A Sea Witch’s Guide To Seashells

A Sea Witch’s Guide to Seashells

A handy guide to properly cleaning shells, when and how to collect them, and a few creative ideas for using them in witchy matters or altar decoration! 

By rainy-day-witchcraft

Cleaning

Seashells, whether inhabited by an organism or abandoned on the beach, almost always have that funky sea smell~ which can only grow as they are dried and left out. When cleaning shells, there are many different techniques. You can:

Boil ~ gently drop your shells into a stove-top pot and turn up the heat until the water reaches a boil. After a few minutes, turn it down to about half that heat, and let them simmer for 20-30 minutes. Tips: Shells must be dropped into the water while it is still lukewarm, so they gradually heat and do not break or crack from the cool to hot transfer / Take caution not to let the pot boil over, as the water is salty and will leave a residue that will need to be cleaned afterwards 

Bleach~ Soak your shells in a 50/50 water/bleach ratio for an hour or so. There is no set time, but be careful not to leave them in for too long, as the bleach will break them down!

Baking Soda scrub~ Mixing a paste-like mixture of water and baking soda, take an old toothbrush and scrub the shell for a few minutes. If you are dealing with a sanddoller, be sure to scrub more gently and in small circular motions

Burying~ Because barnacles, tiny organisms, or bits of the previous shell-owner can be left in hard-to-reach areas of the shell, burying a shell 18 inches into the ground for a few weeks is a useful technique to get rid of any stink-inducing sea thing. Because it is buried at this depth, it allows insects, larva, and ants to eat the remains of organism and leave the shell with no reason to smell after cleaning! If using this technique, bury it opening-down; it works especially well to preserve glossy shells, as most of the other methods may cause de-shining

If you are more of a pro-collector, consider using:

Muriatic acid~ dipping a shell in this chemical can majorly restore color and finish. However, on OLIVE shells (seashells that already have a shiny finish) this will do the opposite, and dull them

Shell Collecting

The best times to collect shells are during the New Moon and Full Moon, when the tide is at it’s most powerful. Beginning your collecting an hour before and after low tide is also a key time when seashells end up on the sand! While searching near the wet sand usually yields fresher shells, make sure you also do a little digging or check near the high-tide line.

The DON’T’s

Fragile shells, such as sand dollar, can crumble if cleaned too harshly or left in the sun

Do not clean with any type of vinegar! Vinegar can erode calcium, which is a main component in almost all shells

If you find two shells sealed tightly together, or anything that resembles a live clam or shellfish, do not collect these! There is an organism living inside, and it is illegal at many beaches to collect living seashells. Do the little guy a favor (and the environment) and throw it back into the ocean or leave it be ~ 

If any trace of sea creature is left inside or outside the shell, it will mostly never loose the fishy smell

Putting Shells to (Magickal) Use

In addition to looking nice or being cleaned/polished and made into decoration, they can also be used as:

Offering bowls

Talismans or Amulets

Representation of ocean or sea related gods/goddesses

Various magickal utensils (Magickal tools adorned with seashells, decorated on bowls or cups, hung as ornaments or charms, etc.)

In magick and witchcraft, they represent and are useful in:

The element of Water/West direction

Rounder, whiter shells can represent the moon, because of it’s influence on the ocean tides

Spells for emotion (water=emotion) protection (A shell is the protective covering for an ocean organism) creativity (water also=creative spirit), love (In reference to Aphrodite), and prosperity (Used as currencies around the world long ago) 

Particular shells also have their own meaning, such as these~

Abalone - general use and containment of empowered herbs and stones

Clam shells - purification and love

Conche shell - love

Cone shell - protection

Cowrie shell - prosperity, money - if you look at a cowrie shell is also looks very ‘feminine’)

Whelks - dramatic positive change

Limpets - courage, confidence, strength

Scallops - travel, movement

Sand~doller- prosperity, good luck

(Information gathered here)

Leave a message for Rainy-day-witchcraft if you have any questions, comments, or would like to see similar witchy guides! ➺ Rainy

Tags

More Posts from Forsakensnakeskin and Others

1 year ago

would you have any tips for being a respectful theistic satanist? i am aware that satanism is often used as an antisemitic dogwhistle as well as of the antisemitism that often presents within the field, and i do my best to recognize and combat these things and listen to jewish voices, but is there anything in particular you would recommend avoiding? i am asking in terms of actions or practices, not organizations, btw

Unfortunately, that's not really my call to make. I encourage you to bring the question to a jewish practitioner, so im gonna throw the question over to @will-o-the-witch


Tags
3 years ago

Got asked if I was a devil worshiper once, and I said:

I don’t worship Satan.

