One week to go!
Look at all these beautiful Books! 
A big thank you to everyone who has shared their stories, books, Books, crafting, wisdom, and more - it’s been both educational and inspiring to read your entries 
For those still pondering about the theme, rest assured that plenty of time remains on the challenge clock. There is one more week until this challenge closes.
Looking forward to reading your entries!
Blessed be 
@Jeannie1 - oh, the cover of your Book of Shadows is just beautiful! You look so organized! I’m happy to read about how helpful the Dot Journaling is - I haven’t heard of this before, so I learned something today. 
Your garden sounds great - it’s all gone now in my part of the world so I love hearing about all those fresh veggies.
I’m the same way! I love holding and even smelling books. 
You’re not alone!
@Feathertip
I am so happy “you’re happy”
to learn about Dot journaling!! Look what I found. This is what I was talking about, “Books I want to read” and Guess where I found it?? In my book of mirrors, and the Books I want to read! I have another book of Shawdows dedicated to Hecate!
Thanks Jeannie! They are priceless treasures!
Ur very welcome! I’m going to work on joining the book club!
Jeannie
Challenge Entry
I have been a witch for 4 years and I have a collection of grimores that aren’t going to be filled in my lifetime, but I’m working on it. I used to be afraid to write in them because I didn’t want to mess them up. These books were created to be written in, mistakes and all. Someday my grandkids can look back at them and know that Nana wasn’t perfect, and that’s ok! They have herbs and candle wax and me in them. Don’t be afraid to use your pretty books. They are no good to anyone being blank and collecting dust on a shelf.
Thank you! 
My daughter really gets my style lol I love it!
Oh my goodness, I absolutely understand this! I don’t know what it is about a beautiful journal or stationery with fresh pages and it’s brand new, but making the first mark inside of that is so nerve-wracking because I am also afraid of ruining it. Which, when I think about it, sounds kind of silly, but I totally understand what you’re talking about 
It is gorgeous!
Oh, cool! Thanks for sharing the link. I don’t know if that’s actually what I’m going to use it for now because I started going back to therapy again and I need a journal for that. But I think a commonplace book or commonplace journal is something really awesome and I might create one over winter break or who knows what will happen
Thank you! Journaling is such a funny thing because I always have such good intentions about starting a journal, but I am very impatient and I speak and type much faster than I write. So I get impatient with actually writing in my journal. But typing in a journal doesn’t really feel the same and it doesn’t work the same for my brain, so I really need to just force myself to sit down and do it maybe this will be a good place for me to start!
Yes, I fully agree! We have very different styles, but one thing I can say for certain is she pays attention to what other people like!
I used to have so many books. Over my lifetime, I guess, I have been in different moods where I just got rid of a bunch of books, either I gave them away or I sold them or whatever, because those books no longer held meaning for me.
I think for me and my library, that’s one of the important things I have to keep in mind. Yes, having a bunch of books for me is great. But it’s only great for me personally if those books are meaningful. I have some books in my library right now that I haven’t read yet. So, I’m keeping them because they are meaningful. They hold knowledge and wisdom and stories that I have yet to be exposed to. I also have some digital books in my Kindle library that I haven’t read yet, and I have a whole list of books in my digital personal library that is a to-be-read list.
I used to read a lot when I was a kid. It was a sort of escape for me, and books became something that I collected because they were places that I could explore without leaving my house. Now my books are made up of stories, but also of wisdom and knowledge from other people who have things to share. And I really feel like, for me, that is what my witchy library is all about.
Here are some pictures of my library, both digital, physical, and TBR And yes, I’m also including my nursing textbooks – those are important, too!
Howdy, everyone! I hope you’re all well! I adore books (as I’m sure all of us do lol), so I just HAD to jump in for this challenge! For my entry for this challenge, I wanted to do a bit of a show and tell of two of my new (to me) prized possessions.
As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, I’ve been exploring the path of Braucherei, so I’ve been trying to focus on books relating to that topic. I mentioned to my Braucherei teacher that I would love to collect old copies of the important texts to the traditions, and then the most recent time I met up with him, he gifted me these two treasures.
The first one is an old undated copy of John George Hohman’s Long Lost Friend. I’m sure I can find out when this copy is from, but with life craziness, I haven’t gotten a good chance to sit down and dig into estimating the date. It’s definitely a relatively modern edition of it. It’s not in the best shape, but that just means it’s been well-used and well-loved. I would love to find a professional bookbinder or book restoration expert to remove the tape so that if the tape isn’t acid-free, it doesn’t become too terribly damaged, and to re-bind it – probably in some sort of hard cover. We’ll see!
The second book he gifted me was an old copy of The Egyptian Secrets of Albertus Magnus. Someone wrote an inscription in the front and dated it 1885, and a note in the back from a bookstore at which it was for sale dated it to approximately 1845. Clearly, it’s also not in the best condition, but it’s still a beauty in my eyes! I definitely want to get this one repaired and/or rebound as well at some point to help preserve it. It’s written in German and printed in Fraktur script.
