When we talk about dressing a candle, we are not talking about adding a pair of jeans and a hat. In a similar principle to dressing oneself, dressing a candle refers to adding to the outside of the candle.
To dress a candle you start by anointing the candle with oil (either a base vegetable oil or a consecration oil that has been prepared for a specific purpose such as money drawing).
After anointing your candle you can add dried botanicals and powders that correspond to your desired spell outcome. This is referred to as dressing the candle and it adds intention to your spell to increase its power of manifestation. It is like adding spiritual fuel to the fire!
Dressing a candle can involve, but does not have to involve:
- Carving symbols, words and sigils into your candle
- Anointing the candle with a base oil
- Adding dried botanicals
- Adding dried powders
- Adding items such as glitter
What you will need to dress your candle
- Your candle of choice (consider the spell and how you want to dress your candle before you choose the size/colour of the candle)
- A boline, knife or scalpel for carving your candle (if you choose to do so).
- Base oil (olive oil is the most suited to all types of candle magic and this is the oil I would recommend as it is easily accessible to most people, however you can use any vegetable oil that you have on hand)
- Essential oils (optional)
- Dried Herbs, powders, glitter
- Herb grinder/ mortar and pestle or scissors for cutting herbs
- Candle Holder
How To Prepare Your Ingredients
Once you have decided on your spell, you will need to prepare your ingredients. For my spell, I chose a red spell candle with the herbs Oregano and Rosemary, and the spice, Cinnamon. These ingredients are simple Kitchen Magick ingredients that most people either have in their pantry or are able to acquire relatively easily (these items are found in all major supermarkets in Australia). The combination of the red spell candle and these particular herbs is designed to bring good luck.
Before you can dress your candle, you need to prepare your herbs.There are different ways of preparing your botanicals depending on your initial ingredients. If your herbs and spices are already finely chopped such as store bought herbs from the spice aisle, you can apply them as is. You can also choose to grind them to a fine powder (this is suggested if you are using large herbs.
Grinding your herbs is best done by hand, in a mortar and pestle, whilst putting your intention into them through visualisation. You can also use a herb grinder, scissors or even a small food processor. The smaller and more combined the herbs are, the safer they will be (no large chunks of dried botanicals to catch on fire) and the more cohesive the energy of the ingredients will be (the last point is just a personal opinion, not a fact). If you plan on rolling your candle in your chosen herbs, place them on a piece of paper or flat plate in preparation.
Carve Your Candle
If you choose to do so, take your candle and carve into it your chosen symbols/ intentions. A pillar or seven day candle is best suited to this application, due to its larger size.
To carve your candle, write the name of your intention on your chosen candle in a vertical direction. If it is something you wish to draw towards yourself, write it from the top to the bottom, if you wish to dispel it, write it from the bottom to the top.
How to dress your candle
1. Apply a small amount of the base oil to your fingers or the candle and massage the oil into the candle while visualising your intention for the spell you have chosen your candle for. For any spell of attraction/ drawing, massage the oil from the top of the candle to the bottom , and for banishing, massage it from the bottom of the candle to the top. Make sure that you do not get the oil on your wick- only on the wax.
I personally love candles and candle spells. Dressing your candles not only makes them look pretty, but adds layers of magic and intention to your spell.
* If you are unsure of the best type of candle to use for your spell, check out this blog post about The Types of Candles Used In Candle Magic
* if you are unsure of the appropriate candle colour for your intention check out our post on common candle colours and their meanings, here).
*If you are looking for spell candles, check out our collection here
Let me know if you try this and what results you have with your candle spells. We would love to hear from you!