Cottage Witchery (3 page)

You may allow the candle and the incense to burn themselves out. Afterward make sure to tidy up all of your supplies. Does the house feel better? I bet if you pay attention, you'll notice a subtle change in people's reactions as they enter the heart of your home. Now that your home is on track and has a nice magickal sparkle, it will radiate out to the rest of the place. So, are you ready to learn more? I figured you would be. Let's start by taking a look at some other equally enchanting household areas. A few of these you may have never even thought of, such as the opening or threshold of your home.

Bewitched is half of everything.

Nelly Sachs

Enchanted Entrances
and Bewitched Backdoors

Doorways are in between places. Therefore they are considered to be magickal. So why not take a look at this idea from a witchy perspective and see what we can conjure up? It's time to concentrate on the entrances to your enchanting home.

First impressions are absolutely important. The threshold of the Witch's home sets a tone and introduces a sort of ambiance. Visitors to your place will probably feel it as they step up to the door. This can be a feeling of welcome to friends and family or it could be a feeling of warning or unease to intruders. If you are going through the trouble of creating a home that sparkles with magickal energy, why not set the mood right off the bat?

There is the old, enchanting tradition of painting your front door blue. The color blue is both a magickal and peaceful color. It represents the element of water, healing, and protection. A blue door also denotes a magickal safe house. White-painted window frames and sashes were believed to keep out unwanted influences as well. And speaking of windows, if you have a front or back door that has a window in it, then try adding a stained glass panel to your door's window. A few celestial-style patterns, Pennsylvania Dutch hex sign patterns, or something more art nouveau can be a very magickal addition indeed.

If stained glass is out of your budget, then take a look at the arts and crafts stores for stick-on strips of leading and glass paints and patterns. This is a great way to get the look of stained glass and it's easy to do. These glass paints and leading strips can give an average door window a magickal, stained glass look at a fraction of the cost. Plus it's a good excuse to be magickally creative all at the same time. What sort of design would you add to your front door? Elemental symbols, stars, floral patterns? The sky's the limit.

How about adding bewitching plants in containers to your front porch? Try red geraniums for protection or pink geraniums to promote love. An ivy growing along the house is protective and a honeysuckle vine promotes prosperity. Hang up window boxes and stuff them full of aromatic and magickal herbs, colorful flowers, and foliage. Consider planting begonias in your window boxes. These shade- and sun-loving annuals symbolize a protective warning.

I plant begonias in my window boxes every year for protection and because they perform beautifully in the part-sun, part-shade area of my back patio. Also, according to local Midwestern folklore, the way to spot the “good Witches” in the neighborhood was by the red geraniums or red begonias growing in window boxes at their homes.

Witchy Wreaths, Garlands,
and Accessories

Here is a subtle magickal idea: try hanging up a seasonal wreath and blessing it for prosperity and protection. It will be the first thing visitors see as they walk up to your door, so make it a magickal greeting. You could be really elaborate and have a separate wreath for each Sabbat or you could make a wreath for each season. Or take one grapevine wreath and simply tuck in seasonal silk flowers and sprigs of dried herbs and switch them out at the season's change. Wreaths, whether they are simple or complex, are full of magick, texture, and beauty. They are wonderful symbols for a magickal welcome. I dare you to go to the arts and crafts store and see what you could create for your own place. Glue guns are cheap; imagination is priceless.

Here is another intriguing suggestion. Arrange a set of lights along with seasonal greenery around the outside of your front door. Not just for Yuletide, decorative garlands may be used around your door at any season. Just imagine what you could do with those! Sure, pine garlands are traditional at the winter holidays, but use your imagination for the other seasons as well. I do recommend using silk foliage and accessories as this will be outdoors and exposed to the elements. (It will also last for a few seasons as opposed to a week or two if it's fresh.)

For the fall, consider adding a garland of artificial autumn-colored leaves with tiny orange lights for Mabon through Samhain. Tuck in some apples or gourds to the fall display. During the spring months, use ivy intertwined with white fairy lights and springtime flowers. In the summer, how about a garland of red roses or bright sunflowers with those tiny lights? You could tuck little grapevine stars into the garland or whatever other witchy things you can conjure up. This way you are celebrating the seasons and the Sabbats and you can be as discreet or flamboyant as you wish.

