Kitchen myths, omens and superstitions

Through the centuries, myths and superstitions based in and around the kitchen have developed and stayed with people even to this day. Ever heard someone say that it's bad luck to put your shoes on the table? While a domestic witch certainly shouldn't worry about every single myth and superstition, there are some that many do comply with, just in case!

Food Myths

• Sifted all purpose flour is said to attract money. Put a pinch of it somewhere it won't be disturbed, like in the back of a cabinet.
• An onion on the window sill in your kitchen supposedly soaks up negative energy. When it starts to go bad, throw it away or compost it.
• If baked apples burst in the oven, good news is sure to follow.
• Spilled milk, especially in a threshold, attracts fairies.

Spice and Herb Superstitions

• To have your kitchen run out of salt is said to foretell a loss of health or wealth. Always keep an extra box on hand.
• Alfalfa kept in a jar in your pantry is said to protect a family from ever knowing hunger.
• A clove of garlic sitting on the window sill or behind the sink draws illness away from your family. When it begins to rot, throw it away.
• To ward off negativity, hang braids of garlic, onions or hot peppers in your kitchen.

Bread Omens

• Never wash your bread knife on a Sunday. It will bring you bad luck
• If you drop buttered bread and it lands buttered side down, it's a sign bad luck is coming. If it drops buttered side up, good luck is sure to come.
• If two people reach for the same slice of bread at the same time, a visitor shall come soon.
• Nothing but ill can come from throwing bread in the trash. If you have stale bread and can't concoct a way to use it in your kitchen, give it to the birds outside your home.

Silverware Superstitions

• Always charge at least a penny when you give someone a knife as a gift. Otherwise your friendship will but cut.
• A fork dropped to the ground means that a woman will visit soon.
• A spoon dropped indicates a male visitor.
• Dropping a knife means an unwanted visitor will knock on your door.
• A Greek tradition states that you should never hand another person a knife: always set it down and let them pick it up, or the two of you shall fight.

Linen Myths

• Burying one of your well-used dish towels in your yard during a full moon is said to attract luck.
• If your apron unties on it's own and falls to the floor while you are cooking, your sweetheart is thinking about you, or you will surely give birth within a year, depending on what country you come from.
• If you drop your gloves on the floor, have someone else retrieve them. Picking up your own gloves brings bad luck.
• If you put your apron on backwards (it must be done accidently) good luck is coming your way.
• If you are having a string of bad luck, turning your apron completely around and back to the front will change your luck.
• A visitor eating at a house for the first time should leave his napkin crumpled by the plate. To fold it means that he will never visit that house again.

A list of kitchen myths, omens and superstitions could go on forever. Every country has their own versions of the myths, and some vary from region to region within a single country. Of course no one should follow each and every omen or myth that they hear about, but maybe it wouldn't hurt to follow one or two!

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