Over the years I’ve created some magical tools for myself. I first started creating magical tools as a teenager, first starting out with creating specific staffs and wands, and then in my early twenties exploring how to meld art and magic together to create magical tools with the paintings I created. However of late, I’ve been inspired to explore the creation of magical tools in further depth. Some of this inspiration has come about because of working with my magical partner, and some of it came about because of a recent interview I did on the Random Illusions podcast and some of it has been inspired by Alison Chicosky’s work on practical occult.
One of the challenges I’ve had with creating magical tools is not feeling like I have the requisite skills to do so, but I realized that’s a mental block on my part so I’ve begun challenging that mental block by considering what magical tools I could actually create. For the moment, I am creating those tools for myself, but I’ll probably make those tools for other people down the line.
Something which can really help is asking someone else for advice on how they create their own magical tools. I asked Tim Cheesebrow where he sources his material for creating magical tools and he pointed me toward art and craft stores but also places such as Home Depot for finding materials. I appreciated that advice and what I did one day was go and just browse the local stores to get a sense of what materials were actually there. I didn’t buy anything, but it helped me get comfortable with the idea of shopping for the supplies and gave me a sense as to what to look for. I always recommend scouting out places where you’ll buy supplies from so you can get a sense of what is there and start thinking about your potential projects.
Another activity I’m currently doing is creating the art for the tools, so that I already have something on paper that I can visualize on the tool. While I will recreate the art on the tool itself. Having the art already made helps me out because it provides context for the tool and gives me ideas on what I will need to do to turn the magical tool into a reality as well as thinking about what materials I’ll want to get to make the actual tool.
I think, as with anything else, when you do something that feels like a stretch, it can be a bit intimidating, but it can also liberate you because you discover what you are capable of, if you are willing to put yourself out there. A little while back, I got the wooden box you see above, along with some other boxes. I’m turning them into mini-memory boxes. Painting this first one in the late evening was a fun exercise that showed me something I could do, and allowed me to re-create a magical tool I’ve been using for years so that someone else could possibly use it. It reminded me that the only thing telling me I couldn’t create a magical tool was myself and if I was willing to challenge that I might just discover what I could create.
