Ruled by Venus, cherries are associated with virginity and love magick. Gypsies use the cherry stones in love charms. If you desire to attract a lover, carry three cherry stones in a red pouch or drill holes through fourteen cherry stones on the fourteen nights of the waxing moon and then wear them on a cord around your left thigh.
Cherry Syrup for pancakes and waffles (also good over ice cream) Combine equal parts of pitted cherries and boiling water and cook until cherries are soft. Mash cherries with a potato masher or wooden spoon. Squeeze pulp through a cloth supported by a colander. Combine equal parts of the juice and sugar. Bring to a boil. The thicker you want the syrup, the longer you let it cook. You can do this with any berry or concord grapes (my favorite).
Cherrystone Bed Warmers
The cherry stones must be thoroughly cleaned and dried before being made into bed warmers. To do this, fill a large pot with the stones and cover with cold water. Rub and squeeze the stones together to loosen any of the pulp that may be sticking to them. Rinse and repeat until all the stones are clean. Next, simmer the stones in a pot of water, stirring occassionally, for 15 minutes. Dump the cooked stones into a large bowl filled with very cold water and rub them again. Place in colander and rinse thoroughly. Place stones on dish towels to dry. To finish the drying process, spread the stones, one layer, in a shallow pan and bake at the lowest setting. Stir them every 5 – 10 minutes so that they dry evenly and don’t burn. (It may be necessary to keep your oven door cracked during this process if there is no setting below 200F) When the stones are evenly coloured, they are done and can be stored indefinately in paperbags, glass jars or plastic bags. To make the pillow cases, use only 100% thick cotton such as denim or sailcloth.Cut 2 rectangles measuring 8” X 11’ or use a single 16” X 11” piece. (You can make smaller ones to use as foot warmers.)Put the pieces together, right sides in, or fold the double sized rectangle in half, and sew the edges together. Leave an opening. Turn right sides out and loosely fill it with the cherry stones. Sew the opening closed. To use, heat the pillows in the oven on a cookie sheet set to a very low temp, set in front of the fireplace, in front of the heater, or over a woodstove. WARNING: Do not allow the bed warmer to come into contact with any glowing heating element. Keep it away from flames. The material is flammable! When the cherry stones are toasty warm, take immediately to your bed and place between the cold sheets. By the time you are ready for bed, the sheets will be nice and warm.
Cherry
Love, Divination
Cherry: chips burnt at sabbats, creativity
Witch's Well 