The Makings of a Magpie Oracle - Part 2: How to Create Your Magpie Oracle

If you’re thinking about doing Magpie Oracle readings, the first thing you’ll need to do is put together your kit. You’ll want enough items in your kit to make it so you can tell a story with it. If you want to do past, present, and future readings, make sure that you have pieces that will allow you to tap into the past and the future. If you want to focus on love readings, you’ll want pieces that speak of love, romance, broken hearts, and more.

Your bone throwing kit can have anything you want in it. You can make it all bones, but it may be difficult to attribute single meanings to each bone unless you carve images on them, paint them certain colors, or do other things to make them each stand out from one another. It is possible to use an all-bone kit but consider how much more visually appealing a kit of bones and trinkets looks. By adding in trinkets and other items from nature you give your kit more potential – and you make it a little more fun for the person getting the reading.

If you do a little research online about bone throwing kits or Magpie Oracle, you'll find that people use all sorts of things in their kits, including dried animal parts, feathers, and random things they find on the ground (natural or not). Each of the pieces in your kit will have a meaning you personally give to them. There are some things you need to have in your kit – starting with an item that represents the person you are doing the reading for. When you start reading, you will notice that the individual pieces’ meanings begin to combine with one another. You'll look more at where they fall, which pieces are touching, and even the distance between pieces. I also like to look at lines and connections – like where a circle or spiral is formed with pieces. Because reading Magpie Oracle is equally about placement as it is about individual meaning – you may even find yourself reading the same pieces more than once and going along lines in both directions – after all, time is fluid.

Even if you begin with a “starter kit” that hundreds of other people have, you will add and subtract items as you work with the oracle and figure out which pieces fit your reading style. I like to have around the same number of pieces as the Major Arcana in Tarot, which is 22 – but this fluctuates as I do readings over and over again. In fact, having some of your trinkets as representations of the Tarot can make readings more relatable to people who use Tarot and inspire new items for your kit.

As you collect your pieces for your Magpie Oracle kit, you will connect on a deeper level with your growing set, which may never be fully complete. As with all divination, the more you use your kit, the better you’ll be able to communicate with it. It's completely fine to start with a purchased kit, but you will want to work on making it your own by adding pieces that speak to you (and removing ones that don’t). These pieces could be items you find or things you purchase. There is no specific size your set should be – you may start with single digits, or you might start with a dozen items. Your set will continue to grow as you use it. Some people put together their kits in one day, while others might take a month to collect the perfect pieces. There really are no rules here.

On the opposite end of the spectrum from the bones and only bones set, another thing you should know about Magpie Oracle sets is that they don't have to have any bones in them at all. If you are opposed to having bones on your altar or in your divination tools, you can still use this form of divination as a way to tell fortunes. There are no rules when it comes to designing your personal set of Magpie Oracle reading trinkets. Do what feels right for you.

The biggest key to picking the right stuff for your kit is to choose the things that feel right to you. You will want things that you'll be able to work with and that will speak to you, and you will want to be able to remember what each piece stands for. You determine your own meanings, which also makes it easier to remember what's what – and if a meaning no longer feels right or you’re reading it differently one time when you cast your bone, no one is going to be able to tell you that. Your kit is all your own, remember, it’s not like a deck of Tarot cards that come with set meanings.

To help you understand the components of a Magpie Oracle kit, I am going to share what pieces are in my kit and the meanings I have attributed to each of them. My kit has changed many times over the years I have been using it. Some pieces lose their meaning to me or replacements come to me from shopping trips or nature, while other pieces are added simply because I realized I was missing a piece that stood for something that would make sense to be able to relate to in a reading.

Here is what is (or was) in my Magpie Oracle kit, the meanings I attribute to each piece, and some ideas for other pieces you could use in their place – my kit changes time and time again:

Larger bone – My main bone, which I use as the person I am doing the reading for, is my biggest piece and it is about the length of my thumb. If you don’t want to use bones, sticks you’ve collected in nature of different lengths and sizes would make great replacements for the two main bone components of your kit.

