There Is a Dress Code. Or Not.

© Copyright 2024 Fran Carey, All Rights Reserved.

What do witches wear?  The short answer is anything they want.  Or nothing at all.  Some traditions, and some covens, have firm rules about what to wear during ritual, but there are few if any who dictate what their members wear in the day to day world.  Some witches, and those who follow other spiritual paths, like to wear special garb everyday, whether it be clothing or jewelry.  Some wear whatever they grab out of the closet that morning, and only don special clothes for special occasions.

One reason to wear non-traditional attire in the everyday world is to set yourself apart from the hoi polloi.  This can be a way to distance yourself mentally from the consumerist vibe which is a leading cause of environmental and social issues, especially in developing countries.  It is also a good way to support local artists, whether they make clothes, jewelry, or scents.  It lets you express your personal taste, beliefs, and style.  It can also signal you as a safe person to others who march to the beat of a different drum.

Clothing and jewelry can be coordinated with the daily planets to increase their energy in your life, such as wearing jet on Saturday to align with Saturn, it can be used to bring in the energy of a particular color, like red to wake you up on a Monday, or clothes can be coordinated with the stone you need medicinally that day.  Right now, I am wearing a shirt the color of lepidolite and a lepidolite bracelet because I hit the exercises much too hard!

For many people, dressing in a nontraditional way allows them to feel closer to nature and the magical, especially the fairy, realm.  It helps them stay in touch with their inner child who hasn't lost the connection to the unseen energies that surround us and all things, living and nonliving.  

Some like flowing skirts, shirts, and dresses, to connect to wind and non-fixed energies.  Some like more structured styles to remind them to focus on consensual reality and keep it between the lines until they are with their spiritual kin.  

Pentagram jewelry denotes a person who follows the Wiccan or Witchcraft traditions, while a Thor's Hammer, or Mjolnir, indicates someone who works in the Norse traditions.  Animal jewelry can help invoke the energy of the animal or a deity associated with the animal - a butterfly for lightness and joy, elephant for the Hindu god Ganesha, a raven for the Norse Odin.

You could also wear a tee shirt or cap depicting the god, goddess, or animal with which you want to work or symbolizing the desired energy for the day.  A phoenix for energizing and rebirth.  A cat for Bastet, the Egyptian goddess of dance and a happy home.  Or just because cats.

Many practitioners of nature religions choose to abstain from leather and animal products as part of their commitment to justice and respect for all living things, so you will see them in vegan suede, cotton, hemp, and bamboo.  Most also choose natural rather than synthetic as much as possible, as it lets them connect more directly to the living planet.

The robes most people envision when they think "witch" are something that would only be worn during ritual.  Pointy hats are reserved for Halloween events and sunset paddleboarding meetups that time of year.  If curly toed shoes are worn, they are again part of a Halloween costume.  Most witches tend toward comfortable shoes!

Unless he or she is part of a coven which has a ritual dress code, a witch wears pretty much whatever they want, whether they are working nine to five, chilling at the park, or attending worship services under the moon!

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Buckland's Complete Book of Witchcraft	Thors Hammer With Pentacle
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