Mistress of the Hearth is the work of Jillian Aurora, a historian, guide, and community facilitator. Jillian brings together a range of offerings rooted in history, culture, and belonging: published works such as books, canvases, and card collections; HearthFinder relocation guidance for individuals and families; folklore research and tours; and ceremonies and community gatherings that mark life’s passages. All of these strands are united by a single focus — cultivating a sense of home through story, tradition, and shared experience.
About Jillian
At the heart of Mistress of the Hearth is the role of guide and steward. Jillian’s work spans several interconnected fields: she is a historian and folklorist, developing cultural research and tours; a creator, producing books, canvases, and card collections rooted in tradition; a relocation guide, helping individuals and families find home through HearthFinder; and a community facilitator, offering ceremonies and gatherings that honor life’s milestones. Each role reflects a different facet of the same purpose — tending the hearth as a place of belonging, meaning, and connection.
Photo by Jenny Moon Photography
Jillian Aurora is a historian and cultural researcher with graduate training at the University of Edinburgh. Her studies have focused on Spiritualism, mysticism, and witchcraft — examining both the ways such beliefs have justified violence and the ways they have fostered empowerment and resilience. Building on this foundation, she is expanding her work into Transylvanian folklore and its influence on cultural behavior. Jillian is currently based in Romania, where she intends to pursue a fellowship dedicated to the study of mystical beliefs in this region. Her work combines academic rigor with lived experience, guiding others through relocation, cultural exploration, and community connection. By blending scholarship with storytelling, Jillian makes history and tradition meaningful in the present.
Home is a theme that has shaped Jillian’s own journey. Together with her husband, she restored a historic Sears catalog house before relocating to Romania. These experiences deepened her commitment to the work of HearthFinder and to helping others create belonging in new places. By blending scholarship, creativity, and lived experience, Jillian makes history and tradition meaningful in the present.
Philosophy
The hearth has always been the center of human life — the place where warmth was kept, meals were shared, and stories were told. It is both practical and symbolic: a source of survival and a source of meaning. Mistress of the Hearth is built on the belief that this ancient symbol still matters today. Belonging, memory, and connection are needs as vital now as they were for our ancestors.
Jillian’s work brings this philosophy to life in many forms: research that preserves cultural stories, relocation guidance that helps people find and create home, creative works that carry the spirit of tradition into daily life, and ceremonies that honor life’s milestones. Each offering is part of the same vision — tending the hearth as a living center of resilience, comfort, and shared humanity.
An Invitation
My Hearth is an open fire, and you are welcome here. Whether you are seeking guidance in relocation, wishing to connect with the stories of the past, looking for creations to enrich your home, or hoping to mark life’s milestones with meaning, there is a place for you at the hearth. My work is about tending the flame of belonging — keeping it alive, sharing its warmth, and kindling it anew wherever it is needed.
- Jillian Aurora