OILS IN WITCHCRAFT

I have been getting requests from some of you (well a number of you) who are “crafty” that is you know how to put things together to make things and you “crafty” folks have been asking me for various oil and incense recipes that cover a number of “conditions or situations”.

So I’m going to start with oils so from time to time I will publish the recipe for an Oil and what its used for and how to use it, but the one thing I’ve found out in going through my Granny’s notes and the notes from other ladies in her group as well as my researching is that there is no one exclusive formula, although you will see much the same ingredients some will be eliminated and some other things will be added. 

So first I’m going to start with what is known as the carrier base oil.   The Base Oil is what your essential oils and herbs will be suspended in, that which you will “marinate” the essential oils and herbs.

In the old days (I’m talking way back)  Granny would pick the herbs just after the dew had dried and heat them up in the carrier oil which for her was usually Olive Oil, later Safflower Oil but keeping it was tricky because you had to be careful it didn’t go rancid.  And she used an enamel pot to avoid picking up any metal from the tin pots, now cast iron wasn’t a problem, but she found that enamel pots worked very well.

I have here a list of the Carrier oils, those with * at the top of the list are the easiest to come across, either at a grocery or a health food store. The others may be found online and in metaphysical/Occult shops or gourmet shops for the nut and specialty oils.

They are:

Olive Oil*

Sesame Oil*

Sweet Almond Oil *

Apricot Kernel Oil *

Peanut Oil*

Evening Primrose Oil *

Fractional Coconut Oil *

Jojoba *

Mineral Oil * (mostly for hexing or jinxing or destruction work not edible)

Castor Oil*  (for banishing, hexing, destruction work not edible)

Sunflower Oil

Macadamia Nut Oil

Avocado Oil

Meadowfoam Oil

Borage Seed Oil

Kukui Nut Oil

Camellia Seed Oil (Tea Oil)

Cranberry Seed Oil

Pecan Oil

Pomegranate Seed Oil

Rose Hip Oil

Seabuckthorn Berry Oil

Hazelnut Oil

Hemp Seed Oil

Watermelon Seed Oil

Do not use Corn Oil, nor sewing machine oil, nor motor oil, I know that the last two sound silly but I have known people who mistakenly use them.  You will find that you will fall back on 2 to 4 basic oils for your work.

For the Dosage /Measurements for ingredients: Equal Parts refers usually to 1 drop, 1 gram, 1 cup, 1 tsp. or 1 oz. Unless otherwise noted.

 For oil to raw material ratio here is a basic start point. 2 ounces oil per 2 tablespoons herb or flower. (so if the recipe calls for 1 tbsp the carrier oil would be 0.5oz)

Some recipes only say 1 part this and 1 part that because they feel that the person making the oil will have a sense of what is just right.   I have found that it’s best to write down your exact measurements and if it doesn’t seem right the first time you can get a sense of how to adjust it.  

It’s like cooking something or baking something, one time I was baking pound cake and my youngest added without my knowledge two teaspoons of lemon extract, after I had put in vanilla extract, it tasted better!  So I adjusted the recipe.  And that is how I share my recipe with the rest of the family.

When working with a batch, mix the oils into a larger container and then transfer into the smaller storage bottles. Using droppers to add or a pipette. Always label the batch working  or Master Bottle with this information:

The Name of the Oil

The Oil Ingredients

The Date you worked it.

The Batch of oil that you make is also called “The Master Bottle”   now I’ve seen Master Bottles at Metaphysical Shops and they would pour the oil into smaller bottles (much smaller bottles) when they sell the oil.

Now there are other things to consider, availability of herbs and essential oils.  Some you can find in grocery stores, food markets, health food stores (great for most essential oils),  some herbs you can grow yourself, even in a window box, or a garden,  some you may have to order on line so tracking down a good mail order resource is essential.  

And you need to be aware of some things, certain herbs and oils can burn the skin, cinnamon is one of them, cayenne pepper is another, so be careful about applying to skin, wear gloves when you’re making it and wash your hands after making it.

How do you use these oils, there are a number of applications, if you read my blog and comments section and make notes you will discover what can be done, but I’ll give you a list to make it easier on you.

The most common use is “dressing” a candle, they can be applied (very lightly) to petition papers, a few drops on mojo or gris-gris bags, some can be used to anoint amulets, or put onto a poppet, certain specific oils are used to anoint one’s altar, this is done in wicca, witchcraft, some hoodoo altars, and catholic altars but not in voodoo unless it is specific to the Orisha.  That is to create a form of sacred area, they are also used to anoint working tools especially in wicca.  

 Certain oils can be added a drop at a time into a cleansing bath.   

 And on work to get rid of someone on door handles to a home or car or where a person walks depending upon the work to be done.   A few oils but not all so be careful, can be applied to the skin but test first for sensitivity. 

One of the first request I got was for a “Banishing Oil” recipe,  it has several main ingredients but I’ve known a few people who come up with their own version.

Banishing oil should be made during the dark of the Moon to use in any rite of banishing, undoing, annulment, release or minimizing, getting rid of.   You could also use this oil to anoint a black candle for use in operations of exorcism. It could be added to mop water to drive out unwanted spirits, malevolent entities, poltergeists, negative energy, etc.

