THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT: FRIGHTENING FOLKLORE - HALLOWS 2015

Greetings, dear ones! The great season of Autumn is once again upon us and with it a clutch of magnificently magical fragrances for your enjoyment. Besides the wonderful oil we offer at the website, were you aware that our ETSY Curio Store is active, too? Our new Etsy manager, Marisa, has been busy photographing and typing listing the most preciously rare of all the Conjure limiteds! Right now, we're running a grand opening special where if you buy 12 bottles, your 13th is free! Stop by and tell Marisa what a great job she's doing! This year, we have the theme of Things That Go Bump In the Night: Frightening Folklore! I think Tulpa and Machine Elves may be my favorites, let me know what you think your favorites may be! Magick and Madness, Vajra THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT: FRIGHTENING FOLKLORE - HALLOWS 2015 5ml Brown Apothecary Bottle - $20

THE BANSHEES' KEEN Ireland Closely associated with death, Banshees (traditional spelling, Bean Sidhe, which means Women of the Fairy Mound) are ancient faeries that appear in many ghostly forms. From flawlessly beautiful women draped in diaphanous white flowing robes with glowing, pearlescent skin framed by loose crimson hair dancing about their visage and shoulders to horrific headless forms nude from neck to waist! The blood-curding wail that has become the trademark of the Banshee is not the cause of death as many mistakenly believe, but only harbinger of imminent doom; usually of a close family member, as clans seem to retain specific, familial Banshees throughout the generations. When the Celtic mourning keen of the Banshee is heard, dread fills the hearts of those who bear witness to her humbling power as her visit surely portends the passing of a loved one to the other side. Damp loam from the faery mound, Irish moss, shrill eucalyptus gum and an offering of Irish whiskey.

BLACK ANNIS England Sometimes seen as a merger of black cat and demon or as a blue faced hag with claws and horrible teeth, Black Annis lives on the Dane Hills near Leicester, England and is blamed for any missing children or animals in the area. She is said to roam the land after dark stealing babies from their cribs and capturing children and small farm animals who have strayed into her realm. She flays her victims alive, scatters their bones and drapes the skins over the old oak tree near her cave, the Bower. Yet another instance of a once beloved and powerful goddess reduced to a gruesome two dimensional villain in a children's cautionary tale! May this fragrance serve as an offering to restore Black Annis to her ancient glory. Rich and resplendent dark pepper essence, blackened tonka resin, ruh khus, crimson cananga and motia attar.

BLOODY MARY England Often dismissed as an urban legend intended to scare teenage girls at slumber parties out of their minds at the stroke of midnight, the spirit of Bloody Mary may have actual historical authenticity linked to it! During her truncated reign, Mary Tudor, the Queen of England from 1553 to 1558, burned over three hundred people at the stake during her brief reign, earning her the moniker 'Bloody Mary'. According to history books, Mary had multiple miscarriages and legend has it that they were caused by people who didn't want her to have an heir or continue her lineage. If this is true, they were indeed successful. She is paired with the Bloody Mary ritual through wording. Some variations on the Bloody Mary chant are "Bloody Mary, I killed your baby" or "Bloody Mary, where is your baby?". All intended on exploiting the mourning spirit's grief. Folklorist Alan Dundes' Freudian interpretation of the ritual is that it is symbolic of menarche and menstruation. Teenage girl + bathroom + the sudden appearance of blood + total instant freak out. You do the math! A symbolic perfumed prayer to the spirit grief and loss: Blood red gulab attar in full bloom, shy English violet, the passion of clove infused with red sandalwood, red blood musk and the innocence of the gift of crocus in the form of saffron threads all anchored in earthy russet patchouli saturated black honey.

