Oral Fixations

Food can be foreplay, a wonderful prelude to a night of love, feeding each other, and placing a little whipped cream and chocolate in strategic spots. I recommend consuming these aphrodisiacs for your pleasure:

• Almonds, or erotically shaped marzipan
• Arugula, also called “rocket seed”
• Avocado, referred to by the ancient Aztecs as the “testicle tree”
• Bananas and banana flowers
• Chocolate, quite rightly called “the food of the gods”
• Honey, as the term “honeymoon” came from a bee- sweetened drink served to newlyweds
• Nutmeg, the traditional aphrodisiac for Chinese women; eat enough and you will hallucinate
• Oysters, prized by the Romans for their effect and resemblance to female genitalia
• Strawberries, often mentioned in erotic literature 
• Coffee, a stimulant for many things
• Garlic, the heat to light the flame of desire
• Figs, another symbol of ultimate femininity; just eating one is a turn-on
• Vanilla, captivating for both its scent and its flavor
• Wine drunk from each other’s mouths can be quite erotic 

Topaz—Saint Hildegard’s Cure

Sailors once used this golden gem to shed light of the water during moonless nights. Topaz was also used as an aphrodisiac and to prevent the excesses of love, functions that certainly don’t seem to go together. Ground into a dust and mixed with rose water, topaz was used to treat excessive bleeding. Similarly, powdered topaz mixed with wine was a treatment for insanity once upon a time. The ancients used topaz to guard against magicians by setting it in a gold bracelet and wearing it on the left arm. Saint Hildegard of Bingen, who suggested topaz was an aid to poor vision, placed the stone in wine for three straight days and then gently rubbed it on the eye. The wine could then be drunk—after removing the stone, of course. This is one of the first written records of a gem elixir. Medieval physicians also used topaz to treat the plague and its accompanying stores, and several miracles were attributed to a particular stone that had been in the possession of Pope Clement VI and Pope Gregory II.

Rocket-in-Your-Pocket Incantation

If you are like me, you can’t exactly afford to buy a ruby on the spot. I have been gladdened lately by the appearance of $3-each rough rubies at the new age bookstores. Now those rubies I can buy on impulse.

Rubies are stones of great passion. Here is a simple way to light a fire by day that will ignite with your lover by night. Hold your ruby in your left hand over your heart and speak aloud three times: 

“I can feel the heat
Of your skin
And your mouth;
I can taste the kisses sweet.
Your hands on me,
My hands on you;
Oh, lover, hear my song. 
Tonight, we will be as one 
All night long.”

Now carry your heart-warmed ruby in your pocket all day long. Don’t forget to give your lover a call and invite him or her over for a long and lovely night.

Cleaning Your Crystal Ball

After the first thirty-three days of tuning in with your new crystal ball, you should give it a good cleaning, both physically and energetically; Thirty-three is a power number and is exactly the right amount of time to wait so that your crystal ball is permeated with your personal psychic energy. I recommend keeping it with you, in a pocket or, if it is smaller, even in a little pouch around your neck. The constant interaction with your body will get you and your crystal ball in sync.

To thoroughly cleanse the crystal, put in a bowl of sea salt for seven days. Treat your crystal ball as the precious thing it is. Keep it in a soft cloth; I prefer a dark blue silk bag. Never store your crystal ball in a synthetic material—it came from the earth and needs to stay connected to the earth’s grounding energy. 

If you are like me and have slightly sticky, well-lotioned hands, you simply need to wash the crystal in warm water after each use and then wipe it with a soft, natural-fiber cloth; all will be well. Regard your crystal ball with the highest respect, the highest regard, and the highest mind, and it will give you a lifetime of great service. Also, remain mindful that you are using it for the purposes of universal love and healing and these effects shall be so. 

On the Rise with Rose

If you want to jump-start your life and bring about positive change, tap into the power of the rose and red stones. Stones of this side of the color spectrum contain life’s energy and can help you become more motivated, more energetic, and more vibrant, and also give you and appealing aura. Wear this list of rosy and red stones or place them on your desk and throughout your home for an instant boost: alexandrite, carnelian, garnet, red coral, red jasper, rhyolite, rose jasper, and ruby.

Living the Magic

Now you have been initiated into the art of crystal and magic. You can make yourself a true-love tiara, a seductive toe ring, or a bewitching bracelet, to name but a few of the crystalline projects you have in your new bag of tricks. Gem magic is a merry way to make magic, but it is, in essence, all about improving the quality of your life. These gorgeous gems and sacred stones are all around us, with enhancing energies that you can apply consciously to bring a sense of well-being to your job, your family, your friends, your love life, and your deepest spirit and psyche. Use this special kind of magic to create wonder, fun, fantasy, and fulfillment in all areas of your life.

Magic Metals

Just as the first humans sensed that stones contained energy and special properties, so too they found that metals boasted energies that had tremendous influence and power. Metals used to be very commonplace in magic, but their popularity has lessened within the last 500 years, after alchemists began to turn into scientists.

Magical Metallurgy has rebounded a bit and plays a definite role in gem magic. The simplest way to employ magic metals is to place a copper penny in your pocket or carry a pouch containing a horseshoe nail for luck. Mystical metals— from bewitching bronze to supernatural silver—can add a whole dimension to gem magic in your life.

Gem-Magic Get-Together

Forget the Tupperware party and have a gem-magic party with your girlfriends instead. Make popcorn, eat pizza, drink champagne, and, most importantly, make magic together. What could be more fun? All you have to do is pick a night and assign everyone two ingredients to bring—one snack and one batch of crystal beads. You provide the thread, tools, glue, and good vibes.

Think about beginning the night by making brooches. A brooch worn over the heart is a symbol of loyalty and love among friends. You’ll need to get some flat- circle brooch pins at a craft store. Give each person at the party a brooch and ask her to choose a partner. Using glue, each gal will encrust the front of her brooch with as many crystals as possible in a color and an array that best represents the personality of her partner. Then, the partners exchange brooches. Your gaggle of girlfriends will be forever bonded by their love brooches, not to mention the glue!

Here are a few other festive and fun projects you can whip up together: birthstone bracelets, bewitching barrettes, pendulum pendants, true-love tiaras, blessing bracelets, bodacious bobby pins, and nights-of-enchantment necklaces. The possibilities are endless; let your imagination (and your friends) run wild!