Happy Halloween/Samhain History

Samhain -- The fields are bare, the leaves have fallen from the trees, and the skies are going gray and cold. It is the time of year when the earth has died and gone dormant. Every year on October 31 (or May 1, if you're in the Southern Hemisphere) the Sabbat we call Samhain presents us with the opportunity to once more celebrate the cycle of death and rebirth. For many Pagan and Wiccan traditions, Samhain is a time to reconnect with our ancestors, and honor those who have died. This is the time when the veil between our world and the spirit realm is thin, so it's the perfect time of year to make contact with the dead. You may want to take a moment to read up on:

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Rituals and Ceremonies

Depending on your individual spiritual path, there are many different ways you can celebrate Samhain, but typically the focus is on either honoring our ancestors, or the cycle of death and rebirth. This is the time of year when the gardens and fields are brown and dead. The nights are getting longer, there's a chill in the air, and winter is looming. We may choose to honor our ancestors, celebrating those who have died, and even try to communicate with them. Here are a few rituals you may want to think about trying for Samhain -- and remember, any of them can be adapted for either a solitary practitioner or a small group, with just a little planning ahead.

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Lore

Samhain is the third and final harvest, the harvest of meat. The Old King is dead, and the Crone Goddess mourns him greatly during the next six weeks. The sun is at its lowest point on the horizon as measured by the ancient standing stones of Britain and Ireland, the reason the Celts chose this sabbat rather than Yule as their new year. To the ancient Celts, this holiday divided the year into two seasons, Winter and Summer. Samhain is the day on which the Celtic New Year and winter begin together, so it is a time for both beginnings and endings.

It is also the day we honor our dead. Now, while the veil between the worlds is thinnest, those who have died in the past year and those who are to be reincarnated pass through. The doors of the sidhe-mounds are open, and neither human nor faery need any magickal passwords to come and go. Our ancestors, the blessed dead, are more accessible, more approachable during the time of the dying of the land. Samhain is a day to commune with the dead and a celebration of the eternal cycle of reincarnation.

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Altar

Altar candles should be orange (represents magick of fire and remainder of fire in autumn leaves), black (collects and absorbs light and keeps you warm), white (sends out energy), silver, and gold (represents Moon and Sun).

Incense may be myrrh or patchouli

Decorate with autumn flowers, small pumpkins, Indian corn, and gourds

Cauldron with black votive candle for petition magick (for writing resolutions on a strip of paper and burning in the candle flame)

Divination or scrying devises -- tarot, obsidian ball, pendulum, runes, oghams, Ouija boards, black cauldron or bowl filled with black ink or water, or magick mirror, to name a few

An animal horn, feather or talon as a power symbol (Samhain is tradtionally the meat harvest)

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Herbs

Rosemary (for remembrance of our ancestors)

Mullein seeds (a projection for abundance) 

Mugwort (to aid in divination)

rue, calendula, sunflower petals and seeds, pumpkin seeds, turnip seeds, apple leaf, sage, mushrooms, wild ginseng, wormwood, tarragon, bay leaf, almond, hazelnut, passionflower, pine needles, nettle, garlic, hemlock cones, mandrake root

At Samhain, witches once gave one another acorns as gifts. During the Burning Times, giving someone an acorn was a secret means of telling that person you were a witch. Acorns are fruits of the oak, one of the most sacred trees to the ancient Celts. They are symbols of protection, fertility, growth, values, and friendship.

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Stones

Black obsidian, smoky quartz, jet, amber, pyrite, garnet, granite, clear quartz, marble, sandstone, gold, diamond, iron, steel, ruby, hematite, brass

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Spells

At Samhain, witches cast spells to keep anything negative from the past -- evil, harm, corruption, greed -- out of the future. Cast spells to psychically contact our deceased forebears and retrieve ancient knowledge, thus preserving the great Web that stretches through many generations of human families.

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Happy Halloween from the Crafty Witch family to yours!

-The Crafty Witch

History Of Mischief Night

We all know what happens on Halloween, the night that little boys and girls dress up and (unwittingly) celebrate the ancient Celtic tradition of Samhain and All Hallows Eve.

Anyone who has woken up on Halloween morning to find their house egged, their pumpkin smashed or yard toilet-papered, however, is lucky enough to live where a sister tradition that is not quite as old (but a yearly custom all the same) is also practiced with fervor.

The night of Oct. 30, which goes by a variety of names including Devil's Night in Detroit and Miggy Night in parts of England, sees neighborhood youngsters pull pranks just as diverse as the custom's monikers, ranging from the innocent to the downright dangerous.

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So where did this license to cause mayhem come from?

Mischief Night, as it is most commonly known in the United States, has been around in its present form for at least 50 years, when it became a day for playing "tricks" while Halloween itself was reserved for the little one to gather "treats." The practice goes back hundreds of years before that, though, to a time when Halloween and misbehavior were inextricably linked.

In some areas, unfortunately, today's pranks have evolved into acts much scarier than ghosts or goblins.

Mischief always a part of Halloween

Causing mischief has been a part of the Halloween tradition since the very beginning.

