How to Dress a Novena Candle: Basic Outline
While there are specific ways to dress a novena candle within brujeria, you are welcome to take what I teach you here and make it your own and align it more to your specific practices. What I share is how I was taught to do it along with some other techniques I ended up throwing in. This guidelines is to give you a basic outline of how you can work novena candles. I will be continuously adding rituals and notion sheets with specific workings. Let’s dive in!
A collection of Catholic prayer candles on a candle burning surface.
Supplies
Regardless of the working, you do with the novena candle, you will need the following supplies:
A novena candle specific to your need, a color that matches your need, or a white candle if you have nothing else.
Spell oil(s) or a blessed oil
Items to dress the candle which can be any of the following dependent on your need:
Herbs, spices, and/or seeds
Crystal chips or dust
(I don’t use glitter but do recommend the following) gold or metal flakes, diamond dust, cut up dollars
A border for your candle if you desire (can be dirt, salt, pepper, etc)
A candle burning container
Cleansing supplies: Spiritual cologne or herb wand to burn and cleanse
A tool to poke holes into your candle
A pendelum against a gray surface with scattered herbs and crystals. Next to it is a white tealight candle in a square wooden holder with rounded corners.
Step one
The first step when you prepare for any working is to cleanse yourself and the candle. This helps to clear away any energy picked up when the candle was held by others in the shop or in transit.
I recommend cleansing yourself because it helps avoid bringing in energy you don’t need during your working.
I personally choose to do a divination reading before a spell but that is option.
You can cleanse yourself and the candle with spiritual colognes (such as Florida water), sprays, holy water, smoke from cleansing herbs, or incense.
I recommend you call in your protective guides prior to begining the remaining prep work for your candle.
Step two
After cleansing your supplies, you will gather your skewer tool. This should also be cleansed.
Take your skewer (I use a screwdriver) and poke holes into your candle. Avoid being overly close to the wick and overly close to the edges.
The number of holes you do will come intuitively to you but will vary based on the working you do. I avoid even numbers unless I am doing baneful magic, protective or reversal magic, or banishing work. Odd numbers work best for most workings.
These do not need to go all the way to the bottom just deep enough that it keeps feeding the candle for the beginning 1/4 or so of it.
Step there
Now is the time to dress your candle! Gather your herbs and toppings.
It is important for me to warn y’all not to overdo it. A little goes a long way. Do not assume that more tools creates more magic. Rather, some of the strongest spells are done with one to two herbs.
The first thing you will do is add your magical oils. You are also welcome to use things like honey, especially if you are doing love magic or trying to really draw something to you. I recommend one to two drops per hole.
After this, you will add your herbs. As you prepare each herb to add to the hole, I want you to sit with the herb in your hand. Speak to it. Ask it to lend it’s abilities to your spell and to help you with the working. I also suggest giving it a little breath as I feel this awakens the spirit of the plant.
Sprinkle the herbs into the hole and along the top. You SHOULD NOT cover the entire top with herbs. It should still be visible in some capacity. Do this with each herb.
Step Four: The Final Step
When you have fully dressed your candle, you’re going to take the candle, and trim the wick.
Hold the candle in your hands and awaken it. You can do this one of two ways:
Some brujes enjoy knocking the bottom of the candle three times while covering the top with one hand.
Often, I prefer to hold the candle in my hands, restate my intentions, and then fill it with colorful light energy.
Once it feels ready, light that baby up!
A set of two dressed candles with a brown kraft paper label that says “The Self-Care Emporium” being held by light hands against brown and green leaves.
Optional Steps
If you are doing a cleansing candle for your home or yourself, you can rub the candle along your body.
If you are doing candles in reverence, you can let the candle only burn for a short while at a time during prayer or meditation.
You can attach images of yourself, place the candle atop petitions, write your petitions on the candle, etc. I don’t often do that for myself anymore but that’s mostly because I have gotten into a grove with my candle workings.