I don’t worship demons.

I don’t worship Lucifer.

Got Asked If I Was A Devil Worshiper once, And I Said:

And when I give them that answer, they look at me like I just sprouted multiple heads. They look at the grimoire that I’m holding, dripping with the secrets whispered to me on black sabbaths and through candle flame. They stare at the sigil of Lucifer that I wear around my neck, one that replaced the crucifix of my Catholic childhood. They listen to the advice that I give customers that come into our shop, and how I discuss the ways that Azazel and Berith have influenced my path. They make assumptions.

Assumptions that these entities demand worship and groveling like the ones that belong to the Catholic church.

Make no mistake: my relationship with all of these entities are that of a teacher and student. An ally. They are a guiding force.

As a little kid, I was told that the only way to get help was to “let go and let God handle it”, to sit on my knees with my hands folded, waiting for a miracle. I was being raised in an environment where I was told that I had no power, therefor, I couldn’t make things better for myself. I had to wait for someone else, the divine, to intervene and fix everything. 

The mentality of the Catholic church is cruel:

Love the sinner, hate the sin.

                 (If I want to be loved, I have to hide my attraction to the same sex.)

Things are all in God’s hands, it’s happening for a reason.

                 (I’m being abused for a reason.)

Wait and pray.

               (I have to endure these hands on me until something else happens.)

Respect your mother no matter what.

              (Because I have to love the sinner, but hate the sin.)

Put your money in the offertory basket.

             (Or else you’re shamed for being poor in the house of the poor.)

The church wanted me helpless, so that they could be my only help.

It made me resent the idea of worship. I was scared, I never wanted to hand my power over again. It was a lifetime of gaslighting from the Catholic church and my Catholic family that made me believe that I was helpless.

And then came Lucifer.

I’m not sure what the initial reason was for reaching out to the Morningstar. There were many things going on in my life. Maybe I felt helpless, without direction, unable to figure out what to do with myself. I was down in the dumps, I lost a lot of friends and was in a job that I despise. And I’d always been the black sheep of my family. But what I knew was that Lucifer was hated, and I was feeling pretty hated as well.

When I tell you that Lucifer told me things that changed my life, I am not exaggerating:

“You spend so much time trying to be whatever it is that you wish you were, that you continue to be your old self. You just need ‘to be’.

Everything you want is right there, so why aren’t you taking it?

Make your own reality, and discard what doesn’t serve you.

You own your own destiny. Don’t subscribe to the purpose that you were assigned.”

You see, Lucifer did not want me to worship them. They wanted to teach me. They watched me fall over multiple times, but they did not pick me up and coddle me, no. They would then show me what I needed to do instead, putting responsibility into my hands. And it was honestly fucking difficult, they put me through the fucking wringer and made me face what was wrong with me.

Lucifer did not gift me anything, they showed me the way to do it myself.

It was then that things clicked: instead of having my hand held, instead of being guided by a shepherd with a flock of sheep, the path was pointed out to me, and I was given the opportunity to walk it and face the hardships– or remain stuck where I was. 

All Lucifer did was shine a light on what I was doing wrong, and then illuminate the next step in the dark. They didn’t walk in front of me and take the lead, they walked next to me and watched me as I opened my eyes to the truth of my own reality: that I have much more control of it than I was ever allowed to believe.

Every demon that I have worked with since then has contributed to that illumination, and the process of gaining ownership of myself.

