Tag Archives: candy

October 31, 2025 · 4:24 pm

Merry Samhain )O(

Merry meet all,

Witches New Year is here!!  It’s raining. I hope that doesn’t daunt the trick or treaters. 

I am so excited, but unfortunately I had to take my cat to the vet. It turns out she has lost a ton of weight and she now has hyperthyroidism and high blood pressure. Thankfully, she will be treated for it. I hope the medicine helps her. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have been very busy preparing for Samhain. I just love this time of year. I am not celebrating the ancestral supper at my Mom’s. I am going somewhere else to perform it. I have to clean the kitchen, set the table and  prepare the food. I cooked the pot roast ahead of time. I baked a loaf of pumpkin bread and Samhain soul cakes. I plan to bake chocolate cupcakes. I have halloween cupcake liners and decorations! 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m going to buy a bottle of red wine to make mulled cider. I want the brandy to make another herbal tincture. I have a nice Samhain simmering potpourri potion and I made a nice Samhain anointing oil. Derrick will not be home to attend the ancestral supper. I can perform it alone, then he can reheat the meal afterwards. I really have my work cut out for me to clean. I look forward to it. I still have to carve the pumpkin, dress the table- (and clean, clean and clean), heat the food and set up candles etc. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I attended a Halloween party last night. I won a prize for Best Witch! The party was low key, but I still had fun. There was not a lot of people there. Tomorrow I am attending a public Samhain Ritual and the Witches Ball after the Rit. I can’t remember ever being this busy.  

Samhain is the third of three harvest Sabbats. This is a good time to honor our ancestors and reflect on our blessings. I plan to enjoy the dark half of the year. Halifax is perfect for a foggy, misty afternoon. I have not visited a cemetery yet for October. I will visit the cemetery today. I love cemeteries. 

Place photos of those who have gone before you, be that family, relatives or pets. Burn brown and black candles. Keep in mind: fire safety! Cook a lovely meal for your own ancestral supper. Light a candle and set it at your window. Carve pumpkins and as you carve, work in your intention. Arrange candles, acorns, gourds, dried waxed leaves, photos around your regular altar tools for a spooky Samhain altar. Put your heart and your intention into everything you do. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I am not certain if doing a grave rubbing is allowed. I want to, but I haven’t tried it. I just don’t want to get in any trouble. I advise checking to see if it is okay first. Most of all, have fun. Be safe and have fun. The spirits are celebrating Samhain right along with you. Invite them in and that keeps you in the good karma department. Don’t dowse your pumpkins in bleach. It makes curious squirrels sick. Don’t burn a ton of candles and wear long, flowing sleeves. That starts fires. Don’t leave candles unattended. Check the kids’ candy. 

Do have and show respect for the dead. Don’t summon the dead in a cemetery at midnight tonight or any night. No, it is not cool. Leaving an offering of food or something like it at a crossroads or outside your apartment is fine. If you heed these warnings, know this: Burning the apartment down because of candles left ignored or the like, IS NOT COOL! Your landlord will evict you and hate you and NEVER GIVE YOU A GOOD REFERENCE LETTER! So have fun, have tons of fun, but please be smart about it. 

Know how to use a fire extinguisher. Memorize its location. Learn how to use a fire blanket that puts out fires. Buy one and store it in your home.

Keep pets safe! 

Merry Samhain, everyone!!

Let me know in the comments below what a wonderful and magickal Samhain you experienced!

Blessed Be, Spiderwitch 

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October 9, 2024 · 12:00 pm

October Musings

Merry meet all,

I’m sure you have all heard of how Hurricane Helene has left a path of total devastation in her wake in the States. My editor lives in the area where the hurricane hit. I was so worried if he and his family were okay. To my relief though they are okay and safe. I can’t say the same for the rest of the people living there. We get bad hurricanes here but they are not on the same scale of devastation as that. I have to wait and be patient and hope everything will be okay. 

