The Witches Workshop by Melissa Jayne Madara

The Witches Workshop

by Melissa Jayne Madara

First, I would like to note that I reviewed the eBook edition.  I wanted to mention this since I have already said that I focus on audiobooks.  However, with a book of crafts or recipes, I feel that it is necessary to be able to see the process instead of listening and trying to figure it out in my head.  It is less noisy this way.

Now on to the book itself.  This book is a witch's guide to creating your own tools.  The first thing that came to mind when I saw this title was that by crafting your own incense, dyes, or oils you can already start to put your intentions into them while crafting.  This way you will have the added benefit during your spell or ritual work.  Whereas, if you are buying mass produced items, you don't have the energy already starting.  

I know that many people skip introductions in this type of book.  There is a lot of great information in this section.  The author attempts to show how the very definition of a witch has not only changed over time, but from person to person.  She also shows have far back in time people have been harvesting plants for more than food.  She then goes on to teach us how to safely forage for plants if you are in an area where you can do so.  

In the meat and bones of the book, we start to learn about the various things that you can make and how to make them.  You will of course need certain tools in order to do so, but don't worry she lists everything you will need as well as providing alternatives.  For instance, not everyone owns a mortar and pestle.  She says you can use a food processor or spice grinder instead for the process of making incense.  

There are chapters on how to make incense (stick, loose, cones and pearls), natural dyes, inks, paper, candles, powders and oils.  She also includes in the back of the book a chart of which plants and herbs create which colors.  There is another chart that suggests the best time to create each recipe.  One of the things that I really loved is that she gives the measurements in both metric and imperial.  Before each recipe, she provides background information of both historical and religious significance. These recipes are just a jumping off point, you can then go on to create your own depending on what you need them for.

For the incense, you learn how to make not only loose incense (powdered), but also cones, sticks and pearls.  I hadn't actually heard of pearl incense before.  She does provide a picture of it on the page for the Full Moon Pearl Incense recipe.    

She makes sure to point out that the mordant stage in creating natural dyes is extremely important since it will help lock in the colors.  I love the little tips that she gives on what to add during the mordant stage that will adjust the colors to make them brighter or darker.  This can add depth to your projects.  

Say you are getting ready for Samhain and are wanting to do a release ritual with fire.  Well, you can actually do so with ink and paper that you made yourself by following the instructions in this book.  She teaches how to make inks from all different types of herbs, flowers, bark, plants, etc.  She even teaches how to make India Ink, Dragon's Blood Ink and Invisible Ink, as well as drawing charcoal.

In the papermaking section, there is one recipe for wildflower seed paper.  I was thinking that this would be great to write intentions on and bury.  Then have it grow into a plant that can flourish.  She does mention being able to plant the paper, but she doesn't put any type of connotation on to why you would bury it other than recycling.  There are other paper types that use flowers such as dandelion and rose.  These might be interesting for rituals using fire.  It might create a nice perfume to the air.  

Pair this book with a great book on herbs and plants and the only limits to what you can create with her guidance are only ones of your imagination.

 

Thank you NetGalley and Watkins Publishing with providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an open and honest opinion.