I’ve been meaning to write some posts about Braucherei as well as the books and writings that influenced it, but I haven’t gotten around to it yet because of life… Hopefully things will calm down over the winter so that I can have time to put my thoughts together and share information about this practice with y’all! <3
I can’t wait to read through the posts on this thread and check out your suggestions as well!
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How fascinating! I just read your first post about Braucherei, too, so thank you for linking back to it. This is a new one for me, but it seems to be described clearly enough. Definitely a lot to study.
These books are incredible. I love their age and the look of having been well handled and well used. May they help you along your journey, too! 
Oh wow! Those books are beautiful! So many people must have read them! I hope you can get them restored!
Wow! Those books are awesome!
Good to see you! I’ve been looking forward to hearing about your studies! Take your time, though.
If you ever get a chance, there is a restoration expert in Ft Wayne, IN. I once bought a used book, there and was thrilled to watch part of the process while another customer had a treasure repaired. It was quite a learning experience which I think you would enjoy.
Hyde Brothers Booksellers, located at 1428 Wells Street, is a large, independent used bookstore with a vast and eclectic inventory, known for being a local mainstay.
-AI on Google- edited
There are probably others nearer to your home. Just offering in case you’d like to research them.
Always good to see you here, @DerBraucher 
I look forward to reading more about Braucherei whenever life calms down for you
Thank you so much for the recommendation! 
I’ll have to look into Hyde Brothers – I’m in central Ohio and they’re only about 2.5 hours from me, which is an easy day trip for a Midwesterner! (Although I’ll probably be waiting until warmer weather so I don’t have to drive through a blizzard to get there… haha)
I’ve been pondering this one slowly, mainly because I don’t have a whole lot of books exclusive to the craft. I am trying to be careful with my purchases for now, because I know myself and it’s soooo easy to go overboard!
Most of my Witchy Library pertains to Pagan studies, and Pagan history, and various spiritual approaches. History of any kind is fascinating to me, and I always find it interesting to explore places and various time periods - especially as it pertains to Paganism and Witchcraft.
Here is my modest lineup at the moment:
Some of these have been fairly fast reads. The one that took the longest to read is the one I started my studies with. Written by Ronald Hutton, The Triumph of the Moon.
I’ve had this book for years, but only got a few chapters in. At the time, I think I simply lacked context. When I finally started my journey in earnest this past spring, I brought it out again. This picture shows all the yellow flags I put in while reading - I like to underline certain passages and return to them later! Hutton makes a lot of interesting observations and the book covers a couple of hundred years of the evolution of Paganism and Witchcraft in Europe, England in particular.
It’s a lengthy and scholarly book, but well worth a read for anyone who likes a deep dive.
I have a copy of Margot Adler’s Drawing Down the Moon, which will be the next deep dive for me. It is considered the American counterpoint to Hutton’s book, exploring the evolution of modern pagan witchcraft in the United States.
My daily divination with Lenormand cards has been helped so much by the Rana George book on the subject! She is full of information, not just about each card but about various spreads, plus the effect of their Positive/Neutral/Negative nuances.
More yellow tags. 
The book cover mentions “fortune telling.” For me, the daily draws just invite more introspection and consideration of our reactions. They can be mind blowing. The more I study the more confident I feel, and less intimidated. I think this book is an excellent companion piece for anyone learning Lenormand.
The last book I’ll mention is one that was recommended by someone here on the forum (thought I bookmarked it so I could give credit, but I didn’t). 
I found it on Amazon - it’s beautiful!
It’s a coffee-table style book, with beautiful photos and nice summaries of all things witchy. I like their pages on crystals in particular. It’s nice to have around, though I do hide it when my mom is visiting.
Here’s my beautiful little soft leather journal, bought when I was attempting journaling again. I did pretty well for awhile but have petered out. I type faster than I write by hand so I get impatient! I will probably use the rest of it for an art journal.
And lastly, here are a couple of pictures of whatever it is that I’ve been cobbling together:
I’ve decided I won’t refer to it as a grimoire any longer - I think it will evolve into a Commonplace book. I learn something new here all the time, and I learned of this concept from this very Challenge! (Thanks to @Artemisia!) A Commonplace book fits so much better with the various things I’ll be putting in here.
I’ve been playing with the printable pages, printing on old stationary, tearing the edges, and then putting Distress Ink around them for an aging effect. This is a large enough book for any printable pages I may want from the site, but also will be great for putting pictures from the garden, and hold all the random notes I make throughout the seasons. The cover is a little bland (the paper is art-quality and is meant as a simple art journal), but I will cover it, too.
I’m looking forward to having it as a project in ongoing motion!
If anyone is interested in printing paper for their Book of Shadows, this is what I use from Amazon. The Grimoire printables always look amazing!
Nice! If I used that I wouldn’t have to apply the Distress Ink anymore. Lol
I do like deckled edges, though. It’s fun to tear paper. 
That was me! I haven’t read it, but it looked awesome! I’m glad you like it!
Oh, thank you for telling me! I was pretty sure it was you, but I was thinking, if I’d given you the shout-out, you’d be here now saying, “Huh?” 
It’s a beautiful book - thanks. 
I wish I had room to buy it, and the cash. It looked beautiful in the pics I saw! You’ll have to share some of the goodies within someday!
