Mixing a potion

Laurie Cabot, 76, has been mixing potions since she was 16. The 'Official Witch of Salem' learned the craft years ago from English witches and now runs her own shop, The Cat, The Crow, and The Crown, on Pickering Wharf in Salem. She still mixes her own potions, like this love concoction that she has made by combining rose and ambergris oils, then charging the blend 'with magic.' 'They both have the components to attract love,' Cabot said, explaining the herbal oil choices. Her potions can have different purposes, including love and money, she said.
Laurie Cabot, 76, has been mixing potions since she was 16. The "Official Witch of Salem" learned the craft years ago from English witches and now runs her own shop, The Cat, The Crow, and The Crown, on Pickering Wharf in Salem. She still mixes her own potions, like this love concoction that she has made by combining rose and ambergris oils, then charging the blend "with magic." "They both have the components to attract love," Cabot said, explaining the herbal oil choices. Her potions can have different purposes, including love and money, she said.
(John Tlumacki/Globe Staff)

About the book

Boston's Secret Spaces offers tantalizing peeks into places ordinary mortals rarely see. Published in partnership with The Boston Globe and based on the exceedingly popular Boston.com feature (3.7 million page views and counting), the book takes readers behind the scenes at several sports hot spots, historical landmarks, and offbeat Beantown locales.