DIY Hand Dressed Spell Candles

For starters, I used a natural wax (beeswax) but soy and coconut wax will work just as well. Heat your wax in a glass container placed in water in a double broiler. Once the wax is fully melted, pour into the container of your choosing. (For taper candles, dip continuously in a fluid motion, waiting 30 seconds in between dips.) Leave the leftover wax on the stove on a lower heat while your candle cools, because the candle center will sink in and you can use the extra wax to top it off.

While your candle cools, begin your ritual. I use a traditional altar set up-

Place the cooling candle in the “spirit candle” spot. Light your god and goddess candles, and begin a ritual of your choice. Meditate on the cooling candle and your intentions for it. Once the candle has fully cooled and been topped off, you may begin the dressing process. It is best if the top layer of wax is not fully cooled to help the spell ingredients stick.

To cast the spell, simply light the candle. You can leave it burning while you do a ritual on your intent, meditate on it, or simply are in need of its help during an activity.

Also note, avoid using seeds, dried berries, or large leaves in your candles. Your good luck candle might not be powerful enough to prevent your house from burning down.

Spell candle ingredients:

For Divination:

• Lemongrass. Lemongrass is known to promote psychic vision, success in divination, and add clarity to the messages being received and given.

• Gum Mastic. This tree resin has masculine properties and can aid in spiritual awakening. When burned, it will increase psychic powers and encourage the manifestations of spirits in this realm. If this is not something that you are comfortable with, then the ingredient can be omitted.

• Mugwort. Among its many benefits, this herb is used for safe travels (physical or otherwise), conjuring prophetic dreams, aiding in astral travel, and awakening psychic powers. Mugwort has a variety of other properties, but for our purposes I chose it for its aid in divination.

• Labradorite. From Judy Hall’s The Crystal Bible, “A stone of esoteric knowledge, it facilitates initiation into the mysteries. Labradorite aligns the physical and etheric bodies and accesses spiritual purpose. It raises consciousness and grounds spiritual energies into the physical body. This stone stimulates intuition and psychic gifts, including the art of “right timing,” bringing messages from the unconscious mind to the surface and facilitating their understanding.” You can drop the stone into the candle or tie it around the jar to amplify the spell.

For Luck:

• Tonka Oil. This ingredient cannot be substituted in the spell; tonka oil is used specifically for good luck, as well as prosperity and courage. Bonus: it smells amazing!

• Lemongrass. On top of its uses in aiding divination, lemongrass also clears harmful energy and brings good luck. It is used in this context as a doorway opener to success and opportunity.

• Hawthorne Berry Powder. Associated with the fairy realm and is said to be the home of the fae. This powder is great for both physical and emotional heart health. I chose to add it to this spell for its properties in promoting happiness and career success. For luck regarding matters of love and relationships, chamomile is a great substitute. Clove is also often cited as a bringer of good fortune, but only use it if you have the ability to grind it into a powder. Exploding clove seeds are not, in fact, lucky.

• Bonus: make your candle green or use a green jar for luck in financial matters.

For Clarity (decision making, mental agility)

• Hecate resin incense. Many shops sell pre-mixed Hacate blends but you are also welcome to make your own. Summoning the powers of the triple goddess of crossroads and transformation is crucial for this candle, as there is no divine entity more powerful to receive assistance from in matters of decision making and in transitional periods.

• Horehound. Great for creativity, mental agility and inspiration (also an excellent herb if you suffer from writer's block!)

• Rosemary. Associated with the fairy realm and is often used in healing and good health magic, I chose this herb for its memory improvement quality and aid in mental health.

• Clear Quartz. Irreplaceable when it comes to clearing mental, spiritual, and emotional “fog”, clear quartz filters out distraction while also aiding in concentration and memory. For those who practice in chakra energies, quartz will act to harmonize the chakras. Drop the crystal into the candle or tie it around your jar to amplify the spell.

For Knowledge and Learning

• Clove. While the smell of clove can be quite overwhelming, it is nevertheless an irreplaceable ingredient to this spell for its properties in mental clarity. It also has commanding properties which are useful for promoting productivity and willpower in your scholarly endeavors. Do not put clove pods in a candle, grind them up instead so they do not explode.

• Hellebore. used to increase intelligence. This herb is not to be used in the candle itself, but instead placed at the base of the candle, the reason for this being that it is a poisonous plant and should never be inhaled or ingested. It may be difficult to find, in which case it can be substituted for walnut or omitted altogether.

• Vanilla. Used to strengthen mental abilities. Both the extract or the pod can be used.

• Sage. Just as it is used for its cleansing and protection, sage is also great for wisdom and revealing a clear path forward. This path can be on a large scale such as career paths and relationships, but can at the same time be used for smaller pathways to understanding in the form of learning and knowledge.

• Amber. Amber resin is best in this case, though the oil will work fine as well. It’s use in the spell is for mental clarity and focus. Clear the clouds of misunderstanding and see solutions.

• Basil. The key to productivity in this spell.

• Fluorite. According to The Crystal Bible, Judy Hall writes “Fluorite is an excellent learning aid-it organizes and processes information, linking what is already known into what is being learned, and increases concentration. It helps you absorb new information and promotes quick thinking.” Hematite can also be added to the spell for mathematical and technical subjects.

Happy witching everyone!