Tag Archives: Florida Water

Crushing Taboos! – Your Cards are Marked

Once upon a time I used to have an almost photographic memory (as long as it was on a subject I cared about). When taking exams I could close my eyes and see the text I wanted to recall on the page in the book, like an picture in my mind. That got me through more than one or two tough exams I tell you! When arguing on the internet because somebody was wrong I knew exactly where I had read something and would often send the long suffering husbeast to find the book which would help me win an argument with a blase comment like – “its on the fourth shelf down about 6 books in from the left, it’s on a right hand page about a 3rd of the way through” I was rarely (if ever) wrong.

My personal “marked deck”

Thing is to achieve this feat I needed to see the thing first laid out in front of me and when I got serious about the Tarot I struggled to make the connect between the elemental attributions and the astrology associated with certain cards because most decks don’t include the symbolism for these attributions in their designs. In fairness I’ve got lazy now and I would still really have to wrinkle my nose and squint hard before I could tell you that the 2 of Swords was Moon in Libra, but is partly because I hit upon a thing that changed my tarot reading forever and literally levelled me up by an order of magnitude. I started writing on my decks.

For me cards are just that, cards. OK there are now a few exceptions in my collection. Items that were created and consecrated in a talismanic way. But for the most part our decks are mass produced objects, it’s what we do with them that makes them special, so writing on them when you first get them isn’t a no-no in my world. So when I get a new deck the first thing I do now is mark the astrology, elemental and sometimes even keyword associations. With my main “working” deck which I use for the clients I work with on the lines I even properly write on the cards, new ideas, thoughts for new associations etc. My cards quite literally become a book of mysteries.

Annotated Etteilla II from the Hexen Museum

And yet this practise is often frowned upon, considered a basic or beginners move, although goodness knows why. So although I teach my students to do this its not something I publicise very often. Until now that is. Last year I read an interview with Wicca Meier Spring in the Esotoracle magazine about the Hexen Museum in Switzerland and its collections of rare cards. One deck a Grand Etteilla II discussed was of particular interest, it had once belonged to Mde. Moreau a student of the infamous Mlle Lenormand, it is heavily hand annotated. In fact if you look at other decks from the same stable, the Grande or the Petit Etteilla all have writing and keywords on the Trumps, Pips and Courts. This isn’t a new concept. The Queen of Pentacles for example is “La Femme de Campagne” – the country woman, which gives a great new view on that particular Queen don’t you think? but I digress.

Benebells Golden Universal

The Universe often likes to tell me that it’s got my back when I do heretical things, so shortly after I read the article about the Etteilla deck, whilst debating if I would go “public” as it were I was doom scrolling social media and a Youtube video caught my eye. The esteemed Benebell Wen with a deck of marked cards eschewing the benefits of adding – with a sharpie no less – correspondences to your cards.  If it’s good enough for her, then it’s good enough for me. So now I don’t fret too much who sees my cards and I push the joys of card marking even more to my students. Go on do it, you won’t regret it, well unless its on some uber rare 1st edition – then I’d probably stay your hand; but for a mass produced deck hey what could go wrong if you bungle it one of two things will happen, it will be a laminated or plasticised card so with a bit of good old Florida water and a tissue you can quickly wipe away your mistake with minimal damage OR you just buy another blimmin deck.

Let me know how you get on

 

 

 

 

Thanks to both Benebell Wen and Wicca Meier-Spring who gave me permission to use thier images. I am very grateful x

Got a Problem? Try Florida Water!

I have a problem, I am addicted to Florida water. I am starting to think that the next time someone asks me what key tool a beginning witch “must have”, I am going to reply “Murray & Lanmans”. Got a spot? Dab on Florida Water. Want to spritz some sheets at the cheap motel you’re staying in? Florida Water is your guy. Energy feel funky after your Mother in Law has left the building? Can’t go far wrong with Florida water. Need to cleanse a item before you put it on an Altar? Yes you guessed it, in fact you may as well use it to wash the Altar down whilst your at it. Got a noisy spirit? Florida water, Florida water, Florida Water.

