Emma* was dating someone for about a month, and she thought it was going well. But one morning, he ended things unexpectedly, so she took matters into her own hands. “I was crashing out a little bit,” the 26-year-old tells Her Campus. “I wasn’t thinking rationally, so I thought an Etsy witch might have answers for me.”
After searching the internet, several Reddit threads, and many TikTok comment sections, Emma came across the Etsy witch she eventually booked for a love-related Tarot reading. And although Emma notes that there are many “scammers” on Etsy, she said her Etsy witch’s customer reviews were good, and that her store offerings “directly aligned with what I was looking for.”
It does sound like a scam, or like something straight out of the movie Obsession, but for some, it’s real. Online, thousands have turned to Etsy witches to fulfill their wishes: they cast spells for good weather on someone’s wedding day, or use in-depth, spiritually guided Tarot readings to predict someone’s love life — and help to manifest that it takes a turn for the better. On Etsy, the possibilities for witches are seemingly endless — and they claim they can make your dreams come true for about $20.
But behind the promises of dream jobs and romantic reconciliations, there’s a common thread when it comes to Etsy witches: When life feels out of control, a little magic can make it feel like you’re doing something about it. And, for some, that’s worth the price — whether the spells work or not.
My best friend and I hired an Etsy witch to help us get this job at [a ranch dressing company].
After all, there’s only so much you can do when you’ve sent out hundreds of job applications and haven’t heard back. Amber*, 24, knows that feeling all too well. She’d been unemployed for eight months after graduating from UC Irvine when her friend decided to step in and help: “She hired an Etsy witch as part of my birthday gift.”
At first, Amber was skeptical. The idea of a stranger — whom her friend had found through TikTok comment sections — casting spells in hopes of getting her a reply from a company made unemployment feel even bleaker. But in Amber’s words, “I was desperate.”
So, a few days later, Amber contacted the Etsy witch to start her personalized spell — a “job spell,” to be exact. To do this, Amber sent the Etsy witch her full name, birthday, and everything she hoped to get from a new job, including her ideal work environment and salary. With this information, Amber says the witch was “able to cast a spell with all of the things I wanted.”
Despite her skepticism, Amber says the spell worked. Within days, she was receiving callbacks from companies after going months without getting so much as a rejection letter. And, within the month, she landed her dream job — a combination of all of the things she asked her Etsy witch to conjure.
Of course, there’s no way to know if the spell had anything to do with Amber’s job offer (but also, there’s no way to prove if it didn’t). Still, stories like hers are part of what makes Etsy witches so appealing to people looking for a little extra luck.
Just ask Jennie*, 27, who came across hopeful testimonies (like Amber’s) online. “My best friend and I hired an Etsy witch to help us get this job at [a ranch dressing company],” the 27-year-old tells Her Campus. “We were pretty far in the [interview stage] of the job and thought we might get it, but wanted to do something extra.”
Like Amber and Emma, Jennie found and vetted an Etsy witch from Reddit and the TikTok comments section. What happened once they booked the witch, she says, was very straightforward: “We put in a request on Etsy, paid a fee, and got proof of a leaf with our requests [on it] and a candle lit to signify the ‘ritual’ had occurred.”
But unlike Amber, Jennie didn’t get her wish. “Not at all,” she says when asked whether the spell worked. “We didn’t see any results and didn’t get the job.”
I just wanted to do something impulsive and nonsensical to cope with my emotions.
While Amber and Jennie’s stories both came to a resolution — albeit opposite ones — Emma’s results were a little less clear. After her unexpected breakup, she paid $25 for a Tarot witch to understand what had motivated her ex to end things, and whether or not they might reconnect. “We have known each other for a long time, but the romantic involvement was new,” she explains. “I just wanted to do something impulsive and nonsensical to cope with my emotions.”
To receive her reading, Emma sent over her full name, her ex’s full name, and both of their dates of birth. “Her readings incorporated astrology,” she says, “discussing how the cards she pulled related to our birth charts, and interpreting what could happen in the future.” Within the hour of sending the requested information, she received an in-depth response that mirrored things her ex had last said during their final conversation, which Emma hadn’t relayed to the witch.
This then led Emma to pay another $25 for a follow-up reading, which included specific details that “shocked her.” The witch said Emma’s ex might reach out again to see her face-to-face and revisit their relationship as early as this month.
Emma has yet to see her ex, but he did end up DMing her on Instagram — and it wasn’t about rekindling their relationship.
However, Emma says the Etsy witch reading did provide her with something. “If nothing else, her readings granted me some solace during the day that my romantic tryst ended,” she says.
Perhaps that’s the magic that comes from hiring an Etsy witch — regaining a sense of control, or even just getting reassurance that things will work out. And, sometimes, that alone can make the price feel worth it — even if it ends up being a scam, anyway.
*Names have been changed.