Sustainable Witchcraft: Buy Smart, Use Better
Modern witchcraft toes an interesting line between zero waste hippie and straight up consumerist. Once word got out that witchcraft was profitable, white sage and paraffin wax candles were popping up faster than you can say. “Full Moon!” It’s easy to compare your practice to the aesthetically pleasing altars and rituals online, and corporations are more than ready to profit from cheap substitutes and misinformation. Normally, the best way to avoid buying an athame that will break on you in two months is to focus on quality. But for many witches, places like Amazon are not only more convenient, they are cheaper. And while I will always stress that you do not need fancy tools to be a witch, it would be hypocritical if I didn’t admit to buying supplies through these sites before, and my books are available through Amazon and Kindle. Because of this, I have learned a few questions to ask myself when navigating the maze of sustainable witchcraft that you can follow to ensure that what you buy remains in your practice for years to come.
For the purposes of this post, I will be using Amazon to compare my alternative suggestions, as it is the main place I have found that witches gravitate towards for cheap supplies that will ship fast. Please note that this post is not to shame you from boycotting Amazon altogether, as it can be a beneficial tool, but to simply encourage eco-consciousness, and to offer another alternative that would better suit your practice.
Before you begin, take an inventory of what you already have in your house, herbs, jars, candles, tarot cards, as well as what you currently have room for.
Leave it in the cart 3-30 days
Trust me, on a large website like Amazon, it is not going anywhere. By not hitting ‘checkout’ right away, this gives you the opportunity to combat compulsive buying. Most markets like this count on the enticement of a discount along with other marketing tactics to get you to buy as quickly as possible, capitalizing on the dopamine rush you get from buying the item. But by the time the product arrives, that excitement has died down considerably, which can lead to guilt or buyer’s remorse. So even if you can return the item, for the benefit of your own mental sanity, leave it in your cart for a while.
Competitive pricing
Think about the witchcraft tool you’re looking for. Can you make it? Is it available somewhere else? Etsy, ebay, depop, facebook marketplace, your local thrift store, or even another witch? Amazon prides itself on having the lowest prices, but for every 20$ tarot deck they’re selling, there’s a witch on depop selling the exact same copy for a fraction of the cost!
Culture, History, and Intent
If you search ‘Beginner Witch Kit’ right now in Amazon’s search bar, the first three options include white sage, paraffin wax candles, and witch’s runes. Here is what the description of these items do not mention:
White sage is an endangered, overharvested plant, sacred to native american practices.
Paraffin wax, when burned, has been proved to cause several health issues including headaches, nausea, and can even lead to cancer.
The witch’s runes displayed are a modern recreation from the re-emergence of witchcraft popularity in the 20th century.
Before you go and waste your hard-earned money, it is extremely beneficial to do the research behind what you want to purchase. Witch’s runes are very different from the elder futhark, and white sage, along with the above cautions, has a very strong odor and essentially acts as spiritual bleach. This can have negative drawbacks if you work with spirits you do not want to banish from your space! By doing additional research before purchasing, you are opening yourself up to safer alternatives that are more beneficial to your practice and worth your money. For the examples I’ve used here, I recommend the following alternatives:
Swap the white sage for another herbal bundle with similar cleansing properties, such as rosemary, which you can grow and dry yourself quite easily year after year and save your money!
Any paraffin wax can be swapped with soy, or beeswax, and the paraffin candles you already have that you want to use up should be burned in an open space or by a window. Do not discard this wax into the soil!
Divination is a wide and vast practice, and deciding the form you will work with takes patience, and may change over time. You can make many rune sets and even the corresponding guide book yourself from found objects from a sacred site. There are even specific runes for Sea Witchcraft that I have made out of sea shells!
Consider the environment, consider your mindset
Companies greenwash all the time, and I rarely believe any huge corporation with climate friendly pledges. As witches, we love to collect things. After all, we never know when that odd candle or jar may come in handy. Amazon knows this, sees our browsing data, and puts what we want directly in our face, with a pretty discount to get us to checkout. Ordering anything online comes with the added cost of the fuel to get it to our doors, but there is also no sentimental value to these products because of their convenience. Meanwhile there are small businesses run by real witches, street fairs, and that local shop one town over, that not only has what you’re looking for, but gives you the chance to expand your community and knowledge. Though the amazon returns may be free for you, the gas burnt from shipping and returning the same item is not free for the planet. Again, this is not to blame or shame anyone, it is simply an unfortunate fact of our world today, and it’s important that we arm ourselves with the knowledge to actively choose differently.
Sustainable witchcraft is an important consideration of modern day witches, and the tools that make us feel magical and powerful don’t have to cost us the environment. Consumerism and convenience have sunk into the craft like rain through soil, taking root and growing a weed that only gets harder to root out over time. Regardless of your path, every witch, every person, should consider where and how we are spending our money. And afterwards, if the only option for what you’re looking for is on Amazon, then you will be able to check out with confidence.
All items in this posts’s featured image were purchased from Jaq’s Witchy Ways, one of my favorite recommendations for anyone looking for alternative witchcraft supplies.
Saving this article for later? Be sure to Pin It!
