#uva ursi

[dire-vulture]

you know..nocturnes are just really fun to play with shapewise. even the ones that aren't full body there's still so much you can do with their faces!

(though omg i need to make new drawings for Wick and Antikyra..literally the first two nocs in my lair, they deserve new art! Lessie too but I think i want to regene her fgsfd)

[colorsoutofearth]

Tundra in fall color with Common Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi), Lingonberry (Vaccinium vitus-idaea) & Crowberry (Empetrum nigrum)

Photo by Jack Dykinga

......

Like ColorsOutOfEarth? Leave me a tip on my KoFi if you can!

[reallypheelingit]

happy new year!! only thought it would be right to kick things off with a Nocturne haha. here is Uva-ursi eating a bearberry, their favorite treat c:

[jennaflare]

god get me off of tumblr i have a final to study for

[loveonarooftop]

cranberry tea tastes like vomit straight up if anyone didnt know

[tibbivearomatikbitkiler]

Ayı Üzümü faydaları nelerdir?

Ayı Üzümü faydaları nelerdir?

#ArctostaphylosUvaUrsi, #AyıÜzümüFaydaları, #AyıÜzümüNelereIyiGelir, #TıbbiBitkiler, #TıbbiVeAromatikBitkiler https://is.gd/K9xctr https://www.tibbivearomatikbitkiler.com/blog/ayi-uzumu-faydalari-nelerdir/

Ayı üzümü faydaları arasında özellikle mesane ve idrar yolları iltihaplarına karşı çok etkili olduğu bazı araştırmalar ile ortaya konmuştur. Ayı üzümü aynı zamanda baş ağrısı, bağırsak rahatsızlıklar, inflamasyona karşı etkileri bulunmaktadır.

İngilizcede Bearberry olarak bilinmektedir.

Ayı Üzümü (Arctostaphylos uva ursi); Asya, Avrupa ve Kuzey Amerika’da yetişen, ülkemizde de yetişebilen gerek beslenme gerekse geleneksel şifacılıkta kullanılan bir meyvedir. Kullanılma tarihi 1200’lü yıllara kadar gider. Çoğu kez yaban mersini ve murt gibi meyvelerle karıştırılabilmektedir ancak ayı üzümü bu meyvelerden farklı türde bir meyvedir. Hatta bazı gıda teröristleri, ayı üzümü içerisine şeker katarak bunu yabanmersini diye satmaktadır. Lütfen kanmayın, yaban mersini mor renktedir, ayı üzümü ise daha çok kırmızı tonda renge sahiptir.

Tannik asit, ursolik asit, gallik asit ve çeşitli flavonoidler de dahil olmak üzere eşsiz bir kimyasal yapıya sahip bir meyvedir. Diğer kırmızı-turuncu-mor-siyah meyvelerde olduğu gibi antioksidan açısından çok zengindir. Ayı üzümü yaprakları da başlı başına sağlık için faydalıdır.

Ayı Üzümü içerisinde hydroquines adlı etken bir madde bulunmaktadır. Pek çok kozmetik ürününün içerisinde bulunan bu maddeninn geniş yelpazeli bazı etkiler bulunmaktadır.

Ayı üzümü antibakteriyel özelliği nedeniyle bağışıklı sistemini desteklemekte ve yaşlanma etkilerini geciktirmektedir. Doğal bir idrar söktürücü olan bu meyve, mesane ve böbrekleri temizler ve vücuttan toksinlerin atılmasını kolaylaştırır.

Ancak, kısa bir hatırlatma yapalım, gerek ayı üzümü gerekse Ayı Üzümü yaprağının baş ağrısı için bir takım faydaları bulunmaktadır. Bazı kültürlerde, ayı üzümü yapraklarının yakılması ile elde edilen dumanın baş ağrısını geçirdiğine inanılmıştır. Bilimsel olarak ise ayı üzümü yaprağı hafif narkoz etkisi göstermektedir. Ayrıca, kurutulmuş ayı üzümü yapraklarından elde edilen çay, özellikle idrar yolu iltihaplanması için pek çok ülkede sağlık kuruluşları tarafından güvenilir bulunmuştur.

Ayı üzümü faydaları arasında sayılan bir diğer husus, bu meyvede bulunan aktif bileşenlerin düşükleri önleyebileceği yönündedir. Aynı zamanda ağrı ve sancıları azaltma durumu da vardır. Ancak bu bilgiler bilimsel olarak kesinlik kazanmadığından, gebe veya emziren kadınların bu meyve veya ekstratlarını kullanırken doktor tavsiyesi almaları önerilmektedir.

Ayı Üzümü, harici olarak bir takım kremlerin içerisinde bulunmaktadır. Bu meyve içerisindeki mükemmel meyve asitleri ve diğer bileşenler, enflamasyon ve ağrılı durumları azaltır, yara, yanık ve çürük bölgeler için bir takım faydalar sunabilmekte ve iyileşme sürecini hızlandırabilmektedir. Ayı üzümü aynı zamanda E. Coli gibi bakterilere karşı etkili olmasından dolayı bir takım bağırsak ve sindirim rahatsızlıklarına iyi gelmektedir. Ayrıca; ağrı kesici etkisi nedeniyle, sırt ağırı, romatizma ve artrit için kullanılabilmektedir.

Uyarı:  Aşırı tüketilen her besin sağlık için zarar verebilir. Ayı Üzümü çok tüketildiğinde, nadiren mide bulantısı ve baş dönmesi yapabilir. Aynı zamanda fazla ayı üzümü tüketimi  yeşil idrar, mavimsi-gri cilt, kusma, ateş, titreme, şiddetli sırt ağrısı, kulaklarda çınlamaya neden olabilir.

[greenwitchcrafts]

October 2024 Witch Guide

New Moon: October 2nd

First Quarter: October 10th

Full moon: October 17th

Last Quarter: October 24th

Sabbats: Samhain- October 31st-November 1st

October Hunter's Moon

Also known as: Blood Moon, Drying Rice Moon, Falling leaf Moon, Freezing Moon, Harvest Moon, Migration Moon, Moon of the Changing Season, Sanguine Moon,, Shedding Moon, Ten Colds Moon, Winterfelleth & Windermanoth

Element: Air

Zodiac: Libra & Scorpio

Nature spirts: Frost Faeries & Plant Faeries

Deities: Apollo, Astarte, Belili, Cernunnos, Demeter, Hathor, Herne, Horned God, Ishtar, Lakshmi & Mercury

Animals: Elephant, jackal, ram, scorpion & stag

Birds: Crow, heron & robin

Trees: Acacia,apple, cypress & yew

Herbs: Angelica, burdock, catnip, pennyroyal, sweet Annie, thyme & uva ursi

Flowers: Apple blossom, calendula, cosmos & marigold

Scents: Apple blossom, cherry & strawberry

Stones: Amethyst, beryl, cat's eye, chrysoberyl, citrine, obsidian, opal, sapphire, tourmaline & turquoise

Colors: Black, blue, dark blue, blue-green & purple

Issues, intentions & powers: Cooperation, darkness, divination, healing & hope

Energy: Artistic works, creativity, harmony, inner cleansing, justice, karma, legal matters, mental stimulation, partnerships, reincarnation & uncovering mysteries or secrets

The Harvest Moon is the full Moon that occurs nearest to the autumnal equinox date (September 22, 2024). This means that either September or October’s full Moon may take on the name “Harvest Moon” instead of its traditional name. Similarly, the Hunter’s Moon is the first full Moon to follow the Harvest Moon, meaning it can occur in either October or November.

