LA LA IN THE LIBRARY: TOADSTONE & BUMBERSHOOT'S WITCHERY COOKERY and MAGICAL LIVING - February 2023 Edition #WitcheryCookery #TinyWitchThings #MagicalLiving

FEBRUARY 2023 EDITION

MAGIC AROUND THE CORNER

WITCHERY COOKERY

SALEM MASSACHUSETTS

FASH WITCH MAGIC

TINY WITCH THINGS

Greetings, my witchy wonderful magical mavens! This is a monthly sister blog feature for my popular Facebook page TOADSTONE & BUMBERSHOOT'S WITCHERY COOKERY and MAGICAL LIVING. My followers asked for it, and so it was granted! Jump on your broomstick and fly on over to Facebook and join in on all the fun we have; especially during the fall and winter holidays!

I am always encouraging everyone to seek out the magical places which are just around the corner from where you live! Don't wait to embrace and celebrate the inner witch and wizard in your life, only during Wizarding World trips and fantasy conventions.

A couple of years ago this storefront on the side of town where I grew up caught my eye. It's on a block which is separated from the main neighborhood business area by a three lane highway, so even as an adult I had never walked that block. To me it looks like a place where a wizard would have an apothecary. I searched online and I can find no history about the building. My curiosity has been piqued! I'm going to see if the county historian knows anything about it. I don't think there's a business in it currently. The facade looks like it's starting to deteriorate, and I'd hate to see that continue because it's so oddly unique. I'll keep you posted about what I find out!

It looks like those might be the original light fixtures. I just found out that the upper two floors are grad student apartments. It would be nice if the building's owner would repair the spindles on the second floor balcony. The discoloration on the bottom of the door is from the 2011 flood.

This post was supposed to go up before Valentine's Day, but I have some really daunting things going on and blogging has had to take a backseat.

•

These ideas would still be wonderful for an anniversary, or a romantic date!

image

Have you ever thought about having a dark dinner party for Valentine's Day?

THE SLUG CLUB SOIREE PINTEREST BOARD

BLACKBERRY, FIG AND BOURBON PUNCH

BEET AND RICOTTA TORTELLINI

WITH BLOOD ORANGE TARRAGON BUTTER AND HAZELNUTS

BREADTOPIA STENCIL

CHARCOAL SOURDOUGH BREAD

IT'S AMORENTIA, DARLING PINTEREST BOARD

APPLE ROSE TARTS

image

•

David Bowie, yes that's his real name, started selling his spices and teas in a combined shop with his artist wife called The Pickle Pot, at 75 Wharf Street on Pickering Wharf in 2011. In 2017 he moved to 62 Wharf Street as Salem Spice Company. After Halloween last year, they, and several other Pickering Wharf businesses, announced they were closing up shop and hoped they would be able to find other space in Salem; one business has since moved to Connecticut. As I said in my mention of the spice shop in my last The Wednesday Witch post, they are all being very quiet about their closings. I think that after the mega crowds Salem saw last October with the lifting of the 2020/2021 Covid event cancellations/restrictions, and the Hocus Pocus 2 movie premiere, the landlords raised the rents. Now... it wouldn't be very business savvy to take these two crowd catalysts into consideration alone, and I can't imagine the property owners being that dumb, so I think they are also setting things up so they can accommodate retailers who sell trendy higher priced inventory and also franchises; businesses that can afford higher rents.

Here's one such slick trendy upscale shop, the Ministry of Donuts, that opened up next to Salem Spice just before Halloween. Salem residents were questioning the need for another donut shop, there are around thirty (mostly mom and pop) places in the area already. Beware Salem, you are being set-up to lose all your quaint charm and character. This was one reason my family vacationed on Cape Ann every other year instead of Cape Cod. Cape Ann is less touristy; more low-key and artsy. Which brings us to this next heartbreak...

WITCH CITY CONSIGNMENT

Another famiy-owned shop being displaced for different reasons. They have been in this building for sixteen years.

They are turning this charming old building into a modern luxury apartment high rise with a parking garage on the street level.

I guess there are a ton of new modernized luxury apartment buildings in the city already. Residents were trying to block this development, but I guess they were unsuccessful. And pink, why pink in a city known for its black buildings? This is New England, not Florida. And who's living in these trendy high-priced boxes for young professionals? They must work from home, or commute to Boston. A lot of Millennials sure do live in some really upscale places. Will I even recognize Salem when I get to visit again?

SALEM SPICE COMPANY

So back to Salem Spice Company. I would really like to be able to see David in a brick and mortar shop in Salem when I visit in a couple of years. He has some creative spice blends and shipping is free over $20. It would be nice if you could give him some business. He always ships my orders out the next day before 9:00 am! Right now he has a 15% off code for February: Love2023

EVERCRUMBLY & WITCH

Evercrumbly & Witch has their new spring straw hat line out! You can still find more traditional pointy black hats there, too.

image

•

WISH STONES

I read an info-graphic on Pinterest about wish stones, also called wishing rocks, and about a week later when we were going through some rocks my son, his father, and I had collected over the years I came across one with two black lines that went completely around the rock, and I was excited because I thought it was a wish stone, but alas... the lines have to be white or pink.

Oh well, I put it on my desk anyway. It's a good size to fidget with. Maybe I'll call it a witch stone, ha ha. Now I want to find a true wish stone!