Mastering Your Grimoire: Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

We have come to the conclusion of the Mastering Your Grimoire series. At this point you should be well on your way to creating a comprehensive grimoire, but how can you add a little extra magic to your book? That's the topic of today's post. You can use colors, aromas, and time to infuse magic into the pages themselves along with unique inks, drawings, photographs, and pressed flowers.

Studies show that colors have a profound affect on our behaviors and emotions, so it should come as no surprise that colors hold magical properties. Color is often used to empower magic and add a symbolic, visual dimension to it. When transferring information into your book, be sure to take color into consideration to infuse the pages with magic. Think about the color of the paper, ink, drawings or photographs, and pressed flowers or herbs you are including on certain pages. Completing your page on Samhain? You may want to use black, orange, purple, and green. Writing a banishment spell? Use black. Describing dream work? Use blue or purple. For a full list of color correspondences, please refer to my post Correspondences: Colors. Remember, your personal experience with a color is more important than the correspondences listed in the table. If you associate blue with love, use blue for pages covering love magic and spells.

Like colors, aromas also have an effect on our behaviors and emotions. Everyone knows certain smells bring us back to different points in our lives. You can use essential oils to create paper, inks, and paint and perfumes to scent your pages to symbolically accent different sections and pages of your grimoire. I do not suggest adding essential oils directly to the pages. You will leave an oil spot which will damage several pages. Below is a very brief list of correspondences for different essential oils. Remember, if you have a different impression of an aroma, go with your gut.

Cedar: courage, strength, purification
Chamomile: peace, tranquility, healing
Frankincense: spirituality, blessing
Geranium: balance, symmetry, harmony
Ginger: power, love, prosperity,
Jasmine: socialization, birth, purification, creativity
Lavender: peace, sleep, lifting despair, healing, love
Mint: prosperity
Myrrh: protection, meditation, purification, spirituality, understanding
Orange Bergamot: soothing anxiety
Pine: energy, happiness, healing, magic, prosperity, protection
Rose: love, beauty, harmony
Rosemary: healing, memory, love, invoke deity, protection
Sage: psychic, astral travel, purification, memory, prosperity, wisdom
Sandalwood: spirituality, psychic, calm, healing, protection
Vanilla: passion, energy, happiness, luck
Ylang Ylang: peace, love, marriage, sex

Ancient witches often used timing in their spell work to amplify their magic. Today, many witches still work on this same belief system, believing the position of the moon, sun, planets, stars, and the Earth influences all life on Earth. Mercury retrograde is an excellent example of this. I don't suggest working on your grimoire during this time, as Mercury retrograde hinders communication in all forms, written and verbal. However, I do suggest using the phases of the moon, the cycle of our Mother Earth, and the days of week to enhance your work on your grimoire. Below is a short list of different times you can work on certain aspects of your book.

September: emphasizes spirituality, especially in regards to development. This is a great time to work on your grimoire and expand your spiritual understanding.
December: emphasizes knowledge and understanding. Set out to improve your understanding of your own spirituality.
Moon in Libra: create a balanced book
Moon in Capricorn: allows you to truthfully see and express yourself and your spirituality
Moon in Sagittarius: goal oriented so if you need a kick in the butt to work on your book, this is the time.
Wednesday: creativity
Thursday: communication
Sunday: reading, researching, and reflecting

For a complete list of how the moon phases affect magic, please refer to my posts A Hedgewitch's Guide to Moon Magic Part 1 and Part 2: Monthly Magical Moons. For days of the week, read Magical Correspondences: Days of the Week. Wondering what time of day to work on your book? Read Magic All Day Long: What Time of Day Should I Perform Magic? These lists are fairly comprehensive and should give you a good idea of which to work on your grimoire and which sections you should be working on at which times.

Colors, aromas, and the time when you work on different aspects of your grimoire can greatly increase the magic within the book and solidify your connection with your book. I strongly encourage you to take these aspects into considering as your continue to work on your grimoire. Now get out there and make sometime beautiful!

I would love to see your work if you are comfortable sharing. Post pictures in the comments below, on Facebook, or on Instagram using #masteringyourgrimoire.

Now get cracking creating a unique grimoire while growing your own spirituality.

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Grimoire: Researching

I apologize for not keeping up with this series as I had originally intended. There has just been so much going on and the last thing on my mind has been my grimoire. But here I am, back at it, attempting to finish up the last two posts of the series! If there is another topic in relation to the grimoire that you would like me to cover, please contact me in the comments, on Facebook, or via email. I haven't added working on more pages together, because, well, let's be honest, your grimoire is personal. All witches tend to have a dedication and blessing within the first couple of pages of their grimoire. What they do after that is entirely up to the witch. However, I would be happy to cover any topics you need assistance with regarding your grimoire if you need it. Just let me know. So, let's begin!

