Tools on a dime- The art of magical yard saleing

[The Bookwyrm]

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: Tools don't have to be expensive. I think we all know how much it is to buy specific tools either online or from a specialty shop, and let's admit it: We're all on a budget, and the money we'd spend on some of these tools could be put towards other things.

The summer's coming to a close, but the weather is still good for yard sales, garage sales and flea markets/swap meets. Honestly, you'll never find a better place to find tools.

I picked up a beaten copper cauldrom once that was destined for a yard sale from my grandmother's basement; my athame was a $10 fleamarket find, and is a brass handled and sheathed letter opened; my sword cost me $50 at the same flea market a few years later. This past weekend, I made the mother of all finds. I've finally found a chest to use for storage of all of my mgaicl supplies: Robes, tools, herbs, candles, incense, bottled oils, etc.








The chest is solid cedar, hand finished with red velevet on the interior. The guy I bought it from had paid $300 for it before the velvet was put in; to buy this new, I'd have paid the $300+, and I took it home for $100.

There's always a bit of hunting involved in looking for suitable magical tools at yard sales, but it's worth it. Especially when you can take home a treasure for a fraction of the price. wink  

[Creepy Albino Fish]

You should have an 'other' option.
I'm not in a hurry to gather tools, but when I see something that I like somewhere, I'll grab it. For an example, I found this chalice in some of my mom's old stuff. She won it at a horseshow back in '81. It needs a good polishing, but it's quite pretty.

I buy candles when I see a good deal. The dollar store at the mall that I go to a lot was going out of business so they had a sale (lol I know.. everything was like, 50 cents) and so I got a large box of white candles for 50 cents.

I just use other things around my house when I need to.

That's a gorgeous trunk! heart

 

[Nicky McCloud]

Or you can get stuff from unsuspecting relatives! X3

My dad gave me this for Christmas a few years back:




My dad actually MADE this and had a friend of his carve the design onto the top. :3

It's currently used to store small stones, my herbs, my scrying ball, wands, and my inks.  

[Starlock]

Bargain hunting is good, but I also like to support the local independent metaphysical shops, so I purchas supplies from them when I can. From there, if possible, I can customize the object to my taste (unless it's something like a cauldron... I've never welded anything). Thrift stores can be a great place to find things though. Like bags of a hundred tea lights for uber cheap... whee  

[Seira Relur]

I like going to places like auction barns myself. And as for candles and inscence... I buy them wherever I find are at a good price of what I need. And I get my stones from this indian store kinda place thats main attractions are fireworks.  

[Nihilistic Seraph]

Blue, that's amazing!  

[justGhostie]

our community isnt that big on yard sales. but there used to be a little occult shop that was run by a friend of ours, and so everything there was relatively cheap. also, i got an awesome little chest from my dad, its like, this woven cedar bark framed by oak or something, i'll have to get a picture of it when we get a battery for our camera. also, theres a huge, old family heirloom my mom uses to put all of her college/wedding/old books in. i love it. >w< also, there was one time my parents got three swords for a penny on ebay. literally, we only had to pay like, 5 bucks shipping and a penny for the three swords. my dad has a two handed one, my mom a one handed, and i a short one >w< i'll take a pic of that too

gypsy, i absolutely love your trunk! its sooooo pretty ><  

[The Bookwyrm]

I've been AFK for a few days what with trying to finish work and getting things together for my move, so I'm going to try and get to everything at once. Bear with me. wink

Creepy Albino Fish, I probably should have included the option. At the time, I did think I had covered most of the major ones, and anyone who had more to throw in would do so, and hence we get stories.

Nicky McCloud, that's gorgeous! And the Oak Man is such a common motif, it's so easy to hoodwink relatives with it.

Starlock, I enjoy going to metaphysical shops, but I find them to be rediculously expensive on some things. I definately go there for books, because I enjoy being able to talk with someone and discuss whether that author suits me or not. But tools, and these are usually the more expensive items, I really prefer to find elsewhere. Especially when I can get things second hand, I love to own things that have a history to them. Gives them character.

