Phoenix & Dragon, in Atlanta GA

Phoenix & Dragon is one of my absolute favorite shops to go to for my metaphysical needs. It has been open for more than twenty years, and is incredibly spacious and diverse in what it offers, both in terms of retail items and in the classes, workshops, consulations, seminars and rituals that go on every day of the week. Truthfully, I've seen a huge variety of pagan shops in my time, and this is hands-down one of the best.

Phoenix & Dragon describes itself thusly:

Welcome to Phoenix and Dragon Bookstore
A leader in the spirituality, wellness and conscious living community.

From the moment you enter the foyer of our Roswell Road location, you are entering another world. The melodic tinkling of chimes merges with the gurgling of fountains and the soothing sounds of new age or world music. Facing the entrance is a magnificent mantle, beautifully painted with natural imagery; colorful displays of greeting cards beckon you deeper into a wondrous world of statues, candles, incense, crystals, books, music and gifts. All of our merchandise serves the common purpose of nurturing the mind, body and soul.

The Physical Store

The store itself is just off Roswell Road, south of 285. Be careful getting there - it's easy to miss, with its entrance being a turn off Roswell Road right at a light. It shares a parking lot with another business. It's probably the weirdest, hilliest parking lot I've ever seen, too. Just drive carefully.

Entering the store is amazing. One is faced with the witchiest hearth ever, with a variety of utterly amazing split amethyst geodes I've ever seen. The store is divided into a number of sections: one of them covers witchcraft, magic and similar endeavors, with an excellent variety of books, statuary and ritual tools. There is a section set aside for statuary from a variety of pantheons, including some of the most elegant angelic statues I've ever seen. Then there is a "non-European" section (for lack of a better term), where the Native American, African and Asian books and decorations are.

The back section is utterly amazing. There is a huge and lavish jewelry counter, and the walls around it are positively groaning with all manner of stones, gems and crystals. I have yet to go there looking for a stone they don't have, usually in a variety of sizes, cuts and even some in jewelry settings. The rest of the back is a lot of miscellaneous goods: tarot cards, books on more general esoteric or New Age-y subjects, oils, incenses and candles galore, of every shape, size and color you can imagine. It really is a fantastically complete store.

(As an aside, yes, there are some egregious things to be found among the goods, from fluffy neopagan nonsense to white-man assumptions and just terrible info, but this is a business - they don't vet everything they sell. Caveat emptor.)

Finally, there are also a variety of small rooms in the back, all used by the various psychic and spiritual consultants, and one larger room used by workshops and the like. There is also a back deck, a wonderfully rustic area built of wood around a large tree, used for outdoor rituals and other similar projects.

The Staff

The owner, Candace Apple, is an absolute gem. She is, in a very real way, an unsung hero of the Atlanta pagan community. She has provided a valuable service to our community for over twenty years, and continues to do so.

Her staff are also wonderful. Eclectic, quirky, knowledgeable in their various areas and most of all just flat-out friendly and engaging, I have yet to have a bad experience with any of them. Best of all, I've never been BS'd by one of them - they will say "You know, I'm not sure about that; let me see if someone else knows" when they don't actually know about something. This is a trait that I appreciate, particularly when dealing with things like stones which I don't know a lot about, and haven't had the time to research it properly.

Summary

In all, it should come as no surprise to anyone who's read this far that I really like this store. Though I do a lot of online shopping, this is the place I go when I'm looking for something that I don't know I'm looking for. Candace and her buyers are great at ferreting out some of the most amazing finds out there, and I love going in here.

My wallet, on the other hand, does not. :)

Blessings,

Oakthorne