Medium bone – I have another larger bone that is smaller than my bigger one and, for me, it is the embodiment of someone or something close to the person I am doing the reading for. I see it as a person, place, or thing, depending on the reading, placement, or what the person is looking for answers to.

A broken rose pin (I've since removed this) – I have a gold-stemmed pin that’s missing the stabby part, with a red rose at the top. This was a later addition to my kit when I realized I had nothing to resemble beauty. Anything you see beauty in that is sturdy enough to withstand a toss on a table can work.

Old nail – My partner found an old square-headed nail in a window of our home and left it on my makeup table as a surprise. I knew it belonged in my kit and it’s the symbolism for building strong foundations or finding stability. This doesn’t have to be an old nail, a new one would work fine too.

Plastic baby – I also recently added a small rubber baby doll (and it's now a blue plastic doll), a replacement for a plastic baby Jesus I’d originally added to the kit as a symbol of new beginnings, much like the Fool in Tarot. He is the beginning and what adventures will he go on? Any small doll would do.

A plastic set of teeth – This little jaw looks like a set of falsies, but I thought it was the perfect addition to my kit to remind people to either keep their mouths shut or to start talking and expressing themselves more. It is the ideal communication piece. Something real, like a muskrat jawbone. would work well here too.

Worry doll – Guatemalan worry dolls are most often used to put under your pillow at night after telling them all of your worries where they are said to help absorb and remove those worries from your mind. I added one to my kit as an indicator that the person getting the reading either should or shouldn’t be worried about something, all depending on how the rest of the trinkets land.

Plastic milk bottle (recently switched to an apple) – This is some little trinket for a doll toy that I scored at a flea market. I see it as a sign that someone needs to get more nourishment for themselves or whatever the bottle lands near. I have a small burger for dollhouse miniatures that would work well here.

Acorn – I have a real acorn in my kit (the little acorn hat is glued on). I see this piece as a sign of growth, as well as something showing sturdiness or even a need for grounding. Any kind of nut or seedpod would work for growth.

Clear quartz point – It’s a small point, but the perfect symbol of clarity, whether you have it or need it. Any clear item will do here, including a piece of glass (just make sure its edges are sanded so you don’t cut yourself).

Squirrel rib bone – I found this in a cemetery, strangely enough. I added it to my kit to stand for inner protection, looking within. Any kind of bone would do, really.

Heart charm – Passion, love, self-love … any heart will do!

Fossil – I have a little fossil stone that I’ve owned for decades. It is a symbol of something/someone from the past or something/someone who has been in your life for a long time. Since fossils come in all shapes and sizes, this should be an easy addition to any kit.

Black-painted bone – These next bones were original parts of my kit and I used to keep them natural colored and have them as “outside influences” for the readings but decided they’d suit me better by attributing some color psychology to them. The black bone is a sign of illness, toxicity, pain … it’s the negative things.

Yellow-painted bone – Yellow is a color of joy and warmth. I also see it as a symbol of creativity. It has a masculine sense, due to its connection with the sun. It helps nourish and grow, and while I have other trinkets of those meanings, even the Tarot cards overlap sometimes.

Green-painted bone – Green is for good luck.

Bird – I have a small bird that looks to be something from the floral crafting department, but it works well as a symbol of freedom and flight.

Plastic angel -- We’ve all got a guardian angel, or many, looking out for us. This is a mini from a manger set I picked up at the Goodwill Outlet. Any angel would work, including an angel wing.

Buddha head bead – Buddha is a sign of enlightenment and balance. I’d originally thought to seek out a small Libra pendant or set of mini-scales for balance, but I found a Buddha bead that was the perfect alternative.

Toy car – I have the shoe from Monopoly in my kit … game pieces make great additions to your Magpie Oracle collections. It’s the epitome of movement. Much like the Chariot in Tarot, it is all about movement. I used to use a shell as a symbol of travel because it made me think of vacationing.

Shoe – Unlike the car, this one is about you moving forward (or backward) through something.

Amethyst stone – The amethyst is a stone of intuition. In my kit, it tells people to hone this tool and trust their gut more in relation to whatever it is nearby.

