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Banishing Negativity

December 16th, 2009

Esme SpiderWitch ~ Dec 2009

Witches Archive

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Banishing Negativity

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At some point in our lives we hit a phase where we feels like we are wading though treacle; nothing progresses and we find dead-ends and sabotage at every turn. Try as we might, we struggle against the forces of adversity doing our best to maintain a positive mental attitude until the feeling creeps up on us that there’s more than just ‘bad luck’ or unfortunate circumstance at work here.

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If you have been in a similar situation, you too may have found yourself emotionally and spiritually drained from these events, facing depression because no logical or rational explanation satisfies. How it started, you’re not sure but a seemingly inconsequential event; a rejection, a betrayal, a failure leaves us with a dent in our confidence that doesn’t heal. We no longer view the positive side of things and soon we are projecting negativity ourselves.

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We realise we have been in a spiral of negativity which gathers momentum as it bounds through our lives. As it does, it attracts more negative energy to it, growing, pulling us with it as it speeds downwards out of control. We need to break this cycle, banish the negative energies that have become connected to us and begin again with a clean slate consciously building positivity around us.

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At this point, even people who have previously had little or no interest or connection with magical practise or spiritualism sometimes look to Witchcraft. Those who practise Witchcraft and spell casting understand the importance of keeping negativity at a minimum arms length, knowing that keeping a positive focus, seeing the upside of any situation is paramount as the tiniest negative thought or emotion can change the intent of a spell or ritual being worked. Banishing spells and rituals are common and have been used for centuries to cleanse and consecrate objects, places and individuals.

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One very familiar form of banishing is ‘spring cleaning’, banishing on the most basic level; we open doors and windows, knock the dust from every surface and sweep the stale winter air out of the house. Essentially what we are doing here is moving the air, ridding the stagnant atmosphere in our home, effecting movement and change. You can enhance this ritual by using fresh citrus scents, burning sage incense and scouring with salt, all of these things harness cleansing banishing energy.

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As well as the need to cleanse ourselves and our homes, there are other reasons why we banish; cleansing someone else’ ‘vibes’ from a pre-owned object so it is ready for our purpose, or sometimes we wish to put distance between us and another person or painful event and allow them to no longer encroach upon our daily thoughts and fade into memory.

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Banishing utilises many methods of magical practice from very simple to intricately complicated, when you cast your banishing spell you can bring into it as much or as little as you feel is necessary to express your desire and satisfy your need.  Here are some examples of simple elements that could be included in a banishing spell;

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Smudging ~ most commonly used for cleansing a space. Incense with a thick smoke is burned in the area and all that passes through the smoke is cleansed. Sage is the best herb to use for smudging, it can be burned loose over charcoal tablets or is available as handy sticks.

Ritual Bath ~ If you need to break the cycle of a downward spiral treating yourself to a ritual bath is good place to start. It’s not just about cleaning the body but washing away the negativity from the whole of your being. Burn frankincense or sandalwood incense for consecration, add bergamot, eucalyptus or juniperberry to the bathwater to banish negative vibes. Remember citrus scents are cleansing and uplifting especially juicy orange! Write and repeat a positive mantra while you soak and use downward and outward strokes along the body with your sponge as you wash.

Ashes to the wind ~ a wonderfully liberating & symbolic spell. Write down all the negative things that have happened to you, each of them on a separate slip of paper and one by one watch them burn in the flame of a white (purification) candle. Collect all the ash and take it outside and let the wind carry them away. Remember to check the direction the wind is blowing – you don’t want a face full of ash!

Bury your Fear ~ Cast out the effect of your fear which is preventing you achieve. Write, or draw the things that are holding you back on separate pieces of paper. If you prefer you can mould a 3D representation out of wax. Fold the edges of your paper inwards covering the word (or wrap the wax model), speak aloud words that affirm you don’t need this fear in your life any more. Tie up the package and seal the knot with wax, place all the little packages in a paper or cloth bag and take it a considerable distance from your house and bury it, as you do affirm that you are returning this energy to the Earth to be used elsewhere for good.

Cutting the ties ~ For letting go of a negative person, event or influence. For this spell you will need to be safety aware; again using little slips of paper write on each the reasons why you feel the time is right to let go, using a needle; thread each onto a piece of string about 2ft long. Tie each end of all the strings between two candles, a big one to represent you and a smaller one to represent the person or situation, and ensure that they are stable. Light both candles, read each strings ‘label’ and cut the string, when all the strings are cut – blow out the small candle.

