Digital Coven

Easy ‘Kitchen Witchery’ for beginner baby witches

Some simple spells to get you started in your kitchen witch journey!

One of my favourite types of witchcraft that I like to do and is great for beginners is kitchen witchery.

It’s something that can be done everyday and that you can share with your loved ones. Below are some simple spells you can do with everyday items that can be found in your kitchen. Nice.

Make Moon Water

This is a great place to start learning intent and working with the moon and it is so simple to get started. Moon water is a great ingredient for all magick spell work that you may be planning in the future but you can just do it as a monthly exercise to start.

What you will need:

A clear container for water
Water

You can add herbs and crystals etc into the mix later but let’s keep it simple for the purpose of this post

When?

Full Moon. (Next one January 28th ‘The Wolf Moon”)

On the Full Moon, fill your container with water and think of your intentions which you wish to receive for the next month – maybe to find new job opportunities or to attract love or wealth. When you fill the container take another few minutes to really visualise this intent as if it was fact. Literally manifest it into reality. Once you have set your intentions you can then place the water outside to bask in the Moonlight until the next morning.

This water can then be consumed there and then, or saved to be used for recipes and spells when required. It is also great to use for cleansing sprays and beauty magic as well.

I’ll do a larger posts on Moon Water in the next few weeks as you can really make the ceremony super charged – any areas you want me to cover, let me know!

Bay Leaf intention setting and banishing

Bayleaf is one of my favourite herbs, it’s so versatile an ingredient and has amazing magickal properties as well. In fact, as well as putting in food and for manifesting like mentioned below you can also put it under your pillow to help with your dreams and connect with your psychic abilities. Nice!

For intention setting and negativity banishing it’s also packs a punch and here is a quick spell:

You will need:

Bayleaf
Pen
A fire proof bowl
Matches

When?

Can be done any time but I usually use certain moon phases to help empower my magic. It’s great to set intentions on the New Moon and to ‘let go’ or “banish’ certain energies on the Full Moon.

How?

Write what you wish to gain/banish on the bay leaf and then once ready, burn the bayleaf in the fireproof bowl. The smoke will release the intent into the ether and et voila! Your intent has been given to the universe. The universe has your back, daring!

Dinner Magick

I love cooking and I adore cooking for others which is why this is the most common type of magic I do. The main dishes that I make which are:

Stews
Curries
Pasta sauces such as Ragu and Bolognese
Chillies
Soups

But honestly you can use any recipe and tweak it to suit, and that is what I love about witchcraft, as you practice more you develop your own spells and processes.

chillie garlic bayleaf cumin pepper and spices

The reasons I like these recipes (Other than the fact that the are tasty) is that they naturally involve a lot of herbs and ingredients which witches use in their non kitchen spells:

Basil
Oregano
Bay leaf
Cinnamon
Chilli
Thyme
Rosemary
Garlic
Salt
Pepper
etc….

As you add each item to the dish make sure to imagine your intent for each ingredient and as you stir make sure to visualise your goals for the spell. Leave it to simmer – I like to stew all my recipes for several hours to really add depth of flavour and of course so it works it’s magick at same the time. Continue to regularly stir it making sure to stir anti clock wise to banish energy and stir clock wise to bring forward energy that you wish to bring towards you, always making sure to keep your intent clear as you do so. Once it’s ready (And I am the sort of cook where it is never truly ready but people have got to eat!) I dish it up and share out. A great way to self care and bring some magick literally inside you at the same time.

Now, I don’t about you but I am hungry! Do you do any kitchen witchery, if so what sort? I’d love to exchange spells and recipes so make sure to let me know below or on our social channels.

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Tiktok

Until next time, Digital Coven!

