Needle and thread don’t just mend. In this episode, we step into the older folklore of sewing—where stitches could bind a person’s luck, knots could lock a fate in place, and finishing the wrong piece at the wrong time was believed to invite trouble into a house. We trace the warnings that followed the needle: why sewing after dark was avoided, why certain garments were never completed during illness or mourning, and how cloth became a quiet place to hold fear, hope, and restraint.

Then we get into the mechanics beneath the superstition. Why unfinished work mattered. Why knots weren’t tied casually. And how sewing crossed from household labor into folk magic without ever being named as such. This is the side of sewing that didn’t belong to craft fairs or heirloom stories—it belonged to spooky stories by the campfire.

If you’ve ever been told not to finish a stitch at night, not to cut fabric after dark, or not to rush the last knot, this episode explains why. Because in folklore, thread doesn’t just follow the needle—and not every seam was meant to be closed.

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Feral Folktales is where I step aside from the main show and tell a straight folktale—simple, spoken, and exactly as it’s meant to be heard. These bonus episodes are just a little something extra between the full installments of The Feral Folklorist, which is where you’ll find the deeper dives into history, folklore, magic, hauntings, and the stranger corners of human belief.

This time, I’m sharing “The Cat That Swallowed the Stars,” a folktale about a village that wakes up one morning to find the night sky noticeably emptier—and a cat that’s looking a little too pleased with itself. It’s a story about curiosity, appetite, and what happens when something small decides it wants more than its share. After that, people start keeping an eye on the cat, the sky, and anything else that seems just a little too satisfied.

A new folktale often appears between the regular podcast releases—just a short story to keep the world of folklore moving.

Want more from The Feral Folklorist?

Dive deeper into each episode, explore merch, and get all the latest updates at:
https://feralfolklorist.com

Become a patron to unlock Feral Footnotes (our exclusive after-show), get early sneak peeks, weekly folk magic articles, and downloadable spells featured in each episode:
https://patreon.com/papagee

Stock up on your magical supplies from our metaphysical shop that’s been serving the public for over 25 years:
https://aromags.com

Papa Gee's personal website, Folkloreum, showcases his books, blog, podcast information, and more: https://folkloreum.com/

Support the show

Season 2 opens with spirit communication. In this episode, we’re stripping the velvet off the Victorian séance to look at the grit underneath. We trace the path from the first mechanical "raps" in a drafty New York house to the high-stakes, locked-door sessions that governed the lives of the living. You’ll learn how the Fox sisters turned grief into a telegraph system, why an invitation to a sitting was a social summons you didn't dare turn down, and how a room full of powerful men ended up taking orders from a sound in the dark.

Then we’ll get into the magical mechanics—the reality of "opening a channel" in your own home and why a séance is really just an invitation for a spiritual squatter. We’ll talk about the silence that settles into a house when the static takes over, and why traditional workers knew that an invitation without a closure is a dangerous way to live. You’ll learn how to use iron to shut the door on a conversation that’s gone on too long, and how to reclaim a room that’s gone thin from too much waiting.

If you’ve ever sat in the silence expecting a sign to tell you how to move, this one’s for you. Because the dead don’t always bring comfort—and a table doesn’t need a ghost to start making demands.

Want more from The Feral Folklorist?

Dive deeper into each episode, explore merch, and get all the latest updates at:
https://feralfolklorist.com

Become a patron to unlock Feral Footnotes (our exclusive after-show), get early sneak peeks, weekly folk magic articles, and downloadable spells featured in each episode:
https://patreon.com/papagee

Stock up on your magical supplies from our metaphysical shop that’s been serving the public for over 25 years:
https://aromags.com

Browse Papa Gee’s books, tarot readings, and more at:
https://folkloreum.com/

Support the show

Holiday folk magic, protective charms, and old-world winter witchery you can still use today. While the world decks the halls, we’re lacing cookies with fixed sugar, slipping sachet powders into gift wrap, and turning ornaments into spell jars.

This bonus episode of The Feral Folklorist unwraps the older, darker magic baked into the season—from Yule fires and Saturnalian chaos to the Wild Hunt and the real reason we hang wreaths on doors. You’ll learn how to fix cookies, cards, and wrapping paper for magical effect, and how the protective roots of evergreens, ornaments, and even that watchful little “Elf on the Shelf” can be used as quiet working tools.

We’ll also look at why December is wide open for sweetening, warding, and low-key spells, when everyone’s distracted, sentimental, and surrounded by objects that have carried hidden power for centuries. This isn’t about ruining anyone’s holiday—it’s about working the season before it works you.

Want more from The Feral Folklorist?

Dive deeper into each episode, explore merch, and get all the latest updates at:
https://feralfolklorist.com

Become a patron to unlock Feral Footnotes (our exclusive after-show), get early sneak peeks, weekly folk magic articles, and downloadable spells featured in each episode:
https://patreon.com/papagee

Stock up on your magical supplies from our metaphysical shop that’s been serving the public for over 25 years:
https://aromags.com

Browse Papa Gee’s books, tarot readings, and more at:
https://folkmagicstudio.com

Our digital magazine, Folkloreum, explores herbal recipes, spells and rituals, tales of folklore, and offers a little bit of spooky fiction in the mix. You can find it at: https://folkloreum.com/

Support the show

Feral Folktales is where I step aside from the main show and tell a straight folktale—simple, spoken, and exactly as it’s meant to be heard. These bonus episodes are just a little something extra between the full installments of The Feral Folklorist, which is where you’ll find the deeper dives into history, folklore, magic, hauntings, and the stranger corners of human belief.