The Harvest Moon & the Hunter’s Moon are unique in that they are not directly related to this folklore or restricted to a single month. Instead, they are tied to an astronomical event: the autumnal equinox!

• October’s full Hunter Moon orbits closer to Earth than any of the other full Moons this year, making one of the four supermoons of 2024!  As the Moon drifts over the horizon around sunset, it may appear larger & more orange—how perfect for the fall season!

It is believed that this name originates from the fact that it was a signal for hunters to prepare for the upcoming cold winter by going hunting. This is because animals were beginning to fatten up in preparation for the winter season. Moreover, since fields had recently been cleared out under the Harvest Moon, hunters could easily spot deer & other animals that had come out to search for remaining scraps. Additionally, foxes & wolves would also come out to prey on these animals.

Samhain

Known as: Ancestor's night, Feast of Apples, Feast of Sam-fuim, Feast of Souls, Feast of the Dead, Geimhreadh, Hallowmass, Martinmass, Old Hallowmass, Pagan New Year, Samana, Samhuinn, Samonios & Shadowfest

Season: Autumn

Element: Water

Symbols: Apples, bats, besom, black cats, cauldrons, ghosts, gourds, jack-o-lanterns, pumpkins, scarecrows & witches

Colors: Black, gold, orange, silver & white

Oils/Incense: Basil, cloves, copal, frankincense, gum mastic, heather, heliotrope, mint, myrrh & nutmeg

Animals: Bat, bear, boar, cat, cattle & dog

Stones: Amber, anatase, black calcite, black obsidian, black tourmaline, bras, carnelian, clear quartz, diamond, garnet, gold, granite, hematite, iron, jet, marble, onyx, pearl, pyrite, ruby, sandstone, sardonyx, smokey quartz, steel & tektite

Food: Apples, ale, beef, cider, corn, nuts, fruit, garlic, gourds, grains, hazelnuts, herbal teas, mushroom, nettle, nuts, pears, pomegranates, pork, poultry, pumpkin pie, sunflower seeds, thistle, turnips & wine (mulled)

Herbs/Plants: Acorn, allspice, angelica, besom, catnip, corn, deadly nightshades, dittany of Crete, fumitory, garlic, mandrake, mugwort, mullein, oak leaves, patchouli, reed, rosemary, rue, sage, straw, tarragon, thistle & wormwood

Flowers:  Calendula, chrysanthemum & heather

Trees: Apple, beech, buckthorn, hazel, pine, locust, pomegranate, willow, witch hazel, yellow cedar & yew

Magical: Faeries

Goddesses: Al-Lat, Baba Yaga, Badb, Bast, Bebhionn, Bronach, Brunhilde, Cailleach, Carlin, Cassandra, Cerridwen, Copper Woman, Crobh Dearg, Devanyani, Dolya, Edda, Elli, Eris, Erishkigal, Fortuna, Frau Holde, Hecate, Hel, Mania, The Morrigan, Nemisis & Nicneven

Gods: Arawn, Baron Samede, Chronus,The Dagda, Dis, Hades, Nefertum, Osiris, Pluto, Woden & Xocatl

Spellwork: Divination, fire magick, night magick, shape-shifting, spirit calling & water magick

Issues, Intentions & Powers: Crossroads, darkness, death, divination, honor, introspection, otherworldly/underworld, release, visions & wisdom

Activities:

•Dedicate an altar to loved ones who have passed

• Boil a simmer pot to cleanse your space

• Have a silent dinner

• Light a candle for your loved ones & yourself

• Decorate your house and/or altar

• Release negative energy & cleanse yourself with a ritual bath

• Pull tarot cards to see what may be in store for you ahead

• Cleanse, clean & de-clutter your space

• Host or attend a bonfire

• Leave offerings for the Sídhe

• Journal & reflect on your accomplishments, challenges & everything you did this year

•Go on a nature walk

• Learn a new form of divination

• Have a bonfire with your friends and/or family

• Carve pumpkins, turnips or apples

• Express yourself creatively through art, music, ect

• Visit a cemetery & help clean off areas that need it or to visit a family member/ ancestor & leave an offering

• Hold a seance

• Bake spooky treats & bread as offerings

• Refresh your protection magicks, sigils & rituals

Samhain is about halfway between the autumnal equinox & winter solstice. It is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals along with Imbolc, Beltane, & Lughnasa. Historically it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland, & the Isle of Man. 

Samhain is believed to have Celtic pagan origins &  some Neolithic passage tombs in Great Britain & Ireland are aligned with the sunrise at the time of Samhain. It is mentioned in the earliest Irish literature, from the 9th century & is associated with many important events in Irish mythology.

The early literature says great gatherings & feasts marked Samhain when the ancient burial mounds were open, which were seen as portals to the Otherworld. Some of the literature also associates Samhain with bonfires & sacrifices.

• According to Irish mythology, Samhain (like Beltane) was a time when the 'doorways' to the Otherworld opened, allowing supernatural beings and the souls of the dead to come into our world; while Beltane was a summer festival for the living, Samhain "was essentially a festival for the dead".

•The festival was not recorded in detail until the early modern era. It was when cattle were brought down from the summer pastures & livestock were slaughtered. Special bonfires were lit, which were deemed to have protective & cleansing powers.

At Samhain, the aos sí were appeased with offerings of food & drink to ensure the people & livestock survived the winter. The souls of dead kin were also thought to revisit their homes seeking hospitality & a place was set at the table for them during a meal. Divination was also a big part of the festival & often involved nuts & apples.

Mumming & guising were part of the festival from at least the early modern era, whereby people went door-to-door in costume, reciting verses in exchange for food. The costumes may have been a way of imitating & disguising oneself from the aos sí. 

