Some even believe that wearing a corset with regularity can help you lose inches off your waist.  I think you have a better chance at casting a beauty spell or starting a diet and exercise regimen to change your waist line but some believe in corsets.  No pain no gain as they say.   The claim is that you wear the corset progressively tighter and tighter.  So long as you don’t have pain or cut off your circulation, you supposedly get slimmer and slimmer.  If you believe in those infomercials that tell you to buy a waist sweat belt to lose weight then you’ll be a believer in corsets as a weight loss method.

Okay so maybe you’re like me and you don’t believe that putting yourself in corset pain will change your waist line.  Understood.  But corsets are actually pretty cool.  Witches look fantastic in ethereal flowing clothes and feminine curves rule.  Corsets cinch in the waist line there is no doubt about it.  The tight strings and fashion statement of a corset is quite provocative and worthy of a wiccan goddess for sure.  For an other-worldly look, try a corset style body shaper or even a sexy antique dress with a corset waist line.

The goth, punk and emo community have embraced the use of corsets and they are actually back in style now.  You’ll see female celebrities wearing gothic corset inspired fashion in the high fashion magazines.  Corsets are often black and sexy.  They cinch in the waist using boning material or stretch body shaping fabric, and tie with strings, buckles or hook and eye closures.  If you want to bring out the goddess in you, try a corset style with stockings too.  Leather, lace and a little bit of naughty can be fun.  Are you casting a spell of attraction?  Wearing a corset for the ritual certainly can’t hurt that spell!

If a corset is too over the top for you then you can try a thick corset style belt.  These look great over flea market find dresses.  Take an old flowing satin or lace dress and cinch in the waist with a thick corset style multi-buckled cinch belt.   While it may not make you magically thin, it will give you the illusion of an hourglass shape the whole time you’re wearing it.

Wiccans are well known for their desire to be natural and steer away from vanity and superficiality.  But sometimes a dose of superficiality or shall I say paranoia, is prudent.  These growths can be a cause for concern.  Warts can be caused by a virus and beauty marks or moles can become precancerous or even develop later into melanoma.  Having had a family member cope with a melanoma scare,  I can say that vanity and paranoia about moles and their removal if they are atypical can be advisable. 

If you have a witches mole or wart on your skin that looks funny then follow the When in doubt, check it out rule of thumb.  Don’t just be purely natural, get these things checked out by a qualified dermatologist to make sure they are nothing serious.  If you want to stay natural and keep your warts or beauty marks, make sure they are benign is all I can say.

Dermatologists know that those wicked witch warts can be filiform warts which may appear not just on the face but on the neck, lips and around the eyelids.  These warts may not be evil in and of themselves but nevertheless they are often caused by the human papilloma virus or HPV infection.  Warts can appear when the immune system gets compromised and isen’t fighting off the infection.  For smaller warts you can try home treatment of wart medicine which has salicylic acid in it.  You might have to apply the compound w for months though for it to be effective.  If you want to get rid of it and home treatment isen’t working seek a dermatologist who can burn or freeze it off or surgically remove it if you want it gone.

Moles are another skin blemish that are often depicted on characterizations of evil witches.   Almost every adult has moles on their skin but you should know that these are sometimes things that you shouldn’t embrace as a natural part of your skin.  If you have fair skin and hair, sun exposure as a child or teen, or melanoma in your family tree, you should be concerned.  It pays not to embrace this natural beauty. 

Get regular skin checks and watch for moles that itch, grow, bleed, change or have irregular shapes, colors or borders.  Sometimes moles can be a place where melanoma starts.  It starts with the mole but them melanoma aggressively grows down through the skin where it can jump into the blood stream and lymph nodes and onward to other parts of your body.  If caught early, melanoma can be cured be just removing the mole.

Moles and warts might be part of the movie characterization of a witch, but these skin growths in real life  need to be monitored and taken seriously.  For one thing, the characterization of witches with moles and warts is remiss.  Wiccans can be completely beautiful and often are.  Many wiccans don’t like the sun and have fair maiden beautiful skin.  Because they don’t put caustic harsh chemicals on their face or body they can be beautifully, and naturally skinned women. 

