One For The Cupboard

Seasonal Tips from the Book Of Shadows

Empowering Seasonal Potpourri

Cloves and Cinnamon are my agents of choice when I do a house clearing. Not only do they raise the energy of those doing the clearing, but they leave the house smelling great. I always recommend putting a cinnamon broom by the front and back doors, and whole cloves in every window after a clearing. It keeps the good energy in and bad energy out.

In Autumn, the scent of cloves and cinnamon are associated with the season - Much the same way that peppermint is associated with Winter. It just feels right to fill a home with particular scents in certain seasons.

Here is an excellent, inexpensive Autumn Potpourri for your home:

With a mortar and pestle:

Grind 20 whole cloves into a fine powder

Add one cinnamon stick, and grind it into small chunks

Add a dash or two of pre-ground cinnamon, and stir with the pestle.

Place this mixture in small container with a lid.

How to use:

Jack-O-Lantern

In a Jack -0- Lantern, sprinkle a small amount of the mixture on the bottom inside the pumpkin - just a pinch or two will do. Then light the pumpkin.

Stove Top:

Boil 2 cups of water in a small metal pot with a handle. A small camping coffee pot works very well.

Add 3 pinches of the mixture to the water

Add 1/8 teaspoon of vanilla extract and simmer on very low heat.

After the kitchen fills with the fragrance, carry the hot pot into the other rooms of the house, letting the steam escape into the air of each room.

Place the pot back on the stove to re-heat when needed.

After you are done, leave the pot simmering on the stove, or over a burning tea candle, and add water as it boils down.

Potpourri Pot:

You can use this mixture in a potpourri pot, but it isn't quite as effective as the above methods.