• In the late 19th century, John Rhys and James Frazer suggested it had been the "Celtic New Year", but that is disputed.

Some believe it is the time of The Goddess' mourning the death of The God until his rebirth at Yule. The Goddess' sadness can be seen in the shortening, darkening days & the arrival or cold weather.

Related festivals:

• Halloween( October 31st)-

In popular culture, the day has become a celebration of horror, being associated with the macabre and supernatural.

•One theory holds that many Halloween traditions were influenced by Celtic harvest festivals, particularly the Gaelic festival Samhain, which are believed to have pagan roots. Some go further & suggest that Samhain may have been Christianized as All Hallow's Day, along with its eve, by the early Church. Other academics believe Halloween began solely as a Christian holiday, being the vigil of All Hallow's Day.

Popular Halloween activities include trick-or-treating (or the related guising & ghouling), attending Halloween costume parties, carving pumpkins or turnips into jack-o'-lanterns, lighting bonfires, apple bobbing, divination games, playing pranks, visiting haunted attractions, telling scary stories, & watching horror or Halloween-themed films

• Day of the Dead(November 1st-2nd)-

 el Día de Muertos or el Día de los Muertos

The multi-day holiday involves family & friends gathering to pay respects & to remember friends & family members who have died. These celebrations can take a humorous tone, as celebrants remember amusing events & anecdotes about the departed. It is widely observed in Mexico, where it largely developed, and is also observed in other places, especially by people of Mexican heritage.

•The observance falls during the Christian period of Allhallowtide.

Traditions connected with the holiday include honoring the deceased using calaveras & marigold flowers known as cempazúchitl, building home altars called ofrendas with the favorite foods & beverages of the departed & visiting graves with these items as gifts for the deceased.

 The celebration is not solely focused on the dead, as it is also common to give gifts to friends such as candy sugar skulls, to share traditional pan de muerto with family & friends, & to write light-hearted & often irreverent verses in the form of mock epitaphs dedicated to living friends & acquaintances, a literary form known as calaveras literarias.

 Some argue that there are Indigenous Mexican or ancient Aztec influences that account for the custom & it has become a way to remember those forebears of Mexican culture.

• All Saint's Day(November 1st)- 

Also known as All Hallows' Day or the Feast of All Saints is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honour of all the saints of the Church, whether they are known or unknown.

Sources:

Farmersalmanac .com

Llewellyn's Complete Book of Correspondences by Sandra Kines

Wikipedia

A Witch's Book of Correspondences by Viktorija Briggs

Encyclopedia britannica

Llewellyn 2024 magical almanac Practical magic for everyday living

[punk-in-docs]

A song of brides and hounds: part III

— Emperor Geta x Reader (Salacia)

— 4.3k words.

— Read all parts here: Part I — Part II — Part III — Part IV

Summary: You were raised outside of this Rome. Born into peace. To know of fathomless deep seas, and skies so big, they wrapped around your whole sight. The way that at night all you can smell are lemon trees kissed by salt. The jasmine plants wound around the white walls of the villa. Salacia. And now you are sent to Rome for your father in the Senate. There you will catch the attention of Geta; in all the wrong and darkest of ways— any reblogs and comments are greatly appreciated 💙💙💙

TW: for this chapter - mainly violence and some gore, also Caracalla being a nasty little bitch -- enjoy!

The servant girls’ hands are kind.

They undress you softly, and handle you with such reverence. Strip from you the ruined stola and tend your wounds.

They wash your feet, ply your cuts with a herbal paste of yarrow and uva ursi, wrap you in bandages. They rub new sweet smelling oil onto your unwounded skin.

Pick off your old jewellery and finery to be discarded. Slip you out your shoes. Lay you bare. Stood before them in naught but your skin as they tend you.

One is wetting, oiling and combing your netted hair to silky serenity again. Another is cleaning the wound on your elbow. All traces of dirt - and your previous life along with it - slowly removed.

Stood you in a shallow golden tub of warm water that laps at your ankles. Milky with oils and soaps. They put rose petals in the water. You watch them swim and dip.

You beg for one of the girls to keep the fibulae broaches that held your now damned dress to your shoulders. Your very last essence of home. Venus was enshrined in those very broaches. They gave you hope. Carrying a small kind piece of goddess with you. Laying your devotion to the majesty of the ocean on your simple shoulders.

They guided you to rooms draped in blue and gold. Stars moulded on the ceiling with the ornate marble that drips from every wall and corner. Giving the false illusion of a night sky. The flat ceiling between them clouded with bursts and puffs of dark blue that indicated churning night clouds. Boundless skies. Endless seas.

It felt like showing all the maps of the world to a caged bird.

Soft feminine blues befit these chambers. Statues and devotion to goddesses crown the walls and doorways. Urns of large stemmed white flowers. One wall holds a table lined with a huge offering of fruits, dried and fresh. Some bread and cured meats and oiled small fish. And an amphora of wine and goblet for after your bathing.

The air in here is scented all floral herb and clean. Too clean. No hint of sea salt or dried weed that tumbles on the shore to bake in the sun. It’s unfamiliar.

The huge slab of the cushioned bed is draped with silks and gauzy canopy curtains the colour of dove feathers. You don’t want to look at it. You dread thinking what will happen in it tonight.

A large maw of balcony gapes at another side of the room. This shows you the wall of rain outside. The violent tumble of thunder that must be shaking the very hills and peoples of Rome.

You feel as if the sea is raging because you’ve been stolen from it. Now it seeks vengeance on the land. Lashing and storming mercilessly until you’re found. Back where you belong.

Unlikely. It will have to rage on.

You stand, undressed, unseeing. Uncaring for the wealth of the room you’ve been pulled into.

The maid behind you, Oriana, a sweet and silent blonde, is scooping your hair back from your neck to comb and ply it with vanilla and orchid oil. Dark sweet musk.

Geta had specifically requested it.

Your head servant is a maid called Aeliana.

She has an accent you can’t place. It’s pretty, her tone husky. She had wonderful raven hair spilling silky and free over her shoulders, eyes dark as cassia bark, almond shaped. Long lashes. The epitome of tranquil beauty.

The colour of her dress is different to the rest of them. Indicating her higher status. Rusty red and it readily compliments the natural darkness of her skin. She wore golden bangles threaded on each wrist, and her touch is cloud soft.

She has a scar that intersects down from the middle of her forehead, across her left eye and cheek and ends there. Skin twisted and healed shiny. An old wound. It makes her striking to look at.

Worse still; She catches you staring.

Lowers her eyes as she tended you. Layering the sticky wet herbal treatment to your wounded elbow.

