Making a Sea Witch Altar

The altar is second to self in the craft, a place where you cast spells, crush herbs, and where your cats lounge and try to get your attention! For sea witches, especially landlocked ones, your altar is a place to connect with the ocean when you can’t physically be there. Your sea witch altar will change as your practice does. You may wish to update it each season, every new or full moon, or annually.  Your altar will depend on personal preference, space, and the decorations that are available to you. Below I have included some suggestions when making your Sea Witch Altar feel as close to the beach as possible:

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Seashells & Fossils:

Shells, like crystals, have a variety of uses in magic, and can be used on your altar for much more than just decoration. For example, you may wish to place olive shells on your altar to bring in abundance, or cowry shells to enhance intuition. You may even wish to create a seashell grid or mandala as a permanent fixture to keep the energy of your Sea Witch altar charged and protected. 

Ocean & Beach Colors:

Depending on the space you use for your altar, you can paint your altar with the colors of the ocean or decorate with altar clothes in teals, sands, and sapphire blues.

Bowls/ Chalices/ Vessels:

These items represent the water element and feminine energy. They can also be used in spells and rituals, especially for holding enchanted water, or as offerings for water spirits. My most used chalice has a permanent place on my altar, as well as the vessels I keep by the designated spaces for my mermaid spirits and ancestors, which will hold blessed water, liquor, flower water, and more. 

Statues/ Paintings/ Drawings:

Dedicating a space to your gods, spirits, and ancestors on an altar has been a long-standing tradition in many religions, and witchcraft is no exception. Some choose to do this on a separate altar from the one they work on, some choose to combine them. I have several mermaid paintings and statues scattered throughout my working altar space, as well as various alcoves around my room, and it helps me feel closer to their presence. You can substitute this with any spirits you work with, or you can use images of the moon or the ocean herself.

Fountains:

Desktop fountains are both soothing and make great offerings for water spirits. Just the simplicity of having running water at your altar space promotes a relaxing, oceanic atmosphere and you can also use them in spell work. You will want to keep this clean and replace the water at least once a week, so I suggest looking for fountains with a simple pump. In the event that the pump stops working or you don’t wish to keep water in it for a time, you can use shells in crystals in its place, which I have done several times when my own fountain decides to get temperamental. 

Mirrors & Jewelry:

Mirror on your sea witch altar not only give it that ‘Sunken treasure chest/ Ariel’s grotto’ vibe, but they also service a purpose. Mirrors are portals and work amazingly as communication tools to connect with mermaids, but they are also useful for scrying, glamour magic, return to senders, and so much more! You can leave the jewelry you wear everyday on your altar as a nightly enchantment, but you can also dedicate pieces to your water spirits and leave them as offerings. 

Hair & Makeup Products:

If you work with mermaids, this option may be particularly interesting to you. Mermaids are spirits of glamour and beauty, often depicted with long, flowing hair and beautiful faces. By leaving the products dedicated to your hair and makeup routines on their altar, you are imbuing these items with this energy. You can even take this one step further and deviate your self care to your mermaids, an offering with mutual benefits. 

Fish Nets, Anchors & Witch Balls:

Partially for the aesthetic, partially for the magical purposes, fishnets are great at, well, catching things! This can be put on a money specific altar or used in money workings, or can be hung to catch negative energy that floats into the space. As a witch working at an altar, you send out a lot of energy, it only makes sense that some of it could be returned, and unfortunately, not all of it is good, so fishnets could act as a potential additional ward to others you may already have around your space. Additionally, anchors can be used to keep yourself grounded during rituals or meditations. Witch balls, also known as fisher floats, are the sea witch’s protection jars, and are often hung using fish netting or macramé hangers. They can also be hung outside of the home for protection against unwanted physical visitors as well as spiritual.

Salt Water & Sand:

If you do not live by the ocean, you can combine tap water and sea salt to enchant your own sea water, and keep it in a sealed jar on your altar. If you do live by the shore, you can use this to bring the four elements to your altar. Go to the beach and collect ocean water in a glass bottle. This method usually picks up sand sediments that sink to the bottom and you can even add a shell or a stone from your visit. You can then charge this jar in the sun  and wind and bring all four elements to your altar. Alternatively, you can keep a Zen meditation garden on your altar (insert link from previous blog post), which you can use to draw sigils for spell work.

Crystals & Candles:

Even as a sea witch, I still use both on my altar. There is a beautiful balance between fire and water, and candles play a heavy role in my craft, especially in scrying and bath rituals. Candles in the colors of the ocean are my personal preference, and you can even use them for rituals on the beach by digging a small hole for the candle to buffer against the sea breeze. I work with crystals and shells equally, especially those associated with water like fluorite and aquamarine to bring more ocean energy to your altar space. You can also use crystals to make gem elixirs, infusing the properties of the crystal into your water. Please be mindful of which crystals are safe to go in water, especially if you plan to ingest this elixir! 

If you are looking for inspiration, Pinterest is fantastic for ideas on how to decorate your altar, and feel free to use the photos of my altar I’ve included for inspiration as well! Remember that as your practice grows, so too will your altar space. Allow yourself to experiment, get creative, and explore the unique and infinite possibilities in creating a sea witch altar.

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