Kitchen Witch

Kitchen Witch
One who practices by hearth and home!

The Kitchen Witch's Creed

In this pot, I stir to the sun
An follow the rule of harming none.

Banishment of bane when goin' widdershins;
An with water and salt negativity is cleansed.

Household duties are more than chores.
Magick abounds when mopping floors.

With this broom, I do sweep
To clean my house and safely keep.

Marigold, Basil, Thyme, and Yarrow
My spell is cast for a better tomorrow.

Lemons for joy and apples for health
The pow'r within brings great wealth.

And, in this kitchen I do pray
To truly walk the Witches' Way

Copyright 1998, 1999 E. Zeigler

Grow aloe Vera in your kitchen window, it has great healing powers and guards the cook.

Hang a rope of garlic or onions for protection.

Place a garlic or onion in kitchen window for protection.

Place alfalfa in the kitchen to guard against poverty.

Hang a sifter, sieve, or colander for protection.

Copper molds hung in the kitchen radiate love vibrations.

Place a mortar & pestle in the kitchen for protection.

Cast Iron trivets enhance magick.

Place fresh flowers in your kitchen.

Placing an onion beneath the sink will help absorb negativity!


General Kitchen Cleansing
In a pot that has been blessed, place 3 cups of water as well as one clove of garlic, 1 TBS chives, 1 TBS black pepper.
Bring this mixture to a rolling boil and say:
“Boil and bless
Boil and cleanse
Cleanse this room
Of past events.
Leave it empty
To be fill with
Love and harmony!
So Mote it be!”
Turn the heat off and see the steam cleanse the energy of the room. Now reserve the tincture made from the boiling. Whenever the kitchen seems to be feeling a bit negative, sprinkle a bit in each corner of the room. Repeat every full or new moon.
From the Grimoire of:Mossfaeri Autumnmyst

Prayers To the Kitchen Goddess and Other Nice Prayers.
Prayer To Habondia,Hertha, and Hestia for a good meal

“Goddess of the hearth and home
Habondia, Hertha, Hestia
Warm my hearth with your love!
Bless my meals
That they may be
Nutritious, enchanting, and
Sumptuous. Blessed Be!”
Prayer To Goddess as You Cook A Meal

“Bless this meal
I cook, Dear Goddess!
Enchant it with
Love, harmony, and
Health. So mote it be.”


What is Kitchen Wicca?

The term "Kitchen Witch" brings up many different images to people, but the most common idea is that of a Witch who practices her art mainly thru cooking and common household skills. Another image is that of one who uses common everyday items in her art, drawing up memories of the Burning Times, when it was necessary to hide your working tools from those who would persecute you for their possession. While both of these images are certainly true ones, Kitchen Witchery goes far beyond magical cooking or using ordinary items as magical tools. One Kitchen Witch, Mama Rose, defines Kitchen Witchery in the following way: "My spirituality and my priestesshood and my magic are based around the concept that my home is my temple, all in it are consecrated and holy, and each action that I do is a portion of the ritual of my life."
It is my belief that the heart of Kitchen Witchery is a talent for finding the sacred and magical in everyday tasks, a philosophy which "practices the presence of the Goddess" in daily devotion through ordinary actions. The Kitchen Witch makes the ordinary, extraordinary, the mundane magickal and by doing so, acknowledges the presence of the Divine in all things.
Sacred vs. Profane

One way in which Neo-Pagan religions differ in philosophy from the Judeo/Christian/ Moslem paradigm is in their recognition of the sacredness in all things. The mainstream paradigm creates a philosophical dichotomy between the Sacred and the Profane (i.e. ordinary/mundane) , that which is not "sacred" is, by definition "profane". In Neo-Paganism, ALL things are sacred. No such dichotomy exists.