“Does my appearance displease you, my lady?” She lapses into silence for a moment or two.

“If you’d prefer I could send for another handmaiden to come tend you-“ She asks. Not harshly. There’s a hint of shame to her tone.

You look to her. Fearful of offence.

“I am not displeased. Forgive me. To stare so openly is rude.��� You mutter. Eyes falling to your feet again. You watch rose petals sway on the water. You swallow thickly.

If she’s amused at your asking her, a servant, for forgiveness, she doesn’t show it. She calmly counters;

“You are Empress Salacia of Rome. You are allowed to stare at whomever you wish.” She tells you plainly.

Your eyes water. You bite inside your lower lip before you respond.

Not yet I’m not. And I don’t want to be.

“How came you by the scar?” You ask. Knowing full well you won’t like the answer. She gently washed your shoulder with a cloth.

“The Emperor.” She tells frankly.

At your doe eyed expression of horror she elucidates.

“Not Emperor Geta. His brother, Caracalla. Emperor Geta’s temper may be foul and quick to boil. But, Caracalla he is… far crueler.” She explains.

Your mouth purses into a thin line.

Oriana has finished oiling your hair. Now she was styling it into waves. Decorated with ornaments of netted gold. Geta requested it down as opposed to the normal bridal style. Emperors have what they want.

“What was the reason…” You sought. Fearing the answer.

“I was too slow in bringing his wine one night.” She offers. Plucking a vial of oil from the side table and coming back to rub it into your bare arms.

You squeeze your eyes closed. Ignore the tickle of tears that threaten your scrunched eyelids.

This is the savage world you must inhabit now. Try to navigate with sharper hungrier teeth and deadlier instinct. You don’t feel ready. You must become lionhearted and fierce. Carry knives. Be ruthless.

You hear your mothers reverent voice in your head. Sweet sea child. You were not made that way.

“I am sorry for your pain. Aeliana. But I am grateful for your warning.” You decide.

She nods. “I thank the goddess’ for you. Empress.” She smiles at you.

Before going to the side to fetch your tunica recta, and the belt you’d wear on your waist in a knot of hercules. Which tradition dictated only Geta was allowed to undo.

Your husband.

You wince. Aueliana notices.

“Your majesty?” She seeks. Sensing your unease.

“I am nervous.” You tell her. You confide your worry in this woman with kind eyes and soft hands.

“It is expected of a bride to be nervous.” She awards you.

“I’m not a normal bride.” You confirm fearfully. She can see them shaking in your gaze. Threatening to breach your lash line.

She nods in understanding. You’re sure they all knew. The reason that placed you here. Spread like wildfire on dry plains through the servant halls.

“I know little of managing a husband. Of… starting a family.”

“If I may, your majesty. Your family is a noble one, yes?” She asks.

You nod. You lived in one of the richest houses in Corsica. You were never lacking in money or ribbons and new jewels. But at best you were a senators daughter. Not the ideal stock for an Emperors wife. Not the type to be governing one great nation.

“My grandmother is a well known seer in these parts. A healer. Purveyor of white magic. Many a time she has seen things that have yet to come to pass…” She explains as she wraps the belt around your waist. Speaking as she does.

“She foretold your arrival. Said the future of Rome would be written by rain and storm, when blood spills on the ancient serpent stone.”

Serpent. Synonymous with the Traitor. Two faced and shedding skin. Blood spilling, the death of your Brother. Rain on the rocks- this storm hammering down. You can’t believe it.

“What if Rome is your destiny?” She explains. Her voice kind and brave as the candles flicker and the storm rages on.

“Then I pray the goddess’ convey me the strength to survive it.”

“I will pray too.” She takes your hand. It feels like kinship.

They stepped you out of the tub and began to pat you dry with cloths and then dress you.

With each pass of their hands wiping the water from your skin, it removed you further and further from yourself.

Aeliana rubs a sweet balm like texture onto your pebbled nipples before she robes you. Said it was to increase your fertility. She also lines your eyes with burnt kohl.

They pulled your dress on around you. Let it fall into beautiful waves. You stood sedately and let them manoeuvre you.

Your skin positively draped with as much fragrant oil as it could take. Anointed with your new life as it drips off you in unbearable sweetness. Decorations not of your choosing put into your hair, on your ears, around your neck, on your arms. Strangled by someone else’s finery.

Slid fine golden sandals onto your feet. Aeliana brought a flame red veil and pinned it in place over your head. It floated down to your shoulders. Securing a crown of myrtle flowers over it.

It may have been gauzy fabric; rich and fine. But it felt like iron to you. Iron veil and a crown of thorns.

When they finish readying you, they bow and leave you alone to eat the fresh bread and fruits. Drink the sweet wine. Night closes in around you.

You didn’t ever picture the night before your wedding being like this. Alone and noiseless save for rain. You pictured the noise and gaiety of your sisters, dancing in their fine dresses. How they’d carry golden stalks of wheat to signify your prosperous marriage - how it would bear fruit. Be blessed by gods and fortune.

Your mother would bind your hands to the man you’d marry. To the man you’d love.

And you are here. Miserable in cold indifference. Clothed in perfumed oil and silence. With only your dour thoughts for company.

You pick at your offering of food. Feeling the milky eyes of those female deity marble statues watching you carefully. Judging. Maybe even disappointed.

When the doors next shudder open as the guards outside push them open, a divine older woman comes striding slowly, surely, into the room. Confidence woven into her steps like the very fine lavender purple cloth folded around her shoulders. A beautiful sage green palla. Her hair is dark and braided masterfully on her head. Shot through with bolts of silver.

You recognise her from coins. From statues. The Dowager Empress of Rome. Julia Domna.

She looks wise as Minerva. Goddess of education indeed. All of Rome had heard tale of not only her beauty, but her mind. Sharp as an arrowhead. A gentle mediator between her rabid sons.

Out of sheer politesse and nerves, you bolt out your seat and bow your head to her. Words shrivel on your tongue. Royalty is stood before you. Here you are plucked from the dungeons. You feel unworthy.

“Rise, my child.” She bids you. Holding out a hand laid with jewels on nearly every finger. Standing before you. Close enough to discern some of your beauty through the veil.

She examines you. Not unkindly. The way you’d expect a mother to examine the vessel that will carry her sons legacy. She’s discerning.

“Let me see my sons choice then…” she bids. Hands crossed in front of her, diplomatically, as she lets her deep set, serious eyes become acquainted with all of you.

Choice? Or chattel?

She walks around you. Eyes your hair. Your build. Your hips. The way you’ve been presented like a prized sacrificial swine before the crowds on Saturnalia.

