Thursday, May 11, 2017

ATL Craft

If you live anywhere near the Atlanta area, then I’m sure you’ve come across an article or two, or the whispers of other Pagans, Wiccans, and Witches, about the new Witchcraft store that has parked itself downtown. If you haven’t, then I suggest you read that article here.
Now, before everyone decides to jump on their high horse, let’s look at this for a minute. ATL Craft actually is the first Witchcraft store in Atlanta. Phoenix and Dragon, Forever and A Day, Crystal Blue, etc are stores that sell supplies that Witches use BUT they do not call themselves a Witchcraft store. They are metaphysical shopsATL Craft is the first store to come out and explicitly state they are a Witchcraft store selling witchcraft supplies to real Witches.
With that being said, I want to talk about my personal experience within this new store and my interaction with the owner who happens to be super nice and really into creating a safe space for those seeking a community. The store is small in a comfy way and has a very personal touch to it when you walk through the door. In fact, there is a large alter set up at the back of the store near the fireplace.
(By the way, Haley, the store owner gave me permission to share these pictures with you guys.)
The store might not have a huge selection of herbs, crystals, incense, and tools, but what it lacks, it makes up for by presenting a way for local crafters to reach out to the community. Many of the supplies you’ll find in ATL Craft were made by individual Witches such as you and me. That makes those tools very personal and special. To be honest, I found it quite refreshing to not be overwhelmed with a huge selection and variety. Each piece that I saw was unlike the other and these tools were definitely unique enough to not warrant a cart on Amazon.
Of course, ATL Craft also offers classes to those who are interested in taking courses within the Craft. In fact, they had a very nice and secluded suite near the back for tarot, palmistry, and other psychic mediums. You can find a schedule of their classes on facebook.
Along the wall in this picture were some really high quality sage sticks. I ended up purchasing a sage and mugwort stick and one of their jericho flowers.
This table was full of goodies! It contained crystals, leather pouches, and other jewelry. There was also oil blends that were made locally.
In addition to everything else, there was a small supply of books, tarot cards, oils, and other miscellaneous witchcraft items. I bought some iron nails in this area.
This was probably my favorite table that contained these self healing spell kits and handmade protection bottles. You can even create your own protection bottle for the same price as buying one. Now that’s pretty cool!
Haley, the store owner, was very kind to me. What struck me about her (and what I see lacking at other stores) is that she approached me not as the owner of the store, but as a fellow witch. The first thing she asked was if I was looking for supplies for the Full moon. Yes, I happened to visit the store on May 10th, the night of the Full moon which wasn’t my exact intent. I was in the area for the Bastille concert that night so I was going to be raising some energy there instead. But to me, that showed me that she was a practicing Witch, in tune with the cycle of the moon and trying to learn what people were looking for. She also asked me if there were supplies I didn’t see in her store that I used every day. There were, like certain incense and oil blends, and certain types of candles but nothing too out there. We had a great conversation about the area and the Pagan community as a whole and I even found out about some new information about a Tarot Conference happening in 2018. Pretty cool!
All in all, I enjoyed my time at ATL Craft and I was able to find some very useful items for my own Craft work. It definitely has a selection that you don’t see everyday but I think it makes them unique. Check them out, and decide for yourself!