Banishing oil can be used to get rid of a harmful person in your life. For this you could anoint a black image candle representing the person and burn it, or a poppet or voodoo doll and either bury it or send it in the mail to an undeliverable location, which in a form of sympathetic magic will cause the person to leave (there is more to this I’ll explain later)

You can add a few drops of the oil to the bathwater to rid yourself of harmful energy cords, anger, jealousy, addictions or any negative thought patterns that need to be released.

THE RECIPES:    

 As I said there are a number of variations of this oil and I will post here those that I’ve found and you, Dear Reader, can find which one will work for you best.

# 1

1/2 oz. olive oil

15 drops pine essential oil

12 drops rue essential oil

10 drops peppermint oil

7 drops pepper oil

Add crushed black pepper corns and an obsidian or black onyx chip.

Mix during a waning moon for best result.

# 2

    Black Pepper

    Cayenne Pepper

    Cinnamon

    Sea Salt

    Sulfur  or Garlic ***WARNING: SULFUR IS HAZARDOUS please read up on potential health hazards and safe handling before use, or better yet: substitute Garlic for Sulfur

    Castor Oil

Mix all dry ingredients together. You will note that there are no measurements here. Use your intuition and judgement in this. Mix these items well and then begin to add castor oil until you reach a desired viscosity,  the amount of Sulfur should be minimal and Cinnamon and Cayenne pepper will burn the skin, handle with care.

#3

Ingredients:

-1/2 oz olive oil,

 7 drops pepper oil (add cayenne pepper to olive oil if you wish)

-10 drops peppermint oil - or peppermint essence from icing part of a grocers plus olive oil.

-12 drops of rue or rosemary oil. You can add rue or rosemary to olive oil and put in a warm place for 3 days and strain or buy the essential oil.

-Some crushed black peppercorns

-15 drops of pine oil or some pine needles stepped in olive oil or pine essential oil for 3 days in warm place and strained.

One obsidian or black onyx stone or a small black pebble.

Blend together in an cup and put in a clean brown or dark medicine bottle. Some of these oils are volatile. Do not anoint yourself with Banishing oil, you could burn yourself. Wash your hands after using. Charge the stone or stones used after adding it and focus on the person and your intent pouring in energy and emotion. As you dress the candles you make them your magical tools. Charge again as you massage away from you that is massaging in banishing oil from middle to the ends of the candle but away from you

# 4

Black pepper

Cayenne pepper

Cinnamon

Dragon’s blood incense powdered from a cone or stick not burned

Olive oil

Let it sit in the waning moonlight with an unlit candle in it to absorb whatever energy it can for your spell, the candle to be of your choice depending upon the working you’re doing.

# 5

    3 measures Sulfur Powder (Brimstone)

    2 measures Sea Salt

    1 measure Black Pepper

    1 measure Cayenne Pepper

    ½ measure Rue

    Carrier Oil (e.g.: Olive Oil, Castor Oil, Mineral Oil, Almond Oil, Jojoba Oil)

 For a powder for this one  Optional: Arrowroot Powder for bulk

To be made  on the night of a Waning Moon or a Dark Moon.

# 6

2 parts Cinammon

2 parts black pepper

2 parts cumin

1 part cayenne

Cover with Castor Oil, allow to sit for 1 week, shaking daily, strain into a clean glass jar that had a lid, use as necessary.

Bella’s Recipe:

Bella’s was the same as Granny’s except she added  ground dried lemon peel, angelica, wormwood, dried ground basil, and  dried ground rue and she’d make hers the same way.

Granny’s Recipe:

Do on a night when the Moon is dark,

Put in salt

Black Pepper,

Caynee (Cayenne) Pepper

A rotting Garlic clove

Scraped powder (be careful) from the head of a wooden match

Dried leaves from the cypress tree from the cemetery

Mix it with either Castro (Castor) oil or mineral oil don’t waste the good oil.

Heat gentle till just warm, take off flame, let cool down, pour in sick bottle (she meant a medicine bottle that was used on a sick person) keep in the dark for 3 nights when moon is dark.   Don’t put on skin, burns.  Drain off a few drops of  oil to use, keep fixings in bottle to use again.

Granny didn’t give any measurements, I had to use a single edge razor blade to carefully and slowly scrape the powder from a wooden match head.    

 Bella would get match books from a restaurant and cut the heads off of the cardboard sticks and put those match heads into her bottle with the other stuff, but only after the oil had been heated and set aside to cool, otherwise might have a fire. 

When you compare the recipes you do see similarities as well as differences.  Which would give you an idea if you want to make your own.

Banishing oil is a powerful Hoodoo and Witchcraft  blend that  should be in every practitioners cabinet it can help you get rid of those annoying habits, and harmful people, unhealthy situations, and negative energy that you do not need. It can also take care of blocking undesirable visitors.

Banishing Oil is not a jinxing oil. It merely gets rid of any negative influence that may be affecting you. It can also remove hexes, spells and curses. If someone is trying to send you a negative energy, you can send it right back their way.   Some folks use it in divination rituals, I think to banish unwanted spirits.

Wearing rubber gloves, rub some of this oil onto your floors, doors, and your (wooden or metal) furniture to get rid of any energy you do not want around your home. You can get rid of any negative influences at work as well by applying some on your desk or in your office.  (But make sure the garlic is not overwhelming)

Here is a simple banishing spell you can do with a black candle:

Put the oil onto the candle by rubbing the oil down and away from you.

Write on a slip of paper the object of your petition (this is whatever you want to get rid of).

Make the shape of a cross with some oil on the paper.