Image creative comms:

“Bayleaf, Dried Oregano, Crushed Chilies, Fresh Thyme” by Jason Sandeman is licensed under CC BY 2.0

“Lorbeerblätter & Pfeffer” by Mario Spann is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

“spaghetti and turkey sausage marinara” by Michael W. May is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

“Multi-colored spices for healthy and tasty cooking on a black background” by wuestenigel is licensed under CC BY 2.0

“Adding Water Elements to my altar — and more to come! — for my Full Moon Water Release tonight. I love working with Water in the Autumn and when the Full Moon is in a Water-associated sign. 💦 For tonight’s Water Release Ritual, join our Facebo” by innerjourneyevents is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

“Southern Witch” by ksunderman is licensed under CC BY 2.0

North London Witch: Beginners guide to Witchcraft #babywitch101

Digtal Coven contributor the fabulous ‘North London Witch’ shares her insights for baby witches who are just starting out ❤

Well, Hello there my Darlings!

I hope that you are doing well and are coping with the eclipse season..ekkk! 2020 huh? What a rollercoaster!

I have a little treat for you as my good Friend, AJ AKA North London Witch over on Instagram and TikTok is doing a guest post today for ya’ll baby witches. Make sure to let us know your thoughts below in the comments or to continue the conversation over on our social channels. Take it away, AJ!

North London Witch :

So you found yourself on ‘witchtok’. It’s beautiful, it’s satisfying, it’s full of badass Queens and you want to join them…

Well, first of all, welcome! Second of all, slow down a smidge…

A lot of what you have seen may be heavily romanticised, under researched and just done for the aesthetic and the views. Sometimes you really have to scroll for hours before you find accurate info. Only today I had a DM from someone who had done a Hoodoo Honey Jar spell and needed help reversing it because, spoiler alert, everything comes with consequences.

I mean… that poor person. More on that another day.

Now, we’re not here to gatekeep so please don’t think that. If anything, we just want you to grow into the fabulous witches we know you can be. It just takes a bit of time.

I know, the spell jars look easy enough and what’s the harm in lighting a black candle during an eclipse… right?

*laughs in tired*

Closed and open practices

Hoodoo, Voodoo, Brujeria, smudging with white sage… I could go on.

They sound fucking cool, i know but unless you were born into that practice or have been invited into that practice by an Elder, it doens’t belong to you.

I am a white half English, half Scottish witch. I wouldn’t dare to start practicing Voodoo as it’s not my culture. Just as I wouldn’t use white sage in cleansing but I can use Garden sage as it grows locally and is open to me.

Basically, there is far too much to unpack here so take a look at yourself and speak to elders where you can and find out what is open to you. In short:

Crystals
Working with the moon
Celtic Craft
Paganism
Wicca

All open practices and many with lots of available resources for you to learn.

All that energy

Before you even think about doing any spell work it’s important you *know* yourself. Know your energies, your emotions, how to ground yourself when you feel like you’re losing control. Spell work is drawn from your power so you need to control that power. If you don’t, spells can backfire, bounce around or come with consequences you couldn’t possibly imagine.

Examples of ways I ground myself and balance my energies:

Watering my plants
Yoga practice
Salt /ritual baths
Morning meditation
‘Pottering’ around my house (doing the dishes, sweeping the floors)
Take grounding walks in nature
Breathe

Let’s notice how none of those things even need supplies… Sure you can introduce crystals and candles later down the line but, for now, there is no need. If you really want to be a witch, you will legit enjoy all of the above without all the pomp and circumstance.

Moon Work

This is one of my favourite things about my witchy ways and is also an excellent way to work out if this path is really for you. You can use the cycle of the moon to set intentions and goals each month and work with each different phase of the moon to achieve them. Many witches just use the Full moon or the eclips to make their moon water or to do spell work but they forget about the rest of the phases. The moon is always there and is there to guide us beyond when it’s full so the other phases really shouldn’t be forgotten.

As a little intro, here are the upcoming moon phases for the rest of November (and some December) so you know when is the peak time for certain activities:

14th December: New Moon In Saggitarius and Total Solar Eclipse

A new beginning

Think of the New Moon as the beginning of a new chapter. Start to think of what your intention can be for this cycle. It can be something as simple as ‘i will get to the bottom of the laundry basket’ or ‘I will learn the magical properties of at least 3 herbs’. OR you can go bigger like, ‘i will let go of stress’ or even ‘I will step up at work. These things don’t have to be life changing when you first start out so don’t put too much pressure on yourself.