The Kitchen Witch takes that philosophy to it's extreme logical conclusion and finds ways to acknowledge the sacred within the mundane. How this is done is a matter of personal artistic expression. Most are familiar, of course, with the act of cooking magickally or setting up household altars. But it doesn't stop there. Some Kitchen Witches may clean magically, turning every act of cleaning into a psychic clearing as well. Others may tend magical gardens, care for familiars or raise their children within a magickal world. Kitchen Witchery can extend into actions as mundane and simple as stirring one's coffee clockwise to bless it or remembering to recycle as an act of daily devotion. Not to say that being a Kitchen Witch is restricted to the home! Oh, no! Kitchen Witchery can be practiced anywhere that a Kitchen Witch travels. It can extend to her car, her work and her play, since it acknowledges the divine all around us. Thus, keeping a magickal office can be as much an act of Kitchen Witchery as cooking a magickal meal. Wherever the Divine exists, a Kitchen Witch will find and acknowledge it.
Practicing the Presence of the Goddess

Barbara Ardinger, in her book A Woman's Book of Rituals and Celebrations discusses the concept of "practicing the presence of the Goddess". She describes this practice as a type of mysticism.' In her words;

"Mysticism is not a matter of doing anything special; it's a way of life. It's recognizing that we're related to everyone else, even those who don't look like us or talk like us...

Mysticism in the tradition of the Goddess is living an ordinary life, not acting spacey or sanctimonious or as if we were specially 'chosen'. It's making a living, making car payments, disciplining our kids. It's doing regular things but doing them in an attitude that some call mindfulness. This means being aware of what we're doing, reflecting on our thoughts. It's living with raised consciousness. " [A Woman's book of Rituals and Celebrations, pp. 20] I would expand on that to say that it is also changing your everyday actions when your conscience requires that you do so.

Regardless of what type of personal artistic expression she uses, the Kitchen Witch's goal is to reach this level of 'mindfulness' . To reach the point where "As we live each day on earth, we become more aware each day of the ways She is present in our lives." In leading a mindful life, the Kitchen Witch becomes sensitized to the presence of the Goddess both within and without and interacts with that presence.
Becoming More 'Mindful'.

The central core of Kitchen Witchery is learning to live consciously, developing the 'mindfulness' that Dr. Ardinger and others refer to. As Wiccans, we recognize the value of using symbols within ritual to create an altered state of consciousness, but we often forget that the symbols which surround us in everyday life can be used to the same way. They can be used to help us recognize the Sacred in our everyday lives and to assist us to adopt a lifestyle where our consciousness remains open to such change on a daily basis. Understanding and, when necessary, redefining the symbols which surround us is sometimes an important key to developing a higher level of consciousness about your actions. As in ritual, symbolism in everyday life is both a process and a tool in developing the habit of living a mindful life. Becoming more mindful involves recognizing the symbols around us and creating new symbols to create change. Living in the presence of the Goddess demands that we consider our every day actions and adapt those actions to fit our personal values.

The following are simply a few examples of things to do to develop a habit of living more consciously. You may wish to explore one or two and see where they lead.

Develop a daily ritual.

Develop a personal daily ritual which creates a conscious connection with your environment. This could be Yoga or a daily meditation or any repetitive action which causes you to reflect on the divine. Even the smallest and most common actions can be used as a trigger to remind us of our connection to the web of life. Using those small actions repetitively turn the everyday action into a symbolic ritual.

In her essay, "Running with the Goddess", Arishna WolfMoon talks about making running into a daily ritual and how it has enhanced her life. Here are some more examples of small daily actions which can be made into rituals:

Take 10 minutes to go over your checkbook daily.

Think about what you spent and where and what impact it might have on the big picture.

Tuck your child in every night. Reflect on what a miracle birth and life are and take time to appreciate your child each time you do so.

Sing a chant in the shower each morning to set your mind for the day.

What other actions can you think of which can be made into daily rituals?

Go on a Sacred "Diet".

Develop a personal dietary style which reflects your values. This can be as simple as not eating meat for both dietary reasons and reasons of social conscience and as complex as becoming educated about exactly where all of your food comes from, what steps it has taken to get to you and what impact it had in getting there. For example, in the PBS special "Escape from Affluenza", describes the impact of drinking his morning cup of coffee. In addition to the fact that a portion of the cloud rainforest was destroyed to plant the coffee and migrant workers were exploited to harvest it, he recognizes what system was used to transport it to him, where it was roasted, what forms of energy were used in those processes, even where the water comes from that he uses to brew it. Go as deep as you feel is necessary to develop a higher level of consciousness about what you consume.

What, specifically, you choose to do is not the point. Becoming aware of what you eat and why you have chosen that diet is the important part. Everything you put into your body not only affects you, but also has numerous other connections, to the environment, to other economies and to other social systems. Remember with every bite what you are doing, what it represents and why you have chosen that particular dietary path. Eating consciously is also a good way to bless the food that we eat and to give thanks for it.
The old saying, 'we are what we eat" has a lot of truth to it. Become aware of what you are becoming through your daily dietary habits. Recognize the web of life connecting you and your food and honor it by consciously choosing a diet which supports your personal values and beliefs.

