Lammas Lughnasadh: Altar-gether

He he please excuse the silly name for this post, just in one of those moods!

Right what I’m going to ramble on about in this post is our altar. I always try and involve Littleun in the making of our altar and we often start putting it together in the days leading up to the relevant celebration. Although it isn’t ever difficult to find something that Littleun wants to add, this particular celebration being for both Lammas and Lugh makes it easy for him to join in.

Last years small altar, got more space this year

There are so many little crafts that can be represented by him ranging from the corn dollies to drawings, berry bracelets, Apple candle holders or just candles made to look like apples, to name a few. This mixes both the arts and the harvest at the same time.

This year we have befriended a local famer who has been growing corn and wheat and has kindly given us some sheaths. We will start by making a horn for a cornucopia, then Littleun has said he would like to add the plastacine fruits we made (bunches of grapes) and some of the flowers from the allotment.

The colours for the altar are going to be golds, oranges, greens, representing the time of the year with the golden growth but that there is still more to come so the green for the continuous growing season.

If you would like to make your own apple candle holders it is very easy to do: (from about.com)

"Rinse and dry the fruit or vegetable thoroughly. Polish the outside with a soft cloth until the apple is shiny. Stand the apple up on its bottom, and use a knife or a corer to make a hole in the top where the stem is located. Go about halfway down into the apple so that the candle will have a sturdy base. Widen the hole until it’s the same diameter as your candle. Pour some lemon juice into the hole and allow it to sit for ten minutes. This will prevent the apple from browning and softening too quickly. Pour out the lemon juice, dry out the hole, and insert a sprig of rosemary, basil, or other fresh herb of your choice. Finally, add the taper candle. Use a little bit of dripped wax to secure the taper in place."

Right am off to find the maize maze with Littleun, more (if you aren’t bored yet) about our lammas celebrations later...