Sign in

Melissa Love

@gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social
2.8K followers 613 following 11K posts

Hedgewitch in the Netherlands 🌿🖤 Runs 't Gooi en Vechtstreek Heksencafé www.WitchcraftAndTea.com

PostsRepliesMedia
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 22h
#Porphyria only became known as "the vampire disease" in 1985 when a scientist named Dolphin gave a talk in LA to link the receding gums, sunlight issues and lower iron in the blood to the myths. 🫠😅 We can't survive on blood though. We survive off cookies 🤣 (high carb, low iron, higher sugar diet)
0160
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 11/10/2026
Stop. 👏 Getting. 👏 In. 👏 Your. 👏 Own. 👏 Way. 👏 Stop it. You are amazing. And you deserve the thing. Go get the thing.
0283
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 10/10/2026
For my #Lenormand Readers, Do you see the Lily as more of a sensuality card or more as an aging and experience card? I don't necessarily think these are mutually exclusive. Since sensuality is patient, slow, and builds through time... But straight sex I find as more Whip territory. What about you?
180
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
I am at the point in my life where I just ordered drapes for my house. As someone who grew up in The Rough™ and spent time homeless, it actually brought me to tears 😭😭❤️ #ItsTheLittleThings
10420
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
I am so dense 😂😅😅😅 It's ok. They know this lol So I'll usually get one symbol, EXACTLY repeated, in 3 separate, completely unrelated areas. Seriously. Even the pose of that horse is exactly the same, in the tea, that really random book cover, and that spot on the banana 😂 #FolkWitchFriday
2211
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
I haven't been to Starbucks in over 5 years but heck yeah I just got a pumpkin spice latte hahaha 🎉😅🖤
2170
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Sometimes, you've got to put your foot down and claim what is already yours. No matter what anyone else says.
3232
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
🖤🖤🖤
0111
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
Many times, I'll have to go through a list of all the medications a client is taking, and the side effects of those drugs, with a highlighter of the symptoms they are coming to me for... and we both just cry for them. I feel so bad for those who have to take meds like this 😭 #herbalism
2250
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Sorry for the whiplash, my posts are all over the place today 😅🫠 #KeepThemGuessing
1140
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Not sure who needs to hear this but: You can love your child and genuinely not have wanted parenthood. You aren't alone. And it's a rough job. And the pressure is crazy. When my clients mention this, and it's a few really, they are usually super surprised by how many others are in the same boat.
1150
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Sooooo... "Cobalt" comes from the word kobalt/kobold in Dutch, because the mineworkers thought those damn mountain spirits messed with their silver as a joke. Hence, Cobalt is now the name of the actual metal lol #TIL #FunFacts #Dutch
2223
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Because I work so much on the Other Side, so is my Familiar. Their work is threshold work, being a liason, and mediating. They learn everything about how different spirits work (on both sides) while I'm able to find out what they need and how to make their lives easier. #FolkWitchFriday
2232
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
This sounds *really* interesting!
160
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Yes. Yes. Yes. 💯
1190
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Which one did you get?! 🤣 I got "The Headless Man and the Gooseherd" A good lesson on how sometimes cursing is necessary and you know when/how if you listen to the old stories 🤣🤣💯
050
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
A lot of clients don't understand how much of a partnership they're in with an #herbalist. We're a team. We try something, it doesn't work. Ok try something else. That's started working a little... ok there is the next step. Great! We move on. We get to the bottom of it together.
2190
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
As a clinical herbalist, other moms get SO disappointed that I am not as "crunchy" as they are 🫠😂😅 #JustEatTheDamnCakeForBreakfast
3180
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Just letting you know, one of the ways they test plants to see if they have liver-protective properties is to induce liver damage caused by Acetaminophen. Tylenol. As an example. Seriously.
180
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Ahhhh it feels so good to be able to open the drapes and turn off the lights in the morning. The UV is lessening. And the clouds are offering a welcome respite 🖤
4300
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
Your little reminder to not take essential oils internally 🖤 They damage the nephrons of the kidneys and those don't really rejuvenate (without intense regime). Please be careful. #Herbalism
5364
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Yeeeeesssssss Love this 💯
070
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
The energy drain of being lost affects the energy to climb the actual ladder it needs to get out of the hole of being lost. The cycle has to break. But there comes a point where TO break it, the bottom has to be reached to rest a bit before trying again. You can't rest holding onto the ladder.
1151
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
If you are having trouble figuring out what actually lights you up and brings you some semblance of joy, look instead at what is bothering you. What is grating on your soul and why is it grating? They are two sides of the same coin, and, sometimes, that makes it easier to see the roots.
1222
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Repetition has always been what I end up with. Breathing out after each verse... like when giving life to something. Small chants just work for me. Mostly spoken. My mother and grandmother worked in whispers. Sound was not allowed. #FolkWitchFriday What about you?
3202
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
You know, just in case 😂🖤
290
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
"Why do all the herbs I end up playing with the most have lung affinities?" Says me, a pulmonary embolism survivor 🫠😅😮‍💨 #Herbalism
0190
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Yes, I know infusions are not "tea" because it doesn't have the "tea" leaf. I'm still going to call it "tea". It is a conscious choice because I'm a rebel, apparently. My point is communication, not pedantic elitism. 😌🖤
4401
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Mmmmm rosemary, oregano, and thyme tea on this nice cloudy day is. 💯 🌿🖤
3230
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
There are many reasons I was pulled to herbalism, personally. But every one boils down into the spagyric tincture of humanity's great need to learn environmental humility. #Herbalism
1232
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Harvest Festival was really nice this year. We made cider, leaf crowns, set up the altar and lit a black and a white candle. We made leaf suncatchers and just enjoyed the day. Had a good feast. Shared gratitude. Just the Goblin and I. 🍂🖤
1250
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Herbalists have specialities because we all have been through different things. Spiritually, psychologically, and physically, each one of us focuses on where we personally find the most value and have had the most experience with. We can't help it. It's some weird energetic pattern thing #Herbalism
0191
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
The whole point of the changing of season holy days are to stop and notice. Not look up what you should decorate with online. What is changing in your own yard? The park near you? THAT is what you decorate with. I have a firethorn wreath because that is what is fruiting right now near me 🖤 #WitchSky
3422
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Understanding the differences (and similarities) between Burgmansi and Datura shows a perfect example of how observation is a vital key to unlocking patterns of plant symbolism and how the chemicals follow suit in the doctrine of signatures. In this article, I will... 🤣🖤 #WitchSky
091
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Plant symbolism lies with observation first. The chemicals usually follow. #WitchSky
0130
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
This article by @wortjournal.com is just beautiful. How many of you have yet to go blackberry picking this year? There is still a little time left! #Herbalism #WildForaging #WitchSky wortjournal.com/bramble-is-a...
wortjournal.com
Bramble is a Commons - Wort Journal
Why does this weed have such a strong grasp on the imagination where others are forgotten? Exploring Bramble for remembering and reconnection.
1130
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I think the most profound difference that Animism helps me see is the fact that the world is relational rather than just... objects floating in space. Each thing affecting another. Not only physically, but emotionally, in waves, all connected in communication. #FolkWitchFriday
2326
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Did you have a first favourite flower? Have your tastes changed over the years? Or Has your love for it evolved with you? #WitchSky #Herbalism #GardenSky #Question
11151
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I don't know what is wrong with my nose but I *love* the scent of Datura stramonium flowers. So many people have described them as "noxious" 😭😅🖤 #WitchSky
3120
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Brugmansia speaks from above, Datura speaks from below. Both from the Nightshade family, they have different ways of sounding mirroring messages. Who speaks your language? #WitchSky #Herbs
6221
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Thank you so much! 😍
180
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Piece of advice: Those cheap mixed native seed packets. Find those in the spring. Throw them in the front yard/garden/herb pot in the kitchen/public park #GuerrillaGardening 💯. The ones that bloom, those are your first herbal allies. Just sitting there. Right in front of you. #WitchSky
2354
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Going to start doing little posts on Ko-fi for fun and because apparently I cannot get enough out of writing and talking about plants 😅🌿 If you find it interesting, let me know with a coffee. I'm over there now, as well 🖤 I'm thinking little audio blips? What do you think? ko-fi.com/gnomeandtonic
ko-fi.com
Buy Melissa Love a Coffee
Become a supporter of Melissa Love today!
1143
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Just finished harvesting the creeping buttercup. Although traditional buttercup (Ranunculus bulbosus) is known to work with thoughts of inadequacy, I find the creeping buttercup (Ranunculus repens) to get the specifically sneaky thoughts into the light. #MateriaMonday #WitchSky
A wreath of wrapped creeping buttercup, drying on a wall. Well, it's hanging on the knob of a wooden cabinet on a wall lol
2363
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
First page of each new grimoire, I start on the new moon. It is always advice I learned in the last grimoire. Some grimoires take me a year. Others take me 5. #WitchSky This is this time:
A white page in a leather bound book.
Black scripted writing states:

