Many practitioners new to the magical arts believe that before casting a spell or performing a ritual, one must drive across town to the occult supply store and spend money getting just the right ingredients. In reality, the ingredients to many successful spells, rituals, and other magical practices may be right there already--in your own kitchen! Here are some suggestions as to how to transform common items in your kitchen cabinets and refrigerators into the accoutrements of magical practice.

Herbs Need some fast cash? All out of money-drawing incense? Look at your spice rack for some leafy green herbs such as mint, oregano, basil or parsley.
Write the amount of money you need right now on a piece of plain white paper.
Place the paper beneath a candle and light the candle.
Scatter the herbs on a piece of charcoal in your incense burner. You can also scatter herbs around the candle if you wish. Use dried herbs for this:
fresh ones won't burn. Supplement the herbs with any abundance-type self- burning incense to help the herbs burn if you wish.

Forgetful? Try a "rosemary for remembrance" pillow. Simply tie some dried rosemary into a piece of cheesecloth and place it inside your pillowcase.
Then you'll remember that you need to restock your money drawing incense! If you check your spellbooks, aromatheraphy guidebooks, and natural medicine books, you'll find many more uses for common kitchen herbs.

Extracts Remember when Granny Clampett on "The Beverly Hilbillies" had Ellie May put vanilla extract behind her ears before a prospective beau arrived? Turns out the old back country wise woman was right. Studies have shown that sweet aromas, such as vanilla, are alluring to men. Many perfumes on the market now contain vanilla. Make sure you include vanilla in the baked goods that you make for your favorite suitor (vanilla improves even the flavor of chocolate). Why not dab a bit on the pulse points if you're hoping for a night of passion?

Perhaps you're up late studying for a big test. Instead of taking one of those harmful caffeine tablets, try sharpening your tired mental faculties by taking a whiff of the peppermint extract in your cupboard. If that doesn't do the trick, try taking the top off a jar of peppercorns and alternately inhaling the peppermint and the peppercorn. Now you're awake!

Apple Cider Vinegar Feel the need for a cleansing or purification ritual? Before you begin, take a purifying bath by putting a cupful of apple cider vinegar in the bath. If showering, warm a cupful in the microwave for thirty seconds; pour over yourself in the shower. As you bathe, visualize a pure white light surrounding and protecting you. Chiropractors, massage therapists, and other body workers also recommend the apple cider vinegar bath after a treatment.

People in New England and in the South often recommend tonics to stimulate the system, especially in the spring. A simple tonic is made by adding one teaspoon each of apple cider vinegar and honey to a little water. Sip slowly and visualize your system being renewed and energized.

Learn the correspondences between common herbs and astrology, Witch workings and natural healing methods, and you'll find a wealth of simple abundance right there in your cupboards!

A Kitchen Witch's Altar

by Kecia Lloyd
A few years ago, I was visiting a Hindu friend of mine for dinner.
Having never been to a Hindu's house before, I was curious about the
things I saw. I asked my questions and they were more than happy to
provide me with answers. The one thing that stands out in my mind,
more than anything else in their house, was their kitchen. In a
cupboard with two doors, they have an altar dedicated to their
family's patron deity. They would open the altar when they cooked, to
allow their deity to guide the cooking and ensure a healthy,
spiritual meal. There were other times they opened the altar, but
each time, both doors to the cupboard were opened to allow a cyclic
flow of Divine Energy to make it's way around the room. Now, years
later, as a practicing kitchen witch, I've often wondered why I
couldn't do the same?

Personally, I feel kitchen magik is overlooked, or at best given a
couple of paragraphs in books, magazines, and web sites. All the
information is vague, leaving most of the decisions up to my
imagination. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but the sources I've
read have left little for guidance in a seemingly popular area for
Pagans.

Kitchen magik has simple tools. All that's needed are some bowls,
spoons, a mortar and pestle, and a tea kettle or cooking pot. I have
found that all of them also have direct correlation to more common
altar tools. Using my Hindu friend's altar as a guide, I have created
a Kitchen Witch's Altar. All you need is an empty cupboard. More than
likely, you already have the tools.

The first step is to choose which cupboard you will dedicate as your
altar. Cupboard space is usually of short supply in most kitchens.
Some re-arranging of cupboard contents may be at hand. My Hindu
friends said they always used cupboards with two doors, and ones that
were at eye level. This way, the Divine Presence is closer to you,
and easy to access. When both doors are open, it directs the energy
outward and around the room. The only don't I suggest is not to use
the cupboards above the refrigerator. It makes your altar virtually
inaccessible and easily forgotten.

On the back of the cupboard, you could place a picture of your deity,
a pentacle, or what ever reminds you of Divine Energy. Charge the
object in whatever way feels best for you. With this charged picture,
statuette, or pentacle, Divine Energy will have its direct pathway
into your kitchen.

The next step would be the altar cloth. To make things easier, I
suggest going to a local thrift store and buying cloth napkins. You
could also make your own altar clothes. However, you do it, acquire
more than one of each color. This will make it easier to clean and
cleanse your altar.

Now it's time to dedicate which tools you use most in your kitchen
magicks. If you want, you could purchase new tools, or you could just
cleanse and consecrate some that you already have. Below, I have
listed a few kitchen tools and what correspondences they resemble on
a regular altar.

Wooden Spoon: Wand. Remember, most wooden spoons are made of balsa
wood or pine. [There are several publications that list the magickal
properties of different types of wood.]

Bowl: Cauldron, Cup, or Bowl. For this, I prefer glass mixing-bowls.
Glass is easy to clean, and it won't absorb any of the oils, water,
or whatever you are working with. Glass also comes in many different
colors. If you don't want glass, there are also several inexpensive
ceramic / porcelain mixing bowls.

Tea Kettle: Cauldron. I have read that copper tea kettles are best
for magik. I do not use a copper kettle, but one that is porcelain
coated steel. Copper kettles can get expensive and are a high
maintenance item.

Mortar and Pestle: These have been represented as the union of female
and male, or the joining of Divine and Mundane Energies. They also
represent the basic cup and wand. These come in all sorts of
materials. Choose a set that meets both your physical and spiritual
needs. For example: that dainty glass set is extremely pretty. But,
will stand up to repeated use?

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