Now that you've dedicated yourself to your book and blessed it, it is time to begin filling it with information, spells, and charms. If you thought picking your medium was difficult, we are only just beginning. Assembling your grimoire takes serious thought and planning, even if you are making a digital one. Your book is a spiritual reflection of yourself, so it isn't something you just slap together as quickly as possible and move on. This is an extension of your spiritual being and magical practice, so you should take your time.

Where you find your information is completely up to you. Books, podcasts, blogs, internet resources, other witches, and your own intuition and experiences are great places to start. However, it is imperative you use a critical eye when gathering research and resources. There are many sources out there that contain inaccurate information or people's opinions, but that doesn't mean there isn't valid information underneath. You just have to find it! Be sure to use multiple sources and never take anyone's word as the only true way. Marietta over at Witchy Words wrote a wonderful article on critical reading, so I am not going to cover critical reading in any detail, since she already has. I strongly encourage you to read what she has to say.

When gathering information, it is also important for you to cite your sources. There are several reasons why you will want to do this, even in your grimoire or book of shadows. If you want to go back to the source later for clarification or more information, you'll know exactly where to go. Sometimes things make sense the when we first read them and transfer them to our grimoire, but somehow later down the road they no longer make sense. You may also want to share the information with someone else, write a blog post (or article) on the topic, or integrate the information into a public ritual. We have strict copy right and trade mark laws here in the United States. You need to adhere to them, especially in a public ritual.

Once you begin research, I strongly suggest beginning by taking some notes on the topic you are researching. Write up a draft on some scratch paper. Take notes from multiple sources and pull together what you feel is most important or what works best for you. Writing a rough draft not only allows you to plan your pages if you are creating a bound grimoire like I am, but also allows you to mull over the information. The more times you write it, the more likely you are to remember it as well. When researching and taking notes, think about the following questions to help guide you:

1. What parts of the information speak to you? Which contain the most insight or are inspiring? This information should make it into your grimoire.
2. What parts of the information do not speak to you? What can you do without? This information should be tossed or you can put it aside in a separate place to return to later. Nothing wrong with keeping all your notes in a separate location.
3. What parts of the information are timeless, meaning they are unlikely to change anytime soon? If it meets the criteria for question 1, you should add it to your grimoire.
4. What parts of the information do you think are going to become outdated soon? If they speak to you, but you know they will be outdated quickly, keep them separate from your grimoire. Tuck them in with other notes or make a special binder for them.
5. What parts of the information do you need to personalize? What parts do you need to shorten or lengthen? Remember, your grimoire is very personal. Personalize rituals and spells as often as possible. They will be more powerful that way. Drafting before hand will allow you to perfect spells, rituals, and information before adding it to your grimoire. Play around with the information you have gathered until it feels right, but remember to keep the original meaning intact.
6. How do you want to present the information? Poetry? Prose? Do you want to write it in a certain color to increase the magic? Add a specific aroma? Do you want to mix media? (I'll talk more about this in the last post of the series).
7. What is the best way to organize the material? We went over this in Organizing Your Grimoire, but I need to mention it again here. It is important for your grimoire to be organized, that way you can easily find the information you are looking for. Carefully consider which section your research should go in. If it needs to be repeated else where, cross-reference it by writing on the page where the information is to be duplicated where you can find more information. For example, authors commonly do this by writing (See page 23 Sabbats for more information). You can do the exact same thing in your grimoire instead of repeating yourself ten thousand times.

By answering these questions you may notice that you may end up with multiple grimoires. Don't be surprised if you do. Keeping a binder or notebook for research is a given. During teacher appreciation week, my administration gave all the teachers a Rocket Book. This is by far an incredible gift. You use a special ink to write in it, categorize your information, then take a snap shot of it and it uploads a PDF to your designated location. It will keep everything in order. When the notebook is full, simply place it in the microwave with a mug of water and the pages erase. I have already started using mine to write some of my first rituals in years and notes for my grimoire. Anyway, back on topic. One book, your main grimoire, acts as the core of your spiritual journey. This will include information unlikely to change that speaks to you and your beliefs. The other books house your research, rough drafts, information that will change quickly, or information that does not pertain to your spirituality but that you might use later for comparative study.

So why bother with 2+ books? First of all, you put a lot of work into your grimoire, from picking it, to decorating it, to dedicating yourself to it, to blessing it. You don't want to be tearing out or deleting pages you put so much work into. Secondly, while a lot of the information you find may be helpful, it isn't always practical. Your grimoire should consist of information you will use often, such as correspondences and methods.

