What is an egg cleanse?

It’s when you use an egg to scan over a person's body, kinda like using a handheld metal detector. And then crack the egg open and pour the yolk and white into a glass of water. Depending on what the egg looks like in the water you’re supposed to be able to tell if there’s the evil eye, a curse, or some other malefic thing happening.

Is table salt ok to use for cleansing/charging crystals?

Yes. Common table salt is just as good as any specialty salt in my opinion. As for using it on crystals specifically I think that it is the most commonly used form of crystal cleansing that I can think of. That said, however, I would check on whether the stone is one that can sit in salt without damaging it. Much like submerging a crystal or stone you want to be sure it doesn’t change the makeup of the stone. Now the benefit of using something like salt is that you don’t have to sit it directly in the salt. You can place a circle around it and still have it be effective.

Yes of course! ‘Table’ or regular salt was at one time the only option for salt people had. There was no pink Himalayan salt, this black salt, etc. Unless you lived in that particular place. Witches have had to be resourceful over the centuries, we can still be resourceful now.

Do crystals still work if they’re not touching your skin?

I’m not as familiar with using crystals or stones in this manner but I do believe I’ve heard of people using them without them touching the body. It would depend on the type of magic you are doing. If you are doing physical energy work then maybe it is better when it is physically placed on the body. But if you are doing a spell then it absolutely does not have to be on the physical being.

Depending on what you’re going for, yeah it can work without touching the body. Like Tatjana said if it’s a spell it doesn’t have to touch the skin. If you’re looking to use the energy of the stone or stones power grid is one option for not keeping them close. Otherwise it’s generally a good idea to keep them close. The stone doesn’t have to be touching skin though.

Do you share your work?

Yes. I have shared my work for years especially under the circumstance of teaching. When I studied we shared our work so we could learn from each other. It was the same when I taught my students. How else would we all learn?

Depends on what you’re asking. Is it sharing the religion in general or sharing a spell specifically? If it's sharing about the religion, sure, no problem with that. Though you may get push back from people of other faiths. If it’s sharing about a spell, unless you’re doing the spell with someone, it’s generally a good idea to keep it quiet. Talking about the spell redirects some of the energy away from the spell.

How many spells can you cast at one time?

I’ve never considered this question before. I guess I’ve never had the need to do more than one at a time. That said I’d think it would be best to keep it at one spell at a time, that way your energy is more focused while doing it. Splitting your energy in too many directions would take away from the potency of it/them, in my humble opinion.

I think it is a good idea to focus on one spell at a time, because if you work on more at one time the energy will be split many different ways which will reduce the effectiveness of the spells.

Is it normal to feel drained or tired after doing spell or ritual work?

This is very common and I even warn my students about it, ESPECIALLY when doing a calling down of the God or Goddess. I believe the level of exhaustion is directly equal to the amount of energy you put into the magic that you are doing. Can this be avoided? In some instances such as spell work I think it can be just by doing a protection circle but it’s different when you are calling in an entity because you can only protect yourself to a certain degree due to the very fact that you are inviting in another energy form. Which is why you typically only do this with training and with clarity of what you are focusing on.

Yes! I think Tatjana explained it very well.

How long do you usually wait before recasting a spell or deciding it’s a dud?

My spells usually have a two week turn around time. I believe you need to know your own magical parameters and that is usually found out by having done more than one spell. Over time you get an average of sorts. Once this period has passed you may then start contemplating if it’s a dud or not. Some larger spells take longer and smaller ones not so long but that’s not a steadfast rule. I would rely on your intuition in part while also being open to  broad possibilities of what the outcome of a spell can be before recasting a spell. If you do recast you most definitely want to start from scratch and maybe change a few elements of the original spell. You may even go so far as to rephrase the original purpose, question or request of said spell.

I usually wait a week or two myself, but like Tatjana said it depends on the spell and who’s casting it. If I feel a spell is a dud I will first review what the intention was, go through all the spell ingredients, and look at what the chant said. If all of them still seem in line then I will redo the spell. If I find something is off then I will redo that particular element and recast the spell.

My spell was moved…

If my spell were moved and the placement was an integral part of the magic at hand then I would deconstruct the spell and start over. At which point I would probably move the placement of it if I could do so without disturbing the premise of it and add an extra protection spell around it.

I have nothing to add.

Terminology when talking with non-believers

This is a tough one for me. I typically don’t speak to too many non-believers since I have concerns about offending them or feeling like I’d need to defend myself. I just accept where people are at in their beliefs. BUT if I had to, then I generally stick to non- in - your- face words. Such as, “I believe in working with nature and energy” “I believe in the possibility of many different ways of practicing one’s path.” “My beliefs are based largely on harming none as a foundation of my practice.” Etc…

Talking with non-witches I find that talking about my belief in broad terms is best. Unless they ask questions and show interest I keep the talk about my faith to a bare minimum. I often describe myself to others as “honoring nature and the energy within the world.”

Gifting witchcraft items?

Often it is believed that most tools should be gifted not bought. This I think can be tricky but a wonderful gesture. If you do gift someone an item then make sure of its origin and cleanse the crap out of it before gifting it!

Gifting items is a beautiful way to affirm another witch’s faith. I agree with Tatjana, make sure you know the origins or cleanse like there’s no tomorrow. I don’t agree with the thought that items need to be gifted, because there are so many of us that don’t have a witchy support system to facilitate those gifts. But if you can gift, it’ll be appreciated, I’m sure.

Gift ideas for a practicing witch

Basic tools such as:

Athame, Broom, incense stand or censor, chalice, wand, Pentagram or Crystal representing North

Other great gifts are things from the natural world:

Stones, sticks/branches, feathers, shells, clay (to represent fire perhaps), things like acorns, gauls from wasps, water from different bodies of water or rain, bones

The list can be very long!

Other things you can get from a store:

Incense, pendants or jewelry, pendulums, tarot or other divination tools, herbs, candles, glass jars, oils, statues of preferred Gods and/or Goddesses, bells, rattles, singing bowls, music, journals