Alchemy Works Resins & Incense

These resins and balsams have historically played a role in Paganism, traditional witchcraft, Wicca, and ceremonial magic/k (sometimes known as black magic). Because they come from plants, they have a depth of scent and a connection to life and the Earth that fragrances made from petrochemicals can never have. My incense is handcrafted according to the apothecary's arte from all natural ingredients, never bought from a factory, and based either on my own recipes or on historically accurate formulae gathered from research in works like the Ebers papyrus or Dioscorides' Materia Medica. I go out of my way to provide the best instead of relying on what a franchise supplies because good ingredients potentiate magical works. I've gradually shifted my packaging for the incenses I make myself from jars to boxes, because they are lighter (which makes for cheaper shipping for you) and because they are compostable; they also seem to work fine for preserving the freshness. They are handmade in India and come with a nice stretchy thing to keep them securely closed.  Do you need an incense created for a specific ritual, deity, or festival, or are you looking for an incense ingredient not listed? Just ask. There are many more botanicals, including other fragrant woods like red and white sandalwood and cedar, that make excellent natural incense in the herb section. Chemical-free charcoal is in supplies.

 Nervous about using your credit card online? Give me a call at (607)737-9250 from 10:00-6:00 Eastern time Monday-Friday or use the shopping cart to figure your shipping and print or write out an order form you can mail in with credit-card info, money order, check, or even cash to Alchemy Works, 643 Newtown St., Elmira, NY 14904.

Mixing up your own incense? A Braun or Cuisinart coffeegrinder will work as a resin grinder (Mr. Coffee isn't strong enough). It will poop out eventually, but at $20-30 it is much cheaper than the larger herb grinders made for the task. Forget about using it to grind roots or woods, though. Sugar makes for extra smoke and sweetens incense; honey works well for this and as a binder (bees are a Mars insect). Bits of dried fruit soaked in a bit of wine to plump them and make them easier to mash are nice for binding powdered resins--they contain sugar as well as a scent of their own and are especially good for Venus blends. Wine is also Venus, although you might consider it Dionysian. When working with labdanum, heating it slightly will make it runny, and you can also try pouring it onto wax paper and putting it into the freezer. You can then take it out and crack it apart if you work quickly. To get labdanum or storax off your hands, try Orange Goop. You can get them off glass with any oil.

© 2004, 2013 Harold A. Roth; No reproduction without permission

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