DEVIL'S DANDY DOGS Southwest England A variation on the Wild Hunt - a phenomenon witnessed the world over. On stormy nights, usually on the liminal holidays of the Earth such as All Hallows and May Day, or the days that mark the turning of the seasons such as Midsummer or Yuletide, a procession of spirits can be seen parading at night under the full moon. In Hawaii they are known as Night Marchers, and Hyakki Yako in Japan. Great Gods are said to sometimes lead the revelry; Shiva, Dionysis and Freya. The Devil's Dandy Dogs are a Christianized take on the Wild Hunt - a pack of red eyed, fire-breathing and feral hounds are lead through the foggy moonlit English moors at midnight lead by none other than the Adversary himself - Satan! Rain weathered grey leather reins, baked clay earth, petrichor, deliciously decomposing autumn leaves, silver vanilla sugar drenched with pitch black tobacco absolute and the fragrant flaming red glow of brimstone obscured by gleaming fog, heavy with the magic of a million spells cast in the full moon's light.

THE GRIEF OF LA LLORONA Mexico Seen roaming through the lonely night dressed in stark white with her face shrouded by a matching veil, La Llorona mortifies all that have the misfortune of coming across her with her terrible cries. Her name itself means 'The Wailing Woman' or 'The Weeping Woman'. Like Black Annis and Bloody Mary she is now an urban legend, however, again like the former, there is so much more to her history. There have been sightings of La Llorona since the 1500's wandering the streets of the town that would eventually become Mexico City lamenting over the loss of her children and then disappearing into the nearby river. The actual legend of La Llorona is as tragically heartbreaking as it is terrifying. HERE is a particularly thorough telling. She shares characteristics with the Banshee and the Mothman as a harbinger (not cause) of death and to warn others of impending danger and disaster. La Llorona, who was probably a demonized version of the ancient goddess Cihuacóatl: the goddess of snakes and midwifery, is once again being restored to her goddess status. Young Latina mothers petition her, particularly those in situations of desperation. Ofrenda para Cihuacóatl: Spiced tobacco, black copal, cempazuchil blossoms, palo santo, guaiac wood and cacao nibs soaked with tequila, drizzled with blue agave syrup and dusted with Ceylon cinnamon powder.

KUNEKUNE YOKAI Japan Similar to the Slenderman, Kunekune is a fictitious being made up on Japanese websites around 2003 and is considered to be a modern yokai, or ghost. On hot summer days in the afternoon it is said to materialize. It has the appearance of a tall, thin humanoid figure made of silk or fabric. Its appendages are constantly moving, in fact Kunekune is translated to "wiggle" or "to meander". It is safe to see this yokai from a distance and depending on the location, it takes on different colors; in the countryside and over the ocean, it appears to be ghostly white and tar black in the city. Being too close to the Kunekune causes madness, and to touch it leads to certain death. This powerful fragrance is based on a rare and ancient Japanese incense recipe I was once gifted long ago by a mysterious Japanese gentleman I met in a bookstore when I was in my early 20s. It is purported to clean the environment from malefic spirits, thus opening the way for blessings from ancestors, deities and the Buddha, The solid incense itself contains several components - many of them are hard to obtain and are quite costly. I have made this perfumed interpretation: A drop of star anise, black sandalwood, agarwood, red benzoin, black cherry and cinnamon bark.