Seira Relur, Native shops are an awesome place to get a great buy on stones. My mother bought some very large pieces at one and they were between $1.00 and $2.00 apiece for rose quartz, snowflake obsidian, etc.

~Ghost of a Rose~, family heirlooms are wonderful additions, and so is anything you can buy cheaply from family friends. But three swrods for a penny? gonk I need to start shopping more on ebay!  

[Ezinu]

that trunk is nifty i think the most i have spent on anything thats on my alter is 84 cence for a little mable cub i use for offerings most of whats on there i have picked through and found from people that were going to throw it out we let these people use our shed to stroe some things while they were moving and told them to leave what ever they didnt want so i went through there and got candle holders a whine glass and some other glass wear and this niffty glass disk that i use as the base my aloter is actualy just a plastic crate turned over witht he round piece of glass ontop of it and a peice of cloth draped over the crate to hide the ugly greenness of it.  

[Jezehbelle]

I'm ecclectic in my collecting.

I make my own candles, adding my own mixed fragrant oils and dyes for their specific purposes (good fun there, outside of cleaning the pot gonk ). Oils, I generally stock up on at the RenFest, incence too, though, I do occassionally venture downtown to a shop that sells both. I can't stand manufactured incense -- it smells horrible to me. gonk Stones and the few quartz crystals I have came from around my house.

Otherwise, the rest is either handmedown or second hand.

I DO need a trunk though. gonk I'd really like to have a place to store all of those things that isn't the bottom drawer of my wardrobe. ):  

[phantomkitsune]

Most of what I use are my tarot decks, a few stones, and, occasionally, candles. Of the Tarot decks, one was a birthday present a few years ago, and the other I rescued from my aunt's basement. They just live in their silk wraps on my bookshelf. The stones I mostly bought at a great store in my town that has all sorts of fun supplies. The sit on my window sill, some to keep bad influences out, and the others because I was already storing some there, so why not all? The candles I generally buy at the dollar store, and burn through each time.

And they're both awesome pieces of woodworking.  

[iolitefire]

That chest is gorgeous! I never thought of looking for occult stuff at a yard sale but its a good option. I used to get lots of stuff (incense holders, candles) in a swap meet down in Southern California. These days I usually have to buy stuff from our local metaphysical store.

My biggest costs usually are stones. However, I found a really neat source. Sometimes stores that sell stuff for aquariums will have large uncut rocks you can put in the tanks. I found some large chunks of purple onyx, obsidion, and rose quartz that way. Each costed less than $5. Goes to show that you never know what you'll find.  

[MOD66]

My box is so much better then that talk2hand
I've got a Skechers shoe box oh Gettolishous your jelous and you know it


No but really thats an awsome box i envy you  

[PoeticVengeance]

Never really required tools... but Etherism is a little different.


Most I've needed to do is breathe a little air into my hand and trace a crest in the air over my heart, forehead and/or mouth depending on the Aspect I'm about to channel.  

[The Bookwyrm]

iolitefire

That chest is gorgeous! I never thought of looking for occult stuff at a yard sale but its a good option. I used to get lots of stuff (incense holders, candles) in a swap meet down in Southern California. These days I usually have to buy stuff from our local metaphysical store.

My biggest costs usually are stones. However, I found a really neat source. Sometimes stores that sell stuff for aquariums will have large uncut rocks you can put in the tanks. I found some large chunks of purple onyx, obsidion, and rose quartz that way. Each costed less than $5. Goes to show that you never know what you'll find.

A great place I've found for stones is a Native basket shop, around a 40 minute drive from my house. It's only seasonal, but we always go past it in the summer when we're headed for the wild life park. The place is great because it doesn't have quite as high a demand for the stones, so they're priced cheaper and the stones are larger; it also helps that there's no tax on any of them. 3nodding I got my hematite cat there a few summers ago.