little altars everywhere
What do you do to honor your home? To show it a little love? Recently, I set up an altar to my home, in a dedicated spot where I can be reminded of all the things the word “Home” means to me. It is also a place where I can show gratitude for the four walls and roof that keep me safe from the elements and provides sanctuary from the outside world.
The perfect spot for my home altar presented itself as a small shelf in the kitchen. It’s an ideal landing pad for because I see it and can engage with it everyday. The kitchen is often considered the heart of the home, where people tend to gather, where important and casual conversations are held, and where we feed and nourish ourselves. It ticks all the boxes for me as a place to honor the concept of “Home.”
To set up my home altar, I first hung a small piece of art I made especially with the idea of “Home” in mind. Embedded within the art is a home protection and blessing sigil I created replete with a house shape, a star, and planetary symbols. The colors and intuitive style were heavily inspired by the work of the 19th century mystic artist Hilma af Klint.
I added a small dish for trinkets and gifts from the house. You can see an old key I found when digging in a garden bed in the front yard, a crow feather left behind in the backyard, and two beautiful tumbled agates from a friend as a house-warming present. There is a dried alium in a jar from another friend’s gift of flowers as a house-warming, and a small house sculpture from mixed media artist Peggy Pfenninger. I love how the piece echoes the house shape in the painting behind. And see how the pinky-purple from the dried flower picks up the same hues in the painting? I can add or take away items from the dish, and I see it as a place of offering as a “thank you” to the house and all the helpful spirits that reside in it.
Home altars can be as simple as a daily glass of water left out to the house spirits where you set your keys, some pretty stones decorating the mantle over the fireplace, or framed family photos on a shelf or wall. Think of any ornaments, keepsakes, or knickknacks that give you the cozy feeling of home - these are the things that make your home altar personalized to you. The key thing about a home altar is that it’s a place for you to see and interact with regularly. A dish can be quite helpful to corral objects and give them a bit of an elevated status. Adding or taking away pieces as you see fit is a beautiful way to keep your altar neat and show it some love. Bless it with incense, a sprinkling of your favorite herb (or glitter!), or mist it with a comforting room spray once in a while to keep your altar feeling vibrant.
What does “Home” mean to you? What is on your home altar? What energies would you like to maintain or bring into your home?