THE GREY LADY United Kingdom Grey Ladies are called thusly because they have a gloaming grey ghostly pallor, not so much because of her clothing (like in the case of the White and Green Ladies). There are multiple Grey Ladies that haunt various places throughout the UK. Often, these female spirits have suffered a violent death, in the name of love (a single stab wound to the chest by a certain baron, for example), or they simply wasted away from longing. They often appear with a predictable regularity forever ever searching for their loved ones. Gray amber, black musk, Egyptian sandalwood, yuzu, coconut husk, Night Queen, Earl Gray and red raspberry raw honey. GLAISTIG, THE GREEN LADY Scotland Green Lady describes several different types of supernatural beings who have little in common save for the deep emerald green dresses worn by the spirits themselves. They are ghosts who haunt ancient castles and dark moors, ruins and lonely, barren areas. Some consider them to be demons. Glaistig is a type of Green Lady. Some say she is a mortal woman turned into a fairy, or a true Highland Fairy. Glaistigs are very helpful on farms and are caretakers of the herds of livestock. They even look out for the children of the farmers as they tend to the animals. However, they are not always benevolent - they have been known to be harbingers of death as well. Linden vert, balsamic amber, emerald moss, spruce sap and davana. ERZEBET BATHORY, LADY IN WHITE Slavic Some are ghosts, some are apparitions, some are spirits, but they all wear long flowing white ghostly gowns. The sometimes appear as amorphous white translucent humanoid forms that transform into different horrifying shapes. They are quite beautiful and the white they wear is usually a wedding dress as they have most likely died on their wedding day from a violent attack from their intended, or fathers who opposed the marriage. Some just died of a broken heart. They can walk through the walls of the places they haunt. They are not harmful, but like the other Ladies, they can be harbingers of death as well. In Slavic mythology, White Ladies are usually the result of women who have committed suicide, died in prison or who were violently murdered. They often tend to linger in the same place, often the place they died. Countess Erzebet Bathory is a great example of a White Lady. At the time of her trial, she was reported to have killed up to 650 women, allegedly bathing in the blood of virgin girls to retain her youthful beauty. Countess Bathory died while imprisoned where it is said her spirit still lingers. Paranormal investigators have searched for evidence that will lead to the existence of the tormented spirit of Countess Erzebet Bathory. To this day, evidence has remained inconclusive. Damascus rose resin, smoked patchouli, aged vanilla tar.

MACHINE ELVES Subconscious and Psychic Realms Machine Elves (also known as Fractal Elves or Self-Transforming Elf Machines) is a term coined by the late ethnobotanist, writer and philosopher Terence McKenna to describe the entities that are often reported by individuals using the ethenogenic compound DMT, also known as the God Molecule. These creatures, existing on the Astral Plane, seem to take advantage of a person's DMT experience to introduce themselves and to interact with the person using the substance. They appear as small beings composed of iridescent rainbow fractals that have the ability to enter and exit the person's spiritual body and consciousness at will. The purpose of the Machine Elves seems to make sense out of all the metaphysical and spiritual information that is being presented to a person while interacting with DMT by participating in a ayahuasca ceremony or imbibing DMT containing plants such as Reed Canary Grass. While this fragrance does contain plants that have been known to contain DMT and other alkaloids, it is sold as a perfume and a curio only. Please use it as fragrance ONLY. If I catch you using it any other way I will kick your ass and not make any other neat tribute scents such as this and you'll be the reason we can't have nice things. An intoxicant for the initiated. For the rest of us: blue lotus absolute and attar, mimosa, butterfly bush, mugwort, belladonna accord, mandrake, dragon's blood, black myrrh and a pinch of reed canary grass.

TULPA Tibet Rooted in ancient Indian and Tibetan Buddhist lore and practice, a Tulpa is a sentient spiritual being (also known as an emanation, hallucination or thought form) imagined into existence by a practitioner using the power of concentrated thought and specialized techniques in meditation. Also known as Servitor Magick, it is a current practice in Western Occultism. Online communities can be found at tulpa dot info and in the subReddit group r/Tulpa. There is quite an extraordinary community of practitioners, known as Tulpamancers, creating Tulpas based on characters found in their favorite television programs - My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic being one of the most popular. Tibetan frankincense, juniper berry, Indian sandalwood, shredded cinnamon bark, 13 year aged Indian patchouli, blood cedar, clove, rosa moschata and a drop of hina oud attar.

VAMPIRE PUMPKIN Balkan Peninsula Originating as a folk legend from the Balkans, it is associated with the Romani people (who seem to have a wonderful connection with vampiric folklore in general!) According to legend, any inanimate object left outside overnight in the light of the full moon can become a vampire! Look out for a drop of blood on the surface of the pumpkin's skin - it's a clear sign that the vampiric transformation had just begun or ended. A scholarly work from Serbia in the 1930's states that according to the Gypsies, two plants that are most prone to vampiric proclivities are the pumpkin and the watermelon. To destroy plants that have turned into the undead, you need to plunge the plants into boiling water, dump the plants and the water onto the ground, sweep the water and fruit away and then burn the broom. Just when you thought it was safe to make a pumpkin pie... Sensual chai spiced golden honey folded into pumpkin cream cheese and toasted oak ice cream finished with a dollop of vanilla whipped cream then drizzled with smoked sea salt and lapsong souchong caramel swirl.