As you work, number your pages. Keep a table of contents and index in rough draft form until your book is full, then add this information. I left a page at the front of my grimoire for my table of contents. It will contain the main titles of each section, while my index will be a more complete representation of the book itself. The index will likely be a separate book that I can add to as the book grows. This is an ongoing process that you will never completely finish. For as long as your practice magic, you will find new ideas, new approaches, and alternative techniques that will speak to you. That is probably one of the most amazing things about witchcraft.

Now get out there are start researching and rough drafting! The final post of the series will cover using colors, aromas, and different times to aid you in infusing your grimoire with even more magic. Again, if there is a grimoire topic you would like to see me add to the series, do not hesitate to contact me!

Good luck!

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Grimoire: My Grimoire's Book Blessing

Writing your Grimoire/BOS book blessing and carrying out the blessing ritual is magical, to say the least. The dedication bound you to the book; the blessing infuses the book with your magic. These are extremely important steps. Without them, your book is not magically bound to you. For my book blessing, I pulled inspiration from many sources. I work closely with Mother Earth and the elements, so I wanted to make sure I included them again. The blessing begins by presenting the book bless to Mother Earth and the Elements, calling upon them to witness the ritual and to provide their blessing while protecting the book from "eyes that pry and look." Below you will find my complete book blessing:

"By Mother Earth not yet forlorn,
and the howling wing that proceeds the storm.
By the Water that cleanses the soul,
and Fire that burns through ages untold.
By the gentle Earth from which we come,
This bless shan't be undone.
This precious Grimoire I do bless,
as the four elements will attest.
This blessing shall protect this book,
from curious eyes that pry and look.
Keep it safe from things that harm,
while I fill this book with knowledge and charms.
In the realm of magic this book shall reside,
no one but the chosen shall see what's inside.
By my will this I do wish,
as I seal it with a kiss.
For those of the Craft can truly see,
By my will so mote it be."

While writing this blessing I burned some white sage, a couple of candles, and had some quartz crystals sitting on the desk to aid in my blessing. I wrote the blessing into my book on the last full moon, a great time to bless and cleanse magical objects. I decorated the corners with peonies, one of my favorite flowers using acrylic paint. I am thrilled with how they turned out.

I'd love to see what you guys have produced for your blessing. Feel free to share in a comment below, on Facebook, or Instagram using #masteringyourgrimoire. I apologize again for being so far behind. Everything should be back to normal soon. Trying my best to catch up!

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Gimoire: Book Blessing

We've made it to the book blessing! The last 2 weeks we spent time working on our book dedication pages. Yesterday I posted pictures of my book dedication and shared what I wrote. Now that we have dedicated ourselves to working on our grimoires/Books of Shadows, it is time to bless the book.

The book blessing acts as both a blessing and a protection spell. You want to clear it of all energies but your own, ask Mother Earth, the elements, or whatever deity you follow the bless the pages, and ask them them to protect the book from harm. Use your answers to your questions in Mapping Your Magical Path to help you decide what to include in your book blessing and the style you want it to be written in. I picked poetry of course, but prose works just as well. Looking for inspiration? Try my Book of Shadows Pinterest board.

Writing the book blessing is only part of the process. Think of this as a ritual or spell. After you have decided what to write, the act of actually writing it in your grimoire is the ritual/spell itself. If you follow a path with structure, i.e. Wicca, cast a magical circle, call quarters, and ask the God and Goddess to join you as you bless your book. If you are less structured, like myself, sit in a quiet spot, in or outside, and complete your book blessing. Candles and representations of the elements are great items to incorporate into your ritual/spell. Pick colored candles that fit your ritual/spell needs. White, yellow, or purple candles would be perfect for such occasion. Herbs and incense to use would be bay, elder, myrrh, St. John's Wort, willow, and sage. Want to use some crystals? Try amber, amethyst, quartz, or citrine.

For a simpler ritual, light a white candle and some myrrh incense and sprinkle salt on the page of the book blessing and write your blessing, reading it aloud as your write. When you are finished, read it aloud one more time, imagine the book being filled with white protective light, and you're done!

Once you have written your book blessing and transcribed the blessing into you book, it is time to decorate the pages. Use your answers to Mapping Your Magical Path to help guide you in your decorations. It can be as ornate or as simple as you want.

Spend the next week working on this page. We have a new moon coming up on March 28th. This would be the PERFECT time to bless the book. I know most people prefer the full moon, but the new moon is perfect for starting new things. You are embarking on a new journey to complete one of the greatest tools a witch can have! Use it!

