What Wierd Ingredients Do You Use? Options

I want to kow what kind of wierd, or out of the ordinary ingredients you use in your powders, or oils? You don't have to put entire recipes as I know alot of people are secretive when it comes to their powders & oils, just some wierd single ingredients you may use to give your stuff a little oomph. Example, one ingredient I use in my cursing/war powder is powdered mosasaur tooth. I like to buy Dino fossils & petrified wood & fossilized plants & powder them & use them in my powders. Other out of the ordinary ingredients I've used are human bones & burned & powdered snake skin. So, I know some of you have SOME out of the ordinary ingredients you use, let's hear 'em ;-).

.::Sempre Bene::..::Chris::.
-Fiat Lux

I was told by one witch I talked with that the dirt I often use is rather odd. I guess weird is a matter of perspective. I am sure my house members think my herbal cabinets, tables, and shelves are full of odd arcane bits and strange looking things. I do keep things like dessicated frog and dried mushrooms on hand. There is a certain smell that I think is important. <cackle> (IMG:style_emoticons/default/evil.gif)

A witch told you that dirt was odd? Wow, that's suprising seeing as graveyard dirt is somewhat of a staple in hoodoo & everyone knows about hoodoo! lol. Well, you can imagine the shock on my friends faces when they see small human finger, or foot bones in a jar. lol. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/i_triangle.gif)

.::Sempre Bene::..::Chris::.
-Fiat Lux

Some of the unusual ingrediants i've used are human teeth, rabbit bones, melted glacier ice and even powered boric acid.
The last of those I found is effective when the color green is involved in a ritual in some way. When boric acid is added to a flammable mixture, the flames burn green.
Another odd ingrediant I use is glass ground down to a coarse powder. I take a small pane of glass and charge it in the manner of a talisman and then grind it up to be included in the powder. Although care needs to be taken with it as it's quite abrasive.
Also I've used dried papyrus to press my own paper for sigils, incantations etc.....

Ground glass, never thought of that, it sounds like a good idea :-p. I have some human teeth that were left in this skull I recieved, but I have no clue what to do with them & for some reason I see it disrespectful to just throw them out.

.::Sempre bene::..::Chris::.
-Fiat Lux

Some of the unusual ingrediants i've used are human teeth, rabbit bones, melted glacier ice and even powered boric acid.
The last of those I found is effective when the color green is involved in a ritual in some way. When boric acid is added to a flammable mixture, the flames burn green.

I use a lot of 'chemicals' such as Boric Acid, Tartaric Acid, etc. I guess I never thought of them as odd. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Being a closet chemist and wine maker I am very familiar with all these little powders and what they do, so it seems natural to use them when I need their properties. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/hypocrite.gif)

yo,

soseneda, point well taken. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) I know zilch about chemistry, so the boric acid was odd for me.heh. And i'm so jealous. Making your own wine, I've wanted to do that for years now, but i'm too lazy.lol

and Gaius, for the human teeth, I used them in healing magick for my sister. We have this tradition of keeping the first baby tooth you lose. So when she was sick at one point, I used the tooth and personal item and charged it in the fashion of a talisman. It worked quite well.
As for other uses, I'm not sure. Maybe have to look into some Shamanism.
Peace

With a lot of these 'odd' ingredients, I often run into the problem of how to deconstruct them easily. I wonder if there is an easier way to say grind glass or turn brick into brick dust?

I used to have access to a high powered sand blaster that I used for powdering some of the coarser ingredients, but alas it busted, and will cost way too much $$ to fix unless I can warrant it in a paying gig again. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Besides the good old fashioned hours in the mortar, I do have a turkish coffee grinder that comes in handy. It handled bones just fine, but couldn't grunt the brick bits. I do use a large sledge hammer too when needed, but it tends to be a conffuzlement to contain the broken bits. Usually I bust the container long before I get the brick or whatever down to the consistency.

Small bits in the mortar I don't mind, and I actually tend to store things whole, and grind in small amounts as I use them. It gives me more time to focus energy. Any one else's thoughts on these matters?

Small bits in the mortar I don't mind, and I actually tend to store things whole, and grind in small amounts as I use them. It gives me more time to focus energy. Any one else's thoughts on these matters?

Same here. I never use anything BUT my mortar. I admit, sometimes it is a bit frustrating grinding bones & some of the harder ingredients, but it gets me in the framework more. Both my grandmothers never used anything but their mortars, so that's how I'm going. They, too, used wierd ingredients in their powders & workings. Goldfish bones, dog fangs, etc. It runs in the family. lol.

.::Sempre Bene::..::Chris::.
-Fiat Lux

Well, when I need to powder a hard substance (bone, brick etc...) i take the larger pieces and put them inside one of those stretchy men's dress socks and then put that inside a regular athletic sock. Then I just take it outside, set it on a hard surface and pound on it with a regular hammer. The dress sock tends to hold the finer bits pretty well, but you can't pound on it too long as the sock will eventually get chewed up. But I found it reduces the size of the bits enough to make the mortar time easier work.
Hope this helps.

Well, when I need to powder a hard substance (bone, brick etc...) i take the larger pieces and put them inside one of those stretchy men's dress socks and then put that inside a regular athletic sock. Then I just take it outside, set it on a hard surface and pound on it with a regular hammer. The dress sock tends to hold the finer bits pretty well, but you can't pound on it too long as the sock will eventually get chewed up. But I found it reduces the size of the bits enough to make the mortar time easier work.
Hope this helps.

That sounds like a good idea, I hadn't thought of that. I have used lots of boxes of different kind of materials to try and contain the flying bits (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) I will try the sock method. Thanks