Thestarlightpractice - Amie

crystals to start your collection with 🌻✨🪨

i’ve noticed when i first started using crystals in my craft these crystals were the easiest to work with & communicate with. i also noticed others work well with these a lot. (plz make sure you’re ethically sourcing all your crystals)

clear quartz:

can be used as a substitute for any crystal!!

all zodiac signs

element: storm

properties: psychic abilities, physical healing, meditation, clearing, cleansing, expanded awareness, communication with higher realms/guides, enhancing, interdimensional communication, dispelling negative energy, protection, self healing, transformation, intention enhancement

smoky quartz:

zodiacs: scorpio, capricorn, sagittarius

planets: earth, saturn, sun

elements: earth

properties: transformation, strength, balence, protection, grounding, purification, organization, manifestation, sense of purpose, personal will

rose quartz:

zodiacs: scorpio, taurus, libra

planet: venus

element: water

properties: soothing, calming & patience, joy, love & relationships, creativity, clearing, physical healing, empathy, cleansing, relaxation, anxiety relief

amethyst:

zodiacs: virgo, pisces, capricorn, aquarius, sagittarius

planets: jupiter, saturn, neptune

elements: wind

properties: breaking addiction, travel, dreams, clarity, psychic abilities, sleep, protection, wisdom, physical healing, purification, clairvoyance, self discipline, focus, expansion, insight, anxiety relief, spiritual awakening

tiger eye:

zodiacs: capricorn, leo

planets: sun

elements: fire, earth

properties: strength, balence, creativity, intuition, protection, prosperity, balancing polarities, longevity, creating your own reality, luck & good fortune

chrysocolla:

zodiac: taurus, gemini, virgo

planets: mercury

elements: water

properties: calming & patience, joy, balence, truth, communication, meditation, stress relief, inner vision, mastering fear, peace of mind, gentle self expression, expanded awareness, inner peace

lapis lazuli:

zodiacs: sagittarius, aquarius, pisces

planets: mercury, jupiter, saturn, neptune

elements: wind

properties: dreams, balence, intution, inspiration, clarity, communication, meditation, past lives, good luck & fortune, knowledge, ascension, truth, higher self, wisdom, expansion, insight, inner vision, inner peace, trust, dreaming, balancing polarities, communication with higher realms/guides, angelic communication, interdimensional communication

black tourmaline:

zodiacs: capricorn

planets: earth

elements: earth

properties: creativity, protection, clearing, grounding, purification, cleansing, mastering fear, transmutation of negativity, emotional understanding, strength

carnelian:

zodiacs: taurus, cancer, leo, virgo

planets: mars, sun

elements: fire

properties: strength, courage, confidence, power, grounding, passion, manifestation, action, sexuality, motivation, acceptance, anger, appreciation, balence, delusions, spiritual awakening, happiness, mourning, health & healing

hematite:

zodiacs: aries, aquarius

planets: mars

elements: earth

properties: opportunities, strength, balence, clarity, meditation, grounding, focus, action, balancing polarities, manifestation, mental enhancement, transmutation of negative energy, organization, channeling & grounding higher vibrations, detoxify, addiction, anger, confidence

selenite:

zodiacs: gemini, cancer

planets: moon

elements: wind

properties: clarity, protection, meditation, clearing, purification, cleansing, clairvoyance, dispelling negativity, aura cleansing

Things to Consider in a Tarot Reading (Other Than Card Meanings)

It’s important to look at the meanings of tarot cards, but it’s very possible to pull even more out of a reading that individual card meanings. Here’s some other stuff you might consider bringing into your interpretation when it feels right:

🍄The position of the cards. This is why spread design can be so important! I’ve had instances where all the cards, in their positions, had the subjects looking or pointing towards one specific card. It was wild. What did it mean? Maybe nothing, but maybe something very significant, depending on the question!

🍄The visual element of the cards. Sometimes what’s depicted on the card can give more specific insight than the actual book meanings. The pictures were done that way for a reason, so don’t be afraid to give them their own weight! Also, sometimes the spread as a whole will have a flow of design (like when one half is much brighter than the other) or a specific card is WAY more colorful than the other cards on the table. Any of these could potentially carry meaning.