I would love to see your progress on your grimoires and BOS's if you guys would like to share them. Feel free to post below, on our Facebook page, or on Instagram using #masteringyourgrimoire.

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Grimoire: My Grimoire's Book Dedication Page

Over the past two weeks I have been working on my Grimoire's book dedication page. This dedication is a commitment to complete my Grimoire and to continue to grow as a witch. I read several other book dedications before I sat down to write my own. Because I don't believe in any deities, I focused on the elements and Mother Earth to give me the strength and guidance needed to complete my grimoire.

Grimoire Book Dedication

May Air give me the wisdom to assemble these pages,
Fire the inspiration to write in honor of the Craft,
Water the ability to do the Craft justice,
and Earth the patience to complete the task.
I dedicate this book to Mother Earth,
in hopes I may further my Craft.
May the pages be filled with magic and splendor.

I placed the dedication in a box and surrounded it with a floral design. I absolutely love flowers and the life they breathe into any work. I used paint to complete the page, and pen to outline the box. MY hand it not steady enough to paint straight lines. I am quite proud of the way this page turned out.

What did you end up doing for your dedication page(s)? I would love to see pictures. Feel free to comment below, post on Facebook, or use the hashtag #masteringyourgrimoire on Instagram to share!

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Grimoire: Writing Your Dedication

Over the past week we spent time laying out our grimoires and developing a rough draft for our table of contents. There are several really great resources out there to help you figure out how to organize your grimoire. Upon doing some research, I decided to use LaPulia's Book of Shadows as a guide. Now this is a Wiccan book and therefore many sections or pages wouldn't be included in my book, but it is a really great, comprehensive table of contents. Their Traditional Witchcraft Grimoire also has some really great ideas that I will be using as well. Another great resource for organizing your grimoire is The Dance at Alder Cove's table of contents. This list is pretty comprehensive as well, providing you with some ideas if you aren't sure where to start.

Right now I have only organized and planned a couple sections. The reason for this is that planning too far in advance and jumping around while working could come back to bite you in the butt if you are working with a bound book where you can't easily move pages. This is what I am working with and as I work on a little bit at a time I have already found myself moving things around. The current sections I have planned are listed in order below:

Title Page
Table of Content
The Craft (section title)
     Dedication
     Blessing
     Pentagram
     Witch's Creed
     What is a Hedgewitch?
     13 Goals of a Witch
     Self Dedication (to the craft)
Basics of Magic (section title)
     What is Magic?
     Magical Theory and Technique
     Grounding and Centering
     Energy
     How to Direct Energy
     Meditation
     Pathwalking
     Hedge Riding
     How to Hedge Ride
     Ways to Reach Altered State of Consciousness
     Three Realms of Otherworld
     Hedge Riding Prep and Etiquette
     Animal and Spirit Guides
     My Guides
The Elements (section title)
     Earth Intro
     Tools of Earth and How to Use with Other Elements
     Earth Correspondences
     Air Intro
     Tools of Air and How to Use with Other Elements
     Air Correspondences
     Fire Intro
     Tools of Fire and How to Use with Other Elements
     Fire Correspondences
     Water Intro
     Tools of Water and How to Use with Other Elements
     Water Correspondences
     Spirit
Sabbats (section title)
     Wheel of the Year (picture)
     About the Wheel of the Year
     Samhain Introduction
     Samhain History and Lore
     Samhain Traditions
     Samhain Correspondences
     Samhain Plants
     Samhain Recipes
     Samhain Crafts
*I have not finished my Sabbat planning because I am not sure how many recipes and crafts I would like to include at this time.

As I mentioned in Organizing Your Grimoire, you should have made room in the first couple pages for a dedication and a blessing, which you can see I did. One of the first things to put in your book is your dedication. Now this isn't a dedication to the craft, but a dedication to working on your grimoire and continuing to learn. Your Self Dedication will be your dedication to the craft. The dedication featured within the first page or two is basically a promise to yourself, the deities you believe in, and your grimoire that you will continue to learn and grow as a witch.

During the next two weeks write your dedication and decorate the page(s). Begin your rough draft on a separate sheet of paper. If you are working with a digital format, work right in your book. Spend time reflecting on what you want to say. It can be in the form of poetry or prose; whatever speaks to you. I prefer poetry so my dedication is written in such a format. Are you going to ask the elements for guidance in the creation of your grimoire? Air is associated with wisdom, fire with inspiration, water with justice, and earth with patience. What about any deities? Apollo, Euterpe, Bragi, Kvasir, Brigid, Sarasawti, Tir, Seshat, Al-Kutbay, Nabu, and Nidaba are all gods and goddesses of writing and poetry from various traditions. Requesting their aid in the assembly of your grimoire would be wise if you follow their tradition. Are you going to dedicate the grimoire to one of these deities or just Mother Earth? What would you like the pages to be filled with? Why do you want to complete your grimoire? Remember to refer back to your Mapping Your Magical Path for guidance in the creation of your dedication.