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Any questions or queries… email me

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Esme Knight
SpiderWitch

Dec 2009

Setting up your Altar

December 16th, 2009
Esme SpiderWitch ~ Dec 2009

Witches Archive

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Setting up your Altar

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Creating a sacred space within your home is a personal and empowering experience.  Knowing that you have a dedicated place where all of your magical tools and materials are kept and an Altar or shrine through which to direct your energies is a liberating and powerful thing.

So what is an Altar?
The definition of an Altar is a table-like structure or surface upon which objects, icons, tools and texts are placed for participation in a worshipful or ritual practice.
In real terms, when a witch says she has an Altar it means they have a dedicated space in their home where all their magical materials are kept and/or laid out for use in magic.  And every witch’s altar is different.

A witches Altar is a totally personal thing, there is no right or wrong way to keep one or anything that says you need keep one at all.  However they can be useful in your magical practise as both a spiritual representation of the physical you and also a space in which to direct your energies and will help you focus your intent.

Choosing a space
If you are setting up an altar in your home there are a few things to consider.  Is it going to be on display for all to see or tucked away discreetly in your bedroom?  Does is need to out of reach of your children or pets?  Will you want to be able to close the door for privacy or perhaps close enough to a window or back door so that you can be outside?  Consider how you’d like to worship as this will help greatly in finding the perfect spot.

Rather than setting up a constant altar you may find keeping a mobile altar more appropriate.  A mobile altar is discrete and portable, you can set it up wherever you choose whether indoors or outside and pack it all away again when you’re done.  If this suits you you’ll need to find a cloth (or even blanket!) that will define the space and a container, a box with a lid or a bag to transport your materials.  The same goes for the cloth that you cover a permanent table altar with; its purpose is to define the surface as special

Alignment
Some witches choose to align their altars with the compass as this help channel energy into the working space and if you want to do this there’s a couple of ways you can go about it.  One way is to line up the piece of furniture (say a square table) so that all flat edges face north, south, east & west. Another is to keep the table where it fits best in your room and align the objects on the surface so they correspond to the compass points.

The 5 Elements
Earth, Air, Fire, Water and the fifth is Spirit; your own spirit, the magic ingredient, the unique energy signature which defines you.  We as living beings are made up of these 5 elements as is everything on the surface of this world.  We are grown from it, we are part of it. And It, is part of us.  Most witches choose objects, tools and materials which represent the elements to place on their altar.  These materials physically represent the element and when placed at their corresponding compass point strengthen the connection to the energy being channelled into the space.

To do this divide your altar space into 4 quarters with crossing diagonal lines.  In the centre place a tile or board; something with a flat surface, this is traditionally  marked with a pentagram, and it will be your working area.  In the areas around it to the north, east, south and west place object which represent them and the elements.  Here’s some ideas…

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For Earth choose… Objects like stone, chalk, salt or sand, seasonal plants or flowers.  The colours green, white, brown and black represent Earth and correspond with the season of Winter, place these in the North quarter…

Magical Tools: Offering Bowl, coins, dice ~ this quarter is associated with the physical & material so health, wealth and protection and prosperity.

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For Air choose… Objects like feathers, birds, fairies, incense and bells.  The colours yellow, pale gold, pale green, white and grey represent Air and correspond with the season of Spring, place these in the East quarter…

Magical Tools:  Paper, scrolls, pens, your book of shadows, also a cutting tool such as a small blade, penknife or scissors ~ this quarter is associated with clarity through logic, communication and freedom; it is cleansing and banishes negitivity.

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For Fire choose… Objects like candles, oil burners, dragons, reptiles and orchard fruits.  The colours orange, gold, red & black represent Fire and correspond with the season of Summer, place these in the South quarter…

Magical Tools: Wand or Athame; these tools help us focus on directing our energy into our magic ~ this quarter is associated with conductivity, passion, motivation, courage and nurturing.

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For Water choose… Objects like a chalice or goblet, mirror, crystals, reflective objects and of course water itself.  The colours blue (all shades), silver, lilac and purple represent Water and correspond with the season of Autumn, place these in the West quarter…

Magical Tools: Oracles (tarot cards, runes, bones/stones) and other divination tools such as pendulums, dowsing rods and scrying mirrors ~ this quarter is associated with emotion, empathy, intuition and discovery.

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In the Centre place… an object that represents you; a picture or small statue of a figure you identify with, and if you have totem animals then surround your figurine with ornaments of them too.

