Rose Ariadne's Chitchcraft Blog

Dear Friends,

In another “back-to-basics” moment, I started to think about all the times I’ve been asked about altars and how to properly set them up, both by novice witches and those who have been practicing for some time. The short answer to this is that there is no definitive right or wrong way to set up your altar. Your altar is the sacred space dedicated to your rituals and workings and above all else, it should be a place of peace and comfort for you. How to properly set up and arrange an altar varies greatly among different groups, covens and individuals. Even geographic location can have an effect on altar traditions.

Your altar is where you will perform many of your spells and rituals, and it is also a place used to honor your deities and the Sabbats. Many witches have altars that are permanent fixtures in their homes or in nature, while others have temporary altars or even portable altars that are easy to disassemble and put away due to space constraints or personal preference. Nearly any flat surface can be used as a base for your altar, including a table, box, chest or shelf. If you are in need of an altar that is easy to disassemble and put away, a box or chest makes an excellent choice as the items on your altar can be packed away and stored safely inside.

A table or shelf is a wise choice if you are intending to set up a permanent altar. Most witches choose to drape their altars with some sort of decorative cloth. Be creative! Your cloth can be a spare piece of fabric, tablecloth, blanket, a piece of cloth that you have dyed or decorated yourself or even a piece of clothing that has special meaning to you. Many witches choose to change the cloth used to drape their altars depending on the season, the type of magick or ritual being performed, or even their mood.

A basic altar consists of representations of the elements, the God and Goddess and a pentacle. Many witches also include a bowl of water, a bowl of salt, crystals, herbs, incense, runes, magickal tools such as an athame, wand, bell, and/or chalice, and their Book of Shadows. Altars are often decorated with seasonal offerings on Sabbats. The possibilities for what to include on your altar are truly endless. If you find that a particular item speaks to you in a powerful way and you wish to include on your altar, don’t worry about whether the item’s presence is right or wrong. In short, if it feels right to you then it is right.

Generally, after draping the altar with their chosen decorative cloth, most witches will first place their pentacle in the center of the altar as a kind of “pivot point” for the rest of the altar to gather around. A representation of the Goddess is usually placed to the left and may be in the form of a white candle, moonstone or statue. The representation of the God is typically placed at the opposite end of the table, to the right and directly across from the Goddess representation. A black candle, sunstone or statue are the most commonly used representations for the God.

The next step in setting up your altar is to choose and place your elemental representations. Earth is commonly represented by a brown or green candle, sand, soil, a plant, a rock or stone. Some common representations for Air include a yellow candle, a feather, cone/stick incense, or amber. The Fire element is often displayed by a red candle, oil burner, lantern, or carnelian–an inexpensive semi-precious stone ranging in color from a burnt orange to a reddish-brown. Water is symbolized most commonly by a blue candle, a bowl of water, a shell, or aquamarine. Many witches take a great deal of pleasure in using items they personally find in nature as elemental symbols.

Which direction your altar should face is also largely a matter of personal preference or group tradition. In the Northern hemisphere and alter will usually face the North, while in the Southern hemisphere the South is generally the preferred direction. I know witches who prefer their altars to face East, as well as those who choose to change which directions correspond to the elements based on their personal preference or location. For example, if you live in an area where a lake or stream is to the East, you may prefer to place your Water representation there instead of the traditional placement in the West.

The most important things to remember when setting up your altar is to have fun creating your it and organize it in a way that brings you peace, power and pleasure.

Brightest Blessings,

Rose Ariadne
Your Warm and Caring “Resident Witch In Charge”

Dear Friends,

One thing that you may often hear other witches discussing is their Book of Shadows. Or, you may have heard of this particular “book” referenced on television shows or movies, and wondered just what it was. As with any tool that is used in the craft, having a Book of Shadows is something that is completely up to the practitioner. You are no less of a witch to not have one, and you don’t have to have one to be a witch. Added to that, you don’t have to be a witch to have one either!

A Book of Shadows, sometimes referred to as a Book of Rituals, is a time honored tradition among many witches. During times of persecution when witches had to go into hiding, they would often lose touch with one another. Because of this, many spells and rituals were lost from covens and witches being separated, or even worse, put to death. Witches began to copy the rituals down, so that they would not be lost for all eternity. These books containing the spells and rituals had to be hidden away of course, in the shadows, which is how they got their name.

