Before getting into the review proper, I have a question:
Begin Rant
WTF is up with Witches and Lavender?
I HATE that crap. Whenever I smell it my entire sinus cavity feels like I snorted Icy-Hot! Not that I would snort Icy-Hot, because hello! But lavender burns like effing hellfire while at the same time is colder than January in Michigan. Just the idea is cringe.
But seriously. WTF is up with Witches and Lavender? I mean... Do people actually like it or do they just use it because everyone else on Tik Tok and Instagram is using it and they want to seem like they're more Real. But truly, Lavender is just as basic as white sage, which I'm so happy people are getting away from (because cultural appropriation and over-sourcing), because that stuff smells like a skunk discharged. Or like they've been burning something other than sage.
Honestly, there needs to be alternatives. I know there are, but those alternatives need to be more prominently in ALL the books!
End Rant
Okay... I know that wasn't exactly "Comfy" or "Cozy," but I had to get that out there. The whole Lavender thing has been a repeat offender on pretty much every page of every single witchy book I've read lately, and I guess I just reached my boil-over point and this review is what was in the way.
I'm O.K. now. I promise.
I'm not sure what prompted me to pick up this one, as it's not something I'd gravitate toward on the reg. I typically don't like so much...I guess you could say "Hygge" in one place. And I absolutely don't go for a lot of complexity or materialism when it comes to my practice (I know, right! For as detail-oriented and nit-picky as I am in the mundane world, my Witchy side tends to be extremely eclectic, minimalistic, and even spontaneous. I don't even work with deities. And I certainly don't use lavender). And the title alone pretty much screams exactly that: Lots of "stuff" and lots (and lots) of Hygge.
I must have been in a MOOD the day I placed the hold or something. Anyway...
But I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Truly. The author has a chatty writing style that reminded me a little bit of the Silver Ravenwolf books I loved as a Baby Witch in the late 90s/early 00s (I mean that as a compliment). Which is to say really friendly and familiar and not at all pretentious. She doesn't talk down to her audience. She meets them on their level. I pictured her as a mashup of Martha Stewart and Aunt Jet from Practical Magic. That is, Uber Mom Type with a permanent place at the Top of the Phone Tree, a huge presence on Pinterest, but who also enjoys the occasional Midnight Margarita. I like this lady. She and I are cut from a different Witchy cloth, but I like her.
The book itself gives your basic overview (for newbies) and then has a bunch of spells and recipes and such on how to make your home life as comfy and cozy as possible. Most are far more complicated than I have the time and energy for. Just not practical. Like I said, I'm minimalist and that works just fine for me. But it was a fun browse and definitely lives up to the promise of its title and intro: It IS comfy. And it IS cozy.
It's just not exactly my vibe.
3.5 stars rounded to 4.