And she doesn’t appear to find you lacking

“Goodness. You really are beautiful.” She says. It sounds mournful. Introspective. As if she didn’t intend on you hearing it.

“He’s made a fine choice.” She lauded

“Corsica, I hear you hail from?”

“Yes, Dowager.”

“I want to know one thing.” She says. Voice hard as newly forged steel. A shiver runs your spine. So she could be terrifying if she wishes.

“Are you a traitor against Rome?” She demands. “There are spies who would conspire to align themselves with this great house, under false guises, to murder my sons.” She speaks, crossly. Eyes aflame.

She has bite after all. Lions teeth and knows full well how to use them.

“I am no spy. I am not a murderer I have no guise. Like you. I only want to protect those whom I love.” You answer calmly. Placid easy waves. Gently now.

She smiles. Though something curious still lurks in her eyes.

“Then we are on the same page.” She awards slyly. You feel as if you’ve passed a test.

Her smile crooks on one side. Relieved.

She turns to the doors. The great sway of her earrings are big as chandeliers as she moves. Stunning gold. Bands of gold also cross her well formed upper arms. Every inch a woman of gentility and riches. She is perfumed with lavender. Oil made from dried plants fetched all the way from purple fields in Aquitania.

“My son grows impatient to see his bride. Come. Salacia. It is time.” She offers her arm to you.

Apparently your destiny lays in wait.

~

The wedding was a short and simple affair. The Dowager Empress led you to the grand rooms where they were to be held.

Grand, just like the rest of this humongous sprawling palace.

When you see Geta, he is clad in so much gold and armour. A blinding white cloak draped off his form. Armour golden. Carved with gods and victorious hero’s of battle. Golden laurel crown adorns his head. His smile at the sight of you makes you blush with attention.

You are suddenly grateful for the veil. It manages to hide you from every stranger in this room. You can make out Caracalla. Some other senators. Other guests you’ve no idea who.

The celebrant, a rather portly priest, ordered the evil spirits away. Asked for the fire spirits to bless you. He invoked Janus to watch over you from single people to a joined couple. New beginnings.

When it is time, he takes your hand and carefully threads an engagement ring on your finger. It is weighty, pure gold. An imitation of two dog heads joined together. A round sapphire cradled between their mouths. As if they’re fighting for it.

Remus and Romulus. It reminds you of him already.

You dare to meet his eyes as he does it. He looks ravenous. Umbra catching you where you stand. Swallows you whole. You don’t think you can get used to it yet.

“Wherever you go, there also go I, as your wife.” You speak.

The dowager Empress binds your hands together with blood red linen as the rest of the vows are read. The way his fingers turn and grip the inside of your forearm - firm pressing, hot like a brand - it makes you shiver.

Then comes the time for the marriage to be sealed with a kiss. Hands freed.

Your stomach is squirming unpleasantly as your stranger of a groom steps forwards to lift your veil. When he lifts the red gauze from your vision, you keep your eyes lowered until the last moment.

You feel the urging of his eyes. You could hear the fierce nature of his words as if he’d spoken.

Look at me. Salacia.

He looks entirely too boastful. His perfect little nymph. Caught and landed at last.

Hepulled you in by your waist. Locked his hand around your back. Gave you a kiss that was certainly gentler than before. Softness of his lips was maddening when the rest of him was all armour and metal. But you still felt the edge of his teeth on your lower lip. Bursting new pain from where it had split.

It was official. You had been dragged out a golden net cast in the sea. And now property of the Emperor of Rome.

You had no time to let your thoughts wander. There’s been quite the celebration planned for after. He walks beside you as congratulations ripple around you from nobles, senators, generals and high officials of the courts.

You ignore the way Caracalla sneers a particularly vile look your way when you pass him. Plotting.

You are lead to an opulent triclinium. Open to one huge side, guarded by pillars, which overlooked a garden where fountains trickled and plants bloom even in the storm that’s still brewing. Spitting rain on the landscape.

There are torches at the sides of the rooms, huge bowls boasting orange flames that lick at the walls, and freshly plucked flowers, still green branches and fronds sit in urns to the side. Filling the room with petals and heady nectar scent.

There’s a huge swarm of lectus’ in the centre of the room. Bronze laid with cushions. All pointing towards a huge table were bread and wine goblets awaited. You’re not used to how the room echoes. Unused to the sheer amount of people and formality that fills it.

The wine is poured freely by silent servants who sweep in and out. Some of them carrying plates as huge as carriage wheels. A whole roasted boar with grapes spilling out its mouth is brought in. Trays upon trays of cooked moray eels, cod and oiled anchovies. A whole platter of stewed nightingale birds, arranged around stalks of herbs and plums.

There’s fruit and bread the like of which you’ve not seen before. White bowls filled with cut purple figs and waxy oranges. Apples and yellow golden pears on tiered stands. Grapes and dried apricots heaped in dishes. It’s dazzling. So much wealth thrust before you.

You have a cup of sweet honey wine and take some of the unleavened bread. Watching as others around you gorge and toast with their goblets. Drinking strong wine and telling jokes and bawdy stories.

You feel disjointed from it all. You feel the Emperors eyes pass over you. The dowagers too. You are a source of mystery and intrigue.

Plucked from misfortune and placed here at the feet of gods.

You do feel when your new husband slides some pieces of fruit, or fresh breads onto your plate. A small bunch of sweet red grapes. His head may be cocked to conversation in this room. But his attention remains somewhat on you.

“Eat. Wife. I do not wish to force you.” He commands you. Prodding food and more wine in your direction.

Nursing his own cup and barking at the servants when he wanted more. You know his tongue must be stained with the taste by now. Sour purple. You wonder if you’ll taste it later in another of his animalistic kisses.

It feels like there is a boulder in your stomach. You swallow. You sip. You try to breathe. It all feels too restricted.

“Refill my wife’s cup.” Geta demands of the nearest servant. You flinch at his cutting commands.

You meet the servants eyes for a second and flicker them a smile. They look to the ground as they fill your cup. Their poor hands shake. You thank them. They don’t respond.

You’ve a feeling his plying you with wine has more than one ulterior motive. To make you loosen. Make you pliant. Make you slip down easier in his crushing grip.

“I have no appetite.” You admit weakly.

You can’t stomach the way the fat on the meat before you glistens. These poor stewed birds with clipped wings. The gutted boar. Glistening fat and dead meat. Same as the way of those poor flayed men in the coliseum.

Butchered animals. One and the same. The way blood sprayed out on the biscuit brown dirt under the sun. The way viscera glistened bright when spilled free from once living flesh. How these animals looked served on a platter. There’s no difference.