Prepare a Sacred Feast

Cooking is probably the most commonly recognized type of "kitchen witchery". Anytime that you feed people, you are performing a magickal act, nourishing the body and soul. This is why so many of our holiday observances are centered around food. Learning to create magickal foods and to cook magickally simply enhances this experience.

Symbology in food varies as much as any other personal symbol set, but within any cultural or religious group we usually share a great deal of common symbology. This symbology can be used to enhance every meal or to make a meal for ritual more special. When planning a sacred meal you can use your personal symbol set, or you can research more about the common symbolism of foods through resources like The Kitchen Witch's Cookbook.

Remember, it doesn't need to be a ritual meal to be a Sacred Feast. You could also create a weekly sacred meal for your family. Use the time to help you and your family connect to each other and to be mindful of the food that you eat, the value of your family, your special actions to nurture each other,etc. It really makes this activity special if the whole family gets involved in preparing the meal, each member adding their own energy to the feast.

Decorate your home or office.

The symbols that are in our everyday surroundings can be used to trigger a change in consciousness, just as they can in ritual. Decorating your home or office with elemental symbols, God and Goddess symbols and elements which remind you of ritual creates and environment which helps you remember your connection with the Divine. Surrounding yourself with items from nature can likewise help remind you of your connection with nature. By using symbols which have personal meaning to decorate with, you can turn your living room or your office cubical into a subtle altar.

While having candles, incense or an athame on your office desk is probably not practical, you can use other symbols which represent the elements to create your office altar. You can even get very creative in your symbology. Being a Techno-Pagan, I think of computers, televisions and radios as symbols of air (communication, thought, ideas), but of course it can be much simpler. What you use should show your own personal style.

Summary
Being a Kitchen Witch involves more than cooking. In the broadest sense, it means living a life which is mindful, becoming conscious of your actions and how they connect or disconnect you with the world around you and the Divine, both within and without. Being a Kitchen Witch is not as much about what you do, but instead about how and why you do it and about doing everything that you do with an aware conscience. It's not as much about doing something special, as about doing things in a way which are special to you and in recognizing the "special"ness (or sacredness) in all that you do.
Now that you've heard the opinion of others, it's time to come up with some examples and ideas on your own. Discuss what "kitchen witchery" means to you and different ways that you can work towards leading a more "mindful" life.

Many practitioners new to the magical arts believe that before casting a spell or performing a ritual, one must drive across town to the occult supply store and spend money getting just the right ingredients. In reality, the ingredients to many successful spells, rituals, and other magical practices may be right there already--in your own kitchen! Here are some suggestions as to how to transform common items in your kitchen cabinets and refrigerators into the accoutrements of magical practice.

Herbs Need some fast cash? All out of money-drawing incense? Look at your spice rack for some leafy green herbs such as mint, oregano, basil or parsley.
Write the amount of money you need right now on a piece of plain white paper.
Place the paper beneath a candle and light the candle.
Scatter the herbs on a piece of charcoal in your incense burner. You can also scatter herbs around the candle if you wish. Use dried herbs for this:
fresh ones won't burn. Supplement the herbs with any abundance-type self- burning incense to help the herbs burn if you wish.

Forgetful? Try a "rosemary for remembrance" pillow. Simply tie some dried rosemary into a piece of cheesecloth and place it inside your pillowcase.
Then you'll remember that you need to restock your money drawing incense! If you check your spellbooks, aromatherapy guidebooks, and natural medicine books, you'll find many more uses for common kitchen herbs.

Extracts Remember when Granny Clampett on "The Beverly Hillbillies" had Ellie May put vanilla extract behind her ears before a prospective beau arrived? Turns out the old back country wise woman was right. Studies have shown that sweet aromas, such as vanilla, are alluring to men. Many perfumes on the market now contain vanilla. Make sure you include vanilla in the baked goods that you make for your favorite suitor (vanilla improves even the flavor of chocolate). Why not dab a bit on the pulse points if you're hoping for a night of passion?

