The holiday season is giving many of us a moment to reflect and connect with loved ones. As we take comfort in traditions, we remember all communities do not share in that privilege. I cannot ignore the injustices happening now, like the crises happening in Gaza, Sudan, Congo, Yemen, and other places. If you wish to help, consider donating to reputable organizations supporting human rights like Doctors Without Borders, the World Food Program, and the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. You can also check out some non-monetary ways you can get involved in supporting the work of If Not Now and National Students For Justice In Palestine.
Gift-giving, however small, can also spark joy and help support small businesses that are helping to create another vision of a more equitable and inclusive world. In that spirit, I want to share my list of creative gifts for artists and witches under $100, predominantly from small businesses owned bypass LGBTQ+, women, and people of color.
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The suggestions span artisan goods for various interests and budgets. I aimed for makers offering quick shipping during this busier time of year.
I'll wrap up by spotlighting some community-nominated businesses. My goal is highlighting diverse creatives while encouraging more conscientious consumption. I hope somewhere within this list you find inspiration, whether through action, advocacy or gift-giving gentleness.
Top 15 Gifts Under $100
1. Chani Nicholas’ 2024 Astro Planner is filled with 291 pages of rituals, reflections, exercises, astro cheat sheets, planetary movements, and daily and monthly calendars that allow you to map out your year, track your intention for the day, and make the most of the current astrology. Plus, each 8.75" x 6.25" planner includes a customizable birth chart, 100+ astro stickers, and a free month of premium content in the CHANI app for new users. Here’s to an abundant 2024. $54.99 (affiliate link)
2. The Evanesced [Tarot Deck] by Kenyatta A.C. Hinkle & Olomidara Yaya is inspired by The Evanesced Series, an expansive body of work channeled by Kenyatta A.C. Hinkle a.k.a. Olomidara Yaya. Through 100+ drawings and paintings that Hinkle/Yaya calls un-portraits and a suit of site-specific performances, she/they are creating a body of work that interrogates the erasure of Black womxn historically and presently. This deck and its creation stand in solidarity with various intersections of what it means to be femme, especially Black and femme, and is in conversation with the #SayHerName movement. All un-portraits featured in the deck are from The Evanesced: The Untouchables (2020) commissioned for the traveling exhibition The Black Index, curated by Bridget R. Cooks. $65
3. Radical Tarot By Charlie Claire Burgess is a dynamic re-envisioning of the tarot, including tarot card imagery, that describes how the tarot is queer, that the archetypes are alive, and that tarot doesn’t tell the future; it creates it.
Radical Tarot meets the tarot in a space of evolution, deconstruction, and creation, using the historical and common meanings of the cards as a launchpad for digging into limiting beliefs and societal conditioning and unlocking the personal truths beneath. $19.99
4. Crystalpedia By Athena Perrakis, PhD With dazzling photography, this book is not only a reference guide but also an oracle to guide your journey, whatever your goal is. Simply set an intention, ask a question, and then flip through the pages until your intuition tells you to stop. You’ll meet the stone you are being guided to discover. $26.99
5. The Green Gold Ancestral Plant Spirit Oracle by Botanica Cimarron is a 68 card deck and guidebook connecting you with diasporic contemporary guidance rooted within the ancient wisdom of our oldest ancestors on earth — plants!
