A New-Old Home For My Altar – At Last!

Lá Fhéile Bríde is upon us and I have been busily cleaning as best as I can, trying to make my home welcoming to Brighid.  I recently accomplished one of my biggest cleaning goals  – moving my altar back into the so-called “Art Room.”  I’ve said this before, but I preferred when it was in there rather than my bedroom.  I feel I have more privacy before bed, which is when I prefer to do my devotionals.  I can calmly go about my spiritual business without worrying that my husband, who rises for work earlier than I and needs to be in bed sooner, is getting impatient or that my candle light is keeping him up.  My altar feels more at home where I do a lot of sewing, where I start seeds, and where herbs grow.  Besides, it’s previous location – a corner in the master bedroom – is the perfect spot for a nursery!  More on that another day.

For now, enjoy the images of my main altar, my bookshelf and Ancestral altar, and my little indoor Nature Spirit altar.

My main altar.  You can see my representation of the tree, a cauldron with a candle in it for the fire, and a glass bowl for the well.  I have various representations of my patrons on my altar, as well as other significant items like an offering bowl and my oak wand.  Above is a representation of the sun and a little plaque of Manannán mac Lir.  Photo by Grey Catsidhe, 2013.

My bookshelf full of texts, divination tools, oils and other concoctions, and my ancestral altar – both on the top shelf and the wall with the photos.  Below the photos on the wall is a stand for things I use during ritual but I don’t want on my altar – matches, bowls with offerings to give, etc.  Below that are some of my drums.  Photo by Grey Catsidhe, 2013.

Since most of my work with the Nature Spirits involves the plants I have indoors or actually going outside, I only have a small altar for them indoors.  It’s mostly comprised of found objects (stones, bones, butterfly wings), representations of nature that I’ve acquired, or things significant to my spirit guide.  Some of my Druidic charms hang from the pegs.  Photo by Grey Catsidhe, 2013.