Warding Your Doorways

Doorways can easily be warded to keep intruders or negativity out. When you ward doorways, it's like setting up a magickal alarm system. If anyone or thing tries to enter that wasn't invited or doesn't belong, the wards above the doorways are supposed to give the owner of the home a little “tweak.” This can be as subtle as a vague discomfort or pulling sensation at your solar plexus, or it may be an all-out adrenaline rush of warning, not to mention the uncomfortable effect it has on the unwanted “guest” who enters uninvited. Interested? Here are a few quick ideas for wards that you can make yourself and then add over the doorways of your home.

Create a swag out of dried flowers and herbs to create a magickal archway over the inside of your door. In many craft stores they have basic unadorned eucalyptus swags and lots of dried flowers available for arranging. Eucalyptus is a good base to start with, as it symbolizes health and protection. Now roll up your sleeves, break out the glue gun, and prepare to get creatively witchy with this basic swag.

Here is a list of common dried magickal flowers often found at the arts and crafts store. Take a look at this Witch's dozen of dried supplies and see what you would like to incorporate into this warding swag for your doorway. Note that you may refer to this list when scouting out herbal supplies for your witchy wreaths and garlands as well.

amaranth/globe flower:
protection

baby's breath:
a pure heart and happiness

feverfew:
health and protection

lunaria (honesty):
money and repels monsters, according to folklore

lavender:
dispels bad luck and is protective; smells wonderful too!

larkspur:
friends are welcome

lotus pods:
good luck and blessings

roses:
love

thistle:
protection

sunflowers:
loyalty and admiration

queen anne's lace:
safe house and return home

wheat:
fertility and prosperity

yarrow:
all-purpose, the wise woman's herb

Don't be afraid to add ribbons to coordinate with your room or to employ a bit of color magick. Once you have finished with your swag, you'll need to enchant it for protection and then put it up in place to create your ward. Try repeating this warding charm as you prepare to attach the swag over the inside of the main entrance to your home.

Magickal herbs, flowers, and ribbons make up this warding spell,

Alert me to danger and protect my home that's loved so well.

By the magick of plants, I ask to be given a “tweak,”

May this warding spell hold true, day to day and week to week.

Attach the swag over your door. Straighten and adjust as necessary. Close the warding charm up by saying:

For the good of all, with harm to none,

By flower and leaf, this spell is done!

But Wait . . . There's More!

Here are a few more simple, easy, and earthy ideas. Scattering various herbs such as dried and crumbled betony (otherwise known to gardeners as perennial lamb's ears) across the threshold is thought to keep all negative influences out of the home. Sprinkling a bit of salt on the windowsills was thought to have the same effect. One old Ozark folk magick trick to keeping the front door warded was to place holey stones under the steps or the front porch. Look for holed stones whenever you are out and about in nature. My family and I typically find them in and around streams or creek beds. Any rock with a naturally occurring hole in it is a holey stone. Perhaps you can tuck a few of those holey stones into your window boxes or hanging baskets that adorn your front porch. Then you have the bonus of the protective stones plus the magickal energies of the plants working together.

As mentioned in the introduction, a horseshoe nailed upright over the inside doorway was thought to bring good luck and prosperity to the family. This popular lucky charm was always supposed to be displayed with the open ends pointing up—that way your luck will never run out. The only time a horseshoe is to be displayed ends down is over a blacksmith's forge. Then it is thought that all of the good luck is spilled out onto the forge. Where to find an old horseshoe? Try the flea market. I bought one years ago for just a few bucks.

Horseshoes are thought to mimic the curves of the crescent moon so this could also be used as a moon-goddess symbol for your home. As you hang your horseshoe up and over the door, try this little charm to go along with it.

By the gods of old—Diana, Pan, and Puck,

May this horseshoe bring our home tons of good luck!

Hex Signs for the Threshold

Here is a popular spin on an old American brand of folk magick, the hex sign. Have you ever considered displaying a hex sign by your door? On the front of my house there are two hex signs. One is large and in the center of the front of the house; we made that one ourselves. It features a five-pointed star with a heart in the center. On the porch, next to the mailbox, is a smaller one that we purchased at an arts and crafts festival. This smaller hex sign spells out “welcome” in German and has two distelfink birds intertwined with flowers and stars. Since our families have German heritage, we thought this would be a fun addition to our porch. Now, if you are wondering if you can only display hex signs
on the outside of the home, the answer is no. This type of folk art is subtle and very
magickal, and you can display one wherever you wish. I even have one hanging in my kitchen to encourage prosperity.