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The most ancient roots of Halloween come from the Celts of Great Britain, who believed that the day before their Nov. 1 New Year was a time when spirits came back to haunt and play tricks. On Oct. 31, people dressed up in scary costumes, played games, lit bonfires and left food out on their doorsteps for the ghosts in celebration of this otherworldly event, which the Celts called Samhain.

When Great Britain was Christianized in the 800s, the ghoulish games of Samhain merged with All Saints Day and All Souls Day, during which the dead were honored with parades and door-to-door solicitation by peasants for treats — usually a bit of food or money.

After the Protestant Reformation, much of England stopped the "treating" side of Halloween because it was connected to Catholic saints, and transferred the trickery to the eve of Guy Fawkes Night, a Nov. 5 holiday celebrating the foiling of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot to blow up British Parliament. Mischief Night in England is still celebrated on Nov. 4.

The Irish, Scottish and northern English, meanwhile, kept up much of their Halloween traditions, including the good-natured misbehavior, and brought their ways to North America with the wave of immigration in the 1800s.

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Before the 20th century, Halloween mischief in the United States and Canada happened on Oct. 31 and consisted of tipping over outhouses, unhinging farmer's gates, throwing eggs at houses and the like. By the 1920s and 30s, however, the celebrations had become more like a rowdy block party, and the acts of vandalism more serious, probably instigated by tensions over the Great Depression and the threat of war, historians say.

To stem the vandalism, concerned parents and town leaders tried to ply kids with candy, encouraging the forgotten tradition of trick-or-treating in costume in exchange for sweets, bumping the mischief element from the celebrations of Oct. 31 altogether. It was then that the troublemakers, neighborhood by neighborhood, adopted Oct. 30 as their day to pull pranks.

Rotten vegetables

The custom of vandalism on Oct. 30, oddly, seems to have only developed sporadically, often appearing in some areas but not at all in others nearby.

Nowadays, Mischief Night is especially popular in pockets where Irish and Scottish immigration was common — in northeastern United States but not in the South and West, for example, and in the English-speaking communities of Canada but not the French. Examples of the regional varieties include:
Cabbage Night in parts of the northeastern United States, where rotten vegetables are collected and left on porch stoops or smeared on doors and windows.
Mat Night in English-speaking Quebec, where pranksters steal doormats and switch them with the neighbors'.
Gate Night, in the Midwest, where farmers gates are opened, leaving livestock to roam free.

Other popular pranks include the ubiquitous toilet-papering of homes and trees, "soaping" cars and windows and pumpkin smashing.

Though it consists of harmless fun in most places, "Devil's Night" in Detroit is notorious for its ties to gang culture and random acts of arson.

In 1984, more than 800 fires were set there on Devil's Night, leading to a serious crackdown and an Oct. 30 curfew for minors that persists to this day. This year, the mayor of Detroit has recruited an army of more than 30,000 volunteers to patrol their neighborhoods to prevent any similar mayhem.

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Thank you livescience.com

-The Crafty Witch

Fav Halloween Movies 7 of 7

Last but not least the 2 remaining movies of the Fav Halloween list. I absolutely love the Halloweentown movies but, if I can have a mini hate fest for a second, I think they should've just stopped with the 3rd one, its not the I hate the 4th but I hate who they replaced Marnie with. Personally I think Sara Paxton is one of the worst actors of all time, and not to mention she looks nothing like Kimberly Brown's original character. Whew okay, got that off my chest! But back to the reason you're here - To end the list please enjoy these movies.

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 Halloweentown High

Rating: G           Length: 83 mins.               Year: 2004

Cast: Debbie Reynolds, Kimberly Brown

Movie Description

The final installment of the trilogy finds young witch Marnie struggling to become a young adult witch while working with her grandmother to prove monsters aren't dangerous. If the daring duo can disguise monsters as humans and successfully enroll them in high school in the mortal world, they can save the family's powers.

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Return To Halloweentown

Rating: PG           Length: 88 mins.               Year: 2006

Cast: Sara Paxton, Lucas Grabeel

Movie Description

Marnie Piper struggled for years with the knowledge that she had been given magical powers from her grandmother that enabled her to be a young witch. Finding a happy balance between being a normal girl and a developing witch had been hard on Marnie. College proves to be another challenging phase as Marnie learns more about the secrets of Halloweentown.

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-The Crafty Witch

Celtic Tree Month of Reed Begins

Celtic Tree Month of Reed begins -- 

Reed is typically used to make wind instruments, and this time of year, its haunting sounds are sometimes heard when the souls of the dead are being summoned to the Underworld. 

The Reed Moon was called Negetal, pronounced nyettle by the Celts, and is sometimes referred to as the Elm Moon by modern Pagans. 

This is a time for divination and scrying. If you're going to have a seanse  this is a good month to do it. 

This month, do magical workings related to spirit guides, energy work, meditation, celebration of death, and honoring the cycle of life and rebirth.