In other news, Wicked Shadow Press published my flash fiction story, The Grimm Pumpkin, in the Halloweenthology: Witches Brew which will be released this fall. Wicked Shadow Press also published my other flash fiction story, Serial Blade. Sirens Call Erin published the same flash fiction story, Serial Blade. I am not sure how I managed to have my story published twice but I did. I am proud that The Grimm Pumpkin is now published 5 times! Yes 5! Wow. Sirens Call Ezine is also publishing my poem, Encounter with Death which is its third reprint. I hope Flame Tree Press publishes my story Night Terrors. That would be awesome! I have the pdf of the Flash of the Dead: Halloween 24 anthology and it looks great! 

I look forward to reading the stories in the anthologies. Reading stories by other authors helps me with my own writing. Dawn Wilson has offered to interview me about my writing. I look forward to that. I do look forward the most to the release of my novel, The Cult of the Spider People. I am not sure when that happens because the editors’ life has just been impacted by the hurricane. I hope it all goes well. I just love the cover art for my book shown above. 

I also plan to make a few awesome Halloween treats at Samhain. I want to do my traditional ancestral supper, Samhain ritual, bonfire and of course, handing out candy to the trick or treaters! I may even finally make that concrete pumpkin. 

I will soon begin sewing the Arwen gown. I bought these gorgeous trims and laces from Etsy. I can’t wait to get to work on it. The dress will be absolutely beautiful. I have to sew a scary doll for Onyx and a smaller doll for Thomas. 

October is the most magical month of the year. I intend to enjoy every minute of it. I am amazed that my garden is holding up so far. I am still waiting to harvest my potatoes. I foraged yarrow and goldenrod. I’m going to make a tincture from the yarrow and soap with the goldenrod and calendula and a herbal oil with the St. John’s wort. I dried the nettle, lemon balm, mugwort and mint from my garden. I’m overwintering the holy basil and my rosemary. The pots are heated by the grow light. 

I shall post more here about Samhain very soon. Stay spooky!

Blessings, Spiderwitch 

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October 31, 2022 · 3:41 pm

Merry Samhain )O(

 

Merry meet all,

Happy Samhain! Today is warm and sunny even for October. I was dressed very witchy today from my witch hat to the witchy dress to my laced up boots. I got a lot of stares and compliments. Ah let’ em. I think it’s great that the weather is cooperating. Children have their warm wonderful hearts set on trick or treating. I bet they are all driving their addled parents crazy, eager to march out on the streets, engaging in a old, old tradition of scouting for candy. I have a bowl of candy ready for the kiddies! 

I strained the hawthorn cordial. I didn’t really get as much as I would have liked. That’s ok. I performed one more bonfire last night. The air was chilly but that didn’t stop me from enjoying seeing the dancing flames from the burning hag tapers. The fire warmed me. Today I shared some of the frosted chocolate cake with my Mom. I offered a slice for my brother too. I tossed in some lollipops for them as well. It felt good to share that with them. 

I can’t wait to try the hawthorn cordial. Tonight I am cooking a Shepherd’s Pie for the ancestral supper. I am so craving this meal. I have never cooked it before. It should be good! Afterwards, I plan to perform a ritual. 

Whatever fun you plan to have, whether you are bobbing for apples, enjoying pumpkin pie or trick or treating, keep your pets inside and eat lots and lots of candy! Remember, the spirits are out and about tonight. Be sure to light a candle at the window to help lost spirits find their way. 

 

Merry Samhain!!!!!!!

Blessings, Spiderwitch

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October 25, 2021 · 5:10 pm

How to Enjoy Samhain Safely

Merry meet all,

Samhain is only days away!! I bet you are all excited. I want to share tips on how to better enjoy our fave time of year! Mm I enjoyed roasted acorn squash and reheated mulled cider for lunch. You can watch and subscribe to Lair of Voltaire for the recipe. See link below. 

