Articles

Once upon a time, there were only three kinds of smudge sticks in most witchy shops: Small, medium, and large.  These days, you can choose from a vast array of smudging herbs, each with a different energy, aroma, and cultural history. In this article, I’ll walk you through the plants that are most commonly used for smudging. (We’ll limit it to smudges that are derived from woods and leaves. Resin incenses are divine—but that’s a topic for another article.) The variety of smudging herbs is incredible. But you’ll also notice some similarities. First, most of them come from the leaf...

As we wrap up a four-part series on elemental correspondences, it's time to consider the herbs of Earth. You may notice that not as many plants are attributed to Earth as to Air, Fire, and Water. This is because herbal magick as a whole is ruled by Earth.  In a sense, all herbs are Earth herbs. However, there are times when your magick calls for the specific qualities of Earth: Darkness, solidity, quietness, rest and incubation.  Earth herbs, in general, are good for evoking gratitude and for healing grievances. Earth is also the element of manifestation--using Earth herbs is one...

As soon as you delve into the world of Tarot, you encounter a bunch of do-this, don't-do-that warnings and prescriptions about how to use the cards. (Why, it's almost as if we were dealing with something magical, not just 78 pictures on cardstock!) Some of these superstitions undoubtedly have a grain of truth in them, while others are just baloney dipped in snake oil. Now, for your amusement and your edification, Madame Michelle will feed each “should” and “shouldn’t” into the Truth-O-Matic Machine (i.e., her brain!) and declare a verdict. You shouldn't read Tarot for yourself.  Mary Greer put a...

A sachet of leaves tucked under a pillow, a handful of berries strewn across a doorway: Herbal charms and remedies are one of the most familiar forms of magick. Herbal (“green”) witches keep elaborate pantries of herbal ingredients, each with a different power to enlighten or heal, bother or protect. (To be clear, we’re talking about the ritual use of herbs here, rather than the medicinal and psychoactive effects they can have on the human body.) But how, exactly, does herbal magick work? How does an unassuming pinch of bark or leaf become a partner in a magickal charm or...

China has long been the source of many consumer goods purchased in the United States.  But in recent years, manufacturers in China and neighboring countries began selling directly to shoppers through sites like AliExpress and eBay.   At first limited to cheesy trinkets and fashion accessories, the overseas marketplace is always expanding.   Businesses are reaching out to increasingly specialized consumer groups--most recently, in my own cubbyhole of witchy and Pagan wares.  If you're a merchant in a subcultural niche--whether it's Wicca, Steampunk, Goth, Cosplay, et cetera--you've likely been affected by the Chinese invasion. As a small business owner, I have...