Final Fantasy Genesis     |   home Wicca   |   Ritual Tools   |   Wiccan humor   |   Book of Shadows   |   The Pentacle   |   Tool Construction   |   Incense   |   Trees   |   Resins   |   The Witches' Rune   |   The Wiccan Rede Tool Construction So. I've told you all about those fun tools, and now you're asking: 'But how can I MAKE these things?' Well, I'll give you some help, because I've wondered just how Wiccans get their stuff. It can help if you're in the SCA, and if you are, you're in luck! Because the War has all sorts of cool cool stuff for low low prices that's reasonably authentic! Plus, there'll be lots of Pagans around to ask about things like that. And EVERYONE is practically in ritual garb! However, not everyone can be in the SCA, and some might be put off by the idea of men (and some women!) in armor bashing each other with sticks, right? So, you can get stuff in other ways. Rennaisaince faires can be good, I've heard. And the high altar of good stuff for cheap: the garage sale or dollar store! Incense, incense holders, all the candles you could ask for (and scented ones!), candle holders, bells, whatever! The dollar store near my school even has some sort of crystal ball things, spheres of stone that re absolutely beautiful and could be a damn good representation of Earth. Letter openers with animals on the hilt for the most inconspicous athame, and candle holders of stone. Bottles and jars, beautiful glass goblets, all you could need are at your touch for a dollar or two. Look around closely. 'Yes', you say, 'that's all well and good for some stuff, but how will I get a wand, staff, sword, or cauldron? What about my robes? How do I get a leather-covered book for my BoS? What about crystals?' HAH! Sword, robes? Try the SCA! Leather? Same deal, or go to a leather store! Think you NEED a leather-bound spellbook? If you must, then you can probably buy one at the bookstore. Chapters has them in two sizes and a rainbow of colors. Or use an ordinary notebook and pretty it up! Who says you need robes? A bathrobe could do the trick. Wrap yourself in a sheet. Or, if you're adventurous, go nude! Or wear ordinary clothes. Simple robe: Get a big piece of cloth or a sheet. Cut a hole in it. Make slits for arms if desired. Voila. You do NOT need a sword, OR an athame. You can use other tools, or use your fingers, your 'power' finger (your index finger on your dominant hand) to put out energy, your non-dominant finger for taking it back. Or, go out and buy a kitchen knife. Or even a butter knife! Your tools do NOT need to be grand objects of pure silver covered in runes and gems! Need crystals? You know, a colored rock can be just as useful. Most crystals have qualities that correspond with their color. What about that stone you kicked onto the lawn? Or that cool-looking chunk of gravel in the driveway? Got a piece of jewelery with the stone you want as a setting? Put the jewelery on. See? It's simple. Or go to a nature or new-age store. A wand or staff can be a bit trickier. For a wand, go to the park or the backyard. Look around for a branch about as thick as the widest part of your thumb, or a width that appeals to you. If it's fallen, the better, but cut it if you need to. If you cut it, do so in a manner that won't hurt the tree, and thank it afterwards (if you don't want people to see you talking with a tree, then scatter bread crumbs around the tree to attract birds, or bury a crystal at its roots). Trim the branch to a size you're comfortable with, or as long as your arm, from finger to elbow. Decorate the wand as you see fit. Putting a quartz crystal at the tip is seen as traditional. It dosen't matter if it's a point or a rounded one...my wand has a rounded one, but my 'proto-wand' had a point, which now graces the tip of my Staff. I think the round one makes the wand look more natural. Carve symbols on it if you like. Make it yours. To fill it with your 'vibes', handle it often, 'play' with it, admire it and know that it is yours. For a staff, do much the same thing, but make it larger, of course. Only put  a crystal on the thinner end, if you want one. Make a handgrip. The staff is, I think, more personal...you spend more time on it and have a larger canvas, so to speak. I feel that a good thing to carve on your staff is the whole Runic alphabet, as the vikings believed that that meant it had protection, because all the letters to make the names of everything were there. For a wand, just put on runes that are special to you, or that have powers you want it to have. Or use another alphabet, such as Theban, Ogham, heiroglyphs, or whatever. Rub the carvings with white glue to stop the bark from peeling off. If there are short stubs of branches, you can tie stones or charms to them. Make the staff a work of art. Incense is wonderful for setting the mood of your sacred space, helping you relax, or just making your room smell good :) And trust me, you do NOT need to make your own incense or use powder incense that must be burned on charcoal. There are some who say that that is the only way to use it. For them, perhaps. For the Witch who isn't rich, incense from the dollar store will do nicely. The one I go to offers many brands, most in stick form. Stick incense is just as effective as powder or joss-sticks. Cones are just as good as sticks. If you're lucky, you can get twenty sticks for a dollar in an insane cultist's dream array of scents! One kind they have has thirty sticks AND a holder for a dollar. Admittedly, the holder is a piece of bent wood with a hole and a groove, but that's the best you could get for one reason: You can decorate it yourself in any way you like. I usually put some passages from a Book Blessing involving Air and Fire (the Elements of incense) as well as the planetary sigils and a beautiful vine design with some tulip-shaped flowers. Anyway, this one brand has several SUPERB aromas, Sandalwood (very good), Lilac (quite interesting). Opium (fabulous), Black Magic, Love, Musk, Rose (a sort of dark and dusty scent), and so on, and they are wonderful. And Spiritual Sky incense does NOT smell like crap. I just bought some Lotus and it is one of the most delightful types I have. Yes, their sticks do LOOK like crap, and they might burn a little fast, but the scent stays and really, what do you expect for a dollar for the twenty? It DOES come is amazing amounts of scent that I've never known existed, and they all seem wonderful. I now have an entire drawer of this card file I have given over to incense and incense-related stuff. Cone incense is something I don't have a lot of experience with, but I would say you might need to get one of those cool little thuribles for it. You know, those little brass cone-shaped things with the rose-shaped holes? Them. You can get those for a dollar too! Candles you can get anywhere, and candleholders are the same. You CAN get really big candles for dirt cheap at dollar stores which would be perfect for an illuminator for your altar. One could last you for ages. Little votives could be good for candle magick and taller ones are to be had inexpensively. Indeed, your tools are something very personal, and you should not worry over getting them. Eventually, the right thing will come along or you will find a wonderful substitute. Your quest for your tools should be a fun adventure, not WORK! Enjoy yourself!