On to the tips:

  • You might be attending a party or two. You may need (or not) a costume. Take it from an experienced sewer. It’s so much less time consuming and less maddening to buy a costume at the thrift shop than to sew one. If you wanted to sew yourself a costume, I would suggest beginning a few months ago. Anything can go wrong in sewing. Buying the costume ready made spares you that. Make sure you are comfortable in your costume too. And make sure it is something you will wear more than once. If you do only intend to wear it once, then donate it. Why should a one time item take up that space in your closet?
  • If you can, you may have accessories at home to match your new costume. This can save you money. It costs more to sew a costume than to buy one. If you want specialty fabrics, then you are looking at spending a lot. I buy a lot of broadcloth cotton because it is $5.00 per meter. Silks, chiffon, velvet and linen are astronomically expensive. Five or six meters of fabric can easily run you up to a hundred dollars. I was gifted a black wool cloak. There is no way I would have sewed it otherwise. So if you can, and are crafty, consider making or acquiring cheap accessories. Masks can affect how best you see everything. At night, everything is in shadow. Consider this too. Masks aren’t safe. Wear comfortable shoes. 
  • This may go without saying but if you have a black cat, please keep your kitty indoors where it is safe. Raccoons and owls eat cats, your cat might get hit by a car, or catnapped, or lost, or get a disease or be attacked by another cat. There are all kinds of dangers out there. So keep Fido indoors. It is one night. Even one fun night out can be a hazard for your fave feline. Or pooch, lizard or guinea pig. 
  • If you are on duty to hand out candy to adorable costumed trick or treaters, consider offering organic snacks or treats. I might say this because I have teeth that crack from those hard caramel chews and now no longer eat them. But I’m not you. Raisins are a good treat. If you still want to get candies for kiddos, there are plenty to choose from at the local drugstore. Chocolate is good. I confess I can’t resist it either. I just don’t prefer the caramel chews. (They ruin my teeth which has resulted in expensive dental bills). 
  • Honoring your loved ones this year doesn’t have to cost a fortune. The local dollar store has everything you need. That includes picture frames which are quite nice for photos of your deceased loved ones. They sell affordable candles, incense, trays and other dishes. I bought a bottle of rubbing alcohol and long matches. I already had a jar of Epsom salts. I found and gathered sand at the local small beach. I performed a banishing ritual. I wanted to use the Epsom salts and rubbing alcohol in my extra large cauldron. It cost about $5.00. Not bad. I love shopping at the dollar store. Being a Witch doesn’t have to mean spending a fortune. I found a discarded Tim Hortons coffee cup and used that to scoop the sand into the plastic bag. I needed the sand to quickly extinguish the fire in my cauldron if it got out of control. Another good life saving item to have on hand is a fire extinguisher. 
  • Getting evicted from your apartment due to fire is never cool. Safety first. Always. 
  • I know you already know this, but it’s a good idea to check out your little sister’s Halloween candy haul or your own kid’s haul before letting them eat it. There are all sorts of weird crazy people out in the world now. Accompanying little kids as they sweet talk neighbours into offering sweets is a good safe idea. They shouldn’t go alone. I read stories online all the time about people who go crazy and commit crimes. I don’t have children of my own but if I did, I would go with them as they tricked and treated and check ALL of their candy. Yup. Make sure that the kids’ outfits are safe and warm and comfy and their masks fit well too and let them see easily. It’s a weird world now. 
  • Be sure to social distance, sanitize your hands and wear Covid masks. It is a very good idea to keep a bottle of Echinacea tincture on hand too. Now is the time to stock up on lemons, raw ginger and jars of natural honey for the cold season. These ingredients will always outdo and outlast NeoCitran. NeoCitran does nothing as it has none of the nutrients that lemon and honey does. Lemon and honey are antibacterial and antimicrobial. They naturally boost the immune system. My throat felt scratchy. I drank a glass of water with a drop of Echinacea tincture and the feeling in my throat was gone. !! 

Have fun this Samhain (or Halloween, if you prefer)!!! I hope these tips help. 

BB Spiderwitch

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