Shop Crush: The Good Spirit

I’m keeping my wanderlust at bay by watching movies and looking back at old travel photos. I came across these pictures of a beautiful shop I visited in Vancouver, The Good Spirit.

I’m not sure if the shop’s open right now, but their website is still on. I visited Vancouver for the first time in 2018, it was my first trip to Canada and I actually only had two full days in the city. Unlike most of the trips I take, I didn’t prepare an itinerary—I listed a couple of coffee shops, stores, and some tourist spots down, but nothing about my schedule was set in stone.

One of my friends who’s into tarot too told me about The Good Spirit, located on Cambie Street. It was right beside a highly recommended café  (Revolver), so I thought I’d go for a quick shop and a cup of coffee.

I don't know how long I spent going back and forth among all the stones in those neat little containers. I ended up going home with Tiger's Eye, Serpentine, Moonstone, Aventurine, and Carnelian.

The store is small, in terms of square footage, but I think that's what makes it so beautiful. I don't think I've ever actually been to a brick and mortar that's solely dedicated to magical things that's also fresh and modern. (Most of the stores I've seen have just a little bookshelf with some indie decks, or are kind of magical in an old-timey Harry Potter kind of way).

When I started Practical Magic, I originally wanted to run a brick and mortar store. I was super into collecting indie decks and wanted to sell them locally. (This obvs didn’t pan out because as I was doing my research, I learned that it was way too tough and cost way too much money).

They have a selection of books, a few decks, and some other items.

The "library" part of the store has a really thoughtfully selected collection of books and decks. The shopkeeper (how did I forget to get her name?) recommended "Elemental Energy," but because I was only at the beginning of my trip and didn't want to be lugging a hardbound book around with me, I instead chose Gabrielle Bernstein's The Universe Has Your Back oracle deck instead. My collection's mostly comprised of tarot, so I'm always on the lookout for stuff in the realm of oracle.

We talked indie decks and readings and about all the woowoo stuff I love, and I would have probably come back and stayed longer if I had more time in Vancouver. I'll definitely come back here the next time I visit.

My favorite part of the shop is the front where, I assume, all the readings are done. I love the signage and the plants and even just the way the light streams through this part of the store. From the outside, you already get such a great sense about this space.

The store brought me such good, happy vibes  :) Looking back on these photos only reminds me of how much I want to have my own space like this too!

For now, in-person readings resume in my favorite neighborhood coffee shops, and The Good Spirit will forever be in my imagination's personal Pinterest board. It’s also a little something I can continue to dream about as I start Week Five of quarantine.

xx

This writeup is based on a post made in 2018.