How I Set up My Unorthodox Book of Shadows (Grimoire)
What is a grimoire anyway? And my unique twist on a Grimoire that is guaranteed to inspire you
When I started my spiritual journey several years ago, I began doing daily card pulls. While this slowly introduced me to my psychic and spiritual side, I didn’t know how to keep track of said daily card pulls. It was at that moment, after some quick googling, I learned about Grimoires! This opened up a whole new world to me on how I could keep track of all of this information.
For those who aren’t aware or not sure what I’m talking about, a Book of Shadows/Grimoire is a book with usually a black cover that holds all the information for card readings, spells, astrology information, herbs, holiday information, etc. Today, Grimoires come in many forms and colors. Some are digital, while others create the book itself, and some even purchase a journal. No way is the wrong way, but merely what works for you and your practices.
Did You Know?
The term Grimoire first appeared during the persecution era. The church actually came up with names to give the general public a name for the item/idea, like Grimoire or familiar. Since those words have been in circulation for so long, the names have stuck, and thus many people now call their Book of Shadows a Grimoire.
I want to share with you all how I have set up my Grimoire, as it is a bit unorthodox, and I have yet to see someone else doing this method. When I first started, I grabbed a nice leather-bound, blank page journal from a craft store. It was beautiful to look at and small enough to carry around with me. The only downside was I couldn’t create sections or move pages around. So, later down the road, when I wanted to create a page in a section that was already finished, I had to either create the page in an unfinished section or add a piece of paper between pages to add on information. Before I knew it, my grimoire was so unorganized, even I didn’t want to open it up and use it. I went on Etsy and Pinterest to hopefully inspire some new ideas in me, but they were all the same. A permanently bound book where I had to create my own sections and hope the pages I gathered for each section would be enough.
It was at this point I had to put the thinking cap on and think how can I have a book small enough yet adaptable on a whim? That’s when it hit me. Several months ago I bought a Happy Planner to use for college, but never ended up using it. I flipped through, and only a handful of pages were used. The best part of all, with a Happy Planner, you can take out pages and add pages however and whenever you want. Even though the Happy Planner was meant for, well, a planner, I could find a way around the pages to make it my own. The cover was far from looking like a stereotypical Grimoire, but it worked beautifully. I really individualized the journal to fit this need. I also bought extra pages with stars around the edges and blank journal pages to make it work better for me. I even purchased cute stickers to add to pages to make it extra personal and fun to flip through! Who doesn’t like stickers? This year, I decided to update the whole happy planner idea to feel more mystical and fun.
Here is my finished Grimoire
As you can see, the rings are a beautiful purple, and if I need to upgrade to bigger rings to fit more, I can. The cover has constellations all over with a fitting saying; “She walked in moon dust and stars were sprinkled in her hair.” It just feels so mystical, and it makes me want to open it every day and add to it. When you open the front cover, I have a title page and on the other side, I wrote a letter to the Grimoire telling it where I am at and where I hope to go on my spiritual journey. I signed and dated it at the bottom to really make it come alive.
The following page has a tarot spread I did at the beginning of the year that talks about how this year will work for me. If you notice throughout the planner, it is all space-themed which is perfect for a Grimoire. It then goes into a calendar on a month-by-month basis, with a journal entry point in the beginning. Every month has a beautiful quote that just makes my heart happy every time I read it. I then go through the monthly calendar and write down any major holidays/planet changes. Occasionally, I’ll write my tarot reading for the month on this page as well. I use the individual days to write down my daily/weekly card pull, what I’m grateful for, and any ideas/notes for the day. The planner comes with a twelve-month calendar, everything else from here I imported from my old Grimoire.
This next tab is a resource guide for all the stuff I frequently lookup. For instance, I have a page dedicated to all the crystals I own, and what they look like/do. I have another page dedicated to candle color meanings, and another on different planet meanings; you get the idea. This is where I store all of my important information so I don’t have to look in a million different places, it’s all in one spot. My last section is all the rituals/readings I do with the moon cycles.
The best part of all I can change each page or section however and whenever I want. When I notice it is getting too bulky or certain pages I don’t refer to anymore, I stick them in another happy planner with HUGE rings, so all of my entries over the past 3 years are all stored away, not taking up space in the permanent Grimoire.
I figured this could help someone who was in a similar spot to me and wanted adaptability. I hope this helped and inspired you all!
P.S. Here is a link to our online metaphysical shop! Along with writing these posts, we run a small business that offers all things metaphysical and spiritual. Feel free to head on over and check us out! https://www.hallowmoonshop.com.
