Tag: welsh witch gin

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Celebrating Summer with Welsh Witch Craft Spirits

Summer is officially here: grab the beach brollies, some strawberries and cream and pop the Wimbledon on! The UK is revelling in the freedom of summer holidays, al-fresco dining and enjoying all the festivities the hot weather brings. So, let’s give you some ways you can celebrate summer with our inspiration from Welsh Witch Craft Spirits, from garden parties, to seasonal recipes and ways to connect with your loved ones.

Get outside into nature

Use this delightful weather to inspire your senses and inner explorer. Grab a pal or take a solo adventure. Visit a place of natural beauty nearby, whether that’s the beach, some gardens, the mountains, it doesn’t matter! Get outside and enjoy some of the fresh air while the weather is good: studies show that getting outside, even just for a 10 minute walk outdoors, boosts your mental health and mood significantly! Find time to take a dip outdoors, in a river, the sea or even a lake if you have one nearby; this time of year the water is so refreshing and ideal for a soothing dip on a hot day.

Host a garden party or barbeque

Summer is often a time of weddings, parties and celebrations. Grab your nearest and dearest and host a summer gathering to remember. If you don’t have a garden, hit up your nearest park, beach or community garden and host a picnic, a ‘bring a plate’ party or a barbeque (if the community space allows!). Finding time to connect and relax with loved ones is a perfect way to soak up the sunshine this summer and enjoy those memorable moments. Don’t forget to top up your tipple stash with our 3 for £95 spirit deal, and you can check out our blog for lots of summer cocktail recipes to enchant your guests and spread some sparkle.

Try out some new recipes

Summer is such a beautiful time for seasonal fruits and veggies, making it a great time to try out some new recipes, prepare some preserves for the winter months or to just have fun with loved ones. Strawberries are an excellent example of a fresh seasonal fruit on offer at the moment; nothing beats UK strawberries in the summer! Try out a strawberry shortcake recipe, a strawberry and feta salad, or check out our recipe for a Strawberry & Elderflower Smash gin cocktail.

Summer Cocktails

Embrace the beautiful summer energy

The summer is always such a beautiful to go out there and do. Use this time to be inspired by the abundance of nature and tap into your inner magic; this is the time to try out new things, explore a new hobby and do that thing you’ve been putting off! Now is the time to strike, with summer in full flow we are encouraged with the solar energy to find time to play, release our inner child and find wonder in this magical summer season. Try some yoga outside, host a game of rounders with friends or spend a day making recipes you’ve been meaning to. It’s so important to nurture that inner child, so what will you do this summer for fun and play?

The exciting summer times always bring a sense of wonder and joy, the warmer weather is an invitation to step outside and revel in the sunshine and just do. So, embrace that solar energy and dive into something new, host a party or take a long trip out into nature.

Here at Welsh Witch HQ, we are wishing you a magical summer, filled with sunshine, good times with good people, and of course a delicious tipple here and there!

Love and light,

Welsh Witch HQ x

 

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An intro to Litha by Lizzie Burgess

Litha – Sunflowers, sunbathing and the solstice

It’s peak summertime here in Wales, and we want to bring you the best of the season with our special summertime celebration. Summer is a great time to spend outdoors, soaking up the sun and enjoying nature’s beauty. Whether gathering with friends to celebrate this magickal time of year or spending time alone in contemplation, summertime is a beautiful opportunity to connect with the spirit of nature.

At this special time of year, we take part in Solstice celebrations and offerings to honour the warmth and light of summer. We decorate with sunflowers, wear bright colours, explore our inner light through meditation practices, dance around the fire and make offerings of thanks for the gifts the Earth provides us. We hold sacred space to honour our ancestors and open ourselves to receive what the summer offers. Nature is in full bloom, giving us an abundance of nourishment and magick that we can take with us throughout the year. This is when witches gather to celebrate Litha.

What is Litha?

Litha is a summer solstice celebration, also known as Midsummer. It is celebrated by many Pagans and Wiccans around the world on the longest day of the year and marks the first day of summer. Traditionally it is a time to honour the sun, celebrate fertility, and give thanks for abundance. For secular witches like myself who don’t honour gods or goddesses, it’s a time to be grateful for the warmth of summer and to take a moment to appreciate the earth with all it provides us when the days are at their longest.

At this special time we also pay attention to our dreams and visions. We use meditation and tarot cards for guidance as we explore deeper connections with ourselves, our community, and the divine.

You’ll find that weddings and handfastings are typically planned around this time too – love magick definitely feels heightened in the light of summertime even into the late evenings. Following on from Beltane and Ostara, the wheel has turned and so has our journey.

