Witches Corner

By Claire Keen, Hedge Witchery UK

Welcome to another witches corner. This issue I will be taking a look at poppets. I use poppets in my magical workings a lot. I believe a poppet is a representation of yourself or another, used in sympathetic magic as a magical tool. They can be used for a variety of magical purposes including; healing, banishing harmful people from your life, bringing abundance your way, and more — the choices are practically limitless.

Before we go any further though, the views, facts and opinions in this article are my own. Some, all, or none of the information in this article may apply to your own craft. In addition, as with many magical practices, please understand there is no guarantee as to the outcome or effectiveness of an individual's craft. Please seek professional medical help if you have illness or ailments of any kind. 

With that in mind let's delve into the magical craft of poppets.

The word "poppet" actually comes from the Middle English word popet, meaning a small child or doll, deriving from the Latin pupa meaning "girl" or "doll". In medieval English a poppet could refer to any small effigy or figurine of any kind. In medieval and early modern Europe, effigies were used in sympathetic magic with the idea that a poppet could represent a person, and that the energy of what is done to the object will in turn affect the person. Poppets were created using straw, cloth, or wax and could be used to heal, curse, protect, or bind a person.

To make my own poppet I use scraps of materials preferably recycled from other projects or old clothes. I feel that they are full of my own energy. I make a base body shape much like a large hot dog bun. I stitch this around the edges, leaving a small gap so that I can stuff it with magical herbs, flowers and plants to match my chosen intention. I then stitch it up fully. If I'm making it for general purposes, I choose herbs such as rosemary, sage, mugwort and lavender. 

Once my base is complete I create a face for my popets using air drying clay. This really gives the poppet character. Once dry, I hot glue this to the base I made previously. I then dress the doll with a range of fabrics, ribbons, wools, yarns, talismans, buttons and whatever else I'm drawn to. To complete my poppets I add an additional locket. I'll explain later how this is used. 

Your dolls don't need to be as complex though, throughout history poppets were made from a range of materials that were often very basic. What is important is your magical intention for the doll. If you have that in mind when you construct it, it will be sure to absorb some of that energy. 

Once your doll is complete, it's time to activate it to your intentions. The following is my own ritual for doing this but you can adapt it or make your own. 

To connect the doll to a person or yourself use a magical link. You will remember the locket I mentioned previously. Place inside the locket connective items such as a lock of hair, nail clippings, blood, sweat, spit or even a photograph, anything that you feel holds a strong connection to the person the poppet represents. Once complete, spend some time awakening your doll. To awaken your doll, I would give it a name and a purpose and then “Breathe” life into it by blowing into its face. Then say something like this: “Wake up little poppet. You are complete, I will call you (whatever you name it). Your job is (whatever you want it to do).”

I believe poppets should then be treated exactly the way you would want the person the doll is representing to be treated. For example if you wanted the doll to protect you from bad luck or harm, you would take precious care of the doll ensuring no harm comes to it. If you wanted the doll to bring the person good fortune, you could bestow it with gifts and trinkets. 

Pins could also be used to place into the poppet before you activate it. If you are using your poppet for healing you could place the pins where you have issues. For example, if you suffer with back pain you would place the pins on the back of the poppet.  Maybe you have a heart ache from the loss of love. You could place pins in the heart area. Then over the following days when the doll is activated you can remove a pin a day. This signifies removing the pain from yourself or another. Once your intentions are complete some people like to take the doll apart, although I have not done this myself. 

This is just a whistle stop tour of the magical world of poppets, there is lots of information out there, along with some really good books. I hope this has sparked your interest, and you enjoy your magical poppet journey. 

As always, I hope you enjoyed this issue's witches corner.

Until next time,

Claire

Hedge WItchery UK