Place it under the candle, and recite first Psalm 7 and then Psalm 9 (depending upon belief either King James Version and New Revised Catholic Version, or  Douay-Rheims Bible ) when you  light your candle.

 After the candle has finished burning, take what is left of it and your petition and leave it somewhere at a crossroads.

That is what I have for now for Banishing Oil. 

****BLACK CAT OIL, WHAT IS THAT?
I'm confused about “Black Cat Oil”  in some places I see where it can be used to hex a person, or break a hex or spell, but  I also read where it is used for luck for gambling and  also to attract someone to you and for protection.   What is the right way to use this oil?”

When I got this question I knew what one of my posts is going to be, and it will be about the use of Black Cat Oil.   The bottom line is that this oil can do all of those things, but it depends upon what carrier oil that is the base oil the other ingredients are put into. 

The ingredients are the same but the oil it is to be suspended upon as well as the color of Cat candle is to be lit determines the use of the oil. 

I know, why is this?  

Well it depends upon the traditions from what country.  It’s believed that cats have been domesticated in Egypt as early as 4,000 years ago. In ancient Egypt, cats were sacred and identified with the deities Ra and Bast. In the form of a cat, Mau, the sun God, Ra, slayed his enemy, Apep, the serpent of darkness. Bast (Ubasti/ Bastet/Baset) was the cat Goddess of fertility, dance, and wine. The Egyptians mummified their beloved cats for their journey to the Afterlife and sometimes entombed them with mummified mice. They were valued for their ability to kill vermin. Bast's fertility aspect related to her protection of the grain from mice and rats.  

Just as Dogs were regarded important for their hunting ability as well as being trained to guard a person’s property, Cats were important to protect grain and other foods from vermin such as mice and rats. 

The Fear of cats began in parts of Europe during the middle ages especially during the time of the Black Death, this disease was carried by fleas and it could infect not only rats and mice and other rodents but also Cats.  For some reason Dogs were not widely believed to be evil. Even today there are people who view certain cats, particularly black cats, as unlucky.  I have to be honest if I’m in a dark room or walking a dark street and I trip over a black cat I would consider it bad luck only because I couldn’t see the cat. 

Yet in the Middle Ages cats were being seen in a dual role,    In Christian Europe, barn cats, farm cats, ship cats, etc. were still used to effectively control vermin. Yet cats in late medieval Europe were also identified with witches, sorcerers, and heretics. An unknown, stray cat wandering around in an area might be either an ordinary stray cat, a witch's familiar, or a witch in disguise.

That was because it was believed that cats could also be shape shifters or a witch could take on the form of a cat.    Eventually cats were burned with those convicted of the crimes of heresy and witchcraft. In 1630, King Louis XIII of France halted this awful practice of burning cats.   Which was a good thing because of their ability to control vermin.

To make things more difficult for the cat (and any other domestic animals)  parts of cats--like parts of other domestic animals were used as ingredients in sorcery. The animal's liver, eyes and blood were used in creating some sort of unsavory magical mixtures in some European magic spells.

For example the notorious Black Cat Bone:  Although it is strongly identified with African American hoodoo, its origins are actually found in European magic.  To wit in one Grimoire written by Antigo Livro de Sao Cipriano of Portugal.  Translated it reads as follows :       ”Cook the body of a black cat in boiling water with white seeds and wood from the willow until the meat is loosened from the bones. Strain the bones in a linen cloth and, in front of the mirror, place the bones, one by one in your mouth, until you find that you have the magic to make you become invisible. Keep the bone with the magic property and, if you want to go somewhere without being seen, place the bone in your mouth”

Folklorist Zora Neale Hurston, who studied hoodoo in Florida and Louisiana in the 1930s, and Harry Middleton Hyatt, collected thousands of spells and superstitions from various African American sources throughout the South in the 1930’s, and they reported that many root doctors claimed that within every black cat has in its body one bone that will either grant the owner invisibility or can be used to bring back a lost lover

 To get this bone, they [Hurston and Hyatt] said, a black cat must be thrown alive into a cauldron of boiling water at midnight. The animal dies in horrible agony, and the practitioner boils the carcass until the meat falls off the bones. Some say that the special bone will be the top one left when the water boils away, others say it can only be found by placing each bone in turn beneath the tongue while an assistant notifies the practitioner that he has become invisible (a variation on the Cipriano Grimoire), and still others swear that if all the bones are thrown into a stream that runs north ( Not common in most of North America although there are a few and there are a few in Europe and India), the desired bone will be one that floats on the water and heads south.  

And this is one more reason why just before and after Halloween Black Cats are not adopted out of Animal Shelters and if you have one you need to keep it indoors.  Though both Hurston and Hyatt recorded this superstition, no cat bone can make a person invisible.

Most bones sold as "black cat bones" in mail order are actually from other small mammals and are sometimes painted black. 

There are a dozens and dozens of superstitions revolving around cats and black cats, far too many for me to post here, but that takes us away from the subject of Black Cat Oil.

In European and European-American traditions black cats are considered unlucky. However in Hoodoo the black cat is a symbol of luck and strength helping in the sporting and gambling world. This old time, traditional Hoodoo oil is very popular with gamblers and people who play games of chance but it also is used to reverse bad luck and its vibrations work well for Witches and their general workings.

