Hand Made or Store Bought?

[AlleyCat]

Greetings all,

Just wondering what tools you have, whether its bought or made, and what your thoughts are on hand made in comparison to store bought?

I have a hand made altar box and wand, but anything metal or glass has been bought, Im not that talented LOL..

Also for a BOS hand written or typed? Do you think there is any difference? I like typing up my scribbled notes it just looks neater and is easier to organise and is easier to print out a replacement page instead of trying to hand write out another one and remembering whats on it, esp with a kitten that thinks paper is rather tasty, Ive gotten some weird looks from lecturers handing in assignments with little teeth marks down the sides lol

Blessings all,

Alley Cat

[Mouse]

My Wand and Athame are hand-crafted, The book part of my BOS is hand made but although the cover is hand made it's done comercially, so i dont think that's counted. I prefer to write in my bos, even though my writing is terrible.

My pentacle, which i'm hopeing to replace, and my chalice arn't hand-crafted.

I think there might be similar threads, if you're interested, you might run a search :)

[talamh]

Well, as they say out here - "It's all accordin(g)". The tools you need will come to you in many ways. Sometimes it's a "found" gift such as a bird feather, a shell, part of something which is part of what's happening at the moment you found it. Sometimes you "find" the perfect piece in a store and it speaks to you. Sometimes you can make tools yourself or barter for something.

Well, yes, you could go to a store with Wiccan supplies (if you live in a moderatrly large place) and buy them all. But that, I think, is cutting yourself off from many magical parts of your journey... not to mention expensive.

And your tools can change. I started out using my black-handled Heinkel paring knife as my althame until I had the chance to have one forged for me . As time goes on you will find yourself adding things and taking others away to reflect how you are changing and growing. And if you find you can't remember the signifigance of something on your altar then it's time to let it go free - whatever it is - give it to someone you feel might like it, or return it to the woods or ocean or field where you found it.

When you bring something new to your altar, remember to cleanse it and bless it and make it your own before adding it to your magical tools.

[OpenHands]

Let me put it this way...

I attempted to make clay offering bowls in my pottery class a couple of summers ago. It took weeks of practice and hard work before I produced pieces that actually resembled and could function as bowls. Bursting with pride, I brought them home to show my family. My mother remarked about how closely they resembled those darn cute pinch pots I made for her when I was in kindergarten. Ugly as sin, but I used them in ritual anyway because They (whoever They are) say that handmade crap is better.

When I could stand the hideousness no longer, I picked up a pair of lovely black ceramic rice bowls from Target for a fantastic price. They're now on my altar and the handmade bowls are tucked away in my closet with the rest of my embarrassing attempts at being crafty.

I'm all for handmade stuff if you have even a modicum of talent or can at least look at your deformed creations without going "ick". This I can't seem to do. My altar is used for worship and I want it to be easy on the eyes. Thus, I prefer to go with pretty and well-made things. No divine complaints have reached my ears so I assume the gods are fine with my storebought stuff too.

[Jolantru]

My athame is man-made and so is the bowl that contains my stones and shells. Likewise, the same goes for the small chalice/perfume container (beautiful filigree stuff) which contains holy water. Actually, come to think of it, most of the stuff on my altar are store-bought but I don't have any problem with them.

I think things come to us at certain times, be it store-bought or hand-made (or hand-picked). Some of the items on my altar are picked from somewhere. Feathers. Shells. A sprig of casuarina pine leaves and little nuts. Best of all, all the items represent some form of significance to me. So, to me, at the end, I have no problem with store-bought items or otherwise.

Cheers,
Jolantru

[Mouse]

openhands, you make a very good point, lol.