Post by artemis on Jan 17, 2013 20:26:49 GMT
Wood selection is one of the most important steps in fashioning your own wand. Like in any other wood crafting pursuit you will want to choose a sturdy and attractive wood, that will stand up to use. You will also want to consider size and weight when selecting a branch for your wand. Bear in mind that traditional Wiccan lore denotes that a witch’s wand should be of a specified length~ equal to the length of the practitioner’s wand hand from the bend of the elbow to the tip of the middle finger. With that in mind here are a few suggestions to help you find the perfect wood for your wand, but remember to let your personal feelings and intuition be the ultimate guide!
Using trees from the Druid’s Celtic Tree Alphabet and their correspondences here is a list of favorable woods and their properties.
Alder is the first of trees, surging first into battle. An extremely revered wood.
Apple is a symbol of fertility and Magick. The Isle of Avalon descends from Ynys Avallach or the Isle of Apples.
Ash is a much favored wand making wood, it is light in color and weight but very sturdy. It is considered the father of all trees and special spirits are said to reside within making it a special wood for healing.
Beech is a very smooth wood easy to work with. The magickal properties of beech include transmuting the wisdom of the past.
Birch is an ancient wood used mostly for cleansing and fertility.
Elder is an excellent wood to use in Faery rituals as it is sacred to fairy folk.
Elm is a wood that does not easily split. It is also sacred to the Earth Mother making it a precious wood for wands.
Hawthorn is often considered unlucky, but has great powers for cleansing and banishing.
Hazel is a flexible and beautiful wood that has been used for dowsing among other things. It is a wood of learning and wisdom.
Holly is very light with a very white and subtle grain, often the branches of the holly twist in very attractive natural ways. Holly is associated with sacrament, cleansing and divinity.
Maple is light and easy to work with if you don’t mind working with a sappier wood. Maple is known for its abundance drawing properties.
Oak needs little to be said of it. Oak is arguably the most noble, sacred and versatile tree, it is masculine in nature and uniquely suited to the fashioning of ritual objects.
Pine was known to the druids as the sweetest of woods. Its physical attributes are well known. Magickal properties include great powers of rejuvenation and energy restoration.
Rowan is also called Witch wood, the berries have a tiny pentagram on them, aside from these physical attributes Rowan is prized for its properties of healing and divination.
Poplar is an extremely light and beautiful wood with a shiny sheen to it. Poplar is good for divination shielding and psychic work. be extra careful when choosing poplar to make certain it has dried to prevent excessive splitting.
Willow is a lovely wood that is sacred to the moon and suitable for all types of moon Magick.
Once you have selected the appropriate tree for your use, and found that perfect branch you will want to cut the branch a little longer than what you need, so that you have some wiggle room to neaten up sawn edges or remove any chips or splitting that occurs in the drying process. Don’t forget to give thanks to the tree, or perhaps even a small offering! You will need to dry your wand to prevent splitting before removing the bark. To dry your wand simply place it in a nice dry place out of the way. Depending on the length, thickness and time of year you have chosen the wand drying times may vary greatly, so if you are not familiar with wood working just get to know what your wand feels and looks like now and you will be able to monitor the changes in the weight and color of the wood to know when it is completely dried and ready to be worked with.
When it comes to designing and decorating your own wand, be as creative as you dare to be. Many people prefer to simply use the wand as it came to them while others will remove the bark and lightly sand the wand to a smooth surface, while even others will want to decorate their wands with leather wrapping for a handle, crystal tips and stone ends, or even feathers and beads. Choose what is spiritually meaningful and feels mystical to you and you will not go wrong!
The final step in wand creation is consecrating your new ritual tool. To do this you will need a candle, a bowl of salt, a bowl of water and some incense. Choose good energy building incense such as sandalwood, nag champs or frankincense. You will only need to begin a standard ritual, and then light the incense. Place the wand on your altar and sprinkle it with salt. Invoke the God or Goddess of your choice, and then state your magickal intent. For instance I know invoke this wand in the name and service of (name deity here). Pick up the wand, envisioning it being freed of all negative energies and pass it through the smoke of the incense, repeat your intent at this time. Then take some water on your fingers, sprinkle it over the wand and repeat your intent again, do the same by passing the wand through the flame of a candle. This completes the process of consecrating your wand. Close the ritual as you would any other. Your new wand is finished and ready to be your companion in magickal workings for years to come. Blessed Be!
From: merrywemeet.com/2012/01/08/making-a-wooden-wand/
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