I also use this time to cleanse my home for the new cycle (more on that below).

15th December: Waxing first Crescent Moon

The Planning Phase

This is the time to work out whether your intention is right for you right now. Spend this time to really think about it. Meditate. Write a list of every action you can take to achieve your intention, but also a list of everything you shouldn’t do.

21st December: Waxing first quarter moon AND the Winter Solstice

The Action Phase

And here we are at the ACTION moon. Start putting all your energies into working towards your intention / goal. Work through your lists, manifest. Basically, Do the Thing.

25th December: Waxing Gibbous Moon

The Review Phase

This is where you check in with yourself. How is it going, are there any obstacles between you and your intention / goal, is there anything you’re doing that needs refining a bit more? Is there something completely not working that you can just let go of so it doesn’t take your energy away when you could be putting it towards something else?

30th December: Full Moon in Cancer

The Party Phase

And then we celebrate… if you have achieved your intention for the cycle, it’s party time. If you haven’t, it’s OK! You can simply just thank the universe for giving you the time and energy to try. You may have succeeded but you can always try later, clearly *this* period was just not the right time for that intention.

Work on your gratitude list, everything that brought your joy during this cycle (even simple things like Festive Coffees are now available)

You can also use this time for ritual baths, simple spell work, charge your crystals in the moonlight, make your moon water, honour your ancestors, drink wine, make a banging dinner. It’s basically an opportunity to have your own little party every month and who wouldn’t want that?

2nd January: Waning Gibbous moon

What comes next

The waning gibbous reminds us all that although we may have made progress in some areas, there is always still more work to be done. Identify one area of your life that needs more of your attention and let go of anything that is getting in your way.

6th January: Last Quarter Moon

The let go and release phase

Ah, the ‘let go’ moon. Always a nice one. This is a good time to purge. Get rid of anything that isn’t giving you purpose. I always use this moon phase to start getting ready for my intention phase and use three days to do a deep clean of my house so i have no other energies affecting mine. But also so you have space in yourself to receive something new. Think about what your intention for the next cycle would be and use this time to make the physical and mental space for it.

If your goal would be to ‘keep on top of the laundry basket’, maybe use this time to purge your wardrobe and donate any clothes you don’t wear. It’ll be much more manageable with fewer things.

13th January: New Moon in Capricorn

And we start the cycle again.

Cleansing

All of the above requires a cleansed and safe space. No, I don’t just mean cracking open the Zoflora (although that totally counts) as there is a difference between clean and cleansed.

When you’re entering the path, it’s all about how you work with energy so surely the energies around you need to be balanced.

Cleansing your space (and your tools) essentially gives you a blank yet charged slate. You can remove negativity, heavy energies, discourage spirits and more by simply cleansing.

Simple ways to cleanse:

burn dried garden or blue sage (basically any variety that grows locally to you, not white sage)
Burn dried rosemary
Burn incense – sandalwood is my favourite
Create a cleansing spray (shall share a recipe another day)
Make your zoflora concoction with moon water

Aaand *breathes*

This post was meant to be short but it really wasn’t! It may seem like a lot, but a lot of it is very simple, it just requires dedication. And remember, we are all still learning, regardless of how long we have been practicing. Buy some books (or use google, witchipedia is excellent and free) and start researching.

If you’d like more tips on how to get started with witchcraft, you can follow me at @NorthLondonWitch on TikTok and Instagram.