If you do have skin blemishes, a little vanity can be prudent.  Watch out for changes and if anything looks odd or if you have a superstition or inkling that something is off be sure to get it checked out by a dermatologist.  Women’s intuition is a powerful thing, almost psychic in way, so if you don’t believe one doctor’s diagnosis always get a second qualified opinion. Go with your gut and be persistent. If a skin blemish proves to be a health risk then get it removed and checked for atypical cells. When it comes to your health, I don’t care what other wiccans say, I say be vain.

I’ve been truly enjoying my studies of Wicca and related topics.   I love the gorgeous and inspiring artwork, jewelry, folklore legends and stories about witchcraft, goddesses and magic. 

Did you know that animals both real and mythical are beloved by witches?  Let’s look at the beautiful unicorn in this article as he is certainly one of the fair maiden’s most favored companions.

The unicorn is often seen alongside goddesses and fair maidens and always captures the imagination.  You can’t help but admire this magical animal they are truly amazing to look at in photograph and artistic forms.  They often have a gorgeous fair maiden pictured alongside them.  For a bit of fun let’s touch upon some of the inspiring folklore of unicorns and their historical relationship with fair maidens.

There is unicorn mythology from all corners of the world, however each has to decide whether they believe if unicorns exist or not.  At least up until the 19th century, belief in unicorns was widespread.  Folklore has it that the unicorn is a white horse with a pointed spiraling horn coming out of its forehead.  The horn was believed to be magical and it could make poisoned water drinkable and heal sickness.

In mideival times the unicorns horn, called an alicon was a sought after healing spell ingredient.  The horn was believed to be able to cure illnesses and neutralize poisen.  Horns were sold in druggest shops in jars and bottles in powdered or ground up form.  The wealthy royalty had priceless whole horns for such healing spell purposes.

To test if a unicorns horn was real a circle was drawn and a spider and horn was placed inside of it.  If the spider could not cross outside the circle and starved to death as a result, it was said that it was a true unicorns horn.  Unicorns are very elusive and rarely seen.  It is said that only those with purity of heart would ever be lucky enough to see this elusive creature.

The unicorn is often linked to goddesses and fair maidens.  Unicorns have been a key imaginary animal in history especially the middle ages and the renaissance.  They are said to be symbolic of purity and grace.  Only a virgin fair maiden can capture one.  Because it was known that unicorns love innocent fair maidens, evil hunters would being such a woman when trying to hunt or capture a unicorn.

Legend has it that if you have a unicorn you should always keep a fair maiden nearby to handle it.  Three things known about mystical unicorns are that you should never put a unicorn into an enclosed space as it’s horns won’t allow it to fit in a confined location.  It must be free.  And, unicorns love jokes!

As wild and free mystical creatures, a unicorn won’t like being confined to a stable.  If you come across a unicorn you should be equipped with a joke for it.  Unicorns like humor and if you get a unicorn angry it can kick you, skewer you with its horn, or spit on you causing you to fall a sleep for 100 years.  Unicorns are wickedly smart.  The unicorn could be a harbinger of a desired personality trait such as purity for example. 

Some witches have favorite animals that serve as powerful symbols in their spiritual toolbox.  They incorporate these animal symbols into spells and collect statues for their altar.   The symbolism of the unicorn could represent a desire for innocence and purity, to purify water or for spells that are meant to help heal illness.

A fair and gentle maiden is always needed for a unicorn.  The fairer the maiden is, legend has it, the easier she can get a unicorn to do what she wants.  A unicorn will do whatever a fair maiden wishes.  Wiccans love mystical animals such as unicorns and dragons.  Most wiccans are practical in their thoughts that unicorns don’t exist, however they nevertheless enjoy the whimsical animal as it brings back memories of childhood when unicorns and fair maiden tales were so magical. 

Animals can also become very inspiring to the Wiccans that love them.  They are often used to represent or symbolize a spiritual identity.  Unicorns are often used as totems.  A totem is a natural object or animal which serves as a distintive, often venerated emblem or symbololism to an individual.  They can represent desired traits or ideals.

The archetype of the unicorn is often used for spiritual meditation.  The unicorn might be a spiritual guide for ones calming self meditation.  Imagine that you are a beautiful maiden and the unicorn is your devoted guide.  His white coat symbolizes purity.  The single horn is associated with the opening of the third eye to have inspiring spiritual visions.  The unicorn is always associated with purity, innocence, clear vision and ones virginity.  The unicorn can cover great distances and carry a spirtual rider safely and quickly.  if you love unicorns it is no surprise – you must be a fair maiden!