Any spell work, charms or sacred object can be placed on the tile in the centre and their energy will be kept with you however far you travel from your altar… remember your altar IS you, you make it happen…

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Any questions or queries… email me

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Esme Knight
SpiderWitch

Dec 2009

Pagan Handfasting ~ FAQ

December 16th, 2009
Esme SpiderWitch ~ Dec 2009

Witches Archive

SpiderWitch ~ Priestess Celebrant

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Pagan Handfasting ~ FAQ

(Frequently Asked Questions)

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- Is a handfasting legal?
No.  UK law states that the legally binding contract of Marriage can only be authorised by a Civil Registrar or through the Banns of a Christian church.  For some people the legal position is not important as many couples live together anyway, it is the spiritual and emotional commitment that they wish to share with others.  However if you do wish to be legally married or gain civil partnership then this needs to be arranged separately through your local Registry Office.  A civil ceremony cannot contain any religious content as it is a civil matter concerning a legally binding contract between two persons.
Arrange to have your civil ceremony at a separate time, perhaps in the morning, and then hold your HandFasting in the afternoon, or even on a separate day.

- Location? Where can we hold our handfasting?
Anywhere!  A handfasting can be held anywhere you like as long as you have the permission of whoever owns the space, and its up to you whether you prefer indoors or outdoors.  Popular choices are domestic gardens, public parks, barn/farm buildings and woodland. There are now many commercial venues which hold a license for marriages so if you are wanting to also legally marry both ceremonies can be held in the same venue.  Although they must happen separately of course because a civil ceremony cannot contain any religious content.

- Is there a specific structure or can we personalise our handfasting?
Yes.  There are no hard fast rules about what can or can’t be included, ultimately this ritual is a declaration of your commitment to one another before your chosen witnesses and how you express that should be as unique as you are.  However there are a few guidelines you can follow to get you started; a marriage ceremony has 3 parts, the blessing, the promises and the declaration. You may recognise these in a conventional wedding as the reading, speaking vows and the exchanging of rings.  In a Pagan Hanfasting these 3 acts can be expressed and personalised however you choose; popular examples are a poem or song, or burning incense and ringing bells for the blessing, lighting candles or tying knots for the vows, and finally the actual “handfasting” is when the hands are bound and rings exchanged, both partners repeat the same declaration before the bindings are removed leaving the couple wearing their rings: and eternal circle representing their bond.  Other popular actions are opening/closing a circle in which the handfasting is to be performed, drinking a mead toast, and jumping the broom!

- Can members of our family and friends take part?
Yes.  It is very moving for all involved when our nearest and dearest have a hand in such an important moment.  It is essential to appoint an ‘Officiate’ however; someone who is a confident public speaker who can organise people and keep event running to your schedule.  This can be a friend or family member but more often couples appoint a Priestess or other leader of their particular Pagan group.  Once you have your trust in someone to perform the handfasting you can begin choosing who else you wish to participate and what kind of role they are going to assume.  You may pick someone because they are suited to a particular task or alternatively create a role for someone because you want them to be involved, the choice is yours.  Another way family/friends are often involved is by being ushers, bridesmaids etc., it may be more appropriate to have ‘broommaidens’ for example to add a unique quirky twist, and they can sweep away all the negative energy from the past so that you both begin again anew.

What if only one partner is Pagan, can we still be handfasted?
Yes.  Because a handfasting can be personalised you can tailor the ceremony to incorporate mixed or non-denominational religious beliefs.  Many people acknowledge there is a spiritual connection created when a couple marry even if they have no specific beliefs themselves which is why handfastings are a popular choice for humanist ceremonies.  They work equally well for two people who have defined but separate beliefs as each as call upon their gods to witness and bless and traditions from both religions can be recognised and entwined as the couple themselves are.

- What time of year is the most appropriate for our handfasting?
Spring is the time of year when we see the land and livestock become fertile and many couples choose 1st May for their wedding date.  Traditionally May is a month of games, feasts and fairs; the weather is warmer, trade begins again and the land is worked.  Food is planted and people become more flirty and frisky too!  These days there are many things upon which we can base the search for the perfect wedding date.  You may choose an anniversary, or pick a Pagan sabbatical such as Beltane (1st May) or Samhain (31st Oct; Halloween), you may want to be married on a full moon or want a Yuletide wedding because of your love of the season, you may just want a Saturday in June!  Whatever your motivation its worth having a look into auspicious days and seeing what takes your fancy.

