Book Review: The Crafty Witch's Guide to Cord Magic by Loren Morris

Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I am so thankful for the rise in 'niche' witchcraft books. Early in my blogging and witchcraft "career," almost every book being published was a beginner book with the same rehashed information. Such books are certainly still being published, and even the more advanced books contain beginner information, but they are on the decline. The Crafty Witch's Guide to Cord Magic: The Art of Braiding & Knotting Spell Cords by Loren Morris is the next great addition to a growing number of advanced or niche topic occult books.

In this rather short but very comprehensive guide, Morris offers everything you need to know about crafting and using spell cords in your own practice. The first half of the book focuses on the magical properties of items commonly used in spell cords, as well as using runes, magical alphabets, and sigils. While these chapters are relatively short, they are packed with vital information. I particularly enjoyed the chapter on runes, bindrunes, and galdr. Runes need to be activated in order for them to work, and the best way is through galdr, or chanting/singing/speaking over the runes. Generally, this is done by saying the rune name over and over and drawing out the sound, but they can also be activated with written chants or free-form chanting/singing. For other included materials, Morris offers meditations, pathwalking rituals, and chants to activate the item or sigil, leaving no stone untouched.

Furthermore, the sections on bindrunes and sigils include picture examples in different shades of grey so readers can see how they were constructed using the different pieces. This is particularly helpful for those who struggle to deconstruct sigils and bindrunes, making this guide more inclusive than others.

The second half of The Crafty Witch's Guide to Cord Magic is a guide to crafting your own cords. This "section" begins with a guide to constructing a cord, from picking out the correct materials, braiding, knotting, and tying in different items. This guide includes multiple pictures to help readers truly understand what Morris is talking about, which I appreciated. I am a very visual learner.

From there, Morris offers 12 different cord directions and rituals ranging from love and money to binding and blessing. There are even cords dedicated to Odin (my favorite for sure!) and Morrigan, which can be very easily adapted to whatever deities or spirits you work with. Each cord gets its own chapter with a guide very similar to my own spells and rituals. Morris not only walks readers through what to do, but she also explains why each step is taken and even where to source materials! There isn't a single detail left out. While each spell/ritual results in a cord, the setup for each is entirely different, so it doesn't feel repetitive reading through each chapter simultaneously.

I wish more witchcraft books were written like The Crafty Witch's Guide to Cord Magic. I know it takes time and effort, more ink and pages, and therefore more money to give readers a truly deep understanding of spellcraft, but it is so worth it. Readers, new and old alike, need to have an understanding of not only what is happening, but also why it's done this way. Understanding the why helps readers learn how to write their own spells and rituals. To me, providing a spell with no context is handing someone a fish, while teaching them why the steps were taken is teaching them how to fish. Both are valid, but one ensures the person can survive without you.

On a completely unrelated note, Morris mentions hedge riding and using feathers to aid in spirit flight. This immediately made me fall in love with The Crafty Witch's Guide to Cord Magic, because it isn't often that hedge witches and hedge riding are mentioned. It got some wheels turning in my head about a potential spell cord for spirit flight. I have never made a spell cord, and I am a little excited to give it a go!

My only small complaint was Morris offering Amazon as a source for Feng Shui coins. Seems very counterintuitive to me. I understand Amazon may be the best option for some people, but if you can purchase elsewhere, I encourage you to do so. I feel like a hypocrite saying this as I use Amazon affiliate links on my blog, including this post, but I do believe that if you can use a different option, you certainly should.

I highly recommend The Crafty Witch's Guide to Cord Magic: The Art of Braiding & Knotting Spell Cords by Loren Morris if you are interested in adding cord magic to your own practice or are looking for something new and refreshing. You won't be disappointed!

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