You probably know that essential oils are highly concentrated extracts taken from plant sources. If the concentrated aromatics are put directly onto the skin they can really irritate or cause reactions. They are too strong to use directly. That is where the carrier oils come in. The carrier oils are used to dilute the essential into a form that is safe to apply to the skin. Since the carrier oil enables you to carry the essential oil onto the skin in a safer diluted form it’s called the carrier.

Carrier oils themselves offer different properties and the choice of carrier oil used is ging to depend on what thereaputic benefit you are seeking. Vegetable carrier oils are usually what is used for making lip balms, creams, natural skin lotions, body oils and bath oils. Examples of commonly used carrier oils would be coconut oil, avocado oil, jojoba, olive oil, almond or nut oil suck as kukui nut. There are also fruit carrier oils such as grapeseed or watermelon seed oil.

To make your custom aroma or skin care product you generally add only a few drops of the essential oil to your carrier oil. A typical mix would be drop or two of essential oil per each table spoon of carrier oil, although recipes vary depending on what you are using.

The maiden is when she is young and radiant.  She’s enchanted, virginal and full of life.  She is linked to the fullest moon.  The mother is a woman at her absolute peak.  She’s sexually mature and fertile.  The mother is linked to the lunar cycle at the half moon point.  The crone finally, is a woman who is wise and mature.  As she dies the moon goes away from crescent to gone (the waning moon).  The cycle of life continues to a full moon again and the cycle is repeated.

I found some novel example of prayer beads for pagan wiccans, and absolutely love this photograph of prayer bead strands!  Some Wiccans use the Chakra beads as jewelry or for magical purposes.  The seven colors of the Chakras are mean to be utilized for healing meditations.  Some women simply wear the beads as good luck or for fashion purposes.  Wiccans often incorporate beads into their spell-work for magical purposes.

The different colors of the beads could symbolize anything from your beliefs, prayers, gods, elements of the earth, or your family heritage.  Some Wicca tradition uses three different colors of beads that represent the maiden, mother and crone aspect of the goddess.  Such triple goddess beads are used often in various Wiccan rituals and traditions.  The best thing about beads is that they look beautiful and have a sentimental value to the wearer. 

It’s always cool to have jewelry that means something to you rather than just being a random fashion statement.  Hopefully thoughtful use of beads brings you good health and good luck regardless of the particular religion you follow.  If nothing else, they look intriguing and pretty!

Pure essential oils typically come undiluted and bottled.  You never want to apply that directly to your skin.  You normally dilute the oil with a gentle skin care oil.  Use one to three drops of essential oil per each teaspoon of gentle skin oil or cream.  This should give you a good mixture.  If you shop at a health food store or aromatherapy store they usually mix the oils for you at the counter.  You can try one of their specialty combinations or create your own custom combinations.  They often have certain recipes that are known to be popular essential oil combinations.  It’s quite fun to design your own oil or cream and you can select fragrances that you adore.  Because the oils are derived from all different plants however, you need to be careful to skin test each oil as well as any custom oil or skin cream combinations that you concoct just to be safe.

You don’t want to ingest oils or utilize them in cooking.  They are primarily used for fragrance aromatherapy as an ingredient in spells, or as additives to skin oils and skin creams.  If you are using an essential oil for skin care be sure to keep the product away from your eyes, ears, and any delicate skin areas, cuts or thin mucous membranes.  You should always read the labels and even after that conduct a simple skin test.  The first time you use an essential oil product you should dilute a small amount as indicated and then apply just a touch of it to your inner arm.  Let stay for several hours and check your skin to be sure the application does not cause irritation.  Your skin should not get red and if it does gently wash it off and do not use the oil just to be safe.

Additional safety tips for essential oils are very important.  First of all, don’t leave open bottles near children or pets.  Keep the oils out of their reach.  If you are able to purchase essential oils with a safety cap then all the better.  If you have specific health issues, take medication, or are ill or pregnant use extra caution and consult your doctor before using oils to make sure they are safe to use.  Even natural and organic products can cause allergic reactions and skin sensitivities so don’t assume that oils can’t cause issues.

