Halloween in New Orleans: a Shopping List for Real Witches
If there’s one thing New Orleans doesn’t do by halves, it’s Halloween. The most haunted city in America boasts more corpses than living residents, but a town with a long history of voodoo, witchcraft, and folk magick, even the dead can’t resist a good party.
If you’re visiting New Orleans for Halloween, you’re not alone: next to Mardi Gras, the week surrounding October 31st is our busiest time of year, with folks from all over the world descending on the city to eat, drink, and memento mori. But if you’re a witchy type or spiritual practitioner, chances are you’ll want to delve beyond the touristy knick-knacks and “voodoo-lite” of Bourbon Street for a more authentic magickal experience. Looking to do some shopping while you’re in town? You won’t want to miss these five great French Quarter stores…
ESOTERICA
541 Dumaine Street, French Quarter
Photo Credit: Crystal Earth Studio
I started going to see Mimi at Esoterica long before I lived in New Orleans, dropping in every time I visited the city to peruse her selection of supplies, books, local artwork, and ritual paraphernalia. If you’re used to chain metaphysical stores and strip mall crystal shops, brace yourselves: Mimi is the real deal, and Esoterica is not fucking around.
The small storefront is half botanica, half miscellany. When I’m shopping for herbs for spells or tinctures, I don’t go anywhere else: Esoterica has an amazing range of dried plants, from standard fare like lavender and sandalwood to more exotic ingredients—nettle, devil’s shoestring, and skullcap. They also have an excellent selection of books - some out of print or rare - along with unusual tarot decks, jewelry, and statuary.
But the real treasures of Esoterica are Mimi and her exhaustive knowledge of magickal practice, herbalism, and Eastern & Western occult traditions. The products she makes in the shop herself - balms, salves, oils, incense, dressed candles, and gris gris - are based on recipes she’s developed herself over an entire lifetime of study and practice. Those recipes are a closely guarded secret, and in all likelihood will never be made public or passed on. So if you’re looking for authentic magic to take home with you, skip the cheap and lurid options available in the tourist traps and pick up something handmade by a real New Orleans witch!
HEX
1219 Decatur Street, French Quarter
The only shop on this list with two locations, Hex was originally opened in Salem, MA by warlocks Brian Cain and Christian Day. The secondary location in New Orleans’ historic French Quarter boasts two rooms positively stuffed with candles, incense, poppets, herbs, statues, essential oils, amulets, and just about anything else your little witchy heart might desire.
Though Hex’s self-professed focus is “old world witchery,” specializing in European witchcraft traditions (think Norse mythology, goetic demonology, Gardenian Wicca, etc), one of my favorite things about the shop is that they keep up a selection of more diverse objects. After F&F Botanica closed down, it was nice to know I had somewhere local I could pick up a Santa Muerte candle. They also have a wide array of locally-made, Hex-branded items that are aesthetically pleasing, as well as authentic.
Hex also runs some great events, including Hex Fest, a weekend of witchery that will take place August 9-11 in 2019.
FRENCH QUARTER GEM & LAPIDARY
527 St. Phillip Street, French Quarter
Browse the #spiritual or #witchy tag on Instagram and it won’t be long before your feed is flooded with pictures of intricate crystal grids and waif-life Instagram models posing with twelve inch amethyst “wands.” All joking aside, though, crystals are hip, and any spiritual practitioner worth their salt is at least a little bit interested in how to harness their power to focus, manifest, and heal.
Enter the French Quarter Gem and Lapidary. Of the dozens of crystal shops in the city (and I do mean dozens - you can’t seem to go a block without encountering one, these days) the lapidary has the heart of locals both for the incredibly reasonable pricing (giant chunks of black tourmaline for $13? Yes please) and for the welcoming, knowledgable staff. Owner Alan has kept the business for over 30 years, and for a store to have that kind of longevity in the quarter - where rising rents and the ebb and flow of the tourism industry have put others out of business - he’s obviously doing something right!
But it’s not just the fantastic prices that have me going back to the lapidary time and time again. The storefront is relatively large for the Quarter, and they cram a LOT of inventory into that space, with wicker baskets of loose gems and crystals adorning every surface, every shelf, and even the floor. This is the only rock shop i’ve been to (in New Orleans, in the United States, or overseas) that reliably has the more unusual stones I’m looking for, usually for no more than $4 at most. Chrysocolla and unakite, kyanite and sodalite - you name it, they almost certainly have it. And if you prefer your stones set in jewelry, you’re in luck: the lapidary makes a unique pieces in house, and the counter cabinets are full to the brim with gorgeous rings, pendants, and bracelets in a wide array of settings. Did I mention you can also pick up framed butterflies, moths, and taxidermy bats? Trust me on this: you need to visit.