Black Cat oil is a traditional New Orleans Voudou oil with many uses.  It should be in your magical cabinet because it is good for power, protection during intense magical rites and protection in general, stealth, luck, unhexing, hexing, attraction and maybe love. Traditionally this oil is used to break hexes and other negative conditions, as well as protection if castor oil is the base oil. It can be sprinkled at entrances to the home to reverse and remove malign influences, and it is used to attract money as well by anointing cash registers and doors of businesses, slot machines, lottery tickets, tip jars, your wallet, coins, purse, or cash book of you are a server. If you have a jar to keep  change in it will fill up quickly.

So first let me post the recipe for it and then I’ll describe how to use it with certain candles.

THE RECIPE FOR BLACK CAT OIL:

I am also including what each aspect of each item means:

If you are using essential oils or dry products then it’s

• 2 parts Clary sage oil    or dried, crumbled sage or clary sage leaves

• 2 parts bay or bay laurel oil or dried, crushed bay leaves

• 1 part essential oil of myrrh or solid myrrh resin

• Fragments of steel wool or other iron shavings sometimes called iron shot or iron filings

• Small pieces of solid myrrh resin

• Hairs from a black cat. This should be shed hair from a live black cat

All you need to do is mix all the ingredients together depending upon your carrier oil, and bottle up for your spell use.  It should be made on a Saturday that is close to the dark Moon, at midnight.

The carrier oil is very important----

If it is for romance or you wish to attract someone then use sweet almond oil, this would also be good for a gambling oil.

If you are seeking protection, blend the ingredients into castor oil or jojoba oil.

Mrs. Harcourt in Granny’s group used Black cat oil in a castor oil base to draw spirits for spirit contact when she held her séances.   I don’t know if that is a good idea, and have never used it that way myself.

Black Cat Oil is used to break bad spells and hexes or used for hexes, the items should be blended with castor or mineral oil.  Granny preferred mineral oil to break and send bad spells and hexes back to where it came from, that is where Black Cat Oil can cause confusion in one’s enemy, sending the hex back.

So what does each item do in Black Cat Oil?

    Sage – money, prosperity, protection, cleansing

    Myrrh – love

    Bay – success, breaks negative spells

    Black cat hair –fortunate/unfortunate, magical use depending upon circumstance

    Iron filings – magnetic, draws in your desire

One use of Black Cat Oil is to cause a target to strongly desire you. The myrrh is the love, the bay makes you successful in the love spell, the sage prosperous in love, the iron to draw this to you, and the black cat hair to make you fortunate, and give you the magical luck required in love.

But because we have to take note of the carrier oil, it can be used for unhexing, the bay with the power of breaking negative spells, Sage for protection and cleansing and the others re-balancing the aspects of your life. To regain being fortunate in all these areas, reversing the curse.

By reversing the hex or spell back to the person who sends it, it short-circuits their energy and as I’ve said will cause them confusion.

It can also be used, with extreme potency, to hex another person – the black cat hair can alter the result fortunately or unfortunately, in this case with your desire, it would make the target unfortunate in love, money, and success. Or, you could make yourself extremely fortunate in love, money, or success that is the power of this oil.

Because of the several ways the magical ingredients can work, in the raw it is quite unmanageable minus the carrier oil, therefor it needs to be controlled to your specific outcome by charging or praying over the herbs properly.  The proper carrier oil then stabilizes it.

How GRANNY USED IT:

In Granny’s day Black Cat oil  her use of it was not use so much for love as it was used for protection, hex or jinx breaking and sending the hex back to its originator, where she lived she didn’t have access to sweet almond oil it was too expensive, but castor oil and mineral oil was always available and she was a very practical person, to her protecting her family was love and that is what counted.

Granny only made Black Cat Oil with either Castor or Mineral Oil but she kept a black cat bone in the master bottle---now she got that bone properly.  Here is what happened----

Della, Bella’s sister had a wonderful black cat that she called Inky, he was a great mouser, and pretty much a Cat about Town, we could tell when Inky had his way with the lady cats after they had their litters.   But one day (or night really) Inky’s luck ran out, and he got hit by a car.  It was pretty bad and messy, he was killed instantly. 

Bella was very upset, but the ladies realized that Inky’s misfortune was fortunate for them, since Bella was also part of Granny’s group, she gave her permission for them to utilize Inky’s remains.   

After Bella’s husband Franco scooped up the remains with a shovel, and took it to the back yard, the head was removed and given a proper burial (I mean a little cross and all) the black cat hair was cut off the body (he was very fluffy) and in a big tub the kind you boil water out doors, Inky’s remains were boiled and boiled and boiled until the bones came clean, the left over water, any broken bones and what was not wanted was also buried with Inky’s head, and the now clean then sun dried  bones that were not broken, were kept and divided among the ladies.

Granny kept one bone in her master bottle for Black Cat Oil, but I have to say that is the only honest way to get a black cat bone.    When Granny heard how it was supposed to be obtained she didn’t hold with that, she never believed in any kind of cruelty to any animal, even towards those you are going to eventually eat, and said it would only happen by chance,  a few years later Inky met his sudden end.

One of Inky’s offspring took a liking to Bella and was called Inkadoo  after an old popular song.

USING BLACK CAT OIL WITH CAT (BLACK OR OTHER COLORS) CANDLES:

Figure candles in the form of cats are popular items sold in metaphysical shops and on line. They come in several different colors and in some cases styles.

A red cat figure candle is used in romance and sex. This should be used with the black cat oil that has sweet almond oil as the carrier.