Perhaps you're up late studying for a big test. Instead of taking one of those harmful caffeine tablets, try sharpening your tired mental faculties by taking a whiff of the peppermint extract in your cupboard. If that doesn't do the trick, try taking the top off a jar of peppercorns and alternately inhaling the peppermint and the peppercorn. Now you're awake!

Apple Cider Vinegar Feel the need for a cleansing or purification ritual? Before you begin, take a purifying bath by putting a cupful of apple cider vinegar in the bath. If showering, warm a cupful in the microwave for thirty seconds; pour over yourself in the shower. As you bathe, visualize a pure white light surrounding and protecting you. Chiropractors, massage therapists, and other body workers also recommend the apple cider vinegar bath after a treatment.

People in New England and in the South often recommend tonics to stimulate the system, especially in the spring. A simple tonic is made by adding one teaspoon each of apple cider vinegar and honey to a little water. Sip slowly and visualize your system being renewed and energized.

Learn the correspondences between common herbs and astrology, Witch workings and natural healing methods, and you'll find a wealth of simple abundance right there in your cupboards!

A Kitchen Witch's Altar

by Kecia Lloyd
A few years ago, I was visiting a Hindu friend of mine for dinner.
Having never been to a Hindu's house before, I was curious about the
things I saw. I asked my questions and they were more than happy to
provide me with answers. The one thing that stands out in my mind,
more than anything else in their house, was their kitchen. In a
cupboard with two doors, they have an altar dedicated to their
family's patron deity. They would open the altar when they cooked, to
allow their deity to guide the cooking and ensure a healthy,
spiritual meal. There were other times they opened the altar, but
each time, both doors to the cupboard were opened to allow a cyclic
flow of Divine Energy to make it's way around the room. Now, years
later, as a practicing kitchen witch, I've often wondered why I
couldn't do the same?

Personally, I feel kitchen magick is overlooked, or at best given a
couple of paragraphs in books, magazines, and web sites. All the
information is vague, leaving most of the decisions up to my
imagination. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, but the sources I've
read have left little for guidance in a seemingly popular area for
Pagans.

Kitchen magick has simple tools. All that's needed are some bowls,
spoons, a mortar and pestle, and a tea kettle or cooking pot. I have
found that all of them also have direct correlation to more common
altar tools. Using my Hindu friend's altar as a guide, I have created
a Kitchen Witch's Altar. All you need is an empty cupboard. More than
likely, you already have the tools.

The first step is to choose which cupboard you will dedicate as your
altar. Cupboard space is usually of short supply in most kitchens.
Some re-arranging of cupboard contents may be at hand. My Hindu
friends said they always used cupboards with two doors, and ones that
were at eye level. This way, the Divine Presence is closer to you,
and easy to access. When both doors are open, it directs the energy
outward and around the room. The only don't I suggest is not to use
the cupboards above the refrigerator. It makes your altar virtually
inaccessible and easily forgotten.

On the back of the cupboard, you could place a picture of your deity,
a pentacle, or what ever reminds you of Divine Energy. Charge the
object in whatever way feels best for you. With this charged picture,
statuette, or pentacle, Divine Energy will have its direct pathway
into your kitchen.

The next step would be the altar cloth. To make things easier, I
suggest going to a local thrift store and buying cloth napkins. You
could also make your own altar clothes. However, you do it, acquire
more than one of each color. This will make it easier to clean and
cleanse your altar.

Now it's time to dedicate which tools you use most in your kitchen
magick's. If you want, you could purchase new tools, or you could just
cleanse and consecrate some that you already have. Below, I have
listed a few kitchen tools and what correspondences they resemble on
a regular altar.

Wooden Spoon: Wand. Remember, most wooden spoons are made of balsa
wood or pine. [There are several publications that list the magickal
properties of different types of wood.]

Bowl: Cauldron, Cup, or Bowl. For this, I prefer glass mixing-bowls.
Glass is easy to clean, and it won't absorb any of the oils, water,
or whatever you are working with. Glass also comes in many different
colors. If you don't want glass, there are also several inexpensive
ceramic / porcelain mixing bowls.

Tea Kettle: Cauldron. I have read that copper tea kettles are best
for magick. I do not use a copper kettle, but one that is porcelain
coated steel. Copper kettles can get expensive and are a high
maintenance item.