Image creative comms:

“Smudging” by Cornelia Kopp is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0

“Moon Phase Collage” by StephenGA is marked with CC0 1.0

“creativecommons | incense burner” by *AndrewYoungPhoto* (writing_with_glass) is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Astrology, ahoy! My Favourite Astrology Influencers

#atsrologyahoy! Let me instroduce you to some of my favourite Astrology influencers

*There are no affiliate links etc in this post, this is just me being a pure stan*

Well hello there, my Daring Coven,

I do hope that you had a wonderful Halloween? I certainly did, as I got to work on a fabulous Halloween outreach project (Halloween Hub anyone?) and was able to celebrate Halloween as best as one can during a pandemic as I hosted a lovely Tarot event over at the fabulous Soho works in Shoreditch, Nice. Anyone who is reading this who came, thank you so bloody much for being fabulous and do make sure to keep me posted on how things went after the readings…oooh the best part of being a Tarot reader is getting to know peoples stories, it really is….

In this internet age, we all have certain people that we follow who we want to scream about and sometimes even in a positive sense 😉

This is especially true of me as my job is literally based around the internet…which has just as many downsides as it does perks if I am honest, but that’s a whole other blog post! I often get asked who to follow if you wish to learn more about Astrology so below is a list of my favourite people who I regularly check-in on for their Astrological knowledge and insight or have helped me on my own personal journey and education.

You ready BBz? Let’s go…

Aliza Kelly

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alizakelly/

Full disclosure, this Queen is like my Astrology Mama as she has been reading my chart every few months for the past year*. She’s as kind and funny as she is Astrologically smart…we’re talking level 11 astro geek level, Coven! So she’s always the first person that I recommend to anyone wishing to learn more about Magick to check out.

I am also part of her lovely digital coven, The Constellation Club. Check us out if you’re looking for an established community of various level of Witches as we are very Baby Witch and Newbie friendly ❤

I’m also including links to her ‘must-listen-to’ podcast below and I recommend anyone just getting into astrology to listen to ‘The Story of the Zodiac’ as the first port of call as it really covers how all the signs work together.

Shameless plugs:

Jessica Lanyadoo

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessica_lanyadoo/

Oh, Jessica Lanyadoo, not only the owner of Iconic glasses style and hair she also carries this vibe which is just welcoming, woke, warm and just, eurgh…give me another W word…wonderful? Yeah, let’s stick with that..she’s just wonderful. I highly recommend checking out her podcast and written works for some great insights into the world of Astrology and the occult.

Shameless plugs:

Website

Podcast

Published Works

Annabel Gat

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annabelgat/

Annabel Gat was the first astrologer that I followed on Instagram when I joined and it has been an epic love affair ever since. She is the main Astrologer for Vice and Cosmo as well as written an amazing book (Which all of my friends have taken turns in stealing) called ‘Love, Sex and Astrology’. I highly recommend checking it out, link below.

If you are curious about how sex and kink can be used in your magick then she is certainly someone to check out and takes part in events such as ‘Kinkstrology’ where she has talks around this….wait, didn’t know you could use sex and orgasms in your magick work? Well, stick with me kid, we’re gonna cover that eventually, mwahahaha!

Shameless Plugs:

Website

Published Works

Patrick Arundell

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patrick.arundell.astrology/

Full disclosure, we used to be drinking buddies at the old salop in Shrewsbury. A little cracking pub in Shropshire and part of CAMRA, if you’re into real ale – which as a wino, I am then you should check it out. . Anyway, I digress….it was lovely to meet a fellow Witchy type in the days before we were as open as we are now about these things and Patrick kindly ‘gifted’ me a personalised birth chart…given this nearly 10 years ago now I’d doubt I’d get done by the ASA but always good to be transparent. I remember being so inspired to see my chart in all it’s glory and I still treasure its little purple bound pages. He now writes for the Metro, which if you live in the UK in a City and commute to work, you’ll know very well indeed. Lovely guy.

Shameless Plugs:

Youtube

Website

Now, I certainly consider this one post of many as there are so many people that I follow, but I always have room for more, so please make sure to let me know in the comments below or on the digital-coven social channels anyone you think I should check out! I love hearing from you ❤

Love, Love,

Ems x

*And yes, Aliza has been bang on the money with her forecasts, every. Single. Time.