Green cat candles can be used to draw luck and specifically money. Again the carrier oil should be Sweet Almond oil.

The black cat candles that are used for a variety of purposes if to draw powerful good luck, use the oil with Sweet Almond oil as the carrier.

Gamblers, for example, may dress a black cat candle with Lucky Black Cat oil, and with the addition of galangal root oil or a similar luck drawing oil such as Success Oil

A black cat candle is used to also repel jinxes, hexes, bad luck, and evil intent. Use the oil that will have either castor or mineral oil as its base.

BLACK CAT on SKULL Candle: If you find a figure candle like this it is Very powerful for breaking curses, hexes, defeating bad luck. Use Black Cat Oil in a Castor or Mineral Oil base and also use either or both Un-crossing oil, and/or Commanding oil.

If you find cat candles in other colors such as blue, pink or white those are good as well but since they are milder in colors they should be used for positive energy not negative or hex breaking but to bring something positive into your life, such as peace, love, and good energy.

HOW TO DO A BLACK CAT CANDLE SPELL:

Depending upon your intent the process is the same with one or two differences, when you are ‘dressing’ the candle that is applying the oil remember if it’s to draw something to you dress from the wick down towards you, if it’s to drive away, repel, banish something from you dress the candle from the bottom of the candle to the wick away from you.

Using either a figure candle in the shape of a cat, or simply a plain candle. Choose either a white candle (general purposes), green (money and finances), or red (love, lust, fast luck) or black to banish.

Carve your name and birth date, or to banish write “return to sender” into the candle by using a pin, nail, or other sharp implement.

Dress the candle with Black Cat Oil whilst praying for your desired outcome.  Remember to bring to you, stroke the oil from wick to base towards you, to banish, hex etc. stroke the oil from base to wick away from you,  if it’s a glass enclosed candle punch 3 holes into the wax at the top, and put 3 drops of oil in each hole do not drown the wick,  to bring to you rub the top of the wax of the glass enclosed candle clock wise,  to banish something or hex   rub it counter-clock wise.

Sprinkle the candle with a bit of luck drawing herbs such as Cinnamon, or use Sage and Bay leaves to banish.

Add to this a bit of iron filings.

Pray over the candle. (aks “charge” the candle)

On a piece of brown paper write out your desires using a pencil (be specific). Using the oil, dress the paper by dabbing the oil on each corner of the paper and once in the center. (This is called a 5 spot)

Fold the paper towards you if you want to bring something to you or fold it away from you if you are banishing or repelling something and then place it under a plate or candle holder. Place the candle on top.

Light the candle and pray for the realization of your desires. Let it burn for 7 minutes then extinguish its flame. The next night do the same thing except burn the candle for 11 minutes.  Do not blow out the candle, snuff it out.

Continue this process alternating your burn/prayer time between 7 and 11 minutes each night until either the candle has burned entirely, or your desire is achieved.

Bury the remaining candle wax under or near your doorway if you want to bring something to you or take and toss in the trash in a cemetery or a deserted crossroads to banish from you.

A FINAL WORD:

Black Cat Oil is a very good oil to have in your magical cabinet, you don’t have to have a black cat bone in your master bottle but freely shed black cat hair works just as well, it a good nearly all purpose oil, especially for defense and protection.   Granny always kept a bottle and so do I.

****WHAT IS VAN VAN OIL?
I've seen and read about Van-Van Oil or New Orleans Van Van Oil are they the same?  What is it used for?”

Well Dear Readers,

In this post I’m going to cover a basic work horse oil that is used a lot in folk magic, hoodoo, witchcraft etc.    And that is Van-Van Oil.   So be prepared for reading a long post.

Now the recipe can also be made into a powder or a few drops of oil can be added to your bath water, and a drop or two behind the ears can be worn for effective results, the oil is also used to anoint candles, mojo bags, loadstones, and “lucky” rabbits foot and other amulets as well as floor washes.  

So what is Van-Van used for and how old is it,  well Mrs. Washington came from Louisiana in the 1930’s and was making and using it,  Mrs. Harcourt knew of it in England but she learned it from an old South African woman who cleaned houses in her small town in England.   And the formula was pretty much the same with a few exceptions depending upon where one lives and what was available. 

For Mrs. Harcourt before the War (WWII) she and her Mum had to get what was needed from specialized importers. Mrs. Washington said that was pretty much the same since New Orleans was a major shipping port, so once a month her father then later her husband drove her, her mother and some other ladies that squeezed into their model T Ford, that wheezed and coughed it way to a particular store that was near the docks to get what they needed, Mrs. Washington use to make me laugh describing how to communicate with the owner of the store who spoke in what was called “pigeon English”.     

Granny and the ladies would go to a couple of shops in the old China Town and a shop that was in the warehouse district that was run by an elderly Portuguese man, and since Granny and Uncle Mannie could speak Portuguese Uncle Mannie would do the bargaining, as a kid I would go with them but they never went without my Uncle Mannie because it was a rough neighborhood.

So how old is the formula?  Well that is hard to say, but it has in the 100 plus years been a standard among Hoodoo formulas.   Perhaps going as far back as the late 1700’s to very early 1800’s.

Because some of the ingredients seem to also repel insects but still smell good, and knowing that in the early days of New Orleans and Louisiana, the insect repelling properties of these ingredients would not have gone un-noticed, so by putting it into an oil and even heating it up in an oil burner it would make sense to early day root-workers that this combination of ingredients would have magical properties. 