Mortar and Pestle: These have been represented as the union of female
and male, or the joining of Divine and Mundane Energies. They also
represent the basic cup and wand. These come in all sorts of
materials. Choose a set that meets both your physical and spiritual
needs. For example: that dainty glass set is extremely pretty. But,
will stand up to repeated use?
Cooking Pot: Cauldron. The nice thing about this correspondence is
that, with a little effort, you can find full sets of cast iron
cookware.

For a broom, you may want to use a small whisk broom, or basting
brush. If you can wait until Halloween, you will be able to find
miniature besoms for sale in the craft stores and departments of
larger stores.

Cutting board: Altar tile. If you are skilled enough, or know someone
who is, you could have a pentacle carved or etched into a wooden
board. You could also put your creativity to work with paint and
paint a pentacle on a cutting board. How creative you get is up to
you.

Even though I have only listed a few, there may be other mundane
tools that you use in your magickal creations. If you use a tool
frequently enough in your magickal practice, find a place in the
altar for it, bless it and consecrate it. The kitchen is a place of
endless opportunities, and your altar, tools should reflect your
path, choices, and spirituality. Be creative and invite the Divine
into the heart of your home, the kitchen.

The term "Kitchen Witch" brings up many different images to people, but
the most common idea is that of a Witch who practices her art mainly
thru cooking and common household skills. Another image is that of one
who uses common everyday items in her art, drawing up memories of the
Burning Times, when it was necessary to hide your working tools from
those who would persecute you for their possession. While both of these
images are certainly true ones, Kitchen Witchery goes far beyond magical
cooking or using ordinary items as magical tools. One Kitchen Witch,
Mama Rose, defines Kitchen Witchery in the following way: "My
spirituality and my priestesshood and my magic are based around the
concept that my home is my temple, all in it are consecrated and holy,
and each action that I do is a portion of the ritual of my life."
It is my belief that the heart of Kitchen Witchery is a talent for
finding the sacred and magical in everyday tasks, a philosophy which
"practices the presence of the Goddess" in daily devotion through
ordinary actions. The Kitchen Witch makes the ordinary, extraordinary,
the mundane magickal and by doing so, acknowledges the presence of the
Divine in all things.
Sacred vs. Profane
One way in which Neo-Pagan religions differ in philosophy from the
Judeo/Christian/ Moslem paradigm is in their recognition of the
sacredness in all things. The mainstream paradigm creates a
philosophical dichotomy between the Sacred and the Profane (i.e.
ordinary/mundane) , that which is not "sacred" is, by definition
"profane". In Neo-Paganism, ALL things are sacred. No such dichotomy
exists.


The Kitchen Witch takes that philosophy to it's extreme logical
conclusion and finds ways to acknowledge the sacred within the mundane.
How this is done is a matter of personal artistic statement. Most are
familiar, of course, with the act of cooking magickally or setting up
household altars. But it doesn't stop there. Some Kitchen Witches may
clean magically, turning every act of cleaning into a psychic clearing
as well. Others may tend magical gardens, care for familiars or raise
their children within a magickal world. Kitchen Witchery can extend into
actions as mundane and simple as stirring one's coffee clockwise to
bless it or remembering to recycle as an act of daily devotion. Not to
say that being a Kitchen Witch is restricted to the home! Oh, no!
Kitchen Witchery can be practiced anywhere that a Kitchen Witch travels.
It can extend to her car, her work and her play, since it acknowledges
the divine all around us. Thus, keeping a magickal office can be as much
an act of Kitchen Witchery as cooking a magickal meal. Wherever the
Divine exists, a Kitchen Witch will find and acknowledge it. Practicing
the Presence of the Goddess.

Barbara Ardinger, in her book A Woman's Book of Rituals and Celebrations
discusses the concept of "practicing the presence of the Goddess". She
describes this practice as a type of mysticism.' In her words;
"Mysticism is not a matter of doing anything special; it's a way of
life. It's recognizing that we're related to everyone else, even those
who don't look like us or talk like us... Mysticism in the tradition of
the Goddess is living an ordinary life, not acting spacey or
sanctimonious or as if we were specially 'chosen'. It's making a living,
making car payments, disciplining our kids. It's doing regular things
but doing them in an attitude that some call mindfulness. This means
being aware of what we're doing, reflecting on our thoughts. It's living
with raised consciousness. " [A Woman's book of Rituals and Celebrations,
pp. 20] I would expand on that to say that it is also changing your
everyday actions when your conscience requires that you do so.
Regardless of what type of personal artistic statement she uses, the
Kitchen Witch's goal is to reach this level of 'mindfulness' . To reach
the point where "As we live each day on earth, we become more aware each
day of the ways She is present in our lives."