🍄Jumper cards. This is when a card pops out while you’re shuffling! I usually just put them back… UNLESS the question has already been presented, and I’m shuffling with that question in mind. Then, I keep them as extra advice, bonus cards.

🍄Reoccurring numbers. Maybe you do a four card spread for a friend, and you get the four of cups, four of swords, four of wands, and the Emperor! (IV.) What does that mean? What does the number four symbolize? Well, a lot of things, potentially, depending on what you study. Some tarot designs incorporate the Kabbalah’s numbered paths in the tree of life, others go with numerology. Maybe, the number four just means something special to you or the querent in particular.

🍄A bunch of cards in order. I’m not talking about when you forget to shuffle. I’m talking about when you give it a really good shuffle and you still get the ace, two, and three of Pentacles all in a row. This can be seen as a sign of progression, or that the events are all much more closely connected than anticipated. It can also mean it happens over a shorter period of time than normal. It’s up to you, your cards, and the contexts.

🍄Proportions of different features. Maybe you’re doing an obstacle spread, and your obstacle is something like the nine of swords. That’s pretty nasty, but if all the other cards in the spread are Major Arcana, then it’s probably not going to be that difficult to surmount. The reverse can also be true. Additionally, a high number of reversed cards in a spread typically signifies a lot of confusion, conflict, and turmoil.

🍄Reoccurring symbols. Beyond just the four suits, because that’s a given! But maybe your spread shows a lot of cards with images of fire, people dancing, or birds. Do these mean anything to you or the querent? What do they typically symbolize?

🍄Any hiccups or unusual events during the reading. Once I had a querent pick up a card to examine it, drop it, then pick it up and put it back reversed. Since it was the overall outcome card, I interpreted that as a heightened ability to change her own fate in this given situation, since she had turned the card from quite a bad omen to a good one. Sometimes little accidents like dropping cards, accidentally shifting them, or laying out the spread wrong are meant to be there and add to the meaning!

I hope this gives you some ideas! Feel free to add more. What do you interpret alongside the cards in a reading?

Lammas

/ˈlaməs,ˈläməs/

the first day of august, formerly observed in britain as a harvest festival, during which bread baked from the first crop of wheat was blessed.

symbolism: prosperity, reverence, purification, change, fruitfulness.

tarot: wheel of fortune + justice.

colors: yellow gold, orange, green, light brown.

foods: homemade breads, grains, nuts, crabapples, rice, grapes, pears, meadowsweet tea, beer, elder wine, cider, berries, locally grown produce.

crystals: citrine, paridot, cat’s eye, golden topaz, sardonyx, carnelian, moss agate, obsidian, aventurine, clear quartz, rhodochrosite, marble, lodestone, granite.

herbs: yarrow, mint, meadowsweet, poppy, clover, vervain, basil, mint, mugwort, hops, aloe, acacia.

flowers: heather, queen anne’s lace, milkweed, peony, elder, poppy, myrtle, sunflower, rose, marigold, goldenrod.

inscence: rosemary, aloes, chamomile, rose, rose hip, eucalyptus, sandalwood, frankincense, safflower.

deities: adonis, attis, baal, ceres, cronus, danu, dagon, demeter, hestia, lugh, mercury, neper, parvati, pamona, renenutet, saturn, sobek, tailtiu, tammuz, vesta.

misc: corn dolls, dried Indian corn, sunflowers, wheat stalks, the pentacle, cornucopia, broom, hearth, iron.

activities: bake bread, have a bonfire, harvest from your garden, take a nature walk, make corn dolls, prosperity magick, visit a farmers market, dry herbs.

Runes

Greetings and Salutations!

Here is a post on the Elder Runes, and a quick break down of them. Please be warned that runes are very tricky as they will rarely give  you a set answer on what you’re looking for. There is a lot of reading between the lines when it comes to runes and what they mean. 

