Lady RavenHart's Discreet (?) Family Altar

Would you consider this family altar discreet?  It is and it isn't.  Lady RavenHart's dining room wall and portable altar table are admired by Pagan and Christian guests alike, each thinking they understand the symbolism.  The longer they stand and look, the more levels of meaning they see.

Lady RavenHart started this wall altar by painting the wall a deep wine-red, which has a special meaning for her.  Next, she bought inexpensive gold-colored picture frames from a local dollar store or found old picture frames in local thrift stores and painted them gold.  Then she framed various family pictures and arranged them on the wall in cross patterns, mostly equilateral crosses.    Between the patterns, she hung Christmas ornament crosses painted gold.   The middle picture frame is actually a mirror, perfect for standing in front of at the altar and seeing the Goddess within (plus the family resemblance!). 

The table altar is actually a gold-framed mirror elegantly set on three staggered plant stands from the local pottery shop, for about $6-10 each.  The lamps are from a dollar store, too (for $10 each--surprise!) but look identical to $200 lamps from the designer home store at the mall.  The pyramid-shaped tea-light holder with stars and crescent moons was found at a garage sale for $2.  The large candle in the South was a birthday gift from a friend.  The shell in the West was found at the beach during a family outing, the feathers in the East were a present from the children, and the small stones in the North were picked from a mountain streambed on a family vacation. 

When the altar is less discreet, rune cards or Tarot cards are fanned out on the table or propped against the cold candle to help the family visualize particular goals, such as strength or clarity. 

Would you like to  see more altars and sacred spaces?