Once you have written your dedication and are happy with it, transfer it to your book in your best handwriting (or type, print, and paste it). Then proceed to decorate the page. Feel free to use symbols associated with inspiration and writing such as the rune Ansuz or the sun. Prefer more natural symbols? Draw Begonias to encourage deep thoughts, Black-Eye Susans for encouragement, Irises for inspiration, or Hazel and Maple for wisdom. Be sure to fill this page with your energy. As you work, envision your energy filling the pages. The color of your energy is entirely dependent on your personality. Mine tends to be green and gold and occasionally pink, yellow, or gray. Funny how these are the same colors I have used to decorate my entire home and my grimoire.

How did you end up organizing your grimoire? Share below in the comments, email, or through Facebook. And good luck writing your dedications!

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Grimoire: Organizing Your Grimoire

Last week I challenged you to find a place to work on your grimoire. To work on my grimoire, I went out a bought a desk...finally. I have been looking for a desk for my bedroom to use as an altar/magical space for months. Originally I wanted to find an old antique one and paint it and stain the top, but after searching for several months for something in my price range, I didn't find a piece I liked very much. I sent out a request to the universe to help me find a desk and low and behold, Aldi's ad featured a desk for just $50...and it wasn't bad looking either! I picked it up this morning and spent the afternoon putting it together. Then my lazy butt took a nap. Ha ha!

Its a nice little space with some storage and a nice place to work on my grimoire privately. Where did you pick to work on your grimoire?

Now that you have your book, you have decorated it, and found a place to work on it, it is time to start organizing it. Yes, I know we still haven't blessed it. Trust me, that is coming all in due time.

Over the next week spend some time thinking about how you want to set up and organize your grimoire. Use questions 3-8 on Mapping Your Magical Path to help guide your creation of your Table of Contents. I suggest working on a separate sheet of paper and jotting down the sections you believe your grimoire should have. You are going to want your title page, dedication, and book blessing to be in the first couple of pages. Most witches, especially hedge, green, and kitchen, are going to want a section for herbs. Kitchen witches will also want a section for kitchen magic and recipes. Wiccans will want a section for ritual tools, ritual structure, and circle casting. Other general sections you may want to include are the sabbats, the elements, correspondence charts, and a brief introduction to your path or magic.

After you have picked some sections, begin ordering them. For example, an introduction to the craft and your magical path should probably be in the beginning. Spells will need to be toward the end, as in most books. This will also be a section that grows as you grow, so having it toward the end with pages you can still work with allows you to accommodate growth.

After you have picked out a rough outline for the order of your grimoire, begin labeling pages, if you have a bound book that is. You don't want to work too far in advance in though. Plan out just the first couple of sections. I suggest the use of sticky notes. Simply write down on the sticky notes what you want your page to be and stick it in the book! I suggest planning out at least the first three sections. The reason you shouldn't plan further is in case you make a mistake or want to change something as you begin to work. The sticky notes allow you to easily move pages around and rework information as you work on your grimoire.

Planning out your grimoire should take a bit of time and it will likely change as you begin working. That's okay. Work on a rough craft this week so we can begin our pages next week!

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Grimoire: Picking Your Space

I apologize for not getting this posted yesterday, but I was still working on decorating my own grimoire and wanted to make sure I could show you pictures. I am looking to add a clasp of some sort to "lock" it, but I have figured out what I want to do yet. It is as complete as it can be at this time.

 

 

 

I would really, really love to see what you guys have created over the past week. Please share your grimoires in the comment section, on my Facebook page, or on Instagram using #masteringyourgrimoire.

Now that you have decorated your grimoire and hopefully connected with it on some level, its time to find a place where you are going to work on it all the time from here on out. This can be a desk, kitchen table, the floor, or within your sacred space. Work wherever you feel most comfortable. Many people believe that you need to work on your grimoire only in sacred space, preferably inside of a magical circle. The reasoning behind this is that while you work on your grimoire, you generate and emit energy. This energy is usually very potent and can attract unwanted guests. I never cast a circle when I perform magic, but that's just me. However, I have set up a protective ward around my house which acts as a permanent magical circle that I redo/improve every couple of months. I believe this is enough protection for me, but I am also not very ritualistic or into high magic. If you are more ritualistic, then you'll want to cast a circle every time you work on your book from here on out and you are going to need a space where you can write, paint, type, or whatever you need to do to complete your grimoire.

