Winter is a wonderful time to be a Witch!  The rest season is upon us, the holiday frenzy is past.  It’s a time of crackling fires, warm mugs of goodness, books to be read, and getting ready for the active months ahead.

It’s also a great time to put your hands to good use doing decidedly “Crafty” things.  I’ll be making a few posts over the next couple of weeks as I have ideas to share with you.  I simply have too many to put in one post!

Here are things you can do as a Winter Witch — whether or not you have “frost” in your hair!

1.  Gather snow.  Let it melt.  Use as blessed water throughout the coming year.

2.  Make a comfort shawl. As you crochet or knit the shawl, say a mantra or prayer, such as:  “Peace and love and warmth to all who wrap themselves within this shawl”. It’s a rhythmic chant, so you will find it easy to pace yourself as you make your project.

3.  Bake cookies for friends. Find a decorative stamp to press into the cookie.  Deliver your own “Girl Scout” goodness, filled with best wishes for “scouting out” the best opportunities the new year has to offer.

4.  Take a look at your land while the leaves are off the trees and everything is still. How do the hills run?  That’s the way the rain will flow off the land.  From which direction are your coldest winter winds?  Plant the opposite side of the house all those plants that need extra sheltering.  Do you have plants that generate color and interest in the winter?  If your landscape is looking a dull and pruned and waiting for spring to happen, research some plants that bloom in winter (such as camellias in the South) or that put out berries to feed the birds this time of year.  Winter gardening is an art — learn it!

5.  If you’re inclined to do so, try to tag along on a hunting trip. If you eat meat, have you ever partaken in the moment where game is killed and/or dressed?  It is a sacred and sobering moment to realize that something must die for you to live.  If you are a meat eater and you haven’t “gotten real” about your consumption, I highly suggest the experience.

6.  Create your Yule gift list now! Who is special in your life that you want to gift at Yule?  Start a savings plan to set aside money, a little per month.  Make a list of the handmade gifts you want to make or things you want to find at antique stores and yard sales that would be the “perfect fit” for someone you know.  Does one of your friends love to bake?  Find an old wooden breadbox at a yard sale and refinish it in Witchy style!  Does your craft store have a great sale on fabric?  It’s really easy to make a HUGE floor pillow for meditation — and inexpensively, too!  You can have your Yule gifts wrapped up long before the holiday, leaving you stress-free and with plenty of time to enjoy the season away from the malls!

7.  Try your hand at making candles. Imbolg is just around the corner!  Get thyself down to the craft store and pick up the supplies to make a few “hearth candles” for your house.  Scent it with whatever scent reminds you of home — mine is cinnamon apple streusel!  Put on your favorite music while you’re making your candle and dance and sing as you work (all your energy will become part of your candle).  Place your hearth candle at the center of your house on a small altar or on the mantle of your fireplace (if you have one).  The center of the kitchen table is great, too!  Light the candle regularly through the year to release light and laughter and love into the sacred place where you live — your home!

More Winter Witchy ideas to come!  Stay tuned!

Photo by Eddi 07 (via Flickr).