Setting Up an Altar for Creativity

I got this book – Witch’s Brew: Good Spells for Creativity by Witch Bree. The first thing it states you should do to enhance creativity is set up a creativity altar. I’m on it!! So what are some of the things it states I should place on this altar (and why)?

• Scarf – Orange or Gold
• Candles (one of each)
  • Yellow
  • Orange, and
  • Gold
• Incense & Oils
  • Bergamot, and
  • Vanilla, or
  • Cinnamon
• Herbs (in amber or clear bowl)
  • Clove sticks or buds
  • Sage leaves or bundles
• Symbols
  • Of personal creativity
  • Inspirational items

There is then a ritual that one should go through that I won’t detail here since I don’t “own” the ritual. But I just wanted to try and understand the various colors, herbs, and other elements and how they relate to and enhance creativity.

• Gold – Expansion, success, attracts higher influences,
• Yellow – Intellect, wisdom, mental clarity, creative imagination
• Orange – Promoting personal creativity, energy, attraction,
• Amber colored (bowl)
• Bergamot – energy
• Vanilla – Mental powers, courage
• Cinnamon – Energy, creativity
• Clove – Mental Stimulation, inspires a magically creative atmosphere
• Sage – Wisdom, repels negativity, purification

In all honesty, I’m having a hard time trying to understand why some of these elements are suggested for use on an altar for creativity. I just haven’t found it yet. But I’ll keep looking. The bottom line is that I need to come up with correspondences that make some sense to me and use it. For example, time and time again I’ve read where one of the correspondences for mint is creativity. Now I think bergamot is a type of mint, or in the mint family, but does that mean bergamot is related to creativity as well? I couldn’t find any correlation.

Same with vanilla. I found reference after reference of its relationship to sex, love and lust spells. But creativity?? Not. Now I can understand how a fertility spell can be reworked in a way to be used as a creativity enhancement spell. But I saw no correlation of vanilla to fertility – only sex, love and lust.

With sage I found a lot of references to purification and protection. But nothing about inspiration or creativity. So again, I’m at a loss with that one.

So What’s This Stuff All About

or…the magical correspondences for floor wash recipe & why I chose the elements I did

• Myrrh {Water} – Among other things, used for protection, purification, and to enhance spirituality
• Frankincense {Fire} – Dispels negative energy , purifies magical spaces, and protects against “evil” or malevolent spirits
• Sage {Air} – Protection, purification, and rids space of negative energies
• Mugwort Essential Oil {Earth} – Among other things, used for protection, healing, protection again “evil” and/or dark spirits
• Salt {Earth} – Purification, protection against negative energies and psychic attacks; grounding
• Apple Cider Vinegar {Fire} – Purification, protection

Floor Wash for Protection, Purification & Grounding

“Built” my altar today from an old book case with shelves that I had sitting in my garage. It is perfect, but was quite dirty and had been neglected for a couple of years in the garage. I like that it is off-white in color. But it was dirty — in more ways than one. So I decided to create a “floor wash” that I would use on the altar itself. After actually cleaning the altar, I Cleaned it with this magickal wash. After Cleaning it with the recipe I’ll explain in a moment, the energy in the room was so calming and grounding, that I decided to wash my entire floor with it. My altar sits in my studio space and the energy in there has been feeling very scattered lately. Not so anymore. It feel awesome in here.

Recipe for the Protection & Grounding Floor Wash

4 cups spring water
4 tablespoons salt
1 teaspoon Myrrh resin
1 teaspoon Frankincense resin
1 teaspoon powered sage
————————————–
10 drops of Mugwort Essential Oil (or the amount to your liking)
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 additional cups of spring water
Coffee Filter

Put first five ingredients in stainless steel pot and bring “just” to a boil, stirring constantly in a clockwise direction on low heat for 10 minutes. The entire time you stir, put your energy and intention into the wash that you are creating something to protect, purify and ground the area of your rituals. After 10 minutes, turn off heat; add Mugwort essential oil and allow to sit for another 10 minutes.

Add the apple cider vinegar; stir and strain either through double cheesecloth or a coffee filter. Add 2 more cups of water and clean altar, altar supplies and floor. Any remaining wash I poured outside my house around the entryways and doors.

Recent Purchases

Just a little note about some recent purchases that are winging their way to me as I write this. I have purchased a 7-day enchanted candle from Enchantments in NYC. This one is called “money draw.” Decided that I really don’t want to go back to work full-time so am going to do some magic around this. I had a couple of these candles created for me when I lived in NYC with great success.

I purchased some blended oils from Magickal Realms in NYC. I had never shopped there when I lived in NYC. This is the store in the Bronx owned by Lady Rhea, who originally created Enchantments in NYC and who “invented” or at least made popular the enchanted candle. I bought some blended oils that I though would be nice to have in my witchy pantry – Horn of Plenty, Money Mist, Road Opener and Weight Loss.

I also have a couple of books coming my way that were either free from Bookmooch.com or I found pretty cheap off of eBay and Half.com. I am hopeful that they are good.

I have desperately been looking for the book by Lady Rhea called The Enchanted Candle. Unfortunately the book has gone out of print and the price for this book has been gouged to the point of the ridiculous. I can’t see myself paying $100-$200 for a new book that was published in 2004 or $50 to $100+ for a used copy. I am hopeful that the book will become available and republished in some way. I would even purchase an eBook version of it. But until then, sigh…I’ll have to have someone else make the candle for me.