And it started a chain reaction. I’m still not completely where I want to be, but in roughly three years I have gone from working dead-end jobs, being a people-pleaser to my awful family members and being content with my shit life, to meeting my long distance boyfriend in person, working to strengthen our relationship, enrolling in regular therapy, eating much healthier, working my dream job, cutting out my abusive mother, and getting myself back into school. And, as far as I know, within the next 16 months I will be preparing to immigrate to a new country to start my new life with my boyfriend.

So, no. I am not a devil worshiper.

I don’t worship anything, because I can’t go forward with my life if I’m sitting on my knees.


Tags
2 years ago

hey :) is there any association between lucifer and frogs? or do you have an upg? frogs are a sign from lucifer for me personally and i notice you reblog about both, but it might be a coincidence? ty!

Well, I mostly reblog frogs because I like them, to be honest 😄. However, there is certainly some cultural connection between frogs, Lucifer as the Devil and generally the demonic! First, in the Revelation (16:13-14) frogs represent the Devils's demonic emissaries:

13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.

14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.

The Dragon in Christian context is generally interpreted as Satan/Lucifer, which influenced lots of satanic symbolism. So, biblically speaking, it makes a lot of sense for Lucifer to send you frogs!

In witchcraft beliefs of early modern period, witches often worked with demons as familiar spirits. The demons often took shape of various animals, of which frogs (including toads) were one of the most common ones, hence the image of the witch and her frog.

Frogs were generally often associated with witchcraft and the demonic (which historically often overlapped), so you will probably find more interesting info about it when you dig a little deeper!

Hey :) Is There Any Association Between Lucifer And Frogs? Or Do You Have An Upg? Frogs Are A Sign From

Tags
1 year ago

Blender of Eyeshadow

Crafter of Jewelry

Teach me to adorn myself

And appreciate my natural beauty


Tags
3 years ago

Exploring Luciferianism

I’ve recently begun a project of a different sort [different from the Luciferian survey], and it feels overwhelming. It reminds me a long time ago of when I began to explore Luciferianism. Satanism and Luciferianism itself is a growing field especially for academic studies which means for us adherents, a great deal. It means there is more to read, to learn, to explore. Luciferianism itself is…

View On WordPress


Tags
3 years ago

30 Day Luciferian/Satanist Challenge

I decided to create a 30 Day Luciferian Challenge…to get me to write about Luciferianism some more.

I have designed this in mind to the best of my ability that if your Lucifer is not the Fallen Angel that you can still answer these questions. I even have a few alternatives at the bottom if one is more difficult to answer (or you don’t want to answer a certain one) if your Luciferian figure is not xtian/abrahamic related.

Keep reading


Tags
3 years ago

So beautiful

so i was cleaning my room and in one of my old journals I found a devotional poem that I wrote to Lucifer, and I just thought I’d share it here.

I worship a flawed creature

An angel whose hymns

come in sighs of pleasure

Feathers rusted, ruffled and crimson

His eyes burn with cold blinding light

lost in a tangle of wings and eyes

I reach for the sky and yet

the hand grabbing mine is my own

I was divinity all along

When I choke on thorns, I taste sweet roses

and bitter wine, and then I remember

the one who put me here was me

and that rebel angel was the guiding light

with eyes of white fire.

Thank you for reading!


Tags
2 years ago

But why did he [Satan] rebel against his maker? It was, as he himself informs us, because he saw no sufficient reason, for that extreme inequality of rank and power, which the creator assumed. It was because prescription and precedent form no adequate ground for implicit faith. After his fall, why did he still cherish the spirit of opposition? From a persuasion that he was hardly and injuriously treated. He was not discouraged by the apparent inequality of the contest: because a sense of reason and justice was stronger in his mind, than a sense of brute force; because he had much of the feelings of an Epictetus or a Cato, and little of those of a slave. He bore his torments with fortitude, because he disdained to be subdued by despotic power. He sought revenge, because he could not think with tameness of the unexpostulating authority that assumed to dispose of him.

William Godwin on Miltonian Satan/Lucifer. An early example of Romantic Satanism.


Tags
2 years ago

Do you know anything about trickster Spirits pretending their deity's?

I don't have much experience with that, sorry.


