WICCAN, WITCHCRAFT, & NEO-PAGAN MAGICKAL SUPPLIES ON A BUDGET FAQ v. 1.7
By Tony Veca
Last Updated Sunday, November 07, 1999
Posted once a month

Posted to:
 alt.pagan
 alt.pagan.magick
 alt.religion.goddess
 alt.religion.wicca
 alt.religion.wicca.moderated

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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1.00 PURPOSE OF THIS F.A.Q.
2.00 MAKING YOURSELF
3.00 WAYS TO SAVE MONEY ON SUPPLIES AND TOOLS 3
     3.01 BOOKS
     3.02 BOOK OF SHADOWS (BOS)
     3.03 ALTER
     3.04 ATHAME/BOLINE
     3.05 ROBES/CLOTHING
     3.06 CANDLES
     3.07 CANDLE STICKS/HOLDERS & CHALICES
     3.08 CAULDRENS
     3.09 RODS, WANDS, & STAVES
     3.10 CRYSTALS & GEMS
 4.00 SOME NOTES ABOUT PLACES TO BUY THINGS
     4.01 GARAGE & ESTATE SALES
     4.02 OUTLET STORES
     4.03 'DOLLAR' STORES
5.00 HOW DO I MAKE THAT*
     * (OR WHERE DO I GET LESSONS FOR MAKING THINGS)
     5.01 JOIN THE SCA
     5.02 COLLEGES AND VOCATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTES
     5.03 FABRIC STORES
     5.04 CRAFT STORES
     5.06 COURSES ON THE WEB
 6.00 SUPPLY STORES
 7. NOTICE

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1.00 PURPOSE OF THIS F.A.Q.
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One of the most frequent questions that crops up in any of the Wiccan,
Magickal, and Neo-Pagan news-groups is that of where to get things need for
magickal workings, rituals, etc. There are always the various Pagan and New
Age shops, catalogs, etc. but as many find out they can get extremely
pricey. As a few of us have discussed in other newsgroups many of these
shops take advantage of the fact most Wiccans will not haggle over the price
of an item for fear of making useless to them.

So what is a Wiccan to do if they are strapped for cash and have a limited
budget. Or if they aren't strapped for cash but suffer from Scott's
frugality (which BTW, isn't a learned trait, its genetic) and want to save a
few bucks.

So with this in mind, I am going to cover some ways to save some money on
the major items used in Wicca and other magickal workings.

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2.00 MAKING YOURSELF
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The first way to save money is make it your self. This is true for all of
the following (save for the books). Instructions for making many of the
things can be found in the following books:

 Buckland's Complete Book of Witchcraft by Raymond Buckland
 Spell Crafts by Scott Cunningham and David Harrington
 Charms, Spells, & Formulas by Ray T. Malbrough

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3.00 WAYS TO SAVE MONEY ON SUPPLIES AND TOOLS
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3.01 BOOKS
Many books on Wicca can be found at Used Bookstores at around 50% to 75% of
their original cover price. With a little luck you can also find
out-of-print books at these stores as well. This is a cheap way to increase
your library on Wicca without going into debt up to your eyeballs.

3.02 BOOK OF SHADOWS (BoS)
There are several ways to go about this. How you do it is really up to you.
But for a cheap way a 3 ring binder and plain old lined paper work well.
Several of us keep our BoS on floppy and make use of DeskTop Publishing
programs. Do what feels right to you. If you belong to a Coven check with
your Elders, HP/HPS, etc. before doing anything. If you are solitaire, feel
free to knock yourself out.

3.03 ALTAR
Unless you are someone who likes to work with wood and have the necessary
tools, I wouldn't really suggest trying to make your own altar. But, if you
want to, instructions can be found in Buckland's Complete Guide to
Witchcraft. Or you can design your own, if you do, I suggest getting a copy
of Time/Life's Woodworking Guide "Cabinet Making" it contains some tips and
tricks of professional Cabinet Makers that can save you time and money when
it comes to building your alter.

For the rest I recommend getting yourself a dresser or hutch from a garage
or estate sales (or if you want to spend a little more money get a new one
from an unfinished furniture store). At most you will spend between $25 to
$100 for them and they will last you a long time with proper care.

The reason I suggest these two items is the fact they give you storage space
for your tools and supplies when you are not using them.

3.04 ATHAME/BOLINE
No matter what you do, you are going to end up spending money on these two
items. But there is a way to save money on them. Buckland's give directions
for making both the Athame and Boline from kitchen knives. You can also make
your own by buying supplies from Atlanta Cutlery, they have a nice
selections of blades and parts so you can create a custom Athame and Boline.

3.05 ROBES/CLOTHING
This can be the most frustrating part of Wicca. i.e. "What do I wear?" Once
again Buckland's has directions for making Robes and footwear (personally I
prefer my Birkenstocks, but not everyone can afford those ($90 to $150 per
pair)). If you know how to sew patterns for robes can be found at Costume
Supply Stores and Fabric stores. Butterick and McCall's Christmas Nativity
Scene costumes are the best and easiest robes to make and come in both Adult
and Children's sizes.

