4 Things You Need To Know
When Shopping For Wiccan Gifts

Want to buy Wiccan gifts for the Wiccans in your life?

That's a wonderful idea! Even if you're not Wiccan yourself, giving a Pagan-ish gift is a wonderful way to show your support for your loved ones' spiritual life.

You probably have some questions, like…

• What are good Wiccan gifts?

• What is appropriate, and not appropriate, to give a Wiccan?

And if you are a Wiccan, you might be looking for ideas for good gifts. Maybe even for yourself! (Yes, we Witches know how to be nice to ourselves!)

Either way, here are some things you need to know before you go shopping in the Pagan supplies stores...

What You Need to Know
About Choosing Wiccan Gifts

Here are some tips and facts to help you find the best gifts for the Wiccans in your life.

1) What Do Wiccans Need?

There are certain standard things that most Wiccans use.

• Anything from the Altar Tools list.

2) What Would Be Inappropriate Wiccan Gifts?

Some of these altar and ritual tools, a Wiccan usually prefers to choose for herself. Certain ritual items are very personal, and they must suit her precisely.

There are exceptions to this (see the next section.) But generally, unless you know the person especially well, it would be best to leave these items to her discretion. . .

• Athame

• Wand

• Book of Shadows (Grimoire)

• Robe

• Spell supplies

3) What Is a Wiccan Unlikely to Buy for Herself
But Will Really Appreciate and Use?

These are things we may not buy for ourselves, but would really love to have. The first, and best, thing you can get for a budding Wiccan is good training. Luckily, you can get that here!

Other popular items include...

• Cloaks

• Circlets and Crowns

• Tarot deck (There is a belief among some that a tarot deck must be gifted rather than bought for yourself... see this page for reviews of the decks I particularly recommend.)

• Cauldrons

• Special Brooms

• Crystals and things made from gems stones

• Other divination tools

• Percussion instruments (drums, rattles, etc.)

• Lovely examples of ritual tools, like bells, bowls, chalices, or a fancy Book of Shadows. (This store also has Wiccan-style book markers which would be really handy!)

Always-Needed Wiccan Supplies

Here's a list of some items that a Witch can almost never have enough of. Some of them get used up rapidly. Others are things that we may not buy for ourselves, for whatever reason, but really appreciate having.

• More books. Here is a list of my personal recommendations for Wicca and Spirituality Books

• Sculptures and pictures of Deities
• Calendars

• Altar Cloths
  It's ideal to have one for each Sabbat, plus a white one, a black one, a gold one and a silver one to make a complete collection.
  These can be simple or fabulous fabrics from a fabric store, trimmed to size. Or they can be specially designed Wiccan altar cloths.)

• More altar decorations. (See Decorating a Pagan Altar for ideas.

• Reference Books

• Wiccan jewelry

• Pagan Music (see box)

• Candles

• Candle Holders (best are those that will catch drips)

• Candle Snuffer

• Incense, essential oils, and smudges (depending on the individual's tastes)

4) When Do Wiccans Give and Receive Gifts?

Most Pagans give gifts at the normal cultural occasions, like birthdays, personal celebrations, and major holidays.

The difference comes in when the holiday is non-Pagan in origin.

For instance, the major gift-giving season in the West is Christmas. Pagans don't celebrate Christmas, of course.

But we do celebrate Yule, which occurs at the Winter Solstice. That's on (or around) Dec. 21.

What we do in my house (being especially fond of pressies), is open our first gift on Solstice Eve, Dec 20th. Then we open a gift a day until they're all opened. This usually takes us to New Years Day (we plan carefully).

We love this new tradition! One of the best things about it is that it relieves a lot of that pre-Christmas build-up and Boxing Day let-down. Also, we get to savour each present for a whole day, before looking for the next one.

Major Wiccan Celebrations

One occasion that may be overlooked by non-Wiccans in particular is the rite of Initiation.

When a Witch is initiated (by herself or others), it's a perfect opportunity to bestow a token of your blessings on her spiritual journey.

Other possible occasions for Wiccan gift-giving include the High Holy Days, or Wiccan Sabbats, which are given in the table below.

I'm constrained to point out that it's not common to give presents for these Sabbats. However, if you are one of my friends or family looking for gift ideas, please disregard this paragraph.

After all, Witches excel at creating new traditions!

See this chart of major Wiccan holidays.

With Brightest Blessings,

erin Dragonsong

Return from Choosing Wiccan Gifts to Being a Witch

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