The reverence of nature as our original family is the heart of indigenous traditions. But this experience of connection can be hard to access in the modern world without the right tools. With Green Gold as your guide, enter an enchanting portal for accessing divine knowledge that can unlock your timeless memories ripe with creative solutions for transforming your reality. $48
6. Wild Medicine By Shelby Bundy and Kate Belew is a gorgeously illustrated herbal from the witchy experts at Tamed Wild, this handy guidebook introduces readers to the most common and powerful healing herbs and the wisdom gained over centuries of use. Ideal for green witches and budding herbalists! Inspired by Tamed Wild’s best-selling herb decks, this handbook covers more than 60 magickal herbs–a must-have for anyone interested in the power of herbal healing. A lovely hand-painted watercolor introduces each herb, offering an artist’s look at the identifying characteristics. $21
7. Spellbound Sky’s Sage & Soil Scented Ritual Candle Burn this candle to get back to Earth, feeling rooted, revitalized and purified. Inspired by the protective and grounding powers of Smoky Quartz, this earthy metallic beauty was created to clear your space of bad vibes and evoke the feeling of being deeply connected to your Root Chakra. Use this candle by itself or with other candles to ground the energy of your ritual work. The warm and earthy scent brings you back to nature, infused with Desert Sage, Oakmoss and Cactus Flower…topped with Sacred Dirt, Smoky Mica and Bronzed Gold flakes. Burn as needed to get grounded and realigned with the healing powers of Mother Earth! $20
8. The Liberation Tarot Deck is a collection of 79 tarot cards and accompanying guidebook, created over the course of four years by more than thirty artists and writers living in the US, Canada, France, Brazil, Palestine, and Mexico (including me!). The booklet includes an introduction from deck organizer Elicia Epstein, insightful essays by adrienne maree brown and lawrence barriner II, and beautifully crafted card descriptions from poet emet ezell. $50
9. Stelle* Scopa Deck of Cards by artist Maria Moltenia is original deck of playing/divination cards- inspired by Italian Scopa & Tarot cards- charmed by celestial + terrestrial iconography. “Stelle Scopa- The Deck” includes 61 Card Deck in a silver bag. $40
10. Grandes Maestros del Arte Wixárika: Acervo Negrín is a gorgeous book jointly published by the Secretary of Culture for the State of Jalisco, Mexico and the Wixárika Research Center in honor of the Year of Indigenous Languages and to celebrate the exhibit Grandes Maestros del Arte Wixárika: Acervo Negrín at the Museo Cabañas in Guadalajara (June 21, 2019 - January 12, 2020). This is a tri-lingual publication - Spanish, English and Wixárika. Sales support the Wixárika Research Center. $75
11. Le Nouveau Belline by Anne Horel is a luminous 52 card reproduction of the original Le Tarot Belline originally created in 1863. Anne is a digital witch and a pioneer in social media and GIF art in France and globally. This deck is truly a magical work of art and reflects Anne’s deep relationship with the esoteric, divination, and visual & digital spells. The deck is in French and the art is universal. $40
12. The Ignota Diary 2023 is a beautifully designed diary and week-to-view planner is filled with historically significant magical and sacred dates from around the world. Drawn from events such as the Buddha’s birthday, esoteric festivals and artistic and occult history, the diary touches on the lives of characters such as Ursula K. Le Guin, Ithell Colquhoun, Zora Neale Hurston, Carl Jung, Simone Weil, Leonora Carrington, Maya Deren, Aleister Crowley, George Bataille, Timothy Leary, Hilma af Klint, Saint Hildegard of Bingen, William Blake, W.B. Yeats and Octavia Butler. $22
13. Trans Hirstory in 99 Objects is a compelling exploration of trans art, activism, and resistance. Spanning over four centuries, this volume brings together a wide-ranging selection of artworks and artifacts that highlight the under-recognized histories of trans and gender-nonconforming communities. Through the contributions of artists, writers, poets, activists, and scholars, this title reflects on historical erasure and imagines trans futures. An expansive array of objects chart not a patriarchal history but a gender-neutral, trans-centric hirstory. The first publication of its kind, this survey celebrates trans forebearers, highlights struggles and triumphs, and reflects on the legacies of trans creative expression.
Contributions by Kate Bornstein, Ria Brodell, Vaginal Davis, Leah DeVun, Mo B. Dick, Zackary Drucker, David Getsy, Martine Gutierrez, Andrea Jenkins, Jade Guarano Kuriki-Olivo (Puppies Puppies), Thomas (T.) Jean Lax, Abram J. Lewis, Miguel A. López, Amos Mac, Cyle Metzger, Deborah A. Miranda, Morgan M Page, SA Smythe, C. Riley Snorton, Dean Spade, Sandy Stone, Jeannine Tang, Michelle Tea, McKenzie Wark, and many others probe new horizons where institutional critique and trans culture meet. This book is copublished by the Museum of Trans Hirstory & Art (MOTHA), a conceptual art project of artist Chris E. Vargas that is forever “under construction” by design to allow continual transformation.
14. In New Moon Magic, Missing Witches authors Risa Dickens and Amy Torok offer Witchy practices to change your life and reshape the world, without falling prey to the commercialization that belies the true heart—and power—of magic.