The use of a Book of Shadows has survived until present times, and many witches and practitioners of the craft still utilize them daily. Many solitary practitioners will create their own book, while groups or covens may only have one book that serves the entire group. Of course, even in a coven that has a group book, each individual will likely have their own Book of Shadows as well that they use personally.

You see, a Book of Shadows is a completely personal thing. Think of it as a type of journal. Your book can contain anything that you wish, from your spells and rituals to your daily routines and feelings. You can use it to keep notes about particular spells that worked, as well as ones that didn’t, or notes on spells that you need to try again.

Creating your own Book of Shadows is easy, and something that can be quite fun to do. It can consist of something as simple as a basic notebook or a more complex creation that you craft with your own two hands. Making your own book to use allows you to release the inner artist in yourself and make a creation that is truly yours to enjoy.

I will confess, my Book of Shadows is very modern in nature, but I will share it’s creation with you to give you a general idea on how you can get started. Of course, this particular choice of design is something that just works best for me. There is no need to use my method if it does not feel right to you. Your book will be far more powerful if you follow your own mind and heart, and create the book that you have envisioned.

My own personal book is made from a simple three-ring binder. The papers which I use to write upon are specialty design papers that I purchased from a craft store that are made to look like ancient parchment paper. The outer cover of the binder I have decorated with various tidbits to make it more personalized. I have simple dividers that are used in any type of binder to help break my book down into easy to reference sections. Inside you will find countless pages of drawings, notes, pictures and more. You see, I took something very modern and simplistic, and turned it into a representation of myself. That is all that a Book of Shadows is.

Having a Book of Shadows is quite helpful as it helps keep all of your notes in one place. There is no searching through drawers or searching the Internet for that spell you found but now have misplaced. Everything you need is right at your fingertips. There is no right way, and there is no wrong way to create your book. As long as it is suitable to you, than it is always right.

Brightest Blessings,

Rose Ariadne
Your Warm and Caring “Resident Witch In Charge”

Dear Friends,

From time to time I like to take a moment to step back and reflect on the basic elements of our craft. Those of you who have been practicing for many years have probably cast so many circles that you could literally do it in your sleep. Novice witches naturally often feel a bit unsure and intimidated about performing their first rituals. Taking the time to carefully cast a circle does wonders for your energy level, concentration and ritual’s power. In addition, a properly cast circle is important for keeping negative and unwelcome energies out of your ritual or spellwork.

Casting a circle does not always have to be done with extravagant invocations and a bag full of tools, though it certainly can be. I know many witches who cast their circles with just chalk, salt, incense, soil, or even by simply envisioning the circle with no physical representation at all. As with many things, the methods that you choose to create your circles will likely be highly individualized and may often depend on the type of ritual or spell you are performing. You may have to experiment with different types of circles before finding what works best to enhance your individual power and concentration.

Circles are opened deosil (clockwise) and closed widdershins (counter-clockwise) when your work is complete. For a solitary practitioner, a three- to five-foot-diameter circle is sufficient for most spellcraft. If you are practicing with your common or a larger group the size of the circle will need to be adjusted accordingly.

Rituals for casting and opening the circle vary among practitioners and covens, but most typically begin at the North, drawing to the East, South and West before finally drawing back up to the North to seal the circle.

One of my favorite circle-casting incantations is:

Guardians of the North, I call upon you
to watch over the my rites.
Powers of endurance and strength, guided by Earth,
I ask that you keep watch over me
tonight within this circle.
Let this circle be cast under your guidance
in perfect love and perfect trust.

Guardians of the East, I call upon you
to watch over my rites.
Powers of knowledge and wisdom, guided by Air,
I ask that you keep watch over me
tonight within this circle.
Let this circle be cast under your guidance
in perfect love and perfect trust.

Guardians of the South, I call upon you
to watch over my rites.
Powers of energy and will, guided by Fire,
I ask that you keep watch over me
tonight within this circle.
Let this circle be cast under your guidance
in perfect love and perfect trust.