VOODOO AUTHENTICA
612 Dumaine Street, French Quarter
Voodoo Authentica has been serving the local spiritual community since 1996, providing a welcome respite from the huge number of tourist trap “voodoo shops” that litter the quarter. While not everyone needs or wants an authentic voodoo doll (and may be perfectly happy picking one up at the airport to take home as a souvenir), those of us who value and respect voodoo, voudon, and hoodoo as legitimate religious and cultural practices usually feel differently. This little shop, nestled on quiet and picturesque Dumaine Street, away from the hustle and bustle of Bourbon, is owned, operated, and staffed by real voodoo practitioners. If you’re looking for insight, as well as locally made products, this is the place to go!
The staff at Voodoo Authentica keep education at the forefront of everything they do, knowing full well that the media (Hollywood, in particular) has done a great job demonizing this peaceful spiritual practice. To that end, their website offers a comprehensive FAQ page with honest, sincere answers about various aspects of magickal practice and when you visit in person, staff are usually more than happy to answer any questions you may have. While you can absolutely pick up dolls, gris gris, and juju here, they also carry educational packages and gift baskets for folks who are interested in learning more about West African diaspora traditions but don’t know where to start. Like all of the shops on this list, much of what Voodoo Authentica sells is hand made on site, including their “rootwork spa” kits that have everything you need to attract the favor of various Orisha.
Like Hex, Voodoo Authentica also runs different events throughout the year, most notably Voodoo Fest (no, not the music festival) which happens this year on October 31st between 1 and 7pm. Entry to the festival is free (!) and involves cultural presentations, divinatory readings, live music, a market, refreshments, local art, and much more. Definitely worth a visit if you’re still in town on Halloween day!
BOUTIQUE DU VAMPYRE
709 St. Ann Street, French Quarter
No trip to New Orleans would be complete without spending a little time with the children of the night. New Orleans was a vampire mecca long before Anne Rice penned her first Vampire Chronicle, and nobody knows that better than the boutique’s owner, Marita. In addition to locally-made art, crafts, and knick knacks, the Boutique also offers a great selection of vampire-themed books - many of them signed by the authors - including Marita’s own book, New Orleans Vampires: History and Legend. The book is the first of its kinds, an engaging delve into the folklore and fact surrounding three of New Orleans’ most famous vampire stories.
Though the Boutique focuses mostly on the fun and fantasy of vampires (they carry “BREAK GLASS IN CASE OF EMERGENCY” stakes, along with vampire rubber duckies and pinstripe coffin backpacks), if you pop in close to Halloween you may spy Maven Lore, the boutique’s resident fangsmith. Lore has been part of New Orleans’ real vampire community for decades, and was recently crowned King of the New Orleans vampire court. If you’re interested in knowing more about what real vampires do (yes, it’s a thing in New Orleans - haven’t you seen Dark Tourist?) schedule an appointment with Maven via the boutique. While you’re getting your very own set of custom, high-quality vampire fangs, you can ask all the questions you like about blood drinking, energy draining, and coffin sleeping (are they comfortable? Do they have wifi?) - that is, if you can talk with a mouthful of dental acrylic ;)
Of course, if that’s all a bit extreme for you, you can stick to browsing the boutique’s well-stocked shelves. Some of their most popular items are handmade on site, including their lightly scented (and appropriately colored) vampire fortune candles, which melt away to reveal silver charms. Each candle is carefully selected for the recipient based on their particular energetic vibration (you’re asked a series of questions before your candle is picked out for you) and each one is unique and hand-poured. The perfect gift for your witchy friend back home!
If you do wind up visiting the quarter this Halloween, please drop by and say hello! I’m on site almost every day at Boutique du Vampyre offering tarot card readings, palm readings, and intuitive advice. As we start getting busier, it’s always a good idea to book in advance. Not visiting in person this year? No worries! You can always set up something with me over the phone or via e-mail.
Wherever you are this October, I hope you have a blessed (and fun!) spooky season.
xoxo
Celeste