This time, I’m sharing “Duppy and the Silk-Cotton Tree,” a Jamaican tale about a mother, her boy, and the uneasy nights that follow when a duppy (a spirit) keeps close to the roots of a tree people treat with a great deal of respect. It’s a story about boundaries, small signs, and the way families watch the world a little closer when something won’t leave their yard alone.

A new folktale often appears between the regular podcast releases—just a short story to keep the world of folklore moving.

Want more from The Feral Folklorist?

Dive deeper into each episode, explore merch, and get all the latest updates at:
https://feralfolklorist.com

Become a patron to unlock Feral Footnotes (our exclusive after-show), get early sneak peeks, weekly folk magic articles, and downloadable spells featured in each episode:
https://patreon.com/papagee

Stock up on your magical supplies from our metaphysical shop that’s been serving the public for over 25 years:
https://aromags.com

Papa Gee's personal website, Folkloreum, showcases his books, blog, podcast information, and more: https://folkloreum.com/

Support the show

Feral Folktales is where I step aside from the main show and tell a straight folktale—simple, spoken, and exactly as it’s meant to be heard. These bonus episodes are just a little something extra between the full installments of The Feral Folklorist, which is where you’ll find the deeper dives into history, folklore, magic, hauntings, and the stranger corners of human belief.

This time, I’m sharing “Grýla and the Yule Lads,” an Icelandic winter tale about a mountain giantess, her thirteen troublesome sons, and the uneasy nights when families believed these visitors came down from the high ridges to make sure every household kept their chores in order.

A new folktale often appears between the regular podcast releases—just a short story to keep the world of folklore moving.

Want more from The Feral Folklorist?

Dive deeper into each episode, explore merch, and get all the latest updates at:
https://feralfolklorist.com

Become a patron to unlock Feral Footnotes (our exclusive after-show), get early sneak peeks, weekly folk magic articles, and downloadable spells featured in each episode:
https://patreon.com/papagee

Stock up on your magical supplies from our metaphysical shop that’s been serving the public for over 25 years:
https://aromags.com

Browse Papa Gee’s books, tarot readings, and more at:
https://folkmagicstudio.com

Our digital magazine, Folkloreum, explores herbal recipes, spells and rituals, tales of folklore, and offers a little bit of spooky fiction in the mix. You can find it at: https://folkloreum.com/

Support the show

Feral Folktales is where I step aside from the main show and tell a straight folktale—simple, spoken, and exactly as it’s meant to be heard. These bonus episodes are just a little something extra between the full installments of The Feral Folklorist, which is where you’ll find the deeper dives into history, folklore, magic, hauntings, and the stranger corners of human belief.

This time, I’m sharing “The Old Woman Who Lived in a Vinegar Bottle,” an old English tale about restlessness, wish-making, and the trouble that follows when nothing ever feels like enough.

A new folktale often appears between the regular podcast releases—just a short story to keep the world of folklore moving.

Want more from The Feral Folklorist?

Dive deeper into each episode, explore merch, and get all the latest updates at:
https://feralfolklorist.com

Become a patron to unlock Feral Footnotes (our exclusive after-show), get early sneak peeks, weekly folk magic articles, and downloadable spells featured in each episode:
https://patreon.com/papagee

Stock up on your magical supplies from our metaphysical shop that’s been serving the public for over 25 years:
https://aromags.com

Browse Papa Gee’s books, tarot readings, and more at:
https://folkmagicstudio.com

Our digital magazine, Folkloreum, explores herbal recipes, spells and rituals, tales of folklore, and offers a little bit of spooky fiction in the mix. You can find it at: https://folkloreum.com/

Support the show

The Dybbuk Box - wood, metal, a couple of drawers. But the moment people touch it, things start to unravel—sickness, nightmares, strange smells, broken lives.

In this episode, we dig into the origin story of one of the internet’s most infamous “haunted objects”—and what it gets right (and wrong) about Jewish folklore, spirit possession, and the figure of the dybbuk itself. We’ll look at where the story came from, who kept it alive, and why cursed objects hit so hard in a world already cracking at the edges.

Then we shift into the magical layer: what makes an object truly haunted? How do spirits attach, and why do some things refuse to stay buried? From ancestor trauma to energetic entanglement, we’ll break down the difference between haunted… and charged.

If you’ve ever found something strange at a thrift store and couldn’t bring it into the house… if you’ve ever felt like a story was following you home… this one’s for you. Because sometimes, the scariest thing isn’t the object.

Want more from The Feral Folklorist?

Dive deeper into each episode, explore merch, and get all the latest updates at:
https://feralfolklorist.com

Become a patron to unlock Feral Footnotes (our exclusive after-show), get early sneak peeks, weekly folk magic articles, and downloadable spells featured in each episode:
https://patreon.com/papagee

Stock up on your magical supplies from our metaphysical shop that’s been serving the public for over 25 years:
https://aromags.com

Browse Papa Gee’s books, tarot readings, and more at:
https://folkmagicstudio.com

Our digital magazine, Folkloreum, explores herbal recipes, spells and rituals, tales of folklore, and offers a little bit of spooky fiction in the mix. You can find it at: https://folkloreum.com/

Support the show