Once your wedding is fixed, your house is no longer just a house…it becomes ‘shaadi ka ghar’, brimming with love, laughter and (tears of) happiness. Before you know it, the whole place is filled with unlimited food, dance, music, masti and, of course, never-ending celebrations with friends and family. Be it the kirtan, roka, mehendi, chura or haldi, you would want to host at least a few of your pre/post wedding functions at home, wouldn’t you? Not only does a ghar ka function save money but feels more intimate too.
Wondering how to decorate your home so it looks like the prettiest shaadi ka ghar? From brightening up your space with the most colourful elements to amping it up with gorgeous aesthetics, we bring you 16 of the prettiest and easiest decor ideas. These will transform your house into a dreamy wedding ceremony venue without burning a hole in your pocket.
Whether it's a winter afternoon brunch that you're planning or a mini-sangeet function on a breezy summer evening, we've got the best decor ideas for you. Here are some amazing ways to transform your porch, garden or terrace into a lit wedding venue.
Be it the haldi, mehendi or sangeet, the best way to deck up any outdoor wedding ceremony is by hanging soft, colourful drapes. Go for popping colours or pastels and you'll be surprised to see how beautifully they complement the plants and creepers in your garden. Besides the regular tables and chairs, make sure you have mattresses and cushions for the guests to lounge around. Quirky cushions are also a great and easy way to add colour and character to your setting.
Apart from all the innovative ways in which genda phool (marigold) can be used in wedding decor, here’s another easy wedding decor idea that you can have for your wedding functions at home. Instead of draping your chairs with the same ol’ boring fabric, use fresh bundles of flowers to add some vibrancy to your decor. Another plus point is that they'll make your venue smell amazing! Choose the flowers depending on your budget. Genda phool is an economical option that you can never go wrong with. Also, seasonal flowers are always more affordable than off-seasonal ones.
Lately, umbrellas have become hugely popular in wedding decor. For your mehendi function, this is one prop you can definitely work with. From traditional jaipuri ones to pretty parasols, there's a lot you can choose from. Hang them upside down from the ceiling or hand them to your guests as they enter the venue. Besides shielding them from the sun, they'll also add colour to your venue. You can always have your guests take home the umbrellas as wedding favours too!
For an evening do, nothing looks more gorgeous than lanterns. Skip the spotlights and light up your garden with lanterns, mirchi lights and diyas. It's the easiest way to make your venue look festive and wedding-ready on a budget. You can hang them from the ceiling, leave them dangling from the tree branches or place them as centrepieces on each table.
Visit any good nursery or a home store and you’ll be able to spot these gorgeous florals set inside glass globes and tubes. There’s nothing better than these to decorate your garden. Use ribbons, ropes or pearl strings to hang these floral beauties from tree branches. Whether it's an afternoon function or an evening soirée, these will look good day and night. Another advantage is that you can just let them be, even after all the celebrations are over. No added stress of taking down the decorations.
Aren’t birdcages just the prettiest? Use these cute props as your centrepieces by filling them up with floral bunches that match the colour theme of your function. Alternatively, you can also light candles inside these birdcages for an evening terrace party. If you can't find the desired colour, you can always use spray paint for the same.
A jhula seems to have become a necessary prop at weddings. It looks great in pictures, is the perfect spotlight-worthy place for the bride to sit and is oh-so-easy to set it up. In fact, if you have a large terrace, you can have one jhula for the bride and 2-3 more for the guests. Decorate the sides of your swings with floral arrangements or spray-paint the wooden planks on it with bright, vivid colours. You can even add drapes and rice lights for an evening ceremony.
Another out-of-the-box wedding decor element that can give your ceremony a fun retro vibe is a bicycle. We agree that having a bicycle as a photo booth is not something new but it continues to be a fave and makes for an amazing background for pictures. So, take out your old cycle from the garage and turn it into a prop for fabulous pictures! Do it up with colourful combinations of flowers or tie helium balloons to the handle...basically, go all out!
There’s a reason why giant photo frames are one of the most sought-after decor elements in every wedding nowadays. Apart from adding a little drama, they jazz up your surroundings and so effortlessly while at it. Be it a grand or a small scale function at home, make sure you’ve got enough open picture frames in every nook and cranny. These could be colourful, metallic or wooden and of different shapes and sizes. Besides looking pretty as decor, your guests will also love getting clicked with them.
Whether it’s the entrance of your house or the colourful shenanigans going around your surroundings, indoor ceremonies are just as magical as they are welcoming. Here’s how you can deck up yours with these simple yet beautiful decor ideas.
Still using the same ol’ lamps or LED lights for parties? For an exciting cocktail dinner at home, all you need are a few empty alcohol bottles (preferably branded) and bulbs from regular lampshades. Now, carefully detach the bottom half of those lampshades and replace them with the glass bottles to create stunning centrepieces for decor that stands out.
There’s nothing more pleasing to the eyes than being welcomed to a rangoli adorned with flowers and diyas at the doorstep. You can also choose to design one large rangoli in the hall where you are planning to host the ceremony or amp up every nook and cranny of the house with smaller rangolis and scented candles. Trust us, they will leave your guests in awe.
Want to make the setting as dreamy as possible? To take things up a notch with an impressive entry to the main venue by using flowy dupatta arrangements as jharokhas. Keep the doors open and hang velvety soft and colourful dupattas as drapes to add an extra charm to your