All about altars

[yemayasdaughter]

Blessings to all... I havent been on in a while, so its GREAT to be back. Welcome to all newbies I might have missed. I am in the process of putting together my altar, and was basically looking for suggestions and perhaps some of you can describe your altars (EX: what is it on top of? a table? dresser? bookshelf?) I have about 3 feet of space to work with, and need feedback about what I could use for an altar? Thanks!! Love and Light, Yemayasdaughter

[Lavender]

There's a thread that has pics of people's alters. I can't remember which forum it was in....Magic & Rituals, I think.

[Wiccan Maeve]

My altar takes up half of my dresser. I have a quilted altar cloth that was a gift. My cauldron (quite small), chalice and offering plate are all ceramic pieces that my sister made in school. My salt and water dish are old cat food cans, lol. My candle holder is a triple candle holder with a pentagram on the front that was my fiances, he's kindly letting me use it. In my candle holder is a gold candle and a silver one. Also on my alter is wooden incense burner, my incense and oils and a small box that I store my stones and various other charms in.

Hope this helps.

Love & light,
HoneyDreads

[Lilu]

I have over the years had a great many different sized altars. The one I have at the moment is the combination of a shrine and working altar. It is very big - two tables about 1ft off the ground put together. It comes to about 6ft long and 4 ft wide (or something like that - very big!!!)

This one is in our spare room where we keep our altars and the computer cemetary (*grin*) I have on the wall above it a large picture of Isis (my matroness) and the back 1/3 of the altar is the "shrine" area. I have a statue of Kuan Yin there as she is one of my healing goddesses who I call on for healing. I have an assortment of things, silk flowers, a chiffon scarf, a silver candle, a gold candle, and three big pillar candles on a plate with more silk flowers around it (love candles!!!) I also have a lamp on the corner of the shrine area (only place for it in the room). What else? I WILL have a beautiful statue of Isis soon as I am ordering it this month... looking forward to that.

On my "working altar" the other 2/3 of the altar, I have a bowl of water with "lotus candles" in it. A lotus candle. An incense burner. A dagger (athame?). A candle snuffer. This area is largely cleared for my readings. I have a huge area to lay out my oracles when doing a reading, for writing in my BOS, and for my ouija board when I use it. I can't stand a cluttered altar for working with, to me clutter is only useful when it's a shrine otherwise you're just knocking things over when you're trying to work. (My opinion of course). Which is why my altar is so LARGE - because it's a combo shrine/working altar.

>>>>>

For three feet of space, I'd recommend something like one of those three-shelved tables on wheels that you can find in Walmart or Kmart. I have two of them for my healing altar, and it's very useful for keeping candles and other tools on the shelves underneath! I would get one of them because they're only about 3ft wide, but they are tall, and have two shelves under the top, so you can have candles, books, etc to store there.

I've been trying to get some decent photos of my altars for the altar pic thread for a while now, but our digital camera sucks in poor lighting!!! I will try with my normal camera and put them in that thread soon. Might wait for the Isis statue though *grin*

Lilu

[yemayasdaughter]

Wow... all of your comments have definitely helped me conceptualized my altar. I should have no problem formatting one now!!! :)