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Dagaz: ᛞ

Rep: The Dawn

Meaning: Awakenig, Completion, Hope

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Othala: ᛟ

Rep: Inheritance

Meaning: Ancestry, Value, Possessions

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Inguz: ᛜ

Rep: The Seed

Meaning: Goals, Change, Common Sense

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Laguz: ᛚ

Rep: Water

Meaning: Flow, Intuition, Dreams, Change

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Mannaz: ᛗ

Rep: Humanity

Meaning: Help, Society, Frienship

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Ehwaz: ᛖ

Rep: The Horse

Meaning: Trasportation, trust, progress, travel

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Berkana: ᛒ

Birch Tree

Femininity, Birth, Healing

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Tiwaz: ᛏ

the god, Tyr, rune

Masculinity, Battle, Logic

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Sowilo: ᛊ

The Sun: 

Health, honor, victory, cleansing

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Algiz: ᛉ

The Elk

Protection, defense, effort

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Perthro: ᛈ

Dice Cup

Chance, fate, destiney

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Eihwaz: ᛇ

Yew Tree

Balance, Enlightenment, Death, Coming to terms

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Jera: ᛃ

The Year

Harvest, Changes, Cycles

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Isa: ᛁ

Ice

Clarity, Challenges, Waiting

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Nauthiz: ᚾ

Need

Conflict, Restriction, Endurance

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Hagalaz: ᚺ

Hail

Nature, wrath, hardships to overcome

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Wunjo: ᚹ

Joy

Comfort, rewards, winning

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Gebo: ᚷ

Gift

Balance, Partnerships, Generosity

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Kennaz: ᚲ

Torch

Vision, clarity, improving yourself

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Raidho: ᚱ

Wagon

Travel, decisions

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Ansuz: ᚨ

Estuary

Communication, Understanding

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Thurisaz: ᚦ

The Thorn

Reaction, conflict

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Uruz: ᚢ

The Bull

Strength, Courage, Freedom

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

Fehu: ᚠ

Livestock

Wealth, abundance

’*•.¸♡ ♡¸.•*’

In the future, I may make a post about the newer runes, however, since runes are so hard, it’s very hard to find information on them that is accurate. I made this post by cross referensing blogs and scholar papers, so not everything here may be correct, but i’m pretty sure most of it is accurate as possible. I also know it’s hard to read the runes, so if anyone needs to see them clearly, just inbox me and I’ll make flashcards and post them for you guys. 

As always, ily (/p) and i hope you are having a good day. dont forget to drink water and eat a snack if you can! 

Altar Tips for Beginners

Okay, so you’re a baby witch and you come to Tumblr looking for references on setting up your altar. There tend to be two extremes: People telling you exactly what they think must be included in an altar and then people telling you that you can set it up however you want.

While I agree that you can and should set up your altar in a way you want (there’s no right or wrong way to do it), sometimes when you’re just starting out, it’s hard to figure out what the heck to actually put on there. I know from experience. Here are some ideas for things to include on a beginner altar, utilizing items you might already have around the house!

A tablecloth, place mat, old t-shirt, etc. all work well for an altar cloth.

If you have a tarot deck, you can place it somewhere on the altar. You can also pick specific cards to feature around your altar, like The Empress to represent fertility, etc.

Rocks look great on altars! Even random rocks you dug out of your backyard! (Although you may want to clean them off first.)

While they might not look very fancy, you can put storebought containers of dried spices on your altar for easy-access. You could always switch them to nice jars or something if you want the aesthetic.

I like to put flowers and leaves on my altar because they help me feel more connected to nature. Fake flowers from a craft store are great too because they don’t wilt and they don’t trigger allergies!

Any magical item that you own and work with can go on your altar! This includes pendulums, spirit boards, scrying mirrors, etc. Remember that these don’t have to be fancy one-of-a-kind tools. You could even use that one dollar-store necklace you’ve been inexplicably holding onto since your third-grade birthday party as a pendulum.

Shiny things. Beads, gems, tinsel, metal cans, idk. I like to put shiny things on my altar. I swear I’m not several birds in a trenchcoat.

Have you ever found something random on the side of the street and kept it? Like a broken keychain or a shiny penny? I like putting those on my altar. They feel special, like I found them for a reason. One time I found a tiny broken ceramic bear head half-buried in my front yard. Obviously that’s gotta be magical, right?

Candles!!! You can never have too many candles. Especially fake candles. No fire hazards! Yay!

Feel free to add more! Remember the choice of what you put on your altar ultimately goes to you, but if you’re at a loss, I thought I’d offer some suggestions!