Witch Craft on a budget

Don’t let poverty prevent your work! Witchcraft on a budget doesn’t mean budget results…

Hello Coven,

One can be easily swayed when trawling through the cesspit of shame – or ‘Instagram’ as it likes to refer to itself, that to be a Witch one needs to have a shit load of money for crystals, candles and for a Monthly manicure. You know the ones, the Black Taloned witchy hands that make one question ‘just how do they wipe their arse?’* The truth is dear reader, that you need jack shit to be a Witch and to do Witchcraft. The magic is in you. It’s really that simple. All these tools that you talk about are just that, tools to help you connect with your magic better.

You’d never say just because someone can’t afford a paint set doesn’t mean they are not an artist or creative and of course, that old saying ‘A workman never blames their tools’ is a very apt one here.

Now as someone who properly got practising from the age of about 12, I had very little money to work with and worse, I had very little access to the internet in those days… so anything remotely witchy was expensive!

So here are some of my little witchy hacks to do Witchcraft without whacking the wallet too much

White Candles

White candles can substitute for any other colour candle. Setting your intentions, and dressing them in a highly focused way (Oils, Sigils, carving, GLITTER etc) can be just as effective as getting the recommended colour. We often use colours in magic to help us tune into the energy.

So if you are short on pounds or dollars just get a pack of white candles as they can be universally used.

Quartz is Queen

Like with white candles, clear quartz can be used in replacement for other types of crystals. If you can only invest in one crystal, I’d recommend this. The key point here is that crystals do vibrate and have different makeups, which is why they are so useful to work with, so if you can get the right crystal for that vibe you need to do so but if you can’t, clear quartz will help as much as they can. Thanks, Quartz! ❤

That being said my first was rose quartz but my heart demanded I get it so you know, so do go with your intuition as well.

Kitchen herbs are fine.

Look, we’d all love to be able to forage for fresh herbs and spend several days gathering our spell ingredients in the meadow barefoot whilst we hum along to the sound sounds of the bees but life gets in the way for most of us. Also, in the UK a sprig of fresh basil is about 80p when I was stateside it was insanely expensive….Basically, what I am trying to say is if your parents, housemate or you have some herbs dried at home, they are A-ok to use and you shouldn’t be Witch shamed for using them.

Useful all Kitchen spell ingredients

Sea salt (Cleansing and purification)
Onion chopped (Protection)
Basil (Love)
Garlic (Protection)
Thyme (Money Drawing/Health)
Cinnamon (Love/Protection)
Allspice (Health)
Bay leaf (Protection)
Rosemary (Love/Healing)

Jar spells?

Oh a pasta sauce jar will do. In fact, any jar will do. For real, if you can seal it then you can make a spell with it. Trust me, some of my best spells have come from inside an empty jar of Ragu original or a glass soda bottle.

Cauldron calling you?

Before I brought my cast little iron cauldron, I used to burn my bay leaves etc in a saucepan. Works perfectly fine 😉

Paper and pen are pros!

My goodness, the things you can do with just a piece of paper and a pen, if you really want to go to town then throw in a white candle and you have the tools to create something really special. From developing sigils, or just writing wishes and burning them at the new moon, these two have unending power. Also, don’t worry about getting a fancy Grimore or book of shadows – most of my written work is done in a bog-standard £1 notebook…I am yet to find the Grimoire which will be lifelong collection of my work so don’t pressure yourself.

Find your digital coven!

Facebook is full of witchy communities that are happy to swap surplus items or help other witches out if they need something. I am the Queen of giving old books away, as I’d rather they get a second life elsewhere. DM and I will happily send through some great group links based on your location.

So what are you witchcraft on a budget hacks? Let me know below, I love to hear about them.

Love, Love.

Ems x

*Oh come, we’ve all asked it. All of us.

**And if you do have one of those manicures, please DM as I sincerely wish to know the technique as I can hardly type with short nails as it is! No shade, only respect!

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New Tarot Deck? Make it Ceremonial!

Grab you new Tarot deck, bitches, we’re gonna get all ceremonial…

Hello Coven,

So you have your first deck of Tarot cards, yassss! So, ermm, what next? Well, if you are anything like me you will have ripped the packaging off and started trawling through every single card whilst gulping down whatever drink you’d purchased in the pub in celebration. Now, after I have done that, I like to put them away for later so I can get all excited about my new present to myself and so I can get my ceremony on as it were.