So I’m sure in other countries which would grow similar grasses and flowers there would have been variations of this formula which eventually condensed down to the one we know today, especially from New Orleans, which is why Van Van is sometimes called New Orleans Van Van or Louisiana Van Van oil, etc.

According to Cat Yronwood she has a quote that says ----    "At one time, it is said, a person could not walk down a street in the Algiers district (of New Orleans)  without smelling the scent of Van Van oil. Prepared from aromatic Oriental grasses, all-purpose Van Van is favoured for dressing Amulets and Charms and is reputed to Clear Evil from the Door-Step, Change Bad Luck to Good, and Open the Way to New Opportunities."

Van Van is an old hoodoo formula for oil, incense, sachet powders, and washing products that are intended to get rid of evil, provide magical defense, change bad luck to good, as well as strengthening other charms. It is the most popular of the New Orleans hoodoo recipes. As a good luck enhancer, it is closely associated with both the rabbit foot and the lodestone.

[This] …old hoodoo formula for oil, incense, sachet powders, and washing products … are designed to clear away evil, provide magical protection, open the road to new prospects, change bad luck to good, and empower amulets and charms. It is the most popular of the New Orleans or "Algiers style" hoodoo recipes. As an amulet enhancer, it is closely associated with both the rabbit foot and the lodestone – [in the  1940s there would be  advertisements for a rabbit foot key chain charm that was sold with a small vial of Van Van oil] ---   from the   Lucky Mojo Curio Co. catalogue.

Van Van is one of the most popular hoodoo condition formulas out there. It has a long history of use in root work, but is especially associated with the New Orleans and Algiers areas of Louisiana where it seems to have first appeared.

To reiterate this nearly all-purpose formula effectively provides spiritual cleansing and jinx-breaking, road-opening to new fortune and opportunity, protection against negativity, attracts money and business prosperity, brings good luck, as well as draws love all in one oil.  It's often used to powerfully feed mojo bags, empower amulets, talismans, or other magical tools to keep them working strongly for their owner.

The oil can be used to dress candles, or can be worn as a personal power scent for any of the above uses. It can be added to cleaning solutions in order to cleanse and impart its empowering energies on the spiritual level as well as the physical. It can be added to nearly any magical working in order to enhance its overall potency.  According to a number of practioners there's nearly nothing that Van Van can't do. For the frugal practitioner Van Van can pretty much do a lot of stuff, which makes it an excellent choice or go to oil in one’s magical cabinet.

Van Van has an unmistakable clean, crisp scent that comes from the variety of Asian grasses which make up the formula. Lemongrass is the central ingredient, a plant which brings great magical flexibility to the table.  Lemongrass is linked to the planet Mercury, (this is more for Wicca information) so one should see quick results when working with the Van Van formula. It will also help increase effective communication, so any act should go more smoothly.

Lemongrass in the East, is considered an aphrodisiac, and so Van Van can be used in love-drawing work as well. This is especially useful for men who wish to wear a love-drawing condition oil as a personal scent, its aroma is crisp and gender-neutral as far as fragrances go.

Lemongrass is considered an excellent purifier of spiritual energies, which makes it great for general spiritual cleansing or jinx breaking and removal. It not only cleans up negative energy, but it also repels any incoming negativity, so it is useful in protection work and can be used daily to keep one's energies clean and clear throughout the day and during difficult interactions.

The other Asian grasses used to round out the Van Van formula share a lot of qualities in common with lemongrass, Van Van is related to other cleansing and luck hoodoo formulas like Success and Eloquence, and Road Opener.

HOW TO USE VAN VAN OIL:

Dr. E gives a great description on his web site which I quote here:  

“Van Van Oil is an effective tool used to cleanse away evil and bring success with love and money. Apply some Van Van Oil to a lucky rabbit foot and carry it for good luck with money and gambling. Put a bit of Van Van Oil behind each ear before going on a date so that you'll have a good experience, keep away troublesome people, and have good luck with love. Add a bit of Van Van Oil to your mop water before you mop the house to cleanse away any evil spells or negativity and fill the house with refreshed good luck. Dress yellow candles with Van Van Oil and burn them for a successful outcome to your efforts.

How to Use Van Van Herb Bath:

Van Van Herb Bath can be used to bathe your body to cleanse away negativity and draw in good luck with love, money and meeting influential people. You can also use Van Van Herb Bath prior to any spells you cast to go into it clean and energetically refreshed.

Brew the Herbs

Start by taking your packet of Van Van Herb Bath and placing it in a coffee cup. Pour boiling water over the herbs and allow them to sit for about ten minutes so that they can release their essences into the water. After ten minutes, strain the herbs out and save the liquid. You can dispose of the herbs either in the trash, or you can sprinkle them in your garden around the front door of your house. Pour your cup of full-strength Van Van Herb Bath infusion into a large washtub or bowl full of bath-temperature water. It is now properly diluted and ready to use.

Set Up Your Tub or Shower

Take your bowl of Van Van Herb Bath into the bathroom. Place two small white candles on either side of the bathtub or shower so that you cross between them as you enter and exit the tub. Plug up the tub so that you can capture the bathwater that runs off of your body (or if you are using a shower, place a bowl in the shower and stand over it to catch some of the water that flows off of you when you will bathe.