Witchcraft is praxis: how we do what we believe, and how we make those beliefs manifest. New Moon Magic is an offering to all witches, honoring the Craft’s roots in centuries of empowerment, survival, and resistance—despite capitalism’s attempts to co-opt and dilute its practice. $19.95
15. Turning Terrestrial Tides Tarot Deck. We’re in turbulent times. The US is experiencing its first Pluto Return, and Uranus, Neptune, and Pluto are all set to move into new zodiac signs in the near future.
The astrology suggests that we’re collectively standing on the precipice of a major shift here on Earth. So, how do we use this astrological energy of change to our advantage? The 78 tarot archetypes invite us to self-reflect and entertain curiosity around designing our future within our larger communities. During these times of intense transformation, tarot can act as both a mirror and an anchor for personal empowerment, reminding us that we write our tomorrow. This DIY quality is reflected in the Turning Terrestrial Tides Tarot artwork. The travel-friendly, poker-sized deck was created in the approachable cut-and-paste collage style of 90s zines and includes the astrological linkages to each tarot archetype as well as words to reflect on, both on the cards and within the included mini guidebook. $40
Honorable Mentions
Dream Job Spell Analog VR by yours truly published by Stories To Change The World. There are just a few of these limited edition artworks left. They contain a word and visual art spell created to invoke expansive and infinite potential when it comes to dreaming your dream job into existence. As an added bonus, Anne Horel (mentioned above), has also released a limited edition Analog VR set titled Macro Vitae. $36
Goddex Sugar Scrub from Ever’s Apothecary. The Goddex is Sacred Fluidity, Versatility, Enthusiasm, Adaptability, and Unconventionality. It's about honoring all sides of our nature and embracing our natural non-conforming energies. Our Goddex Sugar Scrub is crafted with ingredients to work into any beauty ritual. Formulated with our favorite exfoliating agent, Oatmeal, to soak up excess oil and help hydrate dry skin from seasonal climates; Safflower Oil infused with Butterfly Pea Flower Powder is packed with antioxidants and aids in rebuilding elasticity to reduce redness from external irritants visibly; Unrefined Shea Butter rich in vitamins A, E, and F, to heal and promote skin circulation while softening and toning. Dressed with Whole Oats and Blue Cornflower, this scrub vibrates to awaken your psychic awareness, heal intuitive blocks, and connect to our queer ancestors to liberate inner wisdom.
Eden Sky | Labradorite by Siren of The Sea. An enchanting, sunset-colored Labradorite with peach orange hues & blue/green undertones. This spectacular & rare piece was combined with an elegant design using sterling silver. Labradorite exudes magical energies associated with intuition, protection & transformation. $98
Community Nominated Businesses
Theyfriend Candles is a queer, nonbinary, trans witch-crafting candle venture. All candles are crafted by hand and enchanted by Kirkean (Circe-based) Witch Rune Rainwater (they/them). Theyfriend seeks to be in a non-extractive relationship with all crafting materials; our candles are made with sustainable materials: beeswax & hemp wicks. They never use synthetic dyes or oils, instead crafting our candles with food-grade sustainable dyes like pomegranate powder. Their packaging is eco-friendly: boxes are reusable and biodegradable, and candles are wrapped in heavy paper that can be reused for any purpose (they highly encourage you to use the wrapping paper for sigils, petitions, and other witch work!).
Eagle Screen Printing is a queer run print shop based in NE Minneapolis that creates t-shirts, tote bags, prints, and more.
PublicParts creates hand made designer dildos using body safe platinum silicone.
Paige Emery’s Blue Garden Apothecary provides plant remedies intentionally made to aid the body, mind, and spirit in transformative and difficult times between a dying world and a new world we want to exist.
Good Mexican Girl has the best vegan empanadas and baked goods with gluten free and non-vegan options as well. Based in the Los Angeles area they are able to ship nationally and also offer free delivery to certain zip codes in LA.
Kaitlyn Graña Mother of Mystics is an East Los Angeles-based Espiritista, trance medium, expert occultist, and doula of radical spiritual awakenings.
DYEShemportraits based in Hollywood, California makes crystal jewelry, clothes, candles n soaps as well as has a journal PDF download.
