A home altar is the perfect center of prayer for any home. It need not be elaborate or expensive, but placing it in a place of honor in your home helps to anchor the heart of your family in the eternal love of God. 

Here is a simple step-by-step guide for creating your home altar.

1. Choose a location

Your home altar should have a place of prominence in your home where family members regularly see it, even in passing. It does not have to start as the focal point of your living room, but finding a central place for gathering at prayer time keeps your new home altar from being lost in the shuffle.

2. Find a table or hutch

A simple side table, coffee table, or cabinet hutch will work! It can be something you already have or something thrifted. Ideally, it would have a drawer or small cabinet underneath where you could store some supplies or rotating decor. If not, you can always place a basket underneath the table. Aim for a side table or coffee table height — you do not want it to be so tall that small children cannot see what is on the top.

3. Gather the essentials

Start with the basics and gradually build up your supply as the liturgical year progresses. Begin with a crucifix, Bible, and candle. A vial of holy water is great to add if you have it on hand. Beginning simply is perfectly fine — the home altar is meant to be a place of gathering for prayer. A designated prayer space and lighting a candle helps set the tone for prayer — it doesn’t have to be fancy!

4. Customize over time as you are able!

Lastly, here are several ways to take your home altar to the next level once you have set up the basics. Remember, you do not need to accumulate everything at once, but building up your home altar as you progress through the liturgical season is a natural way to enhance your family’s awareness and practice of the holy days.

Incremental additions can include:

• Altar cloth
  • Simple placemats or a linen napkin can make a perfect altar cloth that you can change out for the liturgical season. Start with either white or green, and expand your collection to include purple and red when you can.

• Use a prayer card holder
  • Most prayer cards are similar in dimension to business cards so a simple business card holder like this glass and brass one can be found online or cheaply thrifted and used to display a seasonally appropriate prayer card. Young children love to help switch out the prayer cards based on the devotion of the month or a saint’s feast day.

• Display an icon or religious art
  • A small easel, plate display, or even a tablet stand (like this one from IKEA) allows you to display framed religious art or icons on your home altar. The stands allow you to add and remove art based on the liturgical season without the hassle of nailing to the wall. If your family has a particular devotion, try to include an image of that.

• Get a candle snuffer
  • A candle snuffer adds an additional element of ceremony to the ritual of the home altar, particularly for children. You can often thrift a small candle snuffer or find one you like online.

• Add a kneeler or sitting pillow
  • If you can manage to find a kneeler, it can really take your home altar experience to the next level. If not, a pillow or cushion to kneel or sit on can make the home altar all the more inviting.

• Stock your under-altar storage
  • Some helpful items to include in the drawer or basket under your home altar are a box of matches, additional holy water for refillings, a prayer book, some rosaries, a scented oil like Frankincense or Chrism (available at EverythingCatholic), and beeswax candles (which you can have blessed on Candlemas). You can also keep your box of prayer cards here to easily switch out the displayed card.