Huge journal/BoS

Hello all!! I just had to share this journal I saw at my local witch shop over the weekend. It’s real leather and gemstones/crystals. Hand for size comparison in the second picture. I didn’t ask price because I was too scared to find out, lol. They also had smaller ones (I would say about 8"x11") and I’ll be going back to snag one of those on payday.

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I guess everything really IS bigger in Texas! Love it!!

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Right? It was so big I just had to take a picture to share. If I had an actual house and altar, I would love to have something like this as my BoS.

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WOW. Awesome!

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Oh wow, that’s really big! It’s pretty, too. I’d be afraid to write in it and mess it up :laughing:

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I think it’s gorgeous! I have seen similar books but they were much smaller! Gorgeous!! :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

I agree about not wanting to write in it. I’d e so mad with a mistake, my writing OCD would go crazy too! :laughing:

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I have that one. I got it from etsy. That’s my main Bos!

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I had it for 6 months before I wrote in it and there are some mess ups but that’s ok. Lol!

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Wow! That is one impressive BoS- I’d definitely be in the “too intimated to actually write in it” crew :joy: Although the possibilities for flower pressing are tempting :thinking::laughing: :blossom:

I hope you’re able to get one of the smaller versions- good luck and enjoy it, Amaris! :heart::open_book:

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@BryWisteria, @Susurrus, and @MeganB I’m right there with you on the scared to write in it! Part of why I haven’t bought the one I want yet, lol.

@Ostara I love this large one but don’t have any room for it in my RV so I’m comprising and getting a smaller one, it’s about the size of printer paper (I think).

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I also have this one and one or two a smaller size, I have been transcribing some of the old grimoire pages from my family and other important historical items over to it to pass down to one of my daughters so that she does not steal mine when I’m not looking lol - she can have mine when I’m gone, but NOT YET!!! These are gorgeous!

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That is awesome!!! I love hearing about families that pass along knowledge. My mother has shared all her information with me and I share what I learn with her. Since she was adopted, we are starting from scratch. But if any of my nieces become interested, I would gladly do the same for them!

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I’m so glad to know I’m not alone :sweat_smile:

This is one of the only alluring parts to me about having a physical grimoire. I want to be able to pass it down to my daughter one day if that’s what she chooses. I also want to be able to have something that I can add and remove pages from… :thinking: I wonder if I could manage something like this in a sort of scrapbook format…

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For my own ‘personal use’ grimoire type of book which I call my Personal book of spells, I do use a scrapbook from Creative Memories typically with either the beige or black pages. Creative Memories Bookcloth Album Covers - Creative Memories - I have 3 now completed, one per witchy decade of mine - 20’s, 30’s, 40’s and now I’m working on making the 4th one - my 50’s - I turn 57 on 8/8! I will add and remove pages as I go, organize and move them around as it is appropriate and it works perfect for me. They are all 12x12 inches.

I have many decades of magikal journals that I call my Muse Library and are numbered 1 - 247 right now and counting (they are all 5x8) which are chronological. I call them my muse journals because they are what I write in when I am absorbed in thought and inspired or wish to be inspired - it’s where I brain dump my magickal journey day to day and if that’s not a muse, I don’t know what is! I don’t move around pages but use it as an actual magickal journey and put everything in it, literally - a true scrapbook/junk journal - and as long as it pertains to my practice, it goes in. Since I am an herbalist, I do keep separate my herbalist journals and recipes for things that heal and to eat from my magickal journal/library. If something suits magic in my apothecary, then I will make an entry for how to use it magickally in my Muse Journal.

Sometimes I will refer within my Muse journals to an entry in my Book of shadows which I named for books I use to do my shadow work (I know that’s not common in our witchy culture, but it’s what I’ve always done and what makes sense to me) and I will journal away about everything I’ve learned, how I feel, what changes I want to make and what I’m thinking any healing work I’ve done emotionally and ancestoral guidance. Both of these (Muse Library-ML and Book of Shadows-BoS) are chronological. My BoS however, comes in many shapes and sizes and I have close to 50 of these over the decades and they are focused on subjects mostly - like relationship with my mother; work life; each child; herbal apothecary to magick as examples. I do have a bunch of other journals from childhood up, and some online I use for other things, but these are dedicated to my practice.

