On rainy mornings or cold nights I love sip my cup of tea, curl up with a cat, and read a witchy book by the light of my salt lamp. And although there are plenty of commercially published books that I love, there is something so magickal about occult-themed zines; people sharing their knowledge and experiences without the filter of large publishing house. The deeply folk tradition of small, handmade publications goes straight to the heart of my art and craft. So, I wanted to share a bit of what I read in the last calendar year with the Magickal community on Hive!
Before getting started with this roundup I wanted to clarify that these booklets and zines were published between 2020 and 2023 and are all included under this post because I was either gifted them or bought them this year, read them, and loved them! Also, my cat was sitting on my work table for all these pictures, so the fuzzy orange and white thing is him, Reishi. Okay, let the magickal reading begin.
Cottage Craft by Sylvia Dresselhaus aka LeoDrune - The illustration in this booklet is amazing! For DIY publication they are a bit on the expensive side (~ 11 USD) but, I think worth the investment as each booklet is full of inspiring witchcraft information that feels very unique and from the writer's practical experience. When so many occult books feel like a repeat of previous books the well research and crafted zines of LeoDrune really stand out as capturing the character of modern green magic. Right now the shop is on a break and only selling digital versions, but in January you can find all their print publications in their Etsy Shop.
The Hedge Witch Herbal by Nuit Moore - is a short and sweet little zine and really is more of a reference book with a long list of herbs from Angelica to Willow and a sentence or two of their medicinal and magical uses. There is also a section at the end that talks a bit about Hedgecraft which I really like too. My favorite part of the whole zine is the stamped designs that adorn the front cover and borders of the inside pages. This booklet makes me feel like I am "riding the hedge" between living as a modern herbalist and as a medieval hedgewitch. This zine can be found amongst many other magical and medicinal supplies at TerraTempleArts on Etsy.
The Hedge Witch's Hearth by Carly Rose and Rachael Coats - Although still a small scale publication, this zine teaters on the edge of being called a book as it is over 50 pages long and packed with information, spells, poetry, and black and white illustrations. Though the white printer paper it is made of doesn't have the charm of the other booklets listed here that is quickly forgotten once you delve into the various sections it contains. This and the other's in the Hedge Witch series can be found at The White Witch Company, once again on Etsy.
Celtic Tree Magic by The Witches' Almanac - Of this stack of booklets this is the only one that I didn't buy for myself and actually is the most book-like of them all. The Witches' Almanac is a very small publishing house that retains so much folk and charm that I think it could be considered a zine. What I love about this book is that it is kind of an oracle too. Much like the Zodiac of Tropical Astrology there is a system of a Celtic calendar system matching certain periods of the year with trees. Each tree (or plant as Ivy and Blackberry are included) contains a bit of folklore, a ritual or two, and the runic symbol that go with each month/tree. I am so grateful to my long time pen pal for gifting me this when we last met up in person. This and many other booklets can be found on The Witches' Almanac Website.
All of these zines and booklets have been read over and over this year and will continue to be bedside companions on stormy nights. It will be interesting to see as my craft grows and adapts which parts of the zines will resonate with me in the future. And soon enough I will have my own magickal zine to add to this worldwide library of enchantment. Happy Holidays everyone!