Icy Sedgwick

The Scottish Fairy Courts with Morgan Daimler

Morgan Daimler is a witch who has been a polytheist since the early 1990s. Following a path inspired by the Irish Fairy Faith blended with neopagan witchcraft. Morgan teaches classes on Irish myth and magical practices, fairies, and related subjects in the United States and internationally. Morgan has been published in multiple anthologies as well…

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Dowsing for Treasure and Criminals: Extra Uses for Divining Rods

Dowsing is often used to find water, minerals, or even lost items. Where divination usually seeks to provide information, here the information is of a directly practical or tangible sort. Rather than telling a fortune, or providing a prophetic dream that must be interpreted, dowsing relates information about the presence of something the dowser is…

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Walnut Trees in Folklore: Evil Shade and Helpful Remedies

When it comes to the walnut tree, we’re probably more familiar with their produce than the actual tree. Walnuts are easily recognisable, and present in everything from nut selections to coffee cake.  We might even know that classic Jaguar cars often feature walnut veneers on their dashboards. Many guitars also feature walnut in their construction….

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Poplar Trees: Folk Belief, Remedies, and the Arbor Tree

Poplar trees are perhaps one of the lesser-known trees that I’ve featured on this blog. Many people can recognise an oak tree on sight, but how many could recognise the poplar?  Indeed, how many would realise John Constable added a black poplar to the background of his famous painting, ‘The Hay Wain’? We find these…

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Polish Folk Magic with Joanna Tarnawska

Joanna Tarnawska is an animist, folkloric witch, and psychologist residing in the mountains of Lower Silesia, Poland. Her practice intertwines animism, bioregional traditions, and lore, drawing inspiration from the early modern period of Polish witch trials and Slavic folklore. With a strong foundation in anthropology and ethnography, Joanna’s work explores the deep connections between pre-…

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Yew Trees: Death, Churchyards, and Helpful Tools

Back in November 2020, I explored the folklore of the yew tree; specifically, the common yew, or English yew (Taxus baccata). Yes, it’s a poisonous tree. Yes, it’s linked with death. And yes, people like to say they pre-date the churchyards in which we find them. But in the intervening six years, my library of…

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