Spiritual Colognes and Sprays

So, lately I've been looking into ways to do magick a little differently. Working with the new House I am in has shown me a plethora of new skills, and ways to apply old ones, but none has stuck to me as strongly as the use of sprays and colognes. Now, I'm no stranger to colognes. I've used Florida water, Destroy Everything, Hex Breaker, Money Drawing, and other colognes many times before. But recently, I've learned that there are other scents with less 'witchy' names that are just as tied to the current. Moreover, I've learned exactly how effective it can be to take those colognes, put them in a spray bottle, and keep that with you. You never know when you need a little boost in the middle of the day, after all. So let's get into it.

What are spiritual colognes? Well, as the name implies, they are colognes that do more than smell nice. Florida water is the most popular example I can think of, but far from the only one. You can find these at any botanica, bodega, or occult store. There are colognes for everything from getting rid of bad vibes to getting laid to getting paid. Traditionally, these would be splashed on your person, as you would with a regular cologne, to carry those vibrations with you throughout your day. Or, they were used to feed mojo bags and used as spell ingredients. So, an easy way to think of them is as bottled spellwork. Easier to use than oils or powders, faster, and more discreet. And using them with spray bottles makes them even more accessible. This is why I have been using them lately (I have literally a dozen different bottles on my dresser for different needs.)

But you don't necessarily have to be them from someone. You can buy the traditional colognes and put them in sprayers yourself, or you can make your own. Your first major decision is, what is the carrier for your spray? You can use Perfumers alcohol, which is specifically designed to be used in colognes and perfumes. You can use rubbing alcohol if you so wish. Or, you can do what I do: use a high proof (at least 80) vodka. This is a little more 'spiritual', as vodka is a common offering to many spirits. Either way, decide on your carrier first.

Next, decide your method. Do you just want to toss everything in a spray bottle and be done with it? Or do you want to make a master batch in a jar and pour from that into a spray bottle? If you're doing the former, then I highly recommend using essential oils. They don't mix into the alcohol perfectly, so you'll need to shake the bottle each time you use it, but it's easy to add a few drops to a sprayer, pour your carrier in, shake it, and call it a day. If you're using a master bottle, however, I advise you to stick with materia and let the carrier absorb the essence. Then, you can strain it after it has soaked for a few weeks and bottle this formula.

The last thing to decide is ingredients, and that just depends on what you want your spray to do. There are oodles of correspondences out there you can use for your recipes, but here's a brief guide to get you started:

Money Drawing: Basil, cinnamon, bayberry, allspice, patchouli

Protection: Rue, rosemary, angelica, nettle, cloves

Love & Attraction: Rose, lavender, cinnamon, patchouli

Uncrossing: Hyssop, rue, angelica, rosemary

Divination: Mugwort, yarrow, dandelion

Peace & Healing: Chamomile, lavender, peppermint

And of course, you will want to empower your spray. This can be as simple or as complex as you want, but make sure it's personal to you and captures the need you are filling with the spray.

And that's it! Now get out there and whip up some sprays for some portable magick! Have fun!