Litha is a great opportunity to work with the fae, too, as you’ll remember from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Celebrate the abundance and magick of summer by making offerings to the fae folk, honouring their friendship and connection. A small bowl of milk & honey goes a long way!

Get creative with decorations, take part in rituals that feel right for you, and be sure to spend as much time outdoors as possible – it’s summer after all, and we don’t get a lot of this sunshine normally! There are so many ways to celebrate this special time of year, and so here is some additional inspiration.

Litha Correspondences

  • Crystals: Rose Quartz, Jade, Emerald, Sunstone
  • Colours: Red, Pink, Orange, Gold, Yellow, Bright Green
  • Flowers: Elderflower, St Johns Wort, Lavender, Thyme, Mugwort, Sunflowers
  • Foods: Honey cakes, Mead, Strawberries, Bread, Fresh Salads, Dandelions, Chickweed
  • Activities: Sun-bathing (safely), Dancing around the fire or a bonfire, visiting sacred sites and ancient monuments, making offerings to the fae folk.
  • Magick: Divination, Solar Magick, Fire Magick, Candle Magick, Charging tools and cleansings
  • Deities: Aine, Fortuna, Juno, Cernunnos, Pan, Dionysus, Aphrodite, Bast, Ra, Helios, Apollo

 

About the writer

Lizzie Burgess, a secular divination Bosswitch, runs BackyardBanshee.com where you can learn more about divination methods, rituals and resources that help you with your growth spiritually and professionally. Lizzie is currently finishing the upcoming book “An A to Z of Modern Divination”, where they upcycle and modernize ancient divination methods for a more accessible divinatory practice.

 

 

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Welsh Witch Cocktails to Celebrate World Gin Day

We don’t all need a reason to celebrate, but if you did – it’s World Gin Day! What better way to spend the weekend than to enjoy a refreshing tipple? If you’re looking for some inspiration, join us in our celebration of the magic and diversity of gin as we reminisce on some of our favourite gin cocktails.

 

  1. When the Viking Met the Witch

 

Feast your tastebuds on a delightfully decadent floral and aromatic cocktail this World Gin Day, perfect for those summer evenings with cherished souls. This is a summer version of our favourite winter warming cocktail ‘When the Viking Met the Witch.’ We’ve switched out the hot rooibos tea for cold by letting it cool and make sure to add an abundance of ice before serving. This floral cocktail is perfect for any garden party and feels like a sophisticated twist on fruity iced tea. For this recipe, you’ll need to mix together:

 

1.5oz Welsh Witch Beltane Gin

0.5oz fresh lime juice

0.5oz homemade honey syrup (or just normal honey!)

4oz freshly brewed rooibos tea which has been left to cool

 

You can see this delicious tipple demonstrated by Oli at Oli’s Drinks on Instagram here.

Check out Oli’s Instagram reel on how to make ‘When the Viking Met the Witch’

 

  1. Welsh Witch Strawberry & Elderflower Smash

 

With Wimbledon right around the corner and British strawberry season in full swing, why not try out our delightful Welsh Witch Strawberry & Elderflower Smash? Our Litha gin is packed full of Welsh-inspired floral ingredients, with elderflower the star of the show. Perfect to sip while enjoying a spot of tennis in the sunshine!

 

Muddle a handful of fresh strawberries in the bottom of a cocktail glass.

 

Pour in:

1.5oz Welsh Witch Litha Gin

0.5oz fresh lime juice

0.5oz Simple syrup

…And mix.

 

Fill the glass with ice, then top with:

4oz Soda water

Sprig of basil to garnish

 

Stir well and enjoy! We think this winning combination will be our drink of choice this summer.

 

  1. Simple and Refreshing Cucumber Gin Cocktail

 

A perfect pair for our Original Dry Gin is refreshing and cooling cucumber and zesty lime juice, delightful and delicate for those that prefer a less sweet cocktail.

Mix together the following ingredients for the perfect tipple to remedy a hot summer’s day:

 

Muddle a handful of mint and cucumber pieces in a cocktail shaker.

 

Add 1.5oz Welsh Witch Original Dry Gin and shake, shake shake!

 

Serve with your tonic of choice and garnish with a slice of lime and cucumber.

Enjoy a delightfully refreshing cucumber gin cocktail this World Gin Day!

Which One is Your Favourite?

 

We think they all sound delicious! Let us know if you make any of these and tag us in your creations on Instagram @welshwitch_craftspirits; similarly, if you come up with a new recipe we’d love to see it!

 

Here’s to a magical World Gin Day and hope you get a chance to try some of our magical potions brewed in North Wales.

 

Love and light,

Welsh Witch HQ x