There are several things you should consider when picking out a space to work on your grimoire. It needs to be an area where you have a surface to work on, an plenty of it if you are getting crafty. It needs to be private so you can work in piece and infuse your book with ONLY your energy. You may also want a space with a window or that is well ventilated if you are working with certain chemicals. Make sure this space can also accommodate not only your craft items, if you are crafting your grimoire, but also incense and candles. Incense and candles help set the mood and help to infuse your book with magical energy. If you are turning this into a ritual, you'll want an alter space as well to place images of your deities and the elements.

This week attempt to find the perfect place to work on your grimoire. You may need to try several locations before one feels right. Bring your grimoire and sit in the space and meditate. Mentally record any feelings you have while in that space. If it just doesn't feel right, try another location. You may be surprised where you end up. No matter how much you may want to work on it in your office, your book may tell you your living room is a better space. Listen to it. We are trying to build a book on our craft that we have a deep connection with. You cannot do that if you do not listen. Reflect back on your questions for Mapping Your Magical Path. Use them to help guide you in your decision making. If you need to work outside, do it!

Remember, share those grimoire pictures! I would love to see them and I am sure others would appreciate the inspiration as well!

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Matersing Your Grimoire: Decorating Your Book

Welcome back to Mastering Your Grimoire! Did you decide on a grimoire format? Were you able to make or purchase your book yet? If not, you have a little bit longer until we actually begin assembling the pages. However, I encourage you to quickly decide what format you would like soon.

I actually picked out my book a couple of months ago and shared it in another post. I decided to purchase a 600 page sketch book off Amazon. Its large, sturdy, and great for how I want to set up my grimoire. I am very artistic so I wanted something I could color/paint in, and I am a planner so I am not worried about changing pages around once I set down a plan. The paper is too thin for water colors, but I think I may be able to get away with some regular paint. I started with Crayola markers, but I am unhappy with the end result. I plan on "fixing" the pages I have worked on already with a little bit of paint. I am much better with paint than colored pencils or markers. I don't know how people do what they do with markers and colored pencils, but they got nothing on me when it comes to paint! Haha!

This week we will spend some time decorating the covers of our grimoires. However, you may want to cleanse your book before you begin. This will allow you to infuse the book with your magic and energy, and only yours. A simple sage smoke cleansing should do the trick!

I have been really excited about getting to work on this activity. There are so many wonderful options out there for covering books or creating a title page for a digital grimoire. Make collages, cover with fabric or leather, use hot glue to create a raised pattern, use stained cheese cloth, clip art, glitter, pressed flowers and leaves, beads, metal, whatever you wish! You can make it as witchy or not as you like. Questions 3, 5, 6, 7, and 8 from Mapping Your Magical Path will help guide you in the decorating process. Focus on decorating with pictures, objects, colors, and scents you feel a connection to and that you use often in your craft. Decorate your book with items and pictures that speak to you. Hedge, kitchen, and green witches can add flowers or herbs from your garden. Use essential oils you feel a connection to or that help bring out your personal magic in the glue or paper you use to cover the book. Love faeries? Add some glitter and shiny objects! More of a minimalist? Glue down a simple patterned fabric or paper. Believe in deities? Honor them by placing images or symbols associated with them on the cover. Some magical symbols you may wish to include are listed below:

• pentacle/pentagram
• Celtic knot
• ankh
• triple moon/quad moon
• astrology signs
• element symbols
• broom
• cauldron
• runes
• all seeing eye
• wand
• sigils 

You may want to consider including some protection magic in your cover decorations as well. This can be something that is easily visible, like a pentacle, or something hidden, like a sigil or rune written underneath the decorations. Adding these will increase the magical bond between you and your book, and keep prying eyes away. You can also cast a simple spell if you like. We will be writing book blessings in a couple of weeks, so if you want to skip the spell/ritual work for now, we will make up for it later.

Be mindful for the colors you use as well. Colors greatly affect not only our magic, but how we perceive ourselves and our belongs as well. I suggest working with your favorite colors. It is okay for a grimoire to be brightly colored if you favorite color is hot pink or lime green. They don't have to be dark, mysterious, or creepy to contain powerful magic. Read up on the different color meanings in my post Magical Correspondences: Colors.

Make your grimoire yours and enjoy the process. There is no right or wrong way to decorate your magical book; simply let your magic and intuition guide you. Need some inspiration? Feel free to browse my Book of Shadows Pinterest board or search Google. Oh! One last thing: you may want to add some ribbon or a couple to serve as bookmarks!

