5 Things to Know About Working with Faeries

If you are thinking about working the faeries, you know there are things to be wary of. Not all aspects of the faeries are worthy of wariness, but are definitely important to know. From the different types of faeries and faerie kingdoms, general etiquette, and more, here are five important things to know about working with faeries.

1. Sidhe Cultures Aren't the Same

Have you ever heard of the term "Winter Faeries," or "Summer Faeries?" What about gnomes, pixies, and sprites? These are some of the more common human distinctions between the faerie folk in lore: there are good faeries, tooth and grandmother and bad faeries, hill faeries and mountain faeries, and all sorts of other faeries in between. There are most certainly lots of distinctive varieties of faeries. Knowing exactly which of those varieties your working with makes a world of difference, and it's important to never forget to take the time to make that distinction.

The rules and culture of each type of Sidhe differs from group to group. For example, pixies are faerie folk that I associate with being grounded by the rules of gravity, and who appreciate sweets and a good joke. Gnomes are also associated with the laws of reality, but prefer bread and fruit, and absolutely do not think most of what the pixies are up to is funny at all. True faeries desire wine and honey, have a sense of humor that varies from individual to individual, and seem to be bound by no physical laws at all. Among all of these different varieties are beings we may call good or evil; these are distinctions they each make as individuals, just like you and I.

How do I tell the difference, when they're most often invisible? You might be asking. Research! Intuition! It may also go without saying that, like many things faerie, it makes the most sense when you try to make as little sense of it as possible.

2. Individuality Is Key

While identifying whether you're working with an astral faerie or one more inherently earthly is helpful, it is ultimately most important to get to know each faerie as an individual. While they are certainly more likely to take on and have the attributes of the faerie culture they belong to, much like people, they are, ultimately, individuals. You could probably skip the step of knowing overall cultural etiquette so long as you only intended on getting to know one or two faeries, and turning the rest away, to be honest!

I currently work with five Sidhe on a regular basis, and provide them comforts and space in exchange for their friendship. They are primarily nature faeries, associated with different aspects of the natural world, like most of the faeries you and I will encounter here! I also connect with some of the higher faerie energies featured in popular decks, such as Iris or Nelys, but they are honestly quite busy. I find that the only ones who are commonly known that, quite literally, pop in on a regular basis are the lesser astral faeries and gnomes. Everyone else sends messengers!

3. Big Faeries, Small Faeries

There are very powerful faeries that we have no control over, and then there are all the others. Most of the time, the Sidhe that interact with humans are not very important in the faerie realms. When they are, we may find that they are overwhelming, or something we rather didn't have the attention of! Learning to gauge the "size" or spiritual power of the entities we encounter is very important when working with faeries.

Those who follow me on Instagram for a while now know that there are times that I give myself migraines while channeling the Singers - the primordial astral faerie energies that help comprise the nine realms. They are comparable to angel energies in size and brevity, and are widely considered "good," or even neutral from human perspective. There are energies like the Singers who are not as benevolent or disinterested in human existence, as well, but unlike the Singers, these energies would just as soon destroy or use us than provide assistance.

The Sidhe that interact with humans on a day to day basis are likely "small faeries," without any real importance or power in their realm. Don't let them convince you otherwise! A small faerie given a big head can be dangerous and unpleasant to experience. On a similar note, do not be deceived by big faeries pretending to be small faeries, which is just as likely to happen, especially once we start being more receptive to working with faerie entities.

Big faeries pretending to be small faeries are, at best, tricksters, but are more likely to be up to just plain old bad. Why else trick us into thinking they're harmless?

4. Temper Your Temper

A key part of working with faeries and not going crazy is making sure that we are centered and grounded. This because we are harder to trick while centered, are harder to make flustered or confused when grounded, and are in control of our power while we are centered. Can't handle failure or being the brunt of a joke? Maybe working with faeries isn't going to be for you.

Faerie humor often means that we are going to suffer for a laugh at their expense, especially if we have a temper or are easily distressed. A large part of why so many people try so hard to keep faeries away, I'm sure, is because a large portion of faerie kind find a good bit of humor and enjoyment in rousing and witnessing human emotion - especially frustration and anger. It's no secret in lore, either, that faeries like tricking us.

If you are already working with or thinking about working with faeries, getting a good grounding schedule in place in absolutely pivotal. We are not only far more likely to have a pleasant experience if we're not so easy to work into a tizzy, we also are less likely to attract faerie folk who like being frustrating and pulling pranks in the first place. While we can't really help how centered other people are around our faerie friends, we can at least make sure that we aren't the ones at the butt-end of their sometimes less than pleasant antics, and are able to handle the aftermath of people who aren't as cool and collected in the face of common faerie tricks like vanishing keys and mysteriously spilling cups.

5. Humanity Is Toxic

Okay, okay. That's a dramatic bullet point - we're not exactly toxic. Our lives, however, are. Making sure that we have spaces prepared for our faerie friends to exist in safely is an important part of not having angry faerie problems. From my personal experience, some of the more common things that most to all faeries have adverse or painful reactions to in our modern world are:

• Destruction of nature

• Depression or hate, and other extremely negative, lingering emotions

• Iron

• Perversion of natural order

• Plastic

• Poisonous or toxic fumes

• Unnecessary destruction or violence

Houseplants, gardens, crystals, and wooden objects are all wonderful havens for faeries. They enjoy music, laughter, and natural beauty (even the "bad" ones). The less you can alter about the natural world, and the more like the natural world you can make your inner spaces, the more likely you are to be an attractive companion for the faerie folk!