You take some grapes. Pick them from the vine. Bite into some apricots. The fruit rots on your palate. Fine sugary flesh and it bursts on your tongue like ripe putrefaction. You place it gently back on your plate.

“Do they not have fruit in Corsica?” He asks. It’s vaguely mocking.

“We had lemon trees in the gardens. An olive tree in the courtyard. Over 200 years old.” You state quietly. Not taking your eyes off the plate in front of you. You picked and prodded at it.

“You have more now. You are Empress. You have anything you want.” He impressed on you.

“I miss the ocean. The sun on the shoreline. My sisters.” You mutter.

“Don’t risk sounding ungrateful.” He threatens.

Geta followed the path of your reluctant hand with his eyes. He then scans across all of his guests. People of the senate. Rich merchants. Fellow royalty.

They come to snipe and drink wine and watch this new wedded spectacle.

“They are all dull.” Geta decided.

You wonder if the only source of amusement he could delight at was seeing people being beaten to black and blue paste in the coliseum. To have to see the spray of blood to feel something.

“They are intrigued. Their Emperor has placed a traitor in his marriage bed.” You comment.

Geta turned to you. “That sounds like treason to my ears.” A warning.

“Perhaps.” You answered. Boldly.

“But is it inaccurate? It is what they are all thinking.” You add. “You’ve wedded yourself to someone disloyal. Someone who is not their kind. They are curious.”

Geta scans his eyes over everyone again. Their laughter. The flow of wine. The way they stab and cut into food and fruit like they’re half starved. None of them quite meet your eyes.

Perhaps they don’t wish too.

His hand finds the meat of your thigh. Flesh firm and warm.

“They will believe what I tell them too. Wife. You only need worry about your loyal duty to me. Nothing else.” He makes clear.

You go back to pushing bits of fruit around your plate. Taking no more sustenance.

“No doubt you are unused to such finery.” Caracalla pipes up. Seeing you toy with your food. “I wonder what they eat in Corsica. Peasants sea food?”

You meet Caracalla’s eyes across the tables and mountains of rich food.

Getas eyes were dark. Fired by lust for you. That’s what you saw in them when he looked at you.

The same could not be said for Caracalla.

You saw nothing. Just darkness and his love of cruelty. Geta unnerved you. But it was Caracalla who scared you most. It was like gazing into a tomb. A bare skull eye socket. You’re certain nothing but darkness refracted back. Splintered twisted darkness. The purest distilled form of malice.

“Perhaps you are jealous, brother. The fact that I will have heirs meant for the future of the empire. And you will… not.” He snaps. Petulant.

“If she makes it that far.” Caracalla sneers. Daggering a smile right at you. A sneer that make you feel cold. He’s twirling a dagger in his other hand. Eyeing you with sick lustful interest.

He wants your goodness too. He wants it so he can spoil you for himself and ruin Getas legitimacy. By whatever means necessary. Geta has cruelly inserted you into this feud.

“And who’s to say the heir will be yours… who knows where her eyes will stray.” He jabs. Eyes widening as he leers.

Geta stabs into his food. Glaring at his smaller twin all the while. Eyes dark as shadow cloaked black jewels.

When some servants near you move from pouring wine, the sight of the persons impeded by them, slowed your world to a halt, ringing gongs in your ears when you caught sight of someone you recognized.

Macrinus.

The food in your mouth turns to ash which you can hardly stomach swallowing. Your gaze locked on the man as he lays content at your wedding feast. Drinking wine and roaring laughter with Caracalla. Garbed in robes of rich Aquarian blue trimmed with gold pattern.

Exactly the gracious easy way he had been when he dined with you and your father in his home.

His smile remains as he locks eyes with you. And raises his glass in a toast in your direction. You hear him drink to your new name with a blazing smirk aimed your way. “Empress.”

You mumble a pithy excuse. You don’t know if anyone hears you or if they’ll even look up from their plates when you get up and rush to leave.

Caracalla snorts as you race from the room on the verge of tears.

“She’s a flighty one. Your Empress. So full of tears.” Caracalla comments loudly. Cruelly. Turning his head to meet the acid stare of his brother - and the Dowager Empress as she lowers her goblet from her lips. Eyes cool as metal.

“Maybe if you shoved your cock into your broodmare, brother, as you doubtless plan to do this night. Maybe that would settle her down? Or maybe a good beating from the guards will see her right, make her see her place… maybe let a few of the guards bend her over a lectus and see to her first? Loosen her up a little for your uses.”

“Caracalla. Enough.” The dowager snaps. Lightning power in her voice. Tone fashioned from a fury storms could envy. Her dark eyes glow with it.

She turns to Geta and lays a gentle pacifying hand to his arm. “See to your bride, dear. She looked unwell.”

Geta sighs a snarl. Glaring at his brother as he does as mother suggested.

She watches him leave. Turns to her other son with barely concealed ire.

Caracalla snorts into his wine with the other guests. Making sneering, high handed remarks.

“Such marital bliss.” He mocks to the guests. Twirling his favourite silver dagger in his other hand. Laughing as he played with the dead meats on his plate with a sneer. His tooth winked golden in the light.

~

Tagging in the hopes this finds its way to the right people- thank you--

@ceriseheaven @lurkingprincess @ramona-thorns @joequinnswhore @iliveforotps @eddiesskittle @roosterisdaddy36 @rose-tinted @lluviamg06 @ravensfromvalhalla @fujiihime @youaremyfamiliar @captain-tch @ghosttownwherenoonegoes @svenyves @sammararaven @feralgoblinbabe @groupie-love-71 @andromeda-andromeda @gvtosbith @munsonswhoresposts2 @shenevertricks1831 @hazzaismyreligion @anaisweird @cinnamoncunt @red-lipstick-bisexual @wheels-of-despair @tvserie-s-world @callmeloverr @ho-for-joequinn-fics @bettyfrommars @rip-quizilla @songforeddiemunson @usedtobecooler @peachesandfiends @littlelioncub43 @heyndrix @babybluebex @blueywrites @joejoequinnquinn @cool-nick-miller @sheneedsrocknroll92 @rehfan @pedgito @dracomaledicte @gamingaquarius @mypoisonedvine @sharp-and-swift @chaptersleftunwritten

[cosmos-within]

Herbs and Uses (N-Y)

