my new place and am ready to start pouring my energy back into the Blog. My magical life has had to take a bit of a back seat with everything that has been going on because I didn't want to give you sub-standard posts. However I am now in a position that I can deliver again!!

OK, so todays post was just to fill you all in and to let you know that I am now back in the game! =) SO - who remembers making Lavender oil (at the end of October?!). Well, if you haven't already, then you should strain the lavender flowers and leaves from your oil, and store in an air-tight container in a DARK place. It is important that it is dark because otherwise the oil will perish! This will prepare you for posts to come when I will be showing you how to use your freshly made oils.

So look out for that, and also there will be upcoming posts on Yule (YEY), and garden magic (yes, if you are in the northen hemisphere- like me - I am aware that it is winter!) Until then, Blessed Be xx

Sunday 21 November 2010

You aren't forgotten!

Merry Meet Everyone!

I just wanted to post a quick message to let you know that I haven't gone away! Some of you may have noticed that I haven't been posting as much as I would usually, recently.

The reason for this, is I am going through a really rough patch at home at the moment, including a break-up and I'm moving home! =(

Anyway, I don't want to go into it too much; but I just wanted you to know that I am still thinking of you all, and you can expect some new posts over the next few days! Yey!

Wednesday 10 November 2010

From Nettle Sting, to Nettle String....

Merry Meet Everyone!

Yesterday I was in the garden, tidying up and was just looking at the plants and herbs that are growing there. In the UK we are now solidly in Autumn (or fall) and before long, the perennial plants will be returning back to the Earth to sleep before next Spring.

On of these herbs that grow in my garden - or pretty much anywhere else for that matter - is The Stinging Nettle, and today I thought I would should you how you can utilise this plant :)

THE STINGING NETTLE:

The Stinging Nettle's proper name is Urtica Dioica, but I like to call it by it's folk name, Beggar's Lice. Generally, we can use the fresh NEW leaves that grow on the plant for medicinal purposes - these taste the best!! BUT at this time of year, we can utilise what remains of the plant before it dissappears under the ground for winter!

MEDICINALLY:
  • Nettle is rich in Vitamin A and C, and is HIGHLY nutritious.
  • Will protect the gut from infection and irritation
  • Will relieve Diarrhoea and Flatulence
  • Works as an antihystmanie
  • Relieves Fluid Retention and Cystitis
  • Is an anti-inflammatory
  • Can also be used externally for stings and bites (INCLUDING Nettle stings!!!)
MAGICALLY:
  • Beggar's Lice relates to Fire
  • Used in Protection, Healing, Lust, Spell Breaking and Confidence spells.
  • Also used to send spells back to their source!
As I said before, Medicinally, Beggar's Lice is best used in the spring and summer months because generally we use the new leaves, however, at the moment, we can still use the plant! At some point in my craft I will make Protection amulets, and so today I thought I would show you how to make string, yes STRING, from Nettles :)

MAKING NETTLE STRING:

OK, So first, you need to wear gloves for this craft!! As the name implies, The nettle will sting you and it's uncomfortable and itchy!!
Pluck some good sized nettle stalks from the ground. If you use short sharp upward motions, the root will snap in the ground, which means that the nettle will come back next year! YEY!

The absolute first thing that you should do is remove the 'sting' in the nettle. This can be done 3 different ways... firstly, you can cook it.. next you could dry it... or finally you can soak it in water. And that Is what I did. Just remove all of the leaves and youngest shoots (so you only have the thickest stems!) and then leave them to soak in water overnight!

In regards to the leaves, save them... although they arent really food grade because they are old, you can still dry them and use them externally..... i'll make a post soon :)

OK, overnight, the nettles SHOULD have lost most of their sting.. although as this picture shows (its not a great picture!) some stinging hairs do manage to survive! However, if you have any Lavender oil knocking about, and you do get stung, just rub a bit in, and hey presto! sting's gone!



Firstly, you need to lightly crush the stems with something hard, this loosens the fibers from the Woody 'pith' of the stem.

Next, split the stem in half, so effectively, one stem becomes two!

 
Now, keep snapping the woody part of the stem, and then peel the 'skin' away from the wood. The skin is the bit that you want because it contains the fibers which will make your string. I'm a big believer in giving back what you don't use, so make sure that you bury the woody part back in the garden, to return it to the Earth.

When you have your skin, twist it clockwise from both ends, keep twisting and eventually, you will end up with a piece of twine that looks like this!! When you have done this to all of your pieces, all you need to do now, is tie them all together and hang them up to dry!

Once again, I hope that I have made this as simple as possible for you! Tomorrow I will be looking at making new videos for ways in which you can use the Nettle Leaves so you dont waste any part!!

Until Next time though, Blessed Be x