Magical Living
or
Easy Home Magic
There’s no place like home–to practice magic. Your personal space is a great place to do workings and often, for many practitioners, the only place. Though I do not practice a whole lot, when I do, it’s at home.
Decorating
The simplest and easiest to disguise thing you can do is to decorate your house magically. What does that mean? It could be as little as rearranging your furniture with a certain intent and as complex as building your home and filling every nook and cranny with charms and spellwork. This can get a little clutter-y so it’s best to start small.
The classic examples are putting a horseshoe over your door for good luck or changing the decorations seasonally. Personally, now that I’m living in a place with actual seasons, I like the idea of living seasonally and I try to make my home reflect that. Remember, though “you …needn’t become a Witch or magician to bring your home in tune with ageless magic, nor must you change your religious affiliation, if any,” according to The Magical Household, which is a great resource for decorating with intent (see “Exploring Further”). The nice thing about magic is it doesn’t necessarily interfere with other beliefs, which is why it is often practiced in conjunction with more mainstream religions or non-religions.
Altars
Altars appear in many cultures, for many purposes, including memorials/ancestor worship, as a working space, or for religious/deity worship.
Personally, I use mine to further my attempt to live seasonally. I keep it in the living room and I like to change it out on the solstices while thinking about what I’d like to experience in the new quarter of the year, like with my spring altar pictured above.
It all started last December when I realized Christmas trees were expensive and decided to make my own. I ended up with a Christmas altar, pictures of which unfortunately disappeared when my phone died its final death the next month. Since then, I’ve been creating new altars using things I find around the house. I’m a packrat for art supplies so I have a lot of good material to work with, but the basics are easy to find. I use a cardboard box with a sheet or a large scarf over it and keep the candles (I use mini gumball machine party favors from a friend’s wedding and electric pumpkin tea lights) and the string lights, then go from there.
Cleansing
Sometimes a space builds up negative energy. Maybe there have been fights going on or one person is in a bad place and taking the rest of the household with them. Whatever the cause, it always makes me feel better to cleanse a space.
There are a few easy ways to go about it. You can smudge an area with either Palo Santo or a sage bundle (or just a bowl of sage) by setting them on fire just enough to get steady smoke but not an actual blaze. Then walk around, trailing smoke until the space feels (and smells) better. This is a favorite in our household which we picked up from working at Magus.
Don’t want to deal with smoke? Salt and saltwater sprinkled around the edges of a space are a classic solution. Or if you prefer, you can ring bells which are supposed to dispel negative energy as well. I have a string of bells over my desk that I like to ring at the end of a frustrating project.
If you live with other people who are not into magic, it’s best not to impose your beliefs on them and instead keep your workings confined to your personal area. Here’s are some good tips on how to practice in a shared space.
I’m always looking for small magic I can incorporate into my daily domestic life. If you have any you’d like to share with me, I’d love to hear them. |
Katta Hules 
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