Putting the finishing touches on during the full moon eclipse this weekend. Look for it shortly thereafter! All your favorite Conjure Oils scents from seasons past you've come to expect at Hallows! THINGS THAT GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT: FRIGHTENING FOLKLORE - HALLOWS 2015 5ml Brown Apothecary Bottle - $20 ABANDONED MORGUE 2015 Are you here on a dare and wishing you weren't, or is this your new nightly haunt? Either way, this old abandoned morgue has many stories to tell. Tonight we'll listen intently with the lights out! Ghost of a bonfire, tonka bean, vanilla bourbon, Zanzibar clove, black amber and dark Indonesian patchouli. DRACULA 2015 One of the legendary monsters from the horror world who deserves a scent of his own! Mesmerizing notes of corrupted incense, blood musk, clove, Tunisian myrrh and blood red pomegranate. HANSEL UND GRETEL 2015 A gingerbread house decorated with spice drops and butter cream frosting. The faint smell of a witch's brew filling the enchanted woods and roaring cook stove perfect for roasting a greedy little boy or girl. KILLER KLOWN 2015 No rest for the wicked, though! The darkness of the Dot Room gives way to a brightly lit funhouse of warped mirrors, garishly painted arches, and flashing strobes. In the smoky chaos, yellow-fanged mad clowns dart, popping out of the peripheries with honking horns, crazed laughter, or bloodied hand tools. Withered corpses bound cruelly into exaggerated poses line the walls, mimicking tight wire acts, animal tamers, and side-show acts, each one more nightmarish than the next. Spun sugar, vanilla-white greasepaint, molten marshmallow and cherry-syrup blood. LIGHTLESS MAZE 2015 The creaking doors and cobwebbed foyer of the Manor lead into a dark hallway, one that grows ever more dim the further your group progresses. In time, there is nothing but inky blackness, peppered with nerve-wracking scrapings in the walls and the feeling of spiderwebs brushing your face, or something worse - are those bugs crunching underfoot? Is the floor tilting, or is it just your imagination? There's a faint yelp from the front of the party as the poor soul in the lead finds out about the turn at the end of the hall the hard way. Soft black patchouli, silky midnight opium, warm black tea and a mysterious trace of obfuscated honey sweetness over shrouded black coconut and black musk. MEPHISTOPHELES 2015 Faustian devil; popular through the Middle Ages into the Renaissance. He is the spirit of chaos who hates all things beautiful and denies the power of Love. Some say he is a trickster; a smooth talker with a slick tongue and slippery words used to coax and flatter the unwitting. A Medieval incense burned in dark temples: black amber resin, aloeswood, calamus root, cedar, galbanum, opoponax, golden olibanum, saffron and onchya MULTIFOLIATE ROSE of DEATH 2015 The eyes are not here There are no eyes here In this valley of dying stars In this hollow valley This broken jaw of our lost kingdoms In this last of meeting places We grope together And avoid speech Gathered on this beach of the tumid river Sightless, unless The eyes reappear As the perpetual star Multifoliate rose Of death's twilight kingdom The hope only Of empty men. Black, white and crimson roses, stargazer lily, lily of the valley, labdanum, kush, black cherry juice, red patchouli, cardamom and amber cream. MURDER OF CROWS 2015 Every fall they gather in murderous shrieking clusters blacking out the branches in the oak and apple trees across the street. They caw and cackle in a long-overdue maniacal avian family reunion from Hell. The softest touch of black leather feathers, oak splinters, acorn, crumbled leaves and baked apples drizzled in brandy all illuminated by creamy vanilla moonlight OL' SCRATCH 2015 Ol' Scratch is a folksy epithet for Satan originating out of the legends of New England in the days before the Civil War. Some other pet names for the Prince of Darkness (other than Ozzy :D) are Old Nick, Old Bendy and Rodger (as in Jolly). Thick slices of oven-fresh pumpkin bread slathered with butter and served with fresh cream and a drizzle of treacle ONI BI 2015 The Demon Fires. According to Japanese folklore, they are the spirits born from the corpses of humans and animals, and are also said