Ex Penna

Making spell kits is some of my favorite work.  The chance to interact with people on a personal level, helping them with what matters most to them right now, empowering them to make change happen--it's something I will never tire of.

I do still let it open as part of my local practice that I am available to cast spells for others, but I rarely do it anymore.  I have found that, unless special precautions are taken, customers can become more anxious about their situation, not less, as they await the outcome of another person's work.  That's easy to understand considering that they have taken no part in the change and therefore fear that it might go awry, take too long, or worst of all, never have been done in the first place.  A customer of any professional witch is rarely present for the actual casting of their spell, so there's a lot of trust that must be established before money changes hands and witch and client part ways.  I don't mind when people watch me perform magic on their behalf (and it does happen on occasion) but not all spells can be done at the same time they are requested.  So a customer is always left to trust and hope and wait.  Some are happy with this arrangement, letting their problems safely rest in the hands of another, but some are not.

Those who are not comforted by this are no less trusting, of course, nor less a believer than those who let a spellcaster tend to his/her business.  They just need some involvement, emotional release, and clear resolution.  This kind of person, it turns out, makes up most of the people who request spells. 

For those of you who have never ordered a spell kit from me, I'll take a little side-step and tell you what this work entails---

I have never felt very strongly about the standard "candle, oil, and sheet of paper" type kits that are pre-made for retail shops.  They might work wonders for some, but for myself I just cannot get that magic thrill out of such lackluster spells.  It is because of this that I work with the customer to find out just what they would like to happen and then fill their kit with all the necessary items for specific traditional spells to address their issues.  Many times I include cleansing formulas to be used prior to the "main event" spell.  It's been my experience that most problems either begin with or are made worse by a blockage in the flow around that person.  So we free up the space in your home and self first, then we can direct the exact changes you need from there. Once you have the road cleared, you can drive anywhere you like!

I like to work with formulas in my own practice, so my customers get to use lots of them too!  The ones I most often add to kits are handmade powders, oils, tinctures, (sometimes) incenses, or dry blends with instructions for making potions, baths, and washes.  The spell itself often includes some combination of herbs, talismans, candles, poppets, cords, charms, bags, and/or occasionally stones.  I have a fairly large variety of spellbooks old and new to work from and I like to pore over them until I find what would suit best.  So your spell could contain any combination of these items or others not listed here.  My magic room contains lots of odds and ends I've gathered over the years just waiting to be put to use!
Whether I'm making spell kits or doing the casting myself on behalf of a petitioner, I first go to my magic room to check the shelves, dig through cupboards, and find just the right components.  What better way to enjoy the fruits of years of traveling, collecting, and rambling in the woods than to use them to help others?

Unfortunately, that does not always work out for the best.  Case in point (and an excellent example of why I don't often work this way anymore), my most recent foray into casting for another.  It was just before I opened Quill's Occult Supply.  A young man came to me, desperately in love with a fickle young lady who was turning up her nose at all of his sincere overtures.  I gave him practical advice for free--show her some strength of self and make her rethink those assumptions of him being the nice guy to finish last.  She was playing with him like a cat with a mouse, and to stand up to her would be the only way to get her attention.  I read the cards for him and they supported and expanded upon my statements.  With his insistence, I moved on to researching the perfect spell for his situation and cast it in the best possible timing.  I was quite pleased and ready to let the whole thing quietly fall into place.

Sadly, he was not of the same mind.  He wrote me the next day to say that he had done the complete opposite of everything I'd suggested!  He wrote and called her several times, showed up at her door unannounced, and steamed with jealousy as she paraded other men in front of him.  She wasn't responding to his adoration, and maybe even drifting further away.  He feared the spell had not worked.  I explained the best I could, reaffirmed my previous advice, and then began again.

This time I brought out the big guns.  I summoned a spirit by name to assist him and bring to him the woman he desired.  Yeah, I know, lots of folks will disagree with this method, but it's what I did.  I told the young man to be mindful of the spirit's influence and to act as he was directed.  With the spirit bound to him by a wooden sigil, I mailed the lot to his home with clear instructions.  I thought that now I might rest easy.

But soon again I received a message from him that since smothering this girl with desperate pleas didn't work before...he had decided to do it again.  *sigh*  He sent her flowers and gifts, and left message after message on her phone.  I rubbed my temples.  I bet the spirit was rubbing his own, as well.

What a disaster!  Here was a wonderful person, sweet and affectionate with so much love to give.  And yet, he couldn't make it work.  And neither could I.  Everything I did was constantly being undone by the very person requesting it.  I felt sorry for his situation and I regretted being an agent of more anxiety and desperation in his life.  But above all I just wanted to grab him by the shoulders and shake some sense into him!

But, really, all he needed was to have something to do.  In the absence of a way to help, his hands could only harm.  He had requested not to be involved in the working because he feared making a mistake, but if I'd sent him a kit, full of instructions and simple spells, he might have had the confidence and calm to let it really work for him.  Instead I just kept adding stronger and stronger magic to the pot, thinking that there must be a tipping point where spellwork itself would overcome the fearful actions of those who don't see that magic is change.  You have to be willing to change in order to receive it.  But without a hand in it, he just didn't get the message. 

So now, tired but wiser, I get the message too.  And it had better be damned important for me to cast spells for someone else without their assistance.  Working alone is no problem for me; working alone in a disaster of the customer's creation is another matter altogether.


Images from:

http://www.pinterest.com/minimaria/miniature-witch-and-other-magical-stuff/
http://licklebear.tumblr.com/