Guardians of the West, I call upon you
to watch over my rites.
Powers of passion and emotion, guided by Water,
I ask that you keep watch over me
tonight within this circle.
Let this circle be cast under your guidance
in perfect love and perfect trust.

Use whatever incantation speaks to you as you call upon the elements. Many witches choose to use various magickal tools, such as a wand, staff, athame or candle while pouring energy into the opening of the circle. You may choose to light a candle at each of the four points of the circle. These can be color coded to represent the elements: Brown or green for the North (Earth), yellow or white for the East (Air), red for the South (Fire), and blue for the West (Water). Other witches choose to place physical representations of the elements at each of the four points, such as soil or a stone for Earth; incense or a feather for Air; an oil burner, candle or lantern for Fire; and a bowl of water or a piece of ice for Water. Again, do what feels right to you for the particular ceremony or spell you are performing.

To close my circles, I typically begin at the North again and close widdershins (counter-clockwise) while imagining the energy shrinking back around the circle. I stop at each point and vocalize a short thanks to the element for blessing my circle and aiding my magick. Of course, if you are more comfortable thinking this “thank you” to yourself, rather than saying it aloud, by all means do so.

I hope this has been a good refresher for all of you on the various ways and importance of casting our circles. As always, if you perform your casting with love and the absence of fear and negativity your work should be a success!

Brightest Blessings,

Rose Ariadne
Your Warm and Caring “Resident Witch In Charge”

Dear Friends,

Last week I shared with you some of the more commonly used stones that are used in rituals and spell working. Today, I’m going to share with you how to use these stones in your magick for the best outcome, as well as how you can use these stones to benefit you in your everyday life.

Now I must confess a small secret of mine. I am a gemstone junkie! Yes, I admit. Gemstones are one of my favorite sources of magick and I use them extensively. In fact, there is rarely a time when I am without a gemstone, and I often have more than one of them on my person at a time. I just can’t help myself. But the reason for my addiction is because they are so powerful and have such a positive and profound effect on my life.

Using Gemstones in Your Magick

Many spells and rituals call for the use of a gemstone. Even if they don’t, you can always incorporate a gemstone into your work to help increase the intensity of the spell. Some gemstones add a certain level of power to the spell. Others, like crystal quartz, can intensify the power of other magickal elements that you are using.

There are a variety of ways that you can use gemstones in your magick. They can be placed upon the altar, included in totem bags and even ground up for use in powders. The number of ways that you can use gemstones in your magick is about as extensive as the types of magick you can work.

When choosing the gemstones that you will use in magick, in my opinion it is best to find rough, uncut stones that remain in their completely natural state. This is however, just my opinion and if you find a cut and polished stone that speaks to you, you should of course use it in any way that you see fit. Do not forget to properly cleanse your stones of any negative energy before using them, and cleanse them regularly so that they remain working well.

Using Gemstones in Your Everyday Life

Gemstones are not only for use in your magick spells and rituals. You can also enjoy the benefits of these stones in your everyday life as well. The benefit of gemstones is that they can easily be carried anywhere and be kept on you at all times. If you have used them in a spell, you can continue to carry that gemstone with you to help the spell be more successful. Or, you can simply carry certain gemstones with you to enjoy the powers that they hold at any time.

For example, I myself carry an amulet that contains a number of different stones in it that help me to remain balanced and at peace. This amulet is inconspicuous, but gives me great comfort knowing it is there. I can carry it in my purse, or in my pocket, and at night I can simply slip it under my pillow. Of course, I also have various pieces of gemstone jewelry which I wear quite often that are made from stones that are quite powerful. To others, these are nothing more than pretty baubles. But I know the secret to those baubles and understand the strong power that they hold and provide to me when I wear them.

If you haven’t already experienced the benefits of gemstones and the power that they can add to your magick and your everyday life, I strongly encourage you to do so. Having a supply of various stones is beneficial because it allows to you complete a number of different spells from them and provides you with a source of power for almost any issue that you face.

Get yourself some gemstones today and start enjoying them not only for the natural beauty that they hold, but for the awesome power which they contain as well. I promise, you’ll be glad that you did and may too find yourself to be a gemstone junkie!

Brightest Blessings,

Rose Ariadne
Your Warm and Caring “Resident Witch In Charge”