Yip, you heard me correctly, I get all ceremonial on my deck’s ass, and to be honest, I get ceremonial about everything’s ass if I can. It doesn’t even need to have an ass. If I can add an outfit to the ceremony I’m having upon a metaphorical ass then you can bet, I am already wearing the outfit*.

Now, the below post is full of privilege. It reeks of someone being able to have time alone, in their own safe space. The money to get the extras I mention. It presumes you’re in a craft tolerant household. Many of you I know won’t have this, but this doesn’t mean that your cards are any less special – celebrating your cards any way you can is more than enough. The joy of practising any aspect of spiritual craft is that it is personal and unique to you. I certainly know what it is like to have to hide your celebration of the craft and what it brings to your life and I guess this is why I like to make a song and dance out of everything now I am older and living with a fellow witchy type. It does get better…Huzzah!

So here are some of the ways I get myself in the ceremonial mood…

Get yourself a snazzy lil’notebook

It doesn’t even need to be snazzy, a random wad of paper will do, but if you haven’t figured it already, I’m all for the drama! If there is one piece of advice I would say to any newbie Tarot reader or Witch is to start taking notes, immediately. Recording the random learnings you’ve made that day or things you have felt or dreamt of after a reading/spell casting will prove really useful. As you delve further into your practice you will begin to spot patterns in the card meanings and it will allow you to highlight key areas of your intuition. Plus it’s always nice to be able to look back on how far you’ve come!

A working note book of mine – I transfer all info over to the grimore (Book of Shadows) once full up and I’m ready to merge sections I’ve edited up.

If you’re just starting your Tarot journey and this is your first deck then it’s always good to write down how you feel about each card as you first see them. Noting down anything that calls out to you when you’ve first seen the card. The fish coming out of the cup? The bunny jumping out of the corner? Did a certain card make you immediately feel happy or sad?…

If you’re established but this you’ve decided to try a new Tarot deck, the same practice is always really useful as each deck has a different feeling and illustrations so again, responds to each reader differently. It’s like meeting a new friend, each deck has it’s quirks and I love them for that!

Shuffle, shuffle!

Once you have gone through each card and taken your notes the next step is to suffle them and I mean shuffle them. I really go to town with my shuffles. I recommend when starting a new deck to make sure to do get a flat surface and place them all on the table and basically mix them all together for a minute or two. Then I make sure to keep splitting them into groups and them remixing them into different groups again, and again. Once together in a neat pile they are ready to be cleansed.

Mix….

And split…

Then I bring them back together into one pile to then repeat this process several more times.

Candles and Incense

Like most Witchy types I am partial to a bit of incense and love me a fine candle. I use them a lot to cleanse my surroundings. They are also great tools to create ‘The Magic Mood’…you know what I am talking about. That cosy lighting and warm snuggly feeling. There is just something powerful about a candle isn’t there? If you’re able to, you can smoke cleanse your new Tarot deck over a burning candle. I like to do this regularly with all my decks as I find my cards tend to get a bit niggly after a few readings.

Some people even like to leave their cards in the moonlight overnight but I can never wait that long and want to play.

I have no idea why my hand looks so big here..also thats Catrick Swayze in the background 🙂

Music

Now, when it comes to any form of magic I am a huge fan of making it to music. This may be my Pisces placements screaming out as I have musical manifestation lists of all varieties on my Spotify. Eg. If I want to manifest money, I‘ve been known stick some Cardi B on. New Moon Ceremony? A bit of Bowie and Kate Bush if you please. There are no rules if something makes you feel empowered in a particular energy that you want to tap into, go for it, my friend. Remember, you are the magic, any tools we Witches use is just help us connect with that magic.

