Whether it’s the legend of Maa Durga putting an end to Mahishasura or Lord Ram’s victory over Ravana – Dusshera speaks of a spectacular time when light triumphs over darkness. Just as these deities are said to have purified the world and restored peace, we strive to live by their ideals and cleanse our homes to create new beginnings.
With new hopes in your hearts, this is a time to fan the waves of festive excitement in the air by decorating your home. So, read ahead as we give you quick tips and tricks to Dusshera home decor that will amp up the good vibes in your living spaces. With these ideas, you can give your home, a fantastic festive makeover that it deserves!
Bring Ample Sunlight into Your Home
Open up all the windows, rearrange your furniture and declutter stuff that you don’t need in the house. Let in the natural light to create an illusion of a bigger space as well as keeps you fresh and energetic all day!
Revamp the Upholstery
A large part of Dussehra decorations at home is bringing in a certain vibrancy to your living spaces. To do this, reuse those vintage sarees and colourful dupattas to revamp the sofa and cushion covers in your home. You can also fashion them as curtains for doorways or hang them near the main door to make for a grand entrance. Go bold to add a sense of contrast with bright hues like pink, yellow, green, gold, or red.
Keep Potted Plants at Corners to Brighten Up Your Spaces
Add a splash of greenery to those dark corners in your home, and they’ll instantly bring in positive vibes! Anything from a simple tulsi to a money plant will do to add a bright green touch to your home. For the pots, you can opt for beautiful terracotta ones painted with elaborate designs.
Place a Stack of Books Near Your Mandir
Since books are worshipped as tools of knowledge on this day, you can add a stack of hardcover books near your mandir. Top this stack with a flowing garland, a glass bottle filled with string lights, or even a small statue of goddess Durga. And voila! You now have a beautiful corner that speaks voluminous meanings to your guests.
Hang a New Bandhanwar Toran at Your Entrance
It’s a festive tradition to add a toran made from marigolds and mango leaves to your home entrance to welcome Goddess Laxmi into your home. However, there’s even a recent trend of using handmade bandhanwars, usually fashioned out of hand-embroidered cloth or crafted from beads. These also add an enchanting touch to your entrance or even the inner doorways of your house.
Feel the Festive Vibes with Rangoli
Did you know that the intricate patterns of rangolis are said to trap negative vibes, preventing them to enter your house? This is why any Dusshera home decor would be incomplete without an elaborate rangoli. While you can go the traditional way of creating one yourself with different colours, there are even ready-made rangolis available in the market these days.
P.S. If you don’t have much time to create a rangoli, you can simply fashion one in a matter of a few minutes. Fill a large urli (brass vessel) with water and add floating candles and colourful flowers to it. It’s a simple yet mesmerizing festive hack indeed!
Add a Touch of Silver to Your Home Decor
Dusshera is considered an auspicious occasion to buy silver artefacts. If you’re in the habit of buying any, you can display those newly purchased silver bowls, coins, idols, or even a statement jewellery piece in your living room. These symbolise prosperity and will add a bling to your festivities.
Use ‘Apta’ Leaves for the Decor
Add a true ethnic and festive touch to the decor with a handful of ‘apta’ leaves. These leaves are considered a symbol for gold during the festival, often given away as sona to loved ones. Simply add a branch to a vase or decorate a brass thali with these leaves and keep it on the dining table.
Illuminate Your Home with Lights and Candles
Every festival needs lights to chase away the shadows! So, ensure you drape some string lights on your potted plants and light tall brass lamps near the home mandir. You can also add diyas by your entrance and keep floating candles on your dining table to beautify your space.
Add Fragrances to your Home
A slight hint of burning sandalwood or that breath of jasmine oil, when added to the decor goes a long way to create good vibes and gives a welcoming feel to your guests. Whether it is a lit agarbati or scented candles – fragrances, when paired well, stimulate the senses to create a spiritual atmosphere in your home.
Ornament Your Home with Fresh Marigold Flowers
Use the magic of marigold (genda) flowers to create floral paths into your house. Often said to bring energy and vibrancy into your home, these are extensively used in Dusshera home decor. So, get creative with these and drape them over staircases, pillars, or balcony railings to give a bright yellow and orange life to your home. Add some to your puja thali or in the mandir and place some lit earthen diyas in between them.
Add a Collection of ‘Dasara’ Dolls
Take a leaf from the South Indian tradition, where people from parts of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh celebrate the ten days of Navratri and Dusshera with a display of their doll collection. The festival is often called ‘Kolu’ where these wooden dolls are painted to depict the life of gods, goddesses, and mortal people.
If you’re looking for a new way to celebrate the festive season, buy a few figurines and keep them on a platform in your house. You can even go further to create your own miniature village and add sand or twigs for effect. Pass these on to your descendants and you will be able to create a beautiful festive tradition for your family.
At Ashwin Sheth Group, we strive to give you ideas and home decor tips that will add a fresh zing to your festive season. Now that you have an elaborate guide to decorating your home this Dusshera, we hope that you create an atmosphere that entices the goddesses themselves to enter your beautiful homes.