In leading a mindful life, the Kitchen Witch becomes sensitized to
the presence of the Goddess both within and without and interacts with
that presence.
Becoming More 'Mindful'.
The central core of Kitchen Witchery is learning to live consciously,
developing the 'mindfulness' that Dr. Ardinger and others refer to. As
Wiccans, we recognize the value of using symbols within ritual to create
an altered state of consciousness, but we often forget that the symbols.


KITCHEN WITCH ABC`s

Always stir in a clockwise motion
Before you chop veggies, offer thanks
Cut mindfully, gratefully
Do all preparations in a loving spirit
Energize food with good thoughts
Feast gratefully
Give & share what you can spare
Home & hearth are sacred
Invoke blessings of Goddess on all food
Join hands with friends often
Kindness shows in serving food
Love goes into every dish
Mindfully gather ingredients
No wasting - recycle, compost, feed animals
Open your senses, enjoy your surroundings
Play as well as work
Quench thirst, thinking of clear clean rivers
Resolve to be grateful & waste not
Salivate as you smell fragrance & anticipate flavors
Thank the Universe & Goddess for health
Use utensils carefully, then clean up
Value time spent with l oved ones
When possible grow & harvest your food
Xtra food is for creative recombining
Yearly rituals & feasts build traditions
Zestful living in every area is our goal.


The Tools of a Kitchen Witch


There are many tools of the craft- the few that I list are essential to my
time spent crafting in the kitchen, however some may differ from witch to
witch. Most are simple and obvious tools that you would find in any well
stocked kitchen that would seem mundane otherwise- but they can serve as
very necessary tools of the craft.

Tools of the Trade
Some kitchen witches will keep an Altar in their kitchen to honor the
dieties of hearth and home. This may be their only altar, or one of several.
I keep an altar dedicated to Brigid in my kitchen (She is the Irish/Welsh
Celtic Goddess of the Hearth ~as well as fire, smithery and motherhood to
name only a few).

An altar set up can be as simple as a small table or shelf laid with symbols
of the elements (feathers, stones, flowers etc..), a small candle and some
incense, or it can be made as elaborate as one likes or as space allows.
Another very important tool is the Broom. I have a broom set aside for
mundane cleaning purposes, however I have a special broom that I use to
sweep out what I like to call Astral debris. Every so often one needs to
sweep out the build up of psychic clutter that comes from day to day living.
It also comes in handy when you have some not so well mannered guests ~
after they leave you can sweep their negative energy right out the door
behind them.

A Kettle is a very important tool for brewing concoctions, teas and potions.
A good sturdy one is best. I have a kettle that I use specifically for
magickal purposes, and another that is used for mundane cooking. I have
heard it recommended that you not brew herbs directly in metal pots.
I hear Iron is an insult to the faery folk (or fata as known in the Italian traditions). Iron is repulsive to the Fae. So I do not use in magick but have iron skillets I cook with.

A good pair of Scissors is a staple in my kitchen. Not only are scissors
good for cutting and de-boning for the mundane tasks, but they are also good
for breaking the malocchio (evil eye) and curses. My Grandmother used to
keep a pair especially for that purpose in her kitchen. It is said when you
feel that you have been cursed to drop an open pair of scissors behind you
to to the floor to break the spell.

A good Knife set aside for the craft is also essential. Also known as an
Athame (ah-tha-me) or Spirit Blade, it is essential to any form of the craft
It is useful for carving sigils or symbols into crafts as well as cutting
fresh herbs and creating sacred space.


A Mortar and Pestle is a wonderful tool for bruising and crushing herbs and
spices to be used in brews and infusions. I find that the marble ones work
best but are a little pricey. I have one made of soapstone that works well
also. A Mortar and Pestle set can be found at many culinary shops as well as any
occult suppliers.

There are so many other tools that can be useful for obvious reasons in
kitchen witchery such as a good spice grinder (or a coffee grinder set aside
for herbs only) for powdering herbs and roots as well as a good strainer or
sieve for straining teas and brews.

These tools along with traditional tools of the craft (wand, staff etc...) can be powerful aids in your magickal.