maddiviner:

A witch bottle is a contraption designed to absorb and nullify the forces that may attack you, be they magical or otherwise. Some would argue that it only stops malevolent spells, but I see no reason why it would not deflect so-called mundane attacks, as well.

Witch bottles have a long and storied history, and are even found amongst the ruins of older buildings, dating from the Early Modern period. During this time, witch hunts were common, fear of witches ran rampant, and one cannot be surprised that many people tried to take matters into their own hands to protect themselves from these supposed evildoers. 

Though traditionally seen as a sort of talisman against witchcraft and evil magics in general, I do believe that the act of creating one, in and of itself, is an occult practice. Thus, it’s a bit bemusing to imagine those who hated witches and magic frantically making these things to save themselves from evil spells. 

I honestly think that, during the Early Modern period, making a witch bottle would have been a somewhat revolutionary, if private, act of defiance within a person’s life. Entire countries were turned against the very notion of magic, and had manufactured straw enemies in the form of Satanic witches. Many misfortunes were blamed on witches by authority figures, and it’s quite likely that the population, for the most part, believed these evil sorcerers actually existed.

The official government response consisted of conducting witch hunts and killing many innocent people. Imagine, though, what it must have been like for a person living in this time. That the evil witches existed could be taken for granted; such a person would have heard the lie repeated so often that the fear of malevolent magics was engrained in their psyche. 

When trouble arose that society wanted to blame on witchcraft, though, the individual likely felt powerless, particularly if they weren’t socially prominent. Most people were not in a position to do battle with imaginary witches, and the response by the authorities was just as terrifying as the false threat of witchcraft.

Thus, to regain a modicum of personal autonomy and assert their intentions to the universe, some individuals resorted to a plethora of folk remedies, charms, and spells (I call it like it is!) designed to drive off witches, or draw them into the open. This must have taken a lot of courage, because, as I’ve said, there’s very little way these people could have rationalized their spells away as not being somewhat akin to what witches do. Seeking to protect yourself from witches could easily get you named as a witch, after all, so yes, courage was required.

Did the bottles made during this period work, so to speak? Probably. It’s hard to say, because there really weren’t many actual witches active during this time period, and those that were active likely didn’t go out of their way to hunt down and curse random people.

 Still, these charms probably had a great deal of efficacy, if only due to the twin powers of intent and belief. This is partially why I see the witch bottle as effective against all kinds of attacks, not simply magical ones.

Making a Witch Bottle

Now, all over the internet, and indeed, all over Tumblr, you can find many excellent guides and recipes for witch bottles. Today, I’ll be showing you the personal method I developed for making one. It differs from other traditional methods in a single crucial way, and I believe this makes my version somewhat more difficult to make, but perhaps more effective overall.

Before developing the plans for this, I researched witch bottle traditions extensively, and made notes on them, etc. I ultimately concluded that there was something “off” in both modern and postmodern versions of the charm, at least for me. I just didn’t see how it could be effective given the way the ingredients were used and their composition. This is not to say it wouldn’t work for another person, but intent is everything, and I seriously doubted I could get my intent going if I followed an existing recipe. So, here’s my variation, and so can you!

The requirements for the spell are simple, and can be suited to your particular situation quite easily. You need:

1. A personal taglock,
2. A very small bottle, 
3. A larger bottle that the small bottle can fit within, 
4. Sharp objects,
5. Baneful herbs or an existing compound designed to dismantle evil or bring destruction.

The most important part, arguably, is the personal taglock. Read my long post about what a taglock even is, and what makes a good taglock. Basically, though, you need an object or bit of something that is essentially tied to you in some way. Physical proximity is good, but an emotional tie, as explained in the post I linked above, is even better. 

For my taglock, I went out and bought a nice package of fancy cigarettes of the kind that were popular in my youth, and, on the way home from the store, smoked one. When I was finished, I carefully extinguished it and deposited the remains in a small plastic bag. 

When I arrived home and went into my laboratory space, I rummaged around and found a very, very, very small bottle with a cork. I shredded the cigarette remains and filled the tiny bottle with them, then corked it. I topped this off with silver wax to form a good seal (silver being the only available color I had around).

To be honest, if you decide to try my version, I would recommend using a lock of hair in place of the cigarette, because smoking is bad for you and you shouldn’t do it. Yes, yes, I did it, but you shouldn’t. End of story!

Now, you’re probably wondering why I chose such a small bottle, and just put the taglock inside without anything to shred a malevolent force, as is customary. Well, I did this because the tiny bottle is going to go inside the larger bottle. Yep, that’s the big difference between my version and everyone else’s.

Anyways, you then take the larger bottle and stuff it halfway full with your material – glass, sharps, banefuls, etc., depending on your preference. Do remember that there must remain room for the small bottle to rest comfortably within the larger one, though. Once the bottle is halfway filled, slip the small bottle inside, like this:

As you can see, I used baneful herbs for the majority of the space within the bottle. Specifically, I used wormwood, which I filled the bottle with very carefully and gently so as not to spill any. I added some sharp needles and tacks and such, as well. Once it was halfway full, and the small bottle was inside, I began using my vinegar.

I chose to use Four Thieves Vinegar for this working, and carefully filled the bottle up slightly with the mixture. For more information on Four Thieves Vinegar and what it contains and represents, see my post about it. If you end up using a liquid like this, make sure to leave room for more of the solid stuff in the bottle, so that the liquid doesn’t mess with the cork.

You can see above that the tiny bottle is nearly floating. I added a lot more wormwood to soak it all up, and some more sharp objects, too. Finally, I closed it up, and ultimately sealed it with wax, just as I had the smaller bottle.

You may ask why I’m putting the taglock within a smaller bottle. Well, it’s simple to me! I don’t want a taglock from me floating in a jar of baneful herbs and sharp things. Think about it – that’s exactly the method you would use to curse someone, right? And, while intent is everything, I just figured it wouldn’t work for me, so I developed this idea instead. I hope this is helpful for someone!