"Things to remember:

1) The Pattern is in All Things.

2) As Above, So Below
As Within, So Without

and

3) Truth, like time, is a 
wibbly, wobbly mess."
3361
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
I know this is a bit odd but I don't really *do* the offering thing? I never really understood it. 🤷‍♀️ There are spirits that need offerings. I just don't work with those. I know who they are. The spirits that I do work with... we just hang out lol We are on equal footing doing the work needed.
11342
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
There are a TON of things different witches keep in their Grimoire/BOS. But what do you consistently look through to find? For me, the formulas are the most important, like, incense blends, teas, spell pouches that work for me... What are your most worn pages? #WitchSky
6160
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
Sometimes... sometimes... *performing* independence is one of the ways we avoid being genuinely seen. Because being seen is scary.
0152
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Settling down to read 💯 I lost it at "Hedgecock's Trip Down Memory Lane" 🤣🤣🖤 Just perfect. "Thief" also got me 🤣 @dj-acid-reflux.bsky.social I love your style so much.
A white book with black bold text: "Curious Events Lately Occurring In This Neighborhood " by Tom Cox. The red linoprint is stunning with a hand holding a black hatstone looking almost like the book itself is the portal that you see on the other side of the hole. 🖤
1162
Melissa Love @gnome-and-tonic.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Take a break, Darling. You've been doing a lot of work on yourself, pouring over those self help books. You've come so far through therapy. This is tiring work. It's ok to take a break from it. It's Work. Let yourself breathe for a little bit. Have a cup of tea. The full moon comes again in time.
1211