Tags
Loading...
End of content
No more pages to load
  • eldritchazure
    eldritchazure liked this · 1 month ago
  • kristabella
    kristabella liked this · 2 months ago
  • hydralisk98
    hydralisk98 liked this · 3 months ago
  • evelynsilverfido
    evelynsilverfido reblogged this · 3 months ago
  • thesleepingdragon
    thesleepingdragon liked this · 4 months ago
  • marshmallowdoritos
    marshmallowdoritos liked this · 4 months ago
  • witchy-stuffs666
    witchy-stuffs666 reblogged this · 4 months ago
  • the-communications-archives
    the-communications-archives liked this · 4 months ago
  • smallme
    smallme liked this · 4 months ago
  • witchsposts
    witchsposts liked this · 5 months ago
  • 0bscuriities
    0bscuriities liked this · 5 months ago
  • starlit-grimoire
    starlit-grimoire reblogged this · 5 months ago
  • nymphicinvocation
    nymphicinvocation reblogged this · 5 months ago
  • nymphicinvocation
    nymphicinvocation liked this · 5 months ago
  • chaotic-beautiful-insanity
    chaotic-beautiful-insanity reblogged this · 5 months ago
  • chaotic-beautiful-insanity
    chaotic-beautiful-insanity liked this · 5 months ago
  • junoswitchery
    junoswitchery liked this · 5 months ago
  • pandawithprobs
    pandawithprobs liked this · 5 months ago
  • archivesofvi
    archivesofvi reblogged this · 5 months ago
  • archivesofvi
    archivesofvi liked this · 5 months ago
  • allnaturalhomemadegoddess
    allnaturalhomemadegoddess reblogged this · 5 months ago
  • allnaturalhomemadegoddess
    allnaturalhomemadegoddess liked this · 5 months ago
  • rivermedici
    rivermedici liked this · 5 months ago
  • amity-witchcraft
    amity-witchcraft reblogged this · 5 months ago
  • sparkly-amity
    sparkly-amity liked this · 5 months ago
  • chiaroscuro666
    chiaroscuro666 liked this · 5 months ago
  • hecatecalls
    hecatecalls liked this · 5 months ago
  • solianapaeris
    solianapaeris liked this · 5 months ago
  • witchytwitch
    witchytwitch liked this · 5 months ago
  • ad-caelestia
    ad-caelestia reblogged this · 5 months ago
  • mimikyu-ex
    mimikyu-ex liked this · 5 months ago
  • gloomyfox
    gloomyfox liked this · 6 months ago
  • agathisfelis
    agathisfelis reblogged this · 6 months ago
  • viladis1971
    viladis1971 liked this · 6 months ago
  • lirimaerspiritualgatherings
    lirimaerspiritualgatherings reblogged this · 6 months ago
  • ravenhexxx
    ravenhexxx reblogged this · 6 months ago
  • ravenhexxx
    ravenhexxx liked this · 6 months ago
  • thestarsarefallingtonight
    thestarsarefallingtonight liked this · 6 months ago
  • disneyprincette
    disneyprincette reblogged this · 6 months ago
  • rowan-reads
    rowan-reads liked this · 6 months ago
  • queer-folk-witch
    queer-folk-witch reblogged this · 6 months ago
  • gay-mormon-wizard
    gay-mormon-wizard liked this · 6 months ago
  • runes-and-bones
    runes-and-bones reblogged this · 6 months ago
  • mrsplashes
    mrsplashes liked this · 6 months ago
  • lilfrogfella
    lilfrogfella liked this · 6 months ago
  • sockfaerie
    sockfaerie liked this · 7 months ago
forsakensnakeskin - Liberation
Liberation

Salem. Agenderflux. Mix of all pronouns and terms. Sapphic aroace and polyam. Poet, horror fan, hermit. Satanist and eclectic polytheist. Azazel. Main blog is thirstyvampyre {I do NOT support racism, Nazis, cultural appropriation, terfs, queerphobia, fascism, or sexism. If I reblog anything that condones any of the above, please let me know. I do not want it on my blog.}

221 posts

Explore Tumblr Blog
Search Through Tumblr Tags