Take Your Bath

Light the two white candles, disrobe and enter the shower or tub with your washtub or bowl full of diluted Van Van Herb Bath. Traditionally, hoodoo practitioners will pray the Our Father and Psalm 23, or you may pray in your own words to remove negativity and bring luck with money, love and people of influence. Then pour the bath on your body working your way downward from your head down to your feet. Remember to get your back side, hands and feet. (Ladies who have recently had their hair done and don't want to mess up their hairdos can simply bathe from the neck down, then moisten their hands with the bath and lightly wet their faces and/or hair.) Set your bowl aside and begin to wipe the excess bath off of your body with your hands (always wiping downward to remove the negativity). Note that some of the water that you used was caught in the tub or in the small bowl you set at your feet. It doesn't have to be all of it, just some.

Dry Off

Exit the bath, walking between your white candles and air dry. Do not use a towel. If you are cold stand in front of a heater. Continue to wipe your body with your hands, always wiping downward until you are dry. At this point you can anoint your body with some Van Van Oil by dabbing a bit on your wrists, behind each ear, over your heart and on the bottom of each foot. Dress in clean clothing, preferably light in color (not black).

Dispose of the Bath

Now take the original coffee cup you used and scoop up some of the captured used bath water. You don't have to get all of it, just some of it. Take this outside. Toss the water over your left shoulder toward the east; toward the rising sun (your back will be to the sun if you're doing this right) and say "AMEN!" Then walk home and don't look back at the water you tossed. You can now go about your day knowing that you are covered with Van Van Herb Bath, and it is working to bring you success with love, luck with money and draw influential people into your life.

Ideas for Using Van Van Sachet Powder:

Van Van Sachet Powder is a great way to cleanse away evil, draw in success with love and money, and attract influential people. Add some Van Van Powder to your talcum powder so that you will always remain energetically clean and have fortunate events happen throughout your day. Sprinkle business cards with Van Van Powder to draw influential clients who are willing to hire you and pay you well. Sprinkle some Van Van Powder across the threshold of your business to have luck with business dealings and fortunate outcomes. You can also powder candles that have been dressed with Van Van Oil with Van Van Powder to amplify their effect in the spells you perform.

How to Use Van Van Mojo Bag:

Van Van Mojo Bag is the perfect charm to carry for luck with money, luck with love and successful outcomes to your efforts. Carry a Van Van Mojo Bag in your purse when going out on a date to have a good experience and have luck with love. Keep a Van Van Mojo Bag behind your business' front door to attract customers that are willing to pay and to have unexpected success in business. You can also carry a Van Van Mojo Bag when gambling, playing bingo, shooting dice, playing cards or the lottery for added good luck.

Ideas for Use of Van Van Setting of Lights:

Van Van Setting of Lights can be used to remove evil and witchcraft, and for good luck with money and love. ……dress, bless and light a Van Van Candle on [your} altars along with your specific petition and photograph……..Van Van Setting of Lights is perfect for clearing away negativity, drawing influential people, for success with money, and good luck in love.”

Other Uses:

Used as a sprinkling solution to attract good luck and power of all kinds  when used in full strength. Add to scrub water to wash down the floor  and steps of a home or business to get rid of negativity.

Put 1 1/2 oz of Louisiana Van Van oil in 16 oz of alcohol. Shake well before each use.  Van Van is used to prepare a magickal working space and to anoint ritual participants. Add it to mop water, washrags, and room sprays.  Dab a bit of Van Van Oil on the corners of your bed for a restful sleep free from any negative vibrations, use it to anoint love petitions and put under a yellow candle to draw love to you.

HOW DO THE HERBS OR ESSENTIAL OILS WORK aka what is their purpose?:

Lemongrass (and all citrus grasses) have a powerful “cut and clear” effect, if you look on the grocery store shelves in the US  have you seen  how many lemon-scented cleaning agents there are.  They seem to make things  cleaner (lemon also has some antibacterial/antimicrobial properties, and is a potent preservative in small doses—sliced apples are often treated with a lemon juice extract to keep them from browning). 

Citronella does something similar (think of how citronella candles, torches, and oils repel nasty insects like mosquitoes).  These grasses cut and clear any negative influences, warding off bad luck.

 Palmarosa and gingergrass (which come from the same plant, in reality, Cymbopogon martine Palmarosa is from a different pressing) are muskier, and so have a slight sexual connotation. 

If it smells clean, bright, and sexy, it’s not hard to imagine lucky as well the best description is to think James Bond in a casino.

 Vetiver is the muskiest of all, with strong earthy tones.  Earth has connections to abundance and prosperity fertile black soil planted with seeds which grow into crops, plus there is that strong sexual current all over again.  Sex + money + nothing standing in your way I would consider that a lucky combination.

Most of these herbs are not easily available in bulk herb form, with the exceptions of lemongrass, which can be find at almost any Asian market and has started appearing in major grocery stores where there is a good size Asian community and vetiver which is often found in herb or metaphysical shops. 

If you are doing oils for yourself then all of the oils except gingergrass are readily available from any aromatherapy or herbal extract dealer.  Gingergrass oil can be hard to find and so is often left out of homemade Van Van recipes, or something else might be substituted for it.  But that does not weaken the potency of Van Van oil


THE OIL RECIPE:

16 parts lemongrass oil

8 parts citronella oil
1 part vetivert oil  ( the dried botanical is also called “khus-khus” grass in some places--- not to be        confused with the food cous-cous)
1 part palmarosa oil
1 part gingergrass oil if you can get it

And finish off with almond oil as the carrier.  (please read below)

Mix together and let sit for at least week. This is your stock oil. Do not apply it directly to the skin in this condition, because as uncut essential oils it can be a skin irritant to people.

