How to become a glamour witch
In this excellent article, Sophie Saint Thomas, author of the forthcoming Glamour Witch: Conjuring Style and Grace to Get What You Want, shares her fabulous secrets to getting started with glamour magick.
For many witches, half the fun of your practice is the unknown.
Stepping outside the mundane everyday life of waiting for crushes to text you back or working up the nerve to ask your boss for a raise, a witchcraft practice allows you to find strength in a world that can be pretty cruel sometimes. After all, the most important (and powerful) ingredient in your spells is you.
Many occult practices, from sex magick to candle spells, exist in the unknown, drawing upon internal powers, the mysterious magick of nature, and ancestors and deities. Glamour magick is unique in that it works with the tangible and, at times, even the scientifically understood.
Once upon a time, wearing makeup or perfume could get you in trouble for practicing witchcraft, as such tools were seen as devilish methods to entrap a husband (forgive the binary, medieval times weren’t exactly up to date with the gender revolution).
However, for me, a practicing glamour witch, and the author of the forthcoming Glamour Witch: Conjuring Style and Grace to Get What You Want, I find it deliciously fun that makeup can be used for such purposes. Of course, there are many reasons to utilize glamour, such as inviting self-confidence, getting a leg up at work, and love spells. But somehow, using tools that today are seen as everyday objects to perform magic is the other half of the fun.
What is glamour magick?
The word glamour originally meant “to cast a spell,” or an illusion created by witches. Over the years, the term evolved. However, its magickal origins were forgotten, becoming a synonym for elegance and beauty. Think of Melisandre, the Red Woman from Game of Thrones. The beautiful and powerful witch is capable of bending the will of men. Matching her red hair and monochrome red clothing is a ruby necklace. The storyline reveals that once Melisandre takes off the amulet, she shows her true form: a shriveled aging woman, or in witch terms, a fierce crone.
If beauty is subject to societal standards and genetics – forces outside of your control – glamour is clothing, makeup, confidence, and enchanted amulets. Consider the likes of David Bowie, a once scraggly-looking kid who transformed himself into Ziggy Stardust and secured his status as an icon among the stars (and I’m not talking about Hollywood). In interviews, Bowie often talks about using the fiery orange-haired character he created, Ziggy Stardust, to invoke confidence on stage as a performer.
You, too, can summon confidence with glamour magick tools, whether you want to slay a first date or a job interview. Not sure where to start? Keep reading for tips on creating your own glamour magick rituals.
How can I add glamour magick to my practice?
Work with color magick, especially by integrating it into your wardrobe and beauty routine. For example, witches use the color red, in color magick to candle magick, to conjure passionate love. Now that science is catching up with what wise women have always known, there’s a research finding called the “red dress effect,” which shows that men rate women wearing red more as being attractive than other colors. So, perhaps opt for red lipstick or a red dress on a date when you want to feel powerfully sexy.
Tap into your inner kitchen witch and use the same ingredients as Cleopatra turned to for beauty. Blend ⅓ cup pomegranate seeds, ⅓ cup plain coconut yogurt, one tablespoon honey, and one teaspoon lemon juice to make a face mask that not only contains proven antioxidant properties but also carries the ancestral power of glamour witches throughout the ages.
Speaking of ancestors, you can use your family tree for glamour inspiration. Look at old photos of passed-on loved ones for hair and outfit inspo to help connect with your heritage and look fantastic.
If you haven’t heard, size inflation is real regarding clothing, and your size will vary depending on the brand and designer. Therefore, it’s important not to get bogged down about what size you wear. What’s important is that your clothes fit and make you feel powerful and beautiful. Perform a body insecurity banishing ritual by cutting off the tags on your clothing and (while practicing fire safety) burning them in your cauldron or a fireproof container. Bury the ashes, or if you live in a city, simply throw them out.
While today, non-binary and trans folks face higher rates of violence and persecution, throughout history, in many cultures, from the Two-Spirits from Indigenous North American tribes, the hijras of India, and the Khawaja sira of Pakistan, such folks are rightfully considered sacred and holy. Glamour magick is a beautiful way to explore your gender identity and presentation through clothes and makeup.
As anyone with tattoos can attest, it’s easy to have a complicated relationship with your ink, especially those older tattoos you got when you were much younger. However (unless they contain some sort of hate symbol, of course), you deserve to love your tattoos. Use rose quartz, known for sweet self-love, to keep your tattoos looking fresh and inject them with kindness. Today, they make rose quartz beauty products, such as face rollers, but all you need is a tumbled smooth rose quartz crystal. Use it to rub lotion onto your tattoos and love yourself, including the younger you who led you to where you are today.
For more glamour magick tips and spells, pre-order Glamour Witch: Conjuring Style and Grace to Get What You Want, out January 1, 2023, today.
Did this post inspire you to try some glamour magick? Or do you have other go-to glamour magick tips and tricks to share? Please throw up a comment below!
Sophie Saint Thomas is an award-winning journalist and author based in New York City and originally from the U.S. Virgin Islands. Her exhaustive list of bylines includes VICE, Playboy, GQ, Glamour, Marie Claire, PRIDE, Cosmpolitan, High Times, Gawker (RIP), Harper’s Bazaar, and more. She is the author of five books: Finding Your Higher Self (Simon & Schuster), The Little Book of CBD for Self-Care (Simon & Schuster), Sex Witch: Magickal Spells for Love, Lust, and Self-Protection (Weiser), as well as the forthcoming Glamour Witch (Weiser) and Weed Witch (Running Press/Hachette Book Group). Previously, she’s worked as a columnist for VICE, producer for MTV Networks, and Refinery29’s sex staff writer. She is the co-creator and author of The Intimacy Journal: A Sex & Cannabis Log Book.
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