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Any questions or queries… email me

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Esme Knight
SpiderWitch
Dec 2009


10 Tips for planning your Pagan wedding

December 15th, 2009
Esme SpiderWitch ~ Dec 2009

Witches Archive

SpiderWitch ~ Priestess Celebrant

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10 Tips for planning your Pagan wedding

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Weddings can be a headache at the best of times, but when you are Pagan and have no-one who understands but each other ~ where do you begin?!  Here’s a few handy hints to get you on your way to that special day…

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1.  Respect each other… and yourself

Before you begin to plan this special day together you must first know what you as individuals find important about getting married.  Write separate lists stating what’s important to you about being married to your partner and then of course what is important to you about having a wedding in terms of celebrating it.  You can use my handy questions & ideas sheet here…

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2.  Know what you want…

Now it’s time to sit down together and decide what the most important aspects of the day are.  Things that you both have listed are your “must haves” they are your starting point as this is where you agree, other suggestions are up for discussion; what can you simply not be without?  Centre on these and plan outwards; both before and after the main event.

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3.  Structure your day from dawn ’til dusk!

Together, decide the order in which events are going to happen and consider timing.  With a conventional wedding there is only the one ceremony and then a party, a Pagan wedding celebration may have more than one to incorporate a legal/civil aspect as well as the spiritual part.  Where will they take place? Who will be invited? How will you travel between venues?  Start with a ‘fantasy list’ from when you get up to when you go to bed, the running order can be brought down to earth later.

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4.  Ceremony development;

Your Pagan handfasting ceremony may be the only marriage you have chosen to make, or you may have decided to legally marry at a registry office beforehand as well, perhaps you are having a handfasting blessing as an additional ceremony at your reception.  Because a handfasting is not legally binding in the UK there are no set boundaries concerning content so you can really personalise every aspect.  Consider mythology, culture, and symbolism that you are particularly attracted to.  Look back at your first list where you wrote what was important to you about marriage; these are the things that you want to express.  SpiderWitch can help with ceremony development; contact her…
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5. Ceremony development 2;
If you are going to write the ceremony yourself then you need to cover the basics… First comes the blessing; this can be a poem or even a song performed by a friend or family or more formal like heralding deities to bear witness and bless the union for example. Next comes the exchanging of vows; the promises and commitments you are making to one another; light candles or tie knots and speak your vows.  Then we have the declaration; this is the main attraction where hands are bound and rings (or other tokens) are exchanged, after this you can celebrate with the traditional kissing and/or jumping the broom!

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.6.  Invitations & Explanations…

Chances are that unless you have chosen to perform your handfasting in front of only your Pagan friends, then the ceremony may need some explaining to some of the guests.  Older relatives, some groups of friends or work colleagues may have never heard of Paganism let alone a handfasting!  Use the opportunity of sending invites to also explain what is going to happen and the significance of it.  Let them know what a Pagan handfasting is and why you will be celebrating your marriage in this way.  If you have chosen a specific day because of the moon phase for example, then communicate this to your guests.  It will help them to feel included in something special and the more they know the less they may jump to the wrong conclusion, feel awkward or uncomfortable.  Write a letter that you can slip into the invitation card, or as we did, create a small booklet with all of the details of the Pagan aspects plus other info like venue, location, travel, dress code (if any), and gifts.

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7. Choosing a theme;

You will know what your overall theme is because your handfasting may be linked to the Moon, a season, a goddess etc but your guests may well assume that “Pagan” is the theme and turn up dressed like a court jester (a lot of people mix up ‘Pagan’ with ‘Medieval’ for some reason).  It may help them to accept the normality of the Pagan aspect by incorporating another theme.  Theme doesn’t mean ‘fancy dress’, explain this in your invites, for example if you are having a September wedding then perhaps autumn would be an appropriate theme and suggest to guests to dress in autumnal colours and bring tokens to hang in the trees.  It will help guests to focus on something other than the Pagan and witchy aspects.

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8.  Attendants

Who is going to help you? Not just ushers and bridesmaids, do you want any family members or close friends to actually play a role in the ceremony itself? Maybe as ringbearers, or by reading a blessing, presenting tokens or performing a symbolic action, these things need to be considered.  Is the person you’d like able to and confident to do so?  There may be someone who would be perfect for a particular role but is not as close to you which may cause friction or jealousy among other friends.  When it comes to choosing your attendants my advice is: be honest and selfish… Have who you want not who you think you should, and make sure they are suited to their role, especially if they are going to be involved in the ceremony.  The energy they bring will be part of the binding nature of this ritual and it must be right and given in honesty and love.  Make sure that all involved have a copy of “the script” and know their part, and organise a rehearsal a couple of weeks before so that everyone gets a sense of where the fit in to the ceremony as a whole.

