WATCH NOW
Watch on the app
Your quick guide to building an ofrenda and channeling La Catrina
As Día de los Muertos approaches, LatiNation is celebrating with color, memory, and meaning. This year, creators Cindy Canek and Lily Martinez joined us for a special Ofrenda Pop-Up edition, a guide to creating your own altar, channeling your inner Catrina, and honoring your loved ones through simple, heartfelt traditions.
View this post on Instagram
Building an Ofrenda: Five Simple Steps from Cindy
Forget the pressure of making it perfect: Cindy reminds us that Día de los Muertos is about love, not logistics.
“Let’s do an ofrenda pop-up edition, five simple things you can do without complicating your life,” she says. “Get some flowers; if you can get cempasúchil, amazing, if you can’t, it’s fine. A glass of water, a candle, some sugar skulls, and a beautiful, beautiful picture of your loved ones.”
In just a few gestures, you can transform a corner of your home into a sacred, glowing tribute. Each item carries meaning: marigolds for life, water for renewal, candles to guide spirits home, sugar skulls for sweetness, and photos to keep memories alive.
For Cindy, Día de los Muertos is also about bringing people together through flavor.
“A ritual everyone should incorporate into their Día de los Muertos celebration in my books is cooking,” she shares. “That’s one of my favorite things to honor my past loved ones. Cooking some mole, some birria, some cervezas, yummy.”
Food becomes a bridge between generations, a way to keep stories alive, one bite at a time.
View this post on Instagram
Channeling La Catrina with Lily Martinez
No Día de los Muertos celebration is complete without a nod to La Catrina, the elegant symbol of life and death intertwined. Lily breaks down how to embody her with beauty, purpose, and a touch of sparkle.
“Here are five things you need to create a beautiful, fanciful Catrina look,” Lily explains. “You’ll need flowers to adorn your beautiful costume that signify life. You’ll need black-and-white makeup to create a skull look that signifies death. You’ll need a beautiful, fanciful dress, obviously for celebrating. You’ll need jewelry to decorate and sparkle on the night. And finally, you’ll need the memory of your loved one to honor them and celebrate their life through the process of creating a beautiful Catrina as part of your healing process.”
The result is more than a costume; it’s a living altar. A visual poem for those we’ve loved and lost.
Both creators remind us that this holiday is not about mourning but about connection. “One ritual everyone should incorporate in their Día de los Muertos celebration is creating an altar or an ofrenda for your past loved ones,” Lily adds. “It’s a beautiful way to remember, honor them, and feel like they’re coming home.”
Get inspired, laugh a little, and learn how to bring your own traditions to life, whether it’s through cooking, crafting, or celebrating in full Catrina glam.
Watch now on LatiNation’s YouTube and socials, and join us as we keep our loved ones’ memories burning bright this Día de los Muertos.
for the latest updates from LatiNation