Oatstraw (c/s): Money, Rejuvenate, Clarity

Olive Leaf (whole or c/s): Abundance, Peace, Protection

Orange Peel (c/s) : Love, Luck, Money

Oregano (c/s): Vitality, Energy, Joy

Parsley (flakes): Money, Luck, Protection

Passion flower (c/s): Money, Attract Friends, Diffuse Tension

Patchouli (c/s): Money, Love, Fertility

Pau d'arco (c/s): Protection, Strength, Dispel Negativity

Peach Blossom (whole flowers): Love, Abundance, Renewal

Peony (crushed petals): Money, Luck, Success

Peppermint (c/s): Purification, Abundance, Clarity

Pine Needle (c/s): Protection, Purification, Rejuvenation

Plantain (c/s): Protection, Grounding, Manifestation

Plumeria (crushed petals): New Beginnings, Strength, Creativity

Poppy seed (whole): Sleep, Fertility, Luck

Quassia (chips): Love, Money, Happiness

Raspberry Leaf (c/s): Fertility, Love, Protection

Red Clover (c/s): Money, Purification, Positive Energy

Rooibos (c/s): Relaxation, Healing, Vitality

Rose (crushed petals): Love, Luck, Harmony

Rosehips: Good Fortune, Love, Protection

Rosemary (c/s): Love, Protection, Money

Rue (ruta, c/s): Protection, Uncrossing, Counter Magick

Sarsaparilla (c/s): Love, Money, Health

Saw Palmetto (powder): Passion, Vitality, Lust

Senna Leaf (c/s): Purification, Release, Transformation

Shepherd’s Purse (c/s): Protection, Money, Healing

Solomon Seal (c/s): Protection, Success, Counter Magick

Spearmint (c/s): Healing, Love, Mental Powers

St. John’s Wort (c/s): Protection, Banishing, Blessing

Star Anise (c/s): Luck, Protection, Psychic Awareness

Strawberry Leaf (c/s): Success, Luck, Purification

Tansy (c/s): Rebirth, Longevity, Protection

Uva Ursi (c/s, leaf): Divination, Knowledge, Inner Peace

Valerian Root (c/s): Protection, Diffuse Tension, Counter Magick

Vervain (c/s): Love, Protection, Prosperity

Violet (whole flowers): Wealth, Creativity, Wisdom

White Clover (c/s): Abundance, Luck, Love

White Oak Bark (c/s): Success, Good Fortune, Uncrossing

White Pine Bark (c/s): Money, Luck, Protection

White Sage (c/s): Purification, Cleansing, Protection

White Willow Bark (c/s): Happiness, Friendship, Intuition

Wild Cherry Bark (c/s): Divination, Love, Luck

Wormwood (c/s): Protection, Uncrossing, Counter Magick

Yarrow (c/s): Luck, Love, Warding

Yerba Mate (c/s): Clarity, Focus, Connection

[blackswallowtailbutterfly]

My Garden Flowers Part 9

All photos mine.

In order of appearance:

241. Wild Yam (Dioscorea villosa) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

242. Nodding Wakerobin (Trillium flexipes) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

243. Moss campion (Silene acaulis) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

244. Great White Trillium (Trillium grandiflora) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

245. Yellow Wood-Sorrel (Oxalis stricta) Small yellow flowers. You often find them growing as weeds, but they're native at least to the northern USA bordering southern Ontario. The leaves, flowers, and fruits are a very lovely snack, with a tart refreshing flavour.

246. Horseweed (Erigeron canadensis) A fairly common garden weed, but native so she can stay where she pops up from time to time. Not pictured as I haven't got pictures.

247. Stiff Goldenrod (Oligoneuron rigida) Not pictured as I haven't got pictures yet.

248. Fourflower Loosestrife (Lysimachia quadriflora) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

249. Smallflower Forgetmenot (Myosotis laxa) At least I think. Her flowers are certainly much smaller than the European pink and blue species I see around. Not sure what else she'd be.

250. Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

251. Tall Meadow-Rue (Thalictrum pubescens) Yet more lacy white flowers! I imagine if you preferred white you could have a full native garden of such.

252. Northern Bog Violet (Viola nephrophylla) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

253. Wool Grass (Scirpus cyperinus) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

254. Prairie Milkweed (Asclepias sullivantii) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

255. Square-Stemmed Monkeyflower (Mimulus ringens) More leggy than her yellow cousin, but still very attractive flowers that look a lot like snapdragons. She needs things moist.

256. Pawpaw (Asimina triloba) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

257. Meadow Sundrops (Oenothera pilosella) Not quite as intensely yellow as her cousins, Oenothera biennis and Oenothera fruticosa, but still very bright.

258. Wood Lily (Lilium philadelphicum) We don't have a ton of red or orange flowers native here as compared to yellow, white, or pink/purple flowers, so each one is a treat.

259. Virginia Waterleaf (Hydrophyllum virginianum) Yet more lacy white flowers! Not complaining, though, I think they're lovely in the garden. You find these growing in shaded woods.

260. Woodland Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) Unlike her cousin in the front, this one produces lots of berries...but they're white! That's not usual for the species but not unheard of. It's kind of fun to pick little white strawberries each year from that patch.

261. Pickerelweed (Pontederia cordata) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

262. Bog Rosemary (Andromeda polifolia) This is a cultivar. I will have the wild type one day.

263. Strict Blue-Eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium montanum) Her cousin in the front prefers things dry, but this one, like many members of her family (irises), prefers things moist. It was actually easier to get her to take than the dry one, though, which I had three failed attempts at before the one I planted last year.

264. Downy Yellow Violet (Viola pubescens) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

265. Purplestem Angelica (Angelica atropurpurea) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

266. Wrinkleleaf Goldenrod (Solidago rugosa) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

267. Purple Giant Hyssop (Agastache scrophulariifolia) Not pictured as I haven't got pictures yet.

268. Buffaloberry (Shepherdia canadensis) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

269. Silverberry (Elaeagnus commutata) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

270. White Lettuce (Nabalus albus) Not pictured as she hasn't flowered yet.

[dire-vulture]

Whistle (he/him) - Hallow (he/him)

Albion (any) - Uva-ursi (they/she/he)

Vote for Florabrisa's best bears 🐻🏳️‍🌈!!! There will be 8 polls today in groups of 4 dragons, and the winner of each will move on to the next day!

[madamlaydebug]

Building a relationship with the plants and listening to them, is the guidance to exactly what we need for wholesome health 🌹

All herbs and plants hold a spirit, and are at different levels of spiritual development - which makes the healing property of one plant more or less potent than another.