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9.  How Pagan are you?

This is not meant to be a cheeky question but to help you consider how prominent a part the Pagan symbolism will play in your wedding celebrations.  Ask yourself how integrated your religion is in all aspects of your life; are all of your family and most of your friends also Pagan? If so then you can probably get away with a lot more symbolism and ritual than if only you yourselves are Pagan and the rest of your family are pretty conventional.  Ultimately it is your marriage and your choice, but a ‘wedding’ is about celebrating and sharing with those who are most dear to you and your handfasting celebrations should seek to find a balance that means everyone enjoys themselves.  You can always plan two ceremonies; a highly ritualised one for your Pagan community and a toned down one for family and friends which focuses on love and commitment.

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10.  Stick to your guns;

Some people just won’t ‘get’ it. They’ll question, and moan and make suggestions and try to change your mind because of their perceptions of what a wedding should be isn’t what your planning.  Don’t listen!  If you have gone through the above stages of finding out what you want and knowing what is important to you as a couple - then stand by it.  Going through that first without the inference of family or friends will be crucial in making sure your handfasting remains just that - Yours, and you can go back to your list and stick up for each other because you wrote it together.  This is your day; make sure it stays that way!

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Any questions or queries… email me

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Esme Knight

SpiderWitch

Dec 2009

SpellCrafters Mailer - 02/12/2009

December 3rd, 2009

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Greetings fellow SpellCrafters…

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Merry Yuletide to everyone!  …well the shopping mayhem has started as all prepare to feast and be merry…

Here’s the last 2009 update from SpellCrafters so we’d just like to say THANK YOU! to all who have supported us this year, our 1st Birthday is coming up in February but more on that later…

The magical workshops are now all finished for this year but next years programme will be confirmed soon and is going to follow a slightly different format, but we have some great stuff lined up for next season - so WATCH THIS SPACE!!

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MidWinter Solstice at The Dragon

Monday 21st December; from 5pm-ish onwards.

‘Tis soon the days of yule
To the dragon come one, come all
Munchies and crunchies, cider and wine,
Holly and mistletoe.  Be the winter kings time…

As many of you may know SpellCrafters holds a moot every Monday in The Dragon pub on Angel Row, Nottingham.  Seeing as Solstice falls on a Monday we are still holding the moot but with a bit of extra festive cheer, so come and join us in The Dragon for an informal Yule celebration! We will be collecting a few pennies over the next couple of Dragon Mondays so we can get some nibbles and mince pies, buy your own drinks as usual.

**Don’t forget** …Due to bank holidays Yule will be the last Dragon Monday until after the new year; moots shall commence again on Monday 11th January, so please come join us.  If you can’t make it then many Yule Blessings to you, & see you soon!

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www.paganpride.org.uk

Halloween Fayre

Thanks to all of you who attended the Halloween Fayre at the Art Org this year.  It was a great success and we raised £220 for the Pagan Pride Parade Fund pot which is still planned to take place in Nottingham on Sunday 1st August 2010.  Please visit the Pagan Pride website for full details of all coming events…

You can watch a video of all the spooky goings on here - by following the link… (Filmed & Edited by Nick Cairns)
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=100235184&release=100284171

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SpellCrafters 1st Birthday

Imbolc Winter Masked Ball

Saturday 6th February
Theosophical Hall, Maid Marian Way, Nottm

Yes that’s right ~ SpellCrafters has been trading in the Victoria Market for one whole year and to celebrate we are having a party!!

It’s a Winter Masked Ball and the theme is Snow & Ice, there’ll be food & drink included in your ticket price and £2 per ticket goes to the Pagan Pride Parade fund!  This is a ticket only affair so please make sure you buy your tickets in advance to avoid disappointment, full ticket  prices & details to be released shortly.

This is a Masked Ball, please dress accordingly; ‘Black Tie’ or ‘Pagan Formal’, so this means a suit or jacket ensemble, ball gowns, period costume/re-enactment wear, robes, cloaks and of course a Mask…

Contact SpellCrafters to pre-book your tickets; further details to follow…

All that is left to say is Merry Yuletide from SpellCrafters!

Esme & David
Many Blessings,
SpellCrafters