Toy sword – I have a small toy sword for Lego people that I put in my kit as a symbol saying you need to go on the offense or defense, depending on which intuition says it should stand for. You could use one of those cocktail swords that holds olives and cherries.

Button – I have a wood and cork button, I liked the natural elements of it. For me, I see the button as a sign that something needs mending.

Skull bead – My skull bead is made of bone. This is my equivalent to the Death card in Tarot. It is a sign of big changes. The death of something … but death always leads to new life!

Animal tooth molar – I found a random molar on a walk … I have no idea what kind of animal it came from. Nonetheless, I see it as a symbol of wisdom.

Evil eye bead – The evil eye symbol helps protect us from negative influences. You can easily find these beads at the craft store.

Eye – I also added a regular eye as a symbol of needing to see something or open your eyes to something.

Hand charm (now a doll's hand) – I added a hand charm as a symbol of a helping hand or helpful person in the life of the person I am doing a reading for.

Shark tooth – The shark tooth I see as a sign of danger or risk. Sometimes it’s a risk you should take, others it’s a risk you definitely want to avoid.

Pyrite stone – Also known as Fool’s Gold, in my kit pyrite is the symbol of money or abundance. You could also use a coin for this symbolism.

Key – Keys unlock doors and open the way to new opportunities.

Lock – I have a lock charm, but you could use something like a doll house sized lock as well. This works well as the opposite of the key, locked doors, and missed opportunities. But, when the two fall near one another, it could be a really good thing, like finding your life goal or lost treasure.

Arrow charm – which direction do you need to go in or what do you need to “shoot” for?

Bee charm – Are you too busy or should you be busier?

Turtle charm – It's time to slow down, or perhaps you need to start working harder at protecting yourself or your home.

Moon – The ebb and flow of life, a symbol of changes and femininity.

Staurolite stone – A sign of crossroads and choices needing to be made.

Infinity symbol – What goes around comes around, could be a sign of twin flame or soul mates if near the heart, or a sign of the past coming back, including past lives.

Of course, you want to add to your kit items that speak to you. Some people add things like rabbit’s feet (good luck), bugs or bug parts (come up with your own meaning depending on the type of insect), and any kind of charms will do. I used to have a little charm that looked like a person floating in a pool and I saw it as a symbol of relaxation, needs met, and finding joy. I also had a tiki head charm that looked like someone stomped on his foot, which was a symbol of pain or anguish within my Magpie Oracle kit.

You can also delve deeper into items that relate to color psychology, as well as pieces with numbers (like dice), for numerology. I also like having something that answers “yes” or “no” (which is currently a coin with yes on one side and no on the other). You can also have pieces that are feminine and masculine if you’d like. One thing I did the last time I felt the drive to change and enhance my kit was to go through the keywords of the Major Arcana in Tarot and try to find pieces relating to those.

It’s important that you ensure that the items you include are sturdy enough not to fall apart when you throw them. You won't be whipping them on the table, but you will want to make sure they have a chance to “spread” when you cast them – and some of your pieces could be sturdy or heavy, which could break other items in your kit.

You may also want a scallop-type shell that you can use to move the pieces around (if needed) once they've been cast. Some of the information I did find on this form of divination claimed that you shouldn't touch them by hand once you've tossed them for a reading, but you might need to nudge some around to get a good look at their positions. I used a shell in the beginning but found that since my energy is on the kit when I hold it for a toss, my touching the pieces post-throw doesn’t affect the reading at all, and may even help me connect and read better.

Most importantly, don't fret if it takes you a while to put your kit together. Take your time and listen to the items in your set and the items that want to be in there. Even when you think you have a complete Magpie Oracle set, you may end up adding something new.

Plus, when it comes to putting your kit together or making changes to it over time, you may be surprised at where the things you add come from – from purchases at thrift stores to gifts from friends, you can always add items that are from nature. However, my favorite pieces have often been the ones I found randomly while walking in the woods, along the roadside, or even through busy parking lots. I have found bones, teeth, and even neat little pendants that had been run over innumerable times, but still spoke to me and found a home, even if temporarily, in my Magpie Oracle kit.