Tools you MUST have as a witch…or not!

Before I start, let me wish you a very happy 2026. I truly hope it will bring more solutions than problems for everyone. And...here is finally a completely new blog posts from me!

When people first get interested in witchcraft, it isn’t unusual to hear questions like

“Where do I start?” and also "What do I need?”

There is a huge industry out there catering to every occult, spiritual and pagan flavour. From the pink and fluffy to the dark and spooky you can absolutely find everything you can imagine.

But which one of all those things do you absolutely need to practice your craft or path?

When we see witchcraft represented on the internet and social media, very often the first things you will notice are the tools.

Perfectly arranged candles, lots of beautiful crystals, ritual knifes with carved symbols ( which are called Athame ), altars curated like mini universes and for many newcomers it can look as if witchcraft, paganism or the practice of magick means owning the right items, laying them out in the right way, on the right time of day according to a specific tradition.

You can be forgiven for assuming that without those tools you aren’t really a witch.

However, I believe witchcraft starts on a totally different level that hasn’t actually got much to do with any pretty tools you can buy.

Don’t get me wrong, tools can be powerful, beautiful and incredibly meaningful to an individual, plus they are so damn pretty and who doesn’t like a bit of aesthetic, but… they aren’t essential when you first start out on the witch’s path. To be fair, they aren’t essential even further down the line.

I am not writing this to dismiss owning witchcraft tools at all, I own lots of them! I am writing this to put them into perspective. They can be your companions and your focal points, much like a crucifix is to a Christian, most would own one but they wouldn’t see it as essential to praying or worshipping either.

My altar as it was during a Samhain ritual, definitely lots of tool there!

But before I tell you why they aren’t essential, let’s see why they matter at all and why witches use them much like any other spiritual or religious path does.

Humans (and some other animals) use tools as extensions of their bodies, to make it easier to achieve a specific goal and magickal tools are much the same.

The Athame (see mine on the right of center in the above picture) for example, much like a wand, extends your hand in directing energy for a specific purpose like creating boundaries or a besom that sweeps away stagnant energy to prepare a space for ritual better than you could with your hands alone.

Often tools can be very symbolic for the focus of the ritual or spell, like candles or incense to set a mood or reflect a specific element like fire or air.

Today however witchcraft exists in a world full of consumerism and has often become a lifestyle shaped by online platforms that puts a huge emphasis on aesthetics. The perfect altar, the rare crystal, the artisan, crystal embedded wand, bathed in moody candle light often wielded by the perfectly manicured hand.

Again, I have nothing against the people creating these images and I am a huge sucker for pretty aesthetics, because it puts me in the right mood for ritual or magick.

I adore pretty decorations and beautiful smelling incense or candles!

These images you find online can be inspiring, but they can also convey a narrative that witchcraft or magick lives in things you must acquire and that can create a barrier rather than an invitation, especially for anyone at the beginning of their journey.

It can feel as if you MUST have that perfect cast iron cauldron or the “correct” incense to burn under the full moon, the idea you are not a proper pagan or witch if you can’t afford the correct tools.

Although that idea isn’t unique to witchcraft, I am a photographer and “needing” the poshest camera to be a “proper” photographer is also an attitude or rather a bad gatekeeping mechanism.

In witchcraft this is an interesting development, considering that traditionally magick belonged to people who didn’t have much in terms of belongings. Folk magick in western Europe was often practiced by Cunning Folk with much simpler tools either those already present in a house or found in nature for example. It was more about knowledge and practice than any flashy possessions.

I would even argue that when we focus too much on the tools and aesthetics the pratice might still look very beautiful but starts feeing rather hollow and disconnected.

So I believe that one of the most powerful tools a witch can use is their intent.

What is intent?

Intent doesn’t just mean wanting something, it means having clarity about the purpose of your request and combine that with a conscious direction.

Decide why you are considering a spell or ritual, what specifically you are asking for at this moment and how you are willing to participate in the outcome. Your intent shapes the energy, your attention and behaviour within a ritual or magick practice, without it even the most elaborate looking ritual becomes an empty performance.

Tools are only there to aid or amplify your intent, but not to replace it!

Another non- buyable essential to the witches tool box is dedication.

Dedication means showing up for yourself and your path or craft, even when it feels awkward or unproductive. Dedication allows you to grow and learn, accepting mistakes and doubts about the whole magick thing.

Trust me I have those all the time and I would actually be more worried about people following anything blindly without doubting!

It also means studying about witchcraft history, learning about different paths, listening to people who walked the path before you, understanding the meaning behind tools and where they come from. The more you know, the better!

Which leads us to two more magickal tools you can’t get off the shelves, knowledge and experience.

Of course when you just start out there seems to be so much learn! Symbolism, folklore, moon cycles, the wheel of the year....even just the terminology of magick and witchcraft can be overwhelming and of course you will find plenty of books that can help you out here, but that’s not even what I mean when I talk about knowledge as a tool for magick.

The most powerful tool comes from self knowledge, which in itself is a long journey that you might never truly finish, but the better you understand your own emotions, reactions and triggers, the more you are in charge of those energies and then you can utilise them. That in itself also comes with experience of course!

Just like any other craft, the more you practice, the better you get.

Once you have a better understanding of your intent and you dedicate yourself to your practice, find time for knowledge and gather experience while doing so, your tools will fall into place pretty naturally. Good tools can then deepen your energy, your spell or ritual, rather than define it.

Look at that walking witchcraft cliché! Yeah... that's me at a witchcraft festival last year.

And one more time….I have no qualms with pretty tools, the shops who sell them or witch aesthetic influencers, absolutely not.

As you can see from a lot of these pictures, I love the witch aesthetic and for a lot of people who get onto the path, that aesthetic thing just happens anyway as your surrounds are usually an extension of yourself, aren’t they?

I just want to get the point across that it wasn’t all the witchy pretty things that made me practice witchcraft, me already practicing made me surround myself with all the stuff. Tools are beautiful, but they are not the source of any magick.

I don’t need any of these things, but I really like them!

If you are at the beginning of your journey, here are some practical ideas for tools that go easy on the wallet.

A wand can be made from any stick or branch you find lying on the floor in your local park or woods. Avoid cutting or snapping branches of living trees or if you do, leave an offering and thank the tree. A self made wand is more meaningful than any you can buy too!The same goes for a staff or a stang (forked staff used in traditional witchcraft).

The cheapest candles you can find are probably tea lights, every supermarket has them. They can be used for all kinds of magickal purposes. To mark the quarters in a circle, to aid in meditation, to burn spells on a piece of paper, to help you focus, to represent gods, on your altar…so many possibilities.

My Insta perfect altar? Actually lots of this I simply picked up on my walks and brought them home. Even the ram's skull on the right, which my partner found years ago on Dartmoor, the deer one in the middle was a gift from a friend.

Altar decorations can be found everywhere! You can paint God and Goddess symbols on stones, use acorns, chestnuts, holly, ivy, sea shells, pebbles, bits of wood as symbols for elements or seasons or similar correspondence. I have all of those on my altar an they make it a living thing.

And yes you can make your own athame, either from metal or wood if you have a bit of skill. It makes it probably more meaningful if you manage to do so.

I am also very much of the opinion that the tools anyone owns, which have been used for years for a specific purpose will absorb the energy of their owner and the rituals or magick they were used for and so become more important and useful over time.

But whether you make your own or buy tools eventually, don’t forget that YOU are the magick. No tool, no elaborate spell, no complex ritual can ever replace sincere intent, dedication, knowledge and experience.

Blessings to you all

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