 
SEEING, ATTRACTING & REPELLING THE WEE FOLK
There was a time when, if you claimed to have had an encounter with a faerie, there would have been few who questioned your experience.
You may find in your search for faerie lore that there is a lot of contradictory information. Some sources will say a particular item will draw the attention of faeries and another source will claim that the same item will hurry them away. At one point foxglove was a certain way to protect yourself from the faeries, but the Victorians imagined that it was used as clothing by the wee ones. As time has passed, faerie lore has evolved and changed to reflect the times.
To Attract & See Faeries
 It is important to understand that faeries are not the “Tinkerbell” figure that is often depicted. Faeries come in many different shapes and sizes and have different temperament. Should you decide that spying faeries is something that you would like to do I would suggest that you find out more about the various types. This will make it much easier for you to recognize them when you see them.
The people most likely to encounter faeries are young girls on the verge of puberty. Don’t be discouraged if you are not a prepubescent girl because people of all ages, races, sexes, from all over the world have claimed to have had sightings. While many faerie sightings are terribly old, there have been numerous modern day sightings too.
You should be aware that some faeries can take the form of other animals, including human. When a faerie does this they often forget something or make an error. Should you encounter someone that you suspect may be a faerie in disguise, look for a physical “disfigurement” or something that makes them “different”. This is not to say that every human with a disfigurement is a member of the fae.
Faeries are believed to make homes deep within thyme plants. If you suspect that there are faeries in your garden you should keep more than one thyme plant. One plant should be for the faeries to live in and you should never pick from it. Use the others however you please.
Other places to find faeries in your garden are deep within berry bushes. Thorny bushes are also a favourite. It would seem that more tangled and jumbled, the more comfortable the fae are with making a home there. It was once thought that faeries disliked red berries, but farmers have claimed to have seen faeries reveling in strawberry plants.
Flowers, plants and trees that are loved by faeries:
• Mushrooms and toadstools
• Chamomile
• Cowslips
• Mint
• Forget-Me-Not's
• Foxglove
• Hibiscus
• Holly
• Blackthorn
• Hazel
• Alder
• Pansies
• Peonies
• Primroses
• Rosemary
• Sunflowers |
• Hollyhocks
• Honeysuckle
• Jasmine
• Lavender
• Lilac
• Milkweed
• Morning Glory
• Elder
• Oak
• Ash
• Apple
• Straw
• Violets
• Rowan
• Holly
• Willow |
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They also love: shiny smooth rocks (especially marble, tigers eye, staurolito, lava, fluorite, jade and emerald), crystals and the colour green (though you should not wear this wild hunting faeries ~ they will consider it an insult)
 Places faeries have been known
to frequent:
• faerie hills
• faerie rings
• fountains
• wells
• streams
• woods
• any natural unspoiled setting is a good start, also at
• the edge of a cast circle
Times and dates
for greater faerie activity:
• noon and midnight
• mid-summers night,
• twilight hours,
• May Day,
• Halloween
Suggestions for attracting faeries include:
• make an offering of milk, honey, butter, cheese, wine
(take care not leave too much!)
• play music … they especially like the penny whistle
• place three coins on the ground
• stick three pins in the ground
• hang ribbons on a tree/bush or shrub
• use a scrying mirror
• show them respect
• never scold a child for spilling milk … consider it an offering to the fae
To Repel Faeries
(& Maybe Even A Few "Evil Spirits")
The following is a list of things that are certain to rid yourself of faeries:
• iron (may be a nail, or a cross … anything made of iron)
• cloves, bay, tomato, black pepper, salt, bread
• churchyard mould
• wind chimes, whistling, bells, clapping – they do not like sharp sudden sounds
• daisy chains
 • flax on the floor
• bible, cross, crucifix, holy water
• horseshoes, four leaf clovers
• St. Johns Wort, Verbena,
• Ashes from a spent fire sprinkled around the home or placed in a bottle on the window sill
• Turn your clothes inside out
• Keep a knife under your pillow
• Place a sock under your bed
• Smoke (especially burning plastic)
• Broken mirrors
• Witch bottles
• Cats
• Pigs head or pentagram on the door
• Be lazy, dishonest or cheap and they will stay away
• Never give them clothes ~ it is an insult they will not soon forget or forgive
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