Therefor in each 1/2 oz. bottle of VAN VAN OIL to be made up, put in ---

  a pinch of dried lemongrass leaves

   a pinch of crushed pyrite crystals

  one full standard dropper-full of the above stock blend

 Then Fill the ½ oz.  bottle with  almond oil as a carrier to reduce the possibility of it being an irritant.

The proportions above are merely suggestions, and you might be able to use just the first three oils and have some pretty solid Van Van oil, so don’t spend  money tracking  down gingergrass or palmarosa ingredients unless you really feel the need to do so, the full formula is for you own information and if you happen to get lucky and find those two last ingredients then you’ll know what to do.   

The ingredients for Van Van Oil have always varied depending upon the preference of the practioner, but the absence of any one or two of the  Asian Grass oils will not hurt the results much, because usually  the blend will focus on citrusy lemongrass and citronella, with only a hint of musky vetivert, floral palmarosa, and spicy gingergrass.

Adding a pinch of  lemongrass leaves helps carry over the potency from the Master bottle, the crushed pyrite crystals is a money drawer, especially good for businessmen and gamblers, although pyrite is called “Fool’s Gold” adding a pinch of Gold dust is prohibitively expensive especially with the price of gold now a days,   so why use pyrite if it’s called “fool’s gold”?

There is nothing foolish about this mineral. Within its gleaming beauty is a stone of hidden fire, one that can be sparked to life by striking it against metal or stone. An Earth element, it also resonates with Fire energy, symbolizing the warmth and lasting presence of the sun and the ability to generate wealth by one’s own power. It is masculine in nature, a stone of action, vitality and will, and taps into one’s abilities and potential, stimulating the flow of ideas. It brings confidence and the persistence to carry things through to completion.

As a talisman, Pyrite is a unique protector, drawing energy from the Earth through the physical body and into the aura creating a defensive shield against negative energies, environmental pollutants, emotional attack and physical harm. It also supports one with a spirit of boldness and assertive action when protecting others, the planet, or in standing up for important issues of community. It stimulates the Second and Third Chakras, enhancing will power and the ability to see behind facades to what is real.

Pyrite enhances the protective and assertive male energies in both men and women. It boosts women’s self-worth and helps overcome tendencies toward servitude and inferiority. For men, it instills a feeling of confidence in one’s masculinity and supports the enthusiastic expression of male eroticism.

Pyrite is an iron sulfide mineral, and iron can attract things to it as well as repel negativity.  So it makes sense to add crushed Iron Pyrite to Van Van oil.

Additions to the recipe vary by practitioner and region.  For example, in New Orleans, one might find lemon verbena added to the mix.  This may be how the formula got its name.  According to Cat Yronwode, Creole root workers would sometimes use lemon verbena in their blends in order to supplement the strong lemon-musk scent of the oil.  Verbena—a related herb—was often called vervain,  (Has anyone watched “Vampire Diaries, vervain was used to weaken vampires in that T.V. show)  and that was given a pidgin phoneme of “van van.” 

Some formulas suggest adding patchouli in a small amount but I’m not in favor of that preferring the cleaner scent.

You can add other lucky things to the master bottle such as tiny lucky horseshoes or four leaf clover charms.  Or anoint such charms with Van Van oil.

Van Van oil does not contain vanilla or rose oil in spite of the name of some of the ingredients.

After the oil is made as I said it needs to sit for a week, during that time it should be placed within a triangle of 3 lit glass enclosed yellow candles also dressed with van van oil and prayed over every day for a week so that their positive energy is imbued into the oil.  Do not leave the burning candles unattended,  If at all possible,  if you have to leave your home, snuff the candles out and re-lite with a quick prayer to continue the energy.    Then when you are ready to use the prepared oil you need only add your own prayers or affirmations outlining your specific intents, in order to get the Van Van working towards your particular goal.

There are variations to this oil and also to its name.  It can be called New Orleans Van Van Oil, or Louisiana Van Van Oil but it’s still the same oil.  Here are a couple:

 Zora Neale Hurston in her research was given this receipe for Essence of Van Van which was:

10 per cent Oil of Lemon Grass in alcohol. Different doctors specify either grain, mentholated, or wood alcohol, used for luck and power of all kinds. It is the most popular conjure drug in New Orleans.  But according to Cat Yronwood  “It is possible that someone Hurston talked to had mistaken this ubiquitous New Orleans formula-family for Fast Luck ...or, … Hurston herself might have made the error. In any case, the Fast Luck i know is the Cinnamon, Vanilla, Wintergreen one.”

A highly simplified, cheap version of Van Van Oil is  sometimes found under the name Henry's Grass Oil.

HENRY'S GRASS OIL  #1

    lemongrass oil

    a pinch of dried lemongrass leaves

Put a dropper-full of the essential oil and a pinch of the dried leaves in a 1/2 oz. bottle and fill the bottle with undyed cooking oil as a carrier.

I have to say that IS cheap, and I would call it a rip off.  But then who knows?  If it works, it works.

Except for Hexing, cursing, or jinxing Van Van Oil has many purposes and many uses,  from cleansing your home or work area of negativity, to bringing in positive energy, luck, money, love, protection the possibilities are only limited by your imagination.   If you only make a few magical oils this should be one of them.