to be resentful people that have become fire. They appear as blue flames, often on rainy days in graveyards and in wetlands. Tunisian amber, red musk, black myrrh, African violet, tonka bean and bergamot reinforced by a supple leather accord. SCARECROW ALLEY 2015 Reaching the dubious safety of the junkyard gate, the path leading out dumps out not on the safety of a highway, but the tall, crackling rows of a fallow cornfield. After some time spent wandering through the stalks in the darkness, the path opens out into a short road lined on both sides with suspicious looking scarecrows. Weather and decay have rotted away some of the burlap and flannel of their clothing and the straw is mildew blackened. Perhaps it's a trick of the moonlight or the few lanterns hanging on the fence, but there seems to be something awfully realistic about these unmoving effigies. Only moments after you pass, two of the scarecrows fling themselves off their crosses, landing on the path behind you! Thankfully there are brighter lights ahead! Moonlit corn husk, fresh pumpkin gourd, crispy frost-covered hay. SUCCUBUS 2015 A demon who takes the form of a gorgeous human female specifically to seduce men. Like the incubus, the succubus may have been a scapegoat for infidelity or stray lust. Either way, the succubus has captured the imagination of men for ages, rousing all flavors of fear and fantasy. African violet, sugar soaked vanilla, benzoin, coconut milk, triple cream, Egyptian sandalwood musk and red currant. WOLF MAN 2015 Clap for the Wolf Man! I saw him having a pina colada at Trader Vic's. His hair was perfect. Transform into something wild! Gypsy incense, deep forests and soft fur. INFERNA, the Blaze Witch 2015 The fiery and temperamental member of the ensemble, Inferna leaves a trail of glittering ash in her wake. Myrrh ashes, singed cinnamon bark, smoked ginger and peppered clove-infused vanilla. ESMERELDA, the Plague Witch 2015 Cheeriest member of the coven, Esmerelda's bubbly personality is in opposition to her power - to spread pestilence and woe at the snap of her greenish fingers. Emerald green forest herbs crushed in a mortar and pestle and blended with resinous frankincense, wisteria and a drop of demon mint. WENDY, the Tempest Witch 2015 She will blow you away, literally. Having command over the wind makes Wendy a very happy and light-hearted witch! Breeze-dusted lavender honey, broom straw, silver bells, wind-whipped willow and Mercurial musk. TERRA, the Tremor Witch 2015 If you're looking for Terra, your best bet would be to look in the forest caves hunkered down with the brown bears and grey wolves, or tending to her sacred grove of yew and apple trees. Earthy patchouli, juicy yew berry, apple wood, loam, lichen and a kiss of frost. STELLA, the Celestial Witch 2015 Even when she's standing next to you, her silver eyes reveal that her mind is a million light years away, longing for another world to call home. Otherworldly and bioluminescent flowers deepened with the blackness of a night sky littered with stars. MARISOL, the Tsunami Witch 2015 Watch what you say around Marisol, she's sensitive and cries at the drop of a pointed black hat. Deeply caring and feeling, her power knows no bounds - the power to love. Ocean mist, lunar musk, moonflower and white amber complicated by white grapefruit and vanilla sugar. TEMPORA the Time Witch 2015 Tempora feels at home during any day, year or era! Her cauldron is bigger on the inside and her trusty sonic broomstick is always at the ready to help her out of all the sticky situations she gets herself jammed into on her adventures through time, space and dimensions improbable and magical! Legendary perfume components collected during her voyages, compounded in a cosmic mortar and pestle: Egyptian sandalwood gifted by Cleopatra from her own private reserve, the fragile scent of dried vanilla and dust extracted from the crumbling books and scrolls that once lined the shelves at the Library of Alexandria, sweetened black rose tea enjoyed with Queen Victoria in her garden. All deepened with rare, exotic and resplendent Oriental spice notes purchased from Marco Polo on the Silk Road. ____________________________________________ Have a blessed full super moon, eclipse and Samhain season! Love & Bliss,