Essential oils are often used to accentuate aroma for specific witchcraft rituals. It is imperative that you check labels when using any essential oil for aromatic purposes. You don’t want to ignite a candle or create a flammable incident. Candle oil combined with essential oils can create dangerous mixtures so you must use the utmost care when using essential oils for witchcraft purposes.

Certain essential oils are flammable such as tea tree, lavender, and popular citrus oils so you have to keep all oils away from fire hazards. Don’t let the oils near candles or other flammable sources!  Essential oils are very volatile and do not mix with flames such as candles, incense or oil burning lamps.

The pure oils that are derived from these botanical sources are the basis for organic bath, beauty and health products.  The oils can be used in a variety of ways such as adding them to your bath, spraying them using a misting bottle, or diffusing them into the air.  The primary way essential oils are used for skin care is by adding them to skin care oils.

Essential oils have different manufacturers and one of the keys is to find essential oils that are 100% pure.  Certified organic essential oils for example, are made from plants that are grown organically.  There are no pesticides or chemicals used in the growing or processing steps and and a third independent party certifies the product as legitimately 100% organic.  The best way to assure quality of the oils is to trust the brand name.  You can find essential oils at the specialty markets including, for example, Whole Foods and Sprouts.  Well known brand names such as Avalon or Aura Cacia carry a wide variety of essential oils as part of the health and beauty line of products.

The magical properties of essential oils

While not pure magic, the powerful fragrant aromas of essential oils can undoubtedly help to improve your mood and feelings.  The primary way that they do this through your sense of smell.  When combined with for example skin oils and body massage, essential oils can also relax your muscles and bring tranquility through touch as well as aroma. 

The fact that these natural botanical oils can truly affect your mindset is what makes them so popular with Wiccans.  Essential oils are commonly used in a variety of witch craft rituals.  Essential oils can be used in practical ways for example to nourish and strengthen your skin, hair or nails.  The oils are often added in as ingredients to a beauty product.  But essential oils can also be used as highly effective spell ingredients. 

The aromatherapy benefits can be harnessed as part of specific witchcraft spells as each type of oil has certain lucky or beneficial properties.  A particular oil is used for a purpose.  An experienced aromatherapist & witch understands the exact aromatic profile of each individual plant and she what the aromatherapy benefits of it are.  This knowledge is then used to choose the proper essential oils for a particular Wicca spell to maximize its effectiveness.

Try Laura Mercier tinted moisturizer with SPF 20. It gives you sun protection, is packed with anti-oxidents, and covers flaws with a slight foundation tint without going on too mask light. It’s light weight and wonderful for the goddess who wants to look refreshed with minimal makeup. You can buy the Laura Mercier products at Sephora.com.  That particular cosmetics brand is known for their natural and organic selection of colors. It’s perfect makeup for the natural witch who wishes to hydrate and protect her skin while hiding minor skin imperfections effectively.

Check Yahoo’s Shine website (shine.yahoo.com) for more ideas regarding natural makeup and beauty as they always have good articles and useful beauty tips from well known makeup artists.

Nude tones and mineral makeup shades can help protect your skin with SPF and add a hint of natural color to it.  This means you don’t need to get that skin damaging sun tan to add life to your face.  Alabaster skin is in.  Staying out of the sun will work  just as well if not better than any beauty spell you can cast.  Remember to wear sunscreen and an organic moisturizer to keep your skin smooth, fresh and alabaster pure.

To create magical eyes that twinkle without looking phony, you’ll want to choose natural shades that smooth sallow skin, red patches and gray color.  A goddess should invest in a good set of makeup brushes, natural looking mineral foundation, and nude eye shadow colors.   For sensitive skin try makeup such as Physician’s Formula which carries hypoallergenic, non-irritating makeup.

The Physician’s formula shimmer strips custome eye enhancing shadow and liner is perfect to bring out your inner goddess with subtle naturally colored makeup.  Mix and match these shadow colors depending on the look you want.  For witches that shun the sun and have pale pure skin, try the lighter shades depending on your desired look.  A fine tipped makeup brush can be used to dip into the dark gray/black color.  Dot along the lash line carefully to create exotic cat eyes.

You can by this Physicians Formula eye enhancing shadow and liner makeup at ulta.com