Since I’ve been a solitary practitioner for 30+ years until I joined this forum last month, I just did what I felt was right - which is right for me!! I am still moving through my journey of sharing what I do magickally with others and I like it! Learning a lot from everyone too.

Typically I have had one year per Personal book of spells books with exceptions for dedicated books for occasions. The OCD organization is this: When i keep going back to something over and over again, and I believe it is something I’ve culled and honed over time that works well for me, I will then designate it as something to consecrate into my Personal book of spells and I will create a page to look lovely into my book of spells and insert it where it makes the most sense.

In turn, if something in my Personal book of spells is something that I think is beneficial for others in my family or in generations to come, or for posterity sake, I will take this entry from my Personal book of spells and transcribe it into my Family Grimoire, intended to pass down - although not to say that some of my journals or books of spells would not get passed down, but they are very informal compared to the Family Grimoire. (Which I am merging now the historical grimoire from my family that is over a hundred years old, into that big leather grimoire you just showed @Amaris_Bane so that now I intend to have 2 Family Grimoires to pass down to my kids - and since I have 5 kids, I know at least 2 of them will want one. Again - NOT TIL I’M GONE!! :rofl:

Also @MeganB I want you to be aware of many apps out there that transcribe written pages and notes into electronic form. There a many free ones too - I use a .pdf type of one and a few others, but also Google Keep is excellent, Google Drive can do it in Google Docs also! I could go down a rabbit hole here but I won’t since this is already too long.

Picture is of the new Family Grimoire I’m creating for the 2nd generational Grimoire. Dog are Joey Belle (facing) and Beau (lying down). :dog2::dog:

Recap:
Book of Shadows - I do my shadow work - journal per subject matter and use whatever calls to me for that subject. Some I have for decades and are still active, some come into and out of being active.

Muse Journal Library - comprised of a notebook 5x8 once a quarter and they usually sync with seasons, and are a day to day dump of EVERYTHING I think and do magickally.

Personal Book of Spells - I transcribe some of the most active and relevant working spells, anecdotes, rituals, mantras, chants, charm bags, etc into it from my Muse Journals - usually less than a handful every year or so. They need to really be used and proven to get into my Personal Book of Spells for reference.

Family Grimoire - I have a grimoire passed down from 3 generations of witches in my family dating back to early 1800s and I am taking relevant items from it and creating a new Family Grimoire along with items from my own Personal Book of Spells to pass down to my own children.

WHEW! That was cathartic to actually write out!!! Apologize for my lack of brevity. :magic_wand::books:

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Saaaaaaaaame! I’d be paralyzed with fear every time I opened it, but it’s gorgeous!

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Thank you sharing your system! I am doing something similar. I have several composition notebooks that I use for various topics as I do research as well as my self-care journal. I then have my BoS (what I call my grimoire) in a binder for the moment. I have several 5x8 journals also in use: one for each deity and my interactions with them, my Book of Mirrors (this one is inside a leather cover that I can switch out the journal once it’s full), and one for my random thoughts. My goal is once I purchase the smaller version of Big Momma above, I’m going to transcribe my current BoS into it.

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That sounds like a perfect plan - love it!!! :green_heart:

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Oh wow, Jan, that’s quite the system! You’ve given me a few ideas :books: And can I just say I love the fact that you’ve got so many books around you to go back and reflect on?! That’s absolutely amazing!

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I love the system… mine is more eclectic how i have everything.

I did receive a Family Bible. Originally tramcribed in Lancaster County, PA in the 1800’s. Its a huge thing… hige but within the pages are ALL KINDS of family things from then… wrappers, labels, birth, death, christening, military papers, family photos.

I would love to do something like that for my family with my own something as we dont necessarily follow the Bible & I would call it a Grimoire.

I have a “catch all” type of journal right now. Then a smaller journaling type book for sending healing & love. My BoS is a little bit of everywhere right now :laughing:

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I inherited a ton of stuff like that from my mom too @Susurrus and I intend to use it during my shadow work, then also go through and figure out how to use it or utilize it someway with my craft or within my home decor even. Here are some inspirations I have and am thinking about and think I can now approach this since it has been more than a few months since my mother’s passing now. :blue_heart::butterfly:

These are Pinterest inspiration screenshots:

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