Book Review

Spell Jars for the Modern Witch:
A Practical Guide to Crafting Spell Jars
for Abundance, Luck, Protection, and More

By Minerva Siegel

Publisher: Ulysses Press

160 pages

Publication Date: June 6, 2023

 

 

 

 

Minerva Siegel gives readers 50 recipes for spell jars, and the magickal fundamentals to know before you begin. While the title is “Spell Jars for the Modern Witch,” you don’t have to be a witch to protect, manifest, or heal. Also known as witch bottles, they contain the elements of a spell, and can easily be recharged and refreshed to offer long-lasting effects.

The first part of the book describes six psychic senses – both commonly known (clairvoyance) and more uncommon abilities (clairgustance) – and the six important steps to create a spell jar. There are also thirty pages of helpful correspondences and associations including colors, elements, numbers, chakras, major arcana tarot cards, astrological signs, seasons, full moons, crystals, botanicals and essential oils to help align and increase the potency of spells.

The 50 spells are arranged by topic such as for the home, protection, personal well-being, work and school, and astrological influences. Whether blessing a new home, seeking good luck, memorializing a loved one, or making the most of astrological seasons, Siegel lists ingredients but quantities are left to the practitioner who can customize the recipes. She also urges readers to explore their cultural backgrounds, spiritual practices, and folk traditions, taking what resonates and leaving the rest.

The guide introduces each spell jar’s intention, lists ingredients, gives numbered steps, and offers tips and notes for attaining dreams, goals, and ambitions. They are unique, gender-neutral, and spiritually inclusive. It makes a good handbook for those starting out. For those with experience, much of the information in the first half will likely be familiar, and I have seen most of the intentions appear in other books of spells.

About the Author

Minerva Siegel is a writer, author, sensitivity reader, and longtime practitioner of witchcraft. A Sagittarius with a Capricorn moon and stellium, she haunts her historic manor in Milwaukee with her Taurean husband and their pack of rescue dogs. In addition to this book, she’s the author of “Tarot for Self-Care: How to Use Tarot to Manifest Your Best Self,” “Houseplant Tarot,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas Tarot Deck and Guidebook,” The Labyrinth Tarot Deck and Guidebook,” and several other tarot decks and guidebooks published by Insight Editions. Siegel is also a disabled wheelchair user. You can find her on Instagram @Author.Minerva.Siegel.

 

 

Spell Jars for the Modern Witch

 

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About the Author:

Lynn Woike

All my life I have known magic was real. As a child, I played with the fae, established relationships with trees and “just knew things.” In my maiden years I discovered witchcraft and dabbled in the black-candles-and-cemeteries-at-midnight-on-a-fullmoon magick just enough to realize I did not understand its power. I went on to explore many practices including Zen, astrology, color therapy, native traditions, tarot, herbs, candle magic, gems, and, as I moved into my mother years, Buddhism, the Kabbalah and Reiki. The first man I dated after my divorce was a witch who reintroduced me to the Craft, this time by way of the Goddess. For 11 years I was in a coven, but with retirement, I have returned to an eclectic solitary practice.

 

 

When accepting the mantle of crone, I pledged to serve and teach. This is what I do from my skoolie – a 30-year-old school bus converted into a tiny house on wheels that I am driving around the country, following 72-degree weather, emerging myself into nature, and sharing magic with those I meet. Find me at thewitchonwheels.com, Facebook and Instagram.

 

thewitchonwheels.com