I would love to see pictures of the books you picked out or created over the last week. Feel free to comment below or use the hashtag #masteringyourgrimoire on Instagram! Good luck with your decorating this week.

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Gimoire: Picking Your Book

Welcome back to Mastering Your Grimoire. Did you answer last week's questions thoughtfully and honestly? Was there anything in particular that surprised you? Before jumping into the next step of in this series, I thought I would share my answers with everyone.

Who are you?

1. How do you define yourself? What adjectives best describe you?
   I would describe myself as outgoing, talkative, fun, intelligent, driven, empathetic, understanding, giving, and logical yet emotional.
2. Are you spontaneous or do you prefer to plan ahead?
   I would have to say a mixture. Generally I enjoy planning ahead, specifically for large events. Other times, especially little things, I like to be spontaneous.
3. What moves you?
   Love, science, dinosaurs, evolution, the Earth, Sun, and Moon, nature, and the vastness that is our universe.

What are you beliefs regarding witchcraft?

1. Do you define religion and spirituality differently? Explain?
   Yes. Religion, to me, involves deities and worship. Spirituality is more of a feeling, a movement of the soul. It isn't about worship or some higher power but instead reaching a state of higher thinking, peace, and enlightenment. I am most definitely spiritual, but not religious.
2. What drew you to witchcraft? What do/did you hope to gain through the use of magic?
   The peaceful nature of it, the freedom, and that it involves nature and the Earth as well as a mix of science. I love that it involved proven science and allowed me to reconcile both. I could not, and cannot believe in a higher power, witchcraft, and paganism allow for the freedom to practice without one, but still, find inner peace and deep meaning. It gave me a way to combine the need to find my purpose without rejecting my scientific mind.
3. Are you drawn to any particular cultural heritage or type of witchcraft? Do you prefer a mix?
   Yes, hedgecraft in particular. I am also drawn to shamanism, druidism, and Celtic and Norse traditions. I find their stories fascinating and connect not only spiritually, but culturally/ancestrally was well. My family is from Ireland, Scotland, and Sweden.
4. Do you prefer to practice alone or with others? Why?
   Alone. Practicing with others makes me uncomfortable and makes me feel like my practice is a religion instead of a personal journey. I also have very different beliefs compared to others, which makes it difficult to work in groups.
5. Is there any type of magic that comes naturally to you? If so, what?
   Herbalism, astral projection, meditation and hedge riding, and basic divination.
6. Do you believe in any deities? Id so, do you subscribe to a certain pantheon?
   Unequivocally no.
7. Are you drawn to any particular practice, such as divination (oracle, runes, tea reading, etc), herbalism, or ritual work? If so, what?
   Herbalism, tea reading, moon magic, earth magic, and hedge riding.
8. Do you feel a strong association to any plants, crystals, seasons, moon phases, stars, animals, planets, etc? If so, what?
   This is a long list! Willow trees (obviously), lilies, irises, sage, quartz, fall, full moon, draco constellation, Neptune, foxes, ravens, raccoons, stag, dinosaurs, fossils, faeries, gnomes, earth, air, green, grey, moonstone, peridot, and anything else that is earthy in nature.

Reflection

1. Did any of your answers surprise you? If so, which ones? Why?
   No, but I have been practicing for 12 plus years and have, through trial and error, mapped out my path pretty well.

***

So what do thee questions really have to do with creating a grimoire? A lot actually. I mentioned in the previous post that knowing you path makes mapping out your grimoire much easier. It also informs you of what type of grimoire you should keep, which is the purpose of today's post. Using your answers, it is time for you to decide what type of grimoire you want to keep.

If you are a planner and logical, you may wish you have a solid bound book like a journal or craft book. If you are more spontaneous and artsy, a binder or even an online/computer version of your grimoire may be best so you can easily move things around and add as you please where ever in the book. Maybe you want to make the paper and book yourself! Go ahead! The more of yourself you pour into the book, the more powerful it will be.

The Who Are You? questions are specifically designed to help you figure out which method of book keeping is best for you. Spend the next 7 days reflecting over you answers and deciding which type of book you wish to keep. If you can, go ahead and purchase or create the book you wish to use. Need some inspiration? Feel free to browse my Book of Shadows Pinterest board! Google is another great tool to use, or just go to a local craft store or metaphysical store, and see what they have in stock!

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Grimoire: Mapping Your Magical Path

Before you can even begin your grimoire, it is important for you to map your magical or spiritual path. If you have been practicing witchcraft for quite some time, mapping your magical path may seem like a waste of time, but I implore you to do this exercise all the same. You may be surprised at what you discover about yourself.