-The Crafty Witch

Fav Halloween Movies 6 of 7

Now that we are winding down and getting to the end of the Fav Halloween movies I'm saving the best ones for last Movies 6 - 7 in my opinion are the best of all time Halloween movies. (And yes I know both photos are of Halloweentown 2, just use your imagination here people)

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 Halloweentown

Rating: PG           Length: 84 mins.               Year: 1998

Cast: Debbie Reynolds, Judith Hoag, Kimberly J. Brown

Movie Description

A Disney Channel Original Movie that's become a Halloween-season standard, 1998's Halloweentown stars screen legend Debbie Reynolds as the matriarch of what turns out to be a family of witches.

When Aggie (Reynolds) unexpectedly drops in for a visit, her daughter (Gwen) isn't as thrilled as her three children about the surprise appearance. Aggie's drop-in coincides with an argument between Gwen and the children regarding why they aren't allowed to celebrate Halloween. To Gwen's displeasure, the grandmother supports her grandchildren's desires, and Gwen is soon fighting a losing battle.

Against Gwen's wishes, Aggie begins training Marnie, the 13-year old, to be a witch. A huge argument ensues, but Aggie (as always) convinces Gwen that Marnie is needed to help solve a string of mysterious disappearances that only a fresh, novice witch can help with.

From there, the film takes off on an other-worldly adventure filled with spells and teen romance, highlighted by the three siblings discovering and using their previously untapped powers to save their town from an evil demon who ironically was once Gwen's boyfriend.

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Halloweentown 2

Rating: PG           Length: 81 mins.               Year: 2001

Cast: Debbie Reynolds, Judith Hoag, Kimberly J. Brown

Movie Description

Screen legend Debbie Reynolds portrays the grandmother of a teenage witch in the Disney Channel Original Movie, Halloweentown II: Kalabar's Revenge. The film is the first sequel in a series of four films adapted from the original Disney production of Halloweentown.

The grand-daughter, Marnie (Kimberly J. Brown), has unknowingly allowed her grandmother's book of magical spells to fall into the hands of Kal (Daniel Kountz), who turns out to be the warlock son of Kalabar, a fearsome demon. When Aggie, the grandmother, begins noticing unusual magical activity, she becomes suspicious and, with Marnie in tow, depart for Halloweentown to investigate and try to rectify the situation. Upon arrival, they discover that the town has been transformed (via black magic) into a nightmarish version of all things "Halloween."

The film is directed by Mary Lambert, whose resume includes music videos and television as well as feature films, primarily in the horror genre.

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-The Crafty Witch

Key Elements of Successful Spell Casting

Spells are not to be taken or considered lightly. Before performing any spell, there are certain key elements you must meet in order to bring your spell to fruition. 

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1. Faith and Certainty. You must be absolutely certain in your mind that what you want to happen WILL happen as a result of the spell. You can have no doubt; you know it, so it becomes...."So Mote It Be".

2. Like Attracts Like. Be absolutely SURE and CLEAR about what you want. What you focus on is what you attract in the positive or negative. It's all about INTENTION.

3. You. You are a key ingredient to a successful spell. Your intention, energy and focus determine the outcome of the spell....or not. THE TRUTH IS IN YOUR HEART, SPEAK IT.

4. Cast Your Own Spells. Since YOU are a key ingredient in your spells, cast your own. Many people approach me and ask me to do spells for them. While you can do spells for other people, the outcome is more successful when a person does the spell himself of herself. Doing your own spell works best because your energy is closer to the outcome than anyone else.

5. Harm None. Never look to go against another person's free will. We all have the right to choose for ourselves. You cannot make someone love you and never wish revenge or suffering on another. We do not curse. It is all in how you ask for something. For example, You can do a spell to attract a love interest into your life, but you cannot make a specific person love you. Also, if someone is evil person and harms others, perhaps consider a spell asking karma to come a bit quicker (it is up to the Gods what that karma will be), along with sending out protective and healing spells and energies for victims of such a person. If you are unsure whether a spell is considered harmful, check with others in the craft. The statement, "Be careful what you wish for", is very, very true in spell casting and spells should not be taken lightly.

6. Rule of Three. As I stated above, be careful what you wish for. If you go against the right of another or spell cast/curse against another person, the wrath of the spell will come back at you at the magnitude of three times of your wrongdoing.

STUDY, LEARN, and CONSULT with others in the Craft before taking on spell casting. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER. The more you understand the key elements and the more you practice them, the more successful your outcomes will be. This has been my experience.

-The Crafty Witch

DIY Black Bat Wall Decor

This is not an official DIY Dollar store project, but it is still so cute and very much affordable  All items on the Black Bat Wall Decor can be found at your local Dollar Tree.

Best of this entire project will only cost $3.00!

What you’ll Need:

• Scissors
• Tape
• Construction Paper
• Template

*All items italicized are item you probably already have around your own home.

*All items underlined are optional

Easy Step-by-Step Directions:

1. Print out the template and cut out the bat shape

2. Trace the Bat Shape onto the Black Construction paper

3. Cut out the bat from the construction paper

4. Tape To the Wall

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-The Crafty Witch