Superstition #411

bumble bee  A bumble bee that is found in the house can signify various different things.  British superstition is divided, some claiming that it is a sure sign that a visitor is about to arrive, while others, more ominously, suggest that is is a portent of death.  In Scotland it is said that killing the first bumble bee of the spring and keeping it safe means that the owner will always enjoy good luck and never be reduced to poverty.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions by David Pickering, 1995

Superstition #11

hemlock  As one of the most notorious of all poisonous plants, hemlock is widely associated with the devil and other evil influences.  Witches were formerly alleged to list hemlock as an ingredient in their evil-working spells and hemlock was variously credited with having the power to summon demons, part lovers, induce madness and make animals infertile.  Children who so much as touch the plant may be whisked instantly away by the Devil's cohorts.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions by David Pickering, 1995

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Superstition #5

hairpin  Because of its association with hair, the humble hairpin is not without magical significance.  Finding a hairpin promises making a new friend; losing one is more ominous, suggesting that an enemy is close at hand.  If a hairpin works its way loose in the hair this is taken as an indication that someone has that person in their thoughts-though in Germany this may signify the end of a love affair.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions by David Pickering, 1995

Superstition #77

topaz  A golden-coloured gemstone, the birthstone for November, which is widely held to be one of the luckier stones, suggesting good fortune in makin money and winning friends.  Representative of the sun, topaz has the properties of making its wearer both courageous and wise.  It will also counter maddness and bestow a degree of control over wild animals.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions, by David Pickering, 1995

Superstition #23

willow The willow has long been associated with sorrow and lost love.  In times gone by it was customary for people in mourning to wear sprigs of willow to indicate their loss.  The idea behind this was that the tree, to which grieving comes as second nature, would relieve the pain of the loss by assuming it itself.  Anyone who reveals secrets beneath a willow tree runs the risk of hearing the same secrets repeated by the wind.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions by David Pickering, 1995

Superstition #66

heart  As the traditional seat of the soul, the heart has particular significance in the superstitions and traditions of witchcraft.  Removing the heart of a live pigeon and sticking it with pins will oblige a reluctant lover to fall passionately in love.  If the lover still proves unwilling, sticking a hare's heart with pins and burying it near a newly dug grave will cause the unconsenting party to experience a sudden decline in health, culminating in death.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions by David Pickering, 1995

Superstition #87

crooked  British folklore insists that finding anything bent or crooked, be it a coin, pin, or stick, is lucky and the object should never be parted with.  Farmers have been known to plough crooked furrows so that the fairies may not aim their arrows along the ridges towards their horses and oxen.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions by David Pickering, 1995

Superstition # 174

nightshade  The poisonous nature of the various nightshade plants is reflected in the superstitions concerning them.  Alleged to be a favourite ingredient of witches' spells, deadly nightshade was, in former times, consumed in small quantities by those wishing to see into the future; too large a dose, of course, could induce madness and even prove fatal.  It was also said to be an ingredient in the mysterious flying ointment with which witches smeared on their bodies in order to acquire the power of flight.  Sprigs of woody nightshade festooned about the person or around the home will, however, keep evil spirits away and may also be used to protect livestock from the threat of witchcraft and disease.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions by David Pickering, 1995

Superstition #42

corner house  An old English superstition warns agains living in a house that stands on a corner, for such buildings (for reasons lost in obscurity) are widely held to be unlucky.
-taken from Dictionary of Superstitions by David Pickering, 1995