Having a clear idea of your magical path will aid you in the creation of your grimoire. It will help you pick what type of format to use, how to decorate it, how to organize it, and what contents are important for you to include. For example, a hedgewitch like myself will want to make sure to include a section on hedge riding, proper etiquette while riding, and any spiritual guides you may have. Kitchen witches will want a place for recipes, Wiccans a section for rituals and high magic, and green witches a large section for herbs, trees, and other plant uses (mine is going to have this too!).

Below is a series of questions you need to explore over the next week. Spend time thinking and meditating over these questions. Be honest with yourself. If you are not honest and upfront, you will end up mapping a path that will not suit you and your spiritual needs. In the end, you'll end up putting your grimoire aside without completing it; it won't be something you are proud of. I have listed the questions in this post, but have also created a Mapping Your Magical Path worksheet you can print.

Who are you?

1. How do you define yourself? What adjectives best describe you?
2. Are you spontaneous or do you prefer to plan ahead?
3. What moves you?

What are your beliefs regarding witchcraft?

1. Do you define religion and spirituality differently? Explain?
2. What drew you to witchcraft? What do/did you hope to gain through the use of magic?
3. Are you drawn to any particular cultural heritage or type of witchcraft? Do you prefer a mix?
4. Do you prefer to practice alone or with others? Why?
5. Is there any type of magic that comes naturally to you? If so, what?
6. Do you believe in any deities? Id so, do you subscribe to a certain pantheon?
7. Are you drawn to any particular practice, such as divination (tarot, runes, tea reading, etc), herbalism, or ritual work? If so, what?
8. Do you feel a strong association to any plants, crystals, seasons, moon phases, stars, animals, planets, etc? If so, what?

Reflection

1. Did any of your answers surprise you? If so, which ones? Why?

If you wish to complete the worksheet, you can find it here.

Remember, spend the next week answering these questions. Your answers will greatly assist you when you begin planning and organizing your grimoire in the upcoming weeks. I cannot stress it enough that you need to be honest and forthright with your answers. We are creating a book infused with our magic and our souls. The only way to accomplish this is to have a clear, honest path to follow.

Good luck!

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time

Mastering Your Grimoire: Introduction

This has been a long time coming, and I am glad to finally get it off the ground. Mastering Your Grimoire is a blog series designed to help witches from beginners to advanced create a grimoire they can be proud of, one full of information, techniques, correspondences, spells, and recipes that can be passed down through the generations. Today, many witches have a Book of Shadows (BOS), not realizing they may need to keep a grimoire as well.

What is the difference between a Book of Shadows and a grimoire, you might ask? I actually wrote a pretty detailed post about it a while back that you can read here. However, I will share the main passage comparing the two here:

"A BOS is a witch's personal book of magic; a diary of magic if you will. It includes records of all magical workings, dreams and their meanings, rituals, etc. If the witch does not also keep a Grimoire, it can also include spells and other magical information needed to perform magic. Its always a good idea to keep records of your magical workings. This will not only help you progress as a witch by seeing your power grow, but will also allow you to see what works and what does not work for you.

A Grimoire is like a BOS, but not as personal. It holds information about rituals, spells, potions, and how to prepare magical tools. It also contains lists of correspondences and magical properties of herbs, gemstones, food, colors, etc. Basically, it contains all your magical research. It does not contain personal information or records of magical workings."

Personally, I keep two separate books. While I don't plan on having children of my own, I would still like to pass my book on, but not with any of my personal information. Its personal for a reason. A grimoire allows me to catalog all of my knowledge in one place for such occasions as sharing.

Mastering Your Grimoire is designed to aid you in the creation of your own grimoire. I will be following along in the series as well, showing you how my new grimoire is progressing. One of my goals this year is to complete 12 pages. I know that doesn't seem like many, but when you see what I have been up to, you'll understand why this a perfect number for me. Most posts will have a call to action, something you need to work on over the next couple of weeks/months. The first few posts should come out each week on the weekend. As we progress, however, I will begin tapering the posts. The call to actions will be more intensive, requiring you to read and research or design lengthy pages/sections.

I hope you will join me as I embark on this journey to mastering my grimoire.

Mastering Your Grimoire Series Posts:

Introduction
Mapping Your Magical Path
Picking Your Book 
Decorating Your Book 
Picking Your Space

Organizing Your Grimoire

 Writing Your Dedication

My Book Dedication 

Book Blessing

My Book Blessing

Researching

Using Colors, Aromas, and Time