3.06 CANDLES
For the Neo-Pagan on a budget or those who just want to save some money, I
suggest that you get your supplies of candles after the major holidays. Here
is list for various colors:

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 Red, Green & White Candles         After Christmas
 Black & Orange                     After Halloween
 Blues, Yellows, Pink & Pastels     After Easter
 Pink & Red                         After Valentines Day
 Gold & Silver                      After Christmas
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It is best to stock up on these after the holidays due to the fact that
these colored candles go on sale usually between 30% to 75% off of regular
retail price.

Candles bought from Kitchen & Bath stores, Home and Garden Stores tend to be
of high quality.

If you are not interested in high quality candles, you can get them at
'Dollar' stores

3.07 CANDLE STICKS/HOLDERS & CHALICES
Once again we come back to the good old garage and estate sales. This is the
absolute cheapest way to do it but it does take some looking. The other
alternative is Home and Kitchen outlet stores.

3.08 CAULDRENS
Kitchen outlet stores will be your best bet for this item. You can save
between 30% to 50% over cauldrons sold in Pagan/New Age shops and catalogs.

3.09 RODS, WANDS, & STAVES
For this I say make your own, Wicca: For the Solitary Practitioner has a
complete listing of what woods are used for what type of spells. If you want
one that is straight and for general purpose, decorate a peace of solid oak
doweling.

3.10. CRYSTALS & GEMS
For crystals and semi-precious gems, get them at a lapidary shop (A dealer
in precious or semiprecious stones). You can get them for a fraction of what
you would pay at a Pagan or New Age supplier.

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4. SOME NOTES ABOUT PLACES TO BUY THINGS
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4.01 GARAGE & ESTATE SALES
Garage Sales will save you the most money. Besides finding what you need you
might just find things you need for your everyday life.

4.02 OUTLET STORES
If you want new things Outlet stores will save you a good deal of money.

4.03 'DOLLAR' STORES
I don't know why I didn't think of these before. I have often bought things
from these places for my more mundane needs. But you can often find jars,
bottles, candleholders, glassware, candles, etc. at extremely low prices.

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5.00 HOW DO I MAKE THAT*
        *(or where do I get lessons for making things)
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What if you want to make it but don't know how?

Both Buckland's and Spell Craft's give good detailed instructions for making
certain tools and clothing, they make the assumption you know what you are
doing.

Most craft skills are real easy to learn, but others such as sewing, jewelry
making, woodworking and knife making are not so easy.

5.01 JOIN THE SCA
The cheapest solution is joining the SCA (Society for Creative Anachronism).
The shires, baronies, counties, and kingdoms all have classes that teach
different skills. In Antir (Washington State) there is a wonderful woman who
goes by the 'nym "Anna the Lost" who teaches lost wax casting in silver,
bronze, and gold, there are other who teach period costume making and give
sewing lesson.  Most of the classes have a small fee never more than $25
plus the cost of supplies for the class and most are done over a weekend.

5.02 COLLEGES AND VOCATIONAL TECHNICAL INSTITUTES
If you are looking for something a little more formal, check with your local
Community College, or Vocational Technical Institute, they will have low
cost CED (Continuing Education) courses that run the gamut of skills.

5.03 FABRIC STORES
Fabric stores continually hold sewing classes for Beginning to Advance
sewing techniques

5.04 CRAFT STORES
Craft Stores hold classes for all sorts of crafts, from woodcarving to toll
painting. Most of the classes are relatively inexpensive, though you do have
the added cost of supplies. With some classes the supplies are part of the
course cost.

5.06 COURSES ON THE WEB
Under construction, if you do this or know of a site feel free to E-Mail me
at  tveca@wa.freei.net

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6.00 SUPPLY STORES
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This section is under construction and I need help with it. Since I live in
Western Washington State, I only know about what is available for my area.
Feel free to e-mail me at tveca@wa.freei.net with craft, outlet, lapidary,
etc stores that have reasonable prices for your area or state, or country.

Michael's Craft Supply
 (See your yellow pages for store nearest you)

TSI, inc. (Jewelry Making Supplies)
101 Nickerson
Seattle, WA
Mail Order #: (206) 282-3040

WESTERN WASHINGTON

Ben Franklin Craft & Frame
(See yellow pages for store nearest you)

Jewelry Findings & Supply (jewelry making supplies)
1423 4th Ave. #204
4th & Pike Bldg., 2nd Floor
Seattle, WA
Phone: (206) 682-1525

Jerry's Rock & Gem (Crystals and Gems)
804 West Valley Highway
Kent, WA
Phone: (253) 852-0539

FLORIDA
Avalon (Wiccan & Metaphysical Supplies
1211 Hillcrest St
Orlando FL 32803
Phone (407) 895-7439.


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7. NOTICE:
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All material is © 1999 Tony Veca. Permission is hereby given to copy and
distribute this material provided proper notice is displayed on such copies
regarding authorship and copyright and no payment of money is received in
exchange for such distribution or duplication. All other rights are
reserved.


--
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     __     __   Tony Veca                  tveca@wa.freei.net
    /'(  _  )'\  =============================================
   / . \/^\/ . \  "The  Universe is already mad, anything
  /  _)_'-'_(_  \  else would be redundant"
 /.-'   ).(   '-.\  -- Ambassador Londo Molari
/'     /\_/\     '\ [Babylon 5]
       "-V-"
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