IT sounds like a dream come true, a real witch answering the door to guisers.
IT sounds like a dream come true, a real witch answering the door to guisers.
But when Pauline Reid opened up her Glasgow salon for youngsters last Hallowe'en not one came knocking.
The 37-year-old, who runs a coven to instruct her sisters in the finer points of witchcraft, as well as managing a beauty shop in the South Side, said: "We had goodie bags made up, the salon was decorated and I was dressed up, but no one came. Maybe they were too scared."
Pauline will try again this year, putting on a pointy hat, picking up a broomstick and transforming herself into a glamorous witch.
But, for her, the magic and wand waving does not end on October 31.
Although she admits she can't wiggle her nose like Elizabeth Montgomery in the 1960s TV comedy series Bewitched, Pauline is a real witch throughout the year.
She opened her own business on Pollokshaws Road two years ago, combining beauty therapy with the magical arts.
Clients who come to Bewitching Beauty are as likely to ask for a love spell as a leg wax and she says her charms have helped clients find romance, sell houses and claims her fertility spells are more powerful than IVF.
"We get people coming in under the pretence of a facial and then asking, So what's this witchcraft all about?' "It's always about love, but we have had a few babies as well.
"A couple of girls sold their house the same day they performed a spell, which in this present climate is saying something.
"I think people are looking for something more in the New Age.."
Wicca, or witchcraft, is a form of Paganism that celebrates nature and the cycles of the moon.
It is estimated there are more than 1900 Pagans in Scotland, making it the country's seventh largest religion.
Pauline is keen to dispel the myth witches are wicked. "Wicca is all about positivity. I would not do negative spells," she added.
"Witch simply means wise' and modern witches draw their inspiration from living in harmony with nature."
She set up the first Witchfest Scotland festival in Glasgow several years ago. The event is the largest festival in the world celebrating Paganism.
She is also a huge fan of Harry Potter, although she says JK Rowling should brush up on her witchcraft. She said: "Witches would fly a broomstick with the bristles in front and not behind."