Tarot Card Storage:

This varies from person to person – for me, I like to keep mine in their original boxes and my main deck is a playing card sized deck in a tin, so easy to transport around. Some people really love to store there in special boxes and drawers and I am here for this, in fact, my first alter was hidden in a drawer. You can make your own tarot bags and there great tarot box and bag makers over on Etsy and ebay which you can check out as well.

Hopefully, I’ve inspired you have a little magic moment between and your Tarot deck. If so make sure to let me know below or on my social channels and I love to hear from you!

Love, Love

Ems x

*I sincerely didn’t expect to be saying the word ass so much in this post. Huh.

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So you want to learn Tarot? Start here!

Want to learn Tarot? Start here for the best beginners tips.

Well, hello Coven,

We all love Tarot (well, unless you think it’s the work of the devil, in which case, hell yeah!) but I am often asked by those curious to learn – where should I start? My answer is very simple my darlings, like with all magic, the true power is in the action. So shorthand, the best way to learn tarot is to simply DO Tarot. By that I mean, get yourself a sweet deck of cards and begin to play…that’s how you begin to bond with your cards (more on that later) and get to learn each individual cards meaning.

Below are my top tips for helping you dip your toe into the World of Divination.

What is the best Tarot Deck for beginners?

The Tarot deck most non-witchy types will recognise is the Raider Waite Tarot deck. Now, this isn’t the oldest deck or even the original card designs…in fact, the actual illustrator Pamela Colman Smith doesn’t even feature in the title…but that’s a whole other blog post, my friends and her input into Tarot needs to be amplified to the max! If I was to recommend a starter deck, this would be it as it’s got the most resources related to it…plus, I think it looks cool. It’s also considered the Tarot standard deck.

My honest answer though? Whichever one you are drawn too. If you like the designs and feel connected to the deck, trust that gut instinct. The cards are representative of energies and life situations so whilst Raider Waite may be the most famous and widely used, any tarot deck can do the trick. Plus, as I have already alluded to, you will realise that each deck of cards has a personality. My favourite deck likes to troll me for example, even when reading for friends.

Do Tarot Cards have to be gifted to you?

This is a myth.

Tarot started out as a game and then developed this air of mystery…as all witches do, it’s kinda our thing, you know? So whilst you may have heard this myth, most professional Tarot readers will agree with me that no, if you are drawn to the cards don’t wait around to be gifted. Heed that call and learn more about that calling!

My first deck was brought by myself at 11 years old from the Mall. Ah, Madam Legna. I am to this day trying to find that deck again so we can be reunited. I’ve found it a few times but it’s super expensive so alas, I’ll patiently wait until the universe decides its the right time. Also, these were ‘fortune reading’ cards rather than official Tarot but, they led me to Tarot. We find our paths in different ways and that’s part of the fun!

Image courtesy of the lovely Judy from http://judyreadscards.blogspot.com/

What is the quickest way to learn Tarot?

Simple, learn about the tarot cards first! The easiest way to do this is when you get your first deck, put some time aside…. I’m talking candles, incense, music whatever makes you feel all cosy and connected so you can go through and look at each card and really get a feel for them. I’d also recommend that you keep a notebook and take notes from this very first engagement. Then do your smoke cleanse and various shuffles before you begin the next step which is to ‘pull’ a card a day.

Basically, every morning ask the deck to provide you with a card with a message for that day. This is a great way to learn the card meanings and also build an understanding of what those cards mean to you personally – as well as learn your own style of shuffling. Once you have been doing this for a few weeks or even sooner depending on how you feel, the fun can really start and you can attempt your first readings.

What is the best Tarot spread for beginners?

I, personally always recommend a four-card spread. So simple, so to the point and great for helping you hone your skills in seeing the patterns and how the cards can feed into each other.

My personal fave spread is:

The reason I like it is that it can answer most questions, if you want to delve a little deeper you can add other cards to the mix etc which I very rarely have to do. It’s certainly a very nice foundation to start practising readings.

Hopefully, I’ve managed to give you the confidence to get started and inspired you to start reading. Make sure to get in touch and let me know as I love hearing from you and you’re learnings.

Until Next Time,

Ems

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