A "Starter Witch Kit" that was slated to be sold at Sephora has been canceled after massive backlash on social media.
The kit, made by San Franciso–based beauty company Pinrose, contains fragrances, a tarot deck, a piece of rose quartz, and a bundle of white sage for burning. It was set to retail for $42.
While there's nothing new about witchy, New Agey practices seeping into the mainstream wellness practices (see: Goop), this particular kit struck an immediate nerve.
First, the backlash came from practicing witches, some of whom are Wicca adherents. They called out the kit for turning their spiritual practice into a ~trendy~ kit.
Basically they said it's buying the aesthetics of the craft without actually digging into the meaning behind it.
Because one person's passing trend is another person's spirituality.
Which begs the question: What makes a witch?
Beyond that, people also called out the inclusion of white sage in the kit. White sage has a very particular meaning for indigenous cultures across North America.
As Indian Country Today expertly explained, white sage is a sacred plant used in indigenous medical and spiritual practices. There have also been points throughout history when indigenous people were banned from these practices.
"It was sadness because how many times do we have to watch what we hold sacred be destroyed and commodified for the sake of entertainment and profit for non-Native peoples," Johnnie Jae, of the Otoe-Missouria and Choctaw tribes of Oklahoma, told the publication.
Essentially, it's appropriation.
Then that led to people calling out the hypocrisy of labeling the witch kit "appropriation" of witchcraft while ignoring how practices are routinely appropriated from indigenous people.
In the end, Pinrose decided to put a pin in the whole thing.
In a note on its website, Pinrose said, "We hear you; we will not be manufacturing or making this product available for sale."
The statement also clarified that the brand had bought the rights to the tarot artwork and that the sage used in the kit was "grown in the wild in California and is sustainably harvested and sold by Native American owned and operated businesses."
"The product did not reference ceremonial smudging or ceremony circles," it added.
Pinrose declined to provide further comment when reached by BuzzFeed News.
It looks like prospective witches will just have to go back to Etsy.