Did you know I read tarot cards? Yup! I’ve been studying and reading for about ten years now, have taught classes locally as well as privately and just enjoy divination in general. Still, even having a background in it, I have had my cards read three separate times at shops in Salem, MA. I like to do this to get insight from someone who doesn’t know me at all and has no biases or information regarding my life. I also do this so I can ensure that when I read for myself I’m not hanging my own biases on the cards. Having someone who doesn’t know you at all can offer a lot of insight because they have no reason to see things one way or another – it’s a blank canvas so to speak. So how did it go?

First up, we have Artemisia Botanicals. I want to disclaimer this one by saying two things. First, they are one of my favorite shops in Salem and I still stop in regularly without hesitation. Second, the reader I sat with no longer works there as far as my understanding goes. Please keep those two things in mind. This is going back about five years ago or so – it was fall and I decided to pop in for a read. The woman I sat with was perfectly nice, however I do feel like her comments were overall very general and canvasing. I did not look at the cards (which is how I always go into a reading – I don’t want to hang my own meanings on what was pulled which would negate everything) but the information passed along was not super detailed. It would be pretty easy to assume certain things about someone just by overall vibe and I do think that is what was happening. I also felt like she ran out of things to say before the time limit of the reading and was trying to grasp a bit. This is not to discourage anyone from considering Artemisia Botanicals and this was the only experience I have had there that was a little less than. The reader and I may not have jived energetically as we went, she might have been having a little bit of an off day which absolutely happens, there are other factors to consider for sure. I would be open to going back for another read in the future with someone at Artemisia Botanicals, not a problem and if that does occur I’ll be sure to comment back on this post to update it. I share this information because I am always honest with you guys and felt this was not a very strong reading for me personally.

The second read I had was with Doug at Pyramid Books. I booked a fifteen minute appointment with him last year and I walked away very happy overall. He did make a few comments in the beginning about classifying energies as “male” or “female” which I didn’t think was very encompassing of all lifestyles (especially considering how welcoming Salem is), but I didn’t feel like this hindered the reading we had or his ability to interpret the cards for me. He gave me some insight into my business and work, into a few things coming down the line in terms of my life and even mentioned that he felt my apartment could be haunted! I did not mentioned this to him and he couldn’t have picked up on the fact that I do think my landlady’s mother walks the property in any other manner. This definitely surprised me! I would go back to him again, placing him second in line after Yulia Applewood from Hex, which brings me to my next reading.

Yulia Applewood from Hex has been the best read I have had in Salem so far. She was super nice, very helpful and offered a lot of insight during the time I sat with her. I walked away from her table in the window feeling lighter and happy. I wrote about her in more detail in a separate blog post which can be read here and I encourage you to check that out. I got a good vibe from her immediately – we made eye contact when I entered the store and that welcoming and warm vibe is what sealed the deal and made me book the reading. If I had to chose from the three readings I have had and pick one person to return to, it would be her.

I hope you found this helpful!! Samhain approaches which is a good time for divination work so I wanted to share with you my experiences with tarot readings in the witch city. It’s certainly a popular thing to do when visiting and if you do book an appointment, I hope it goes well!! Check out pricing (sometimes longer readings are less expensive or discounted) and be sure you jive with the reader. If you get a weird feeling from the shop or reader that you’re not comfortable with, look elsewhere. There are many businesses in Salem that offer this sort of thing so don’t be afraid to explore your options if you’re uneasy about something. There is certainly nothing to be scared of, but be sure you go with your gut. Enjoy!! <3