It is part of my every day routine, when I get up in the morning before I sit down to work I spritz my entire working area to get rid of anything that might be hanging round from the day before. I even clean my glasses with it before I start writing, and as I rub making sure those lenses are squeaky clean I focus on seeing through any illusion and working with clear sight. Possibly a little new age, but it works for me and its a consistent and focussed spiritual hygiene routine. Something that so many people fail to do and yet is so fundamentally important. Waiting until your all grubbied up with spiritual gunk (and I have done it myself so this tiny nag is coming from a place of experience and love) just makes it so much harder to get truly clean when the proverbial hits the fan, so why not do a little everyday?

I have a bottle on my desk and a bottle in my handbag, wherever I go I pick up unique brands and handmade bottles.

I have a bottle on my desk and a bottle in my handbag, when I visit new countries, metaphysical shops and conferences I will snag unique brands and handmade potions, often designating certain bottles for very specific purposes because I know it’s highly unlikely I will manage to get hold of the stuff again. There are probably dozens of recipes available online to make your own, if you are that way inclined (like here *) but I am forever the lazy witch and I do like to support independent businesses.

What I do though, for the stuff I use daily is doctor the mass produced stuff which I buy from Ebay. It adds a little bit of my own personal zing to the mix.  Even my husband who hates all my “pongy stuff” like fragranced candles, incenses and joss sticks likes my Florida water. Now that is saying something.

The recipe is very simple and you can adapt it as you see fit or even for specific purposes:

  • 3 parts Florida water (I make small batches so I am looking at about 9 fl. Oz)
  • 1 part good quality Rose water (3 fl oz.)
  • A good handful of Mugwort (Artemisia Vulgaris) preferably the flowers, I would like to be specific but I can’t, its sort of how I feel at the time.
  • A dozen drops of lemongrass essential oil.
  • A six drops of Frankincense oil.

Shake well together and bottle it up into a spritz (I leave the mugwort in to infuse – it does sometimes block the spritz tube but a quick shake normally sorts it).

NOTE: When I first started using Florida water I have to confess I was a little nervous about telling people that I was doing it. People get jumped on for appropriation all the time on the internet. I don’t know what it is about the internet but it just brings out the worst in people. Anyway I came across people in folk magic groups claiming that unless you were an old time Conjure or Root-worker then you shouldn’t be using this stuff. So me, being me, did a little research.

Flowery Waters have been used the world over!

“Flowery” waters, because that is what “Florida” means in Latin, have been used all over the world for as long as humanity has been able to distill. We have documentary evidence of Alchemists making alcohol based distillates as early as the 9th century in the Middle East and there is even an 11th century Cistercian Abbey in Wales, now sadly ruined, which was situated in a lovely place known as Strata Florida, or the Flowery Valley. The Cistercian Order were well known for their brewing and distilling and some anecdotal stories circulate that they chose that valley specifically for the types of medicinal flowers that grew there. Its not a massive leap to think that they may well have made flowery distillates.  Rose and Orange Flower water is still used today for skincare and for cooking. And what is Bach’s rescue remedy if not a flowery distillate?  The eau de Cologne we know as Florida Water did not even appear until the 19th century so is really quite late to the party. The manufacturers even marketed it using the myth of the Fountain of Youth being located Florida, a myth which originated in Europe.  Its success was phenomenal and was being used by rich and poor, black and white alike, it’s uses were multitudinous; a disinfectant and cleanser, an astringent, a restorative tonic to aid digestion, a perfume, a cure for headaches the list was almost endless.

So although I am not sure I would encourage anybody to drink the stuff and perhaps some of the “medicinal cures” are scientifically suspect, we cannot fail to recognise that magical Flowery waters are a world wide phenomenon which have been used for healing, cleansing and perfuming us for a very long time and therefore open to everybody, no gatekeeping required.

*I particularly like the Ritual & Vibe recipe because it contains lavender, bergamot, lemon and orange which are all though to be traditional components of the original Murray & Lanmans recipe