Nature gave us everything we need to stay balanced and in harmony with it 💚🍃🍄‍🟫

🌾There is an herb for every organ in the body🌾

🧠brain: tulsi, blue vervain, gotu kola, lemon balm

🩵kidneys: sarsaparilla, burdock, dandelion root, uva ursi

🫁lungs: mullein, comfrey, plantain leaf, sage

🫀heart: hibiscus, hawthorn, ginger

🤎colon: cascara sagrada, senna, rhubarb

💜liver: dandelion root, milk thistle, turmeric, rooibos, licorice

💛stomach: marshmallow root, slippery elm, mugwort

❤️reproductive: damiana, red clover, red raspberry, yohimbe, astragalus root, yarrow

☘️Nature is our healer❤️‍🩹

[opalescent-apples]

Need to talk about my latest SDV farmer

Coiriel (AKA: Koi)

She/They/He (doesn't know it yet)

Personality: Outgoing, Bold

Favorite

I'm playing a combo of the Dwarven Expansion, Easy Scarp, Better Things, and Cape Stardew. I also added the "raising sea animals" and "legendary fish ponds".

Basically my farmer is an aquatic adventurer named Coiriel. She was an Undine, a water elemental, before she decided to do what her grandpa did and go on land.

To do this, they found the closest thing they could to a sea witch: a man in a starry black suit with skin bluer than the water and thick glasses, as well as a magnificent hat. Coiriel chose their human form to look like him, even if it meant sticking out.

Unfortunately being a human means you need to make a living, which meant a job at Joja corp. Eventually this made him so bored he remembered his grandpa's letter and fled to Stardew Valley. Much better! Living near the riverland, raising his favorite crabs and squid!

(They do not know they are nonbinary yet. Mr. Qi gave them so much gender envy but they still haven't realized it.)

Closest Friends:

Vanilla: Clint, Emily, Leah, Willy

Cape Stardew: Annetta, Jelli (haven't met them yet but I already love them)

East Scarp: Lexi (Best friend!), Nora, Goatherd, Rosa

Potential Spouses (Using the poly mod)

Vanilla: Abigail, Elliot, Krobus (roommate)

East Scarp: Luckiel, Sen, Jacob

Dwarven Expansion: Dwarf (Roommate)

Loved gifts:

Non-Food: "Hell yeah, free treasure! Thanks, friend!" (Married: thanks, love).

Food: "Ooh, you know all my favorite snacks! You're the sweetest!"

Crab, Crab Cakes, Treasure Chest, Diamond, Banana Pudding, Nautilus Shell, Seafoam Pudding, Purple Mushroom, Ginger Ale, All Water Jellies, All Universal Loves except Rabbits Foot (dislike)

(Modded items:

Cape Stardew: Green Tea Mochi, Uva Ursi, Totoro Plush

East Scarp: Rosa's Baklava, Bear Muffin, Summer Pink Lemonade

Dwarven Expansion: Infused Dwarven Spirits, Lava Eel Pie, Iridium Crab Egg, Sunlight Elixir, All Jewelry

Better Things: Blueberry Muffin, Onigiri)

Hated Gifts: "You have five seconds to get that thing away from me."

Kale Only: "This is the worst thing to come out of Stardew Valley."

Kale, Parsnip, Snow Yam, Roots Platter, Coral, Crayfish, Poppyseed Muffin, Shrimp Cocktail, Wild Horseradish, Oil of Garlic, Spiceberry, All Universal Hates (Except Broken Glasses and Broken CDs-liked, and Water Jellies-loved)

(Modded Items

Cape Stardew: Shavegrass Herb

East Scarp: Jelly Cheese Toast, Rosa's Spanakopita

Dwarven Expansion: Repulsive Tonic, Ore Dust

Better Things: Heart Fruit)

[jennaflare]

guess who got an 89/75 on their plant ID test B)

[yrfavpuppyboi]

hii! this is probably a weird Q, but do you know of any blends of herbs that give a similar effect to weed?

i'm tryna cut back bc that shit expensive

(˶╥︿╥) thank u!!!!

Okii so it sort of depends on what type of effect from the weed you want specifically cuz of course people get different types of weeds to have different effects. But some of my favs that have similar (though definitely more mild) effects are Blue Lotus petals (which creates a euphoric feeling, its mildly psychoactive. I think its the closest personally and you can get it on etsy, just be sure to get food grade or organic to insure its safe to smoke) Uva Ursi is another that gives a euphoric feeling and a slight head high. Mugwort can give you a calming feeling and so can lavender. I think my go to blend is blue lotus, uva ursi, a bit of mullin (which is good for lung health and i have asthma lol. The mullin is optinal but i also think it makes it burn smoother) and a bit of either mint or rose for a bit of flavor. But i recommend just doing a bit or research! There a lot of resources on line, a quick google of 'smokeable herbs that arent weed' youll probably find some information :)

[nuovamagia]

Spell Jar for Weightloss Success

I've been seriously focusing on my health and losing weight, especially to start planning for trying to conceive with my husband, but one step at a time. I preformed this spell on Saturday(1), June 1st(2)

I couldn't find my bag of spices and herbs so I settled to use different types of tea for my ingredients.

Ingredients:

-Lipton Tea - Enticing Chai (Black tea, cinnamon, Allspice, ginger, black pepper, cloves)

-Traditional Medicinals- Organic Weightless Cranberry tea (fennel, red clover, uva ursi, parsley, cleavers, hibiscus, chicory root, cranberry, stevia)

-Pukka- Cleanse tea (nettle, fennel, peppermint)

-Lavender from a bridesmaid gift from a friends wedding two years ago.

-Coffee- Chock Full o' Nuts French Roast

Cleansed the jar and ingredients and area with sandalwood (I believe it was sandalwood) and Dragonsblood incense

Outside jar:

-An "energy" candle (bought at dollar tree)- Mandarin and Neroli scents- white

-Bourbon barrel pumpkin candle (from walmart)--orange

Accompanied stones used:

-Carnelian

-Blue Apatite

-Phantom Amethyst

-Green Aventurine

1)) Saturday is named after the planet and god Saturn. Therefore everything Saturn rules is appropriate for magick on Saturdays including self improvement and transformation, knowledge-seeking, time, evaluating one’s personal values, banishing negativity and bad habits, etc. Saturday Magic Correspondences: Magical Intentions: knowledge, values/morals, time, banishing, self transformation, psychic defense, meditation, locating lost items or people, self defense, liberation source ...Apprehension, Banishment, Binding, Boundaries, Caution, Cleansing,...Destruction of All that Does Not Serve,....Fortune, Freedom,...Hope, Limitations,...Longevity, Meditation, Overcoming Obstacles, Protection, Psychic Defense, Revealing Truth, Self-Discipline, Spiritual Communication source

2)) Why is the first of the month important in spellcasting? Truly, we can look at the first day of the month as being the door to the rest of the month. If we cast spells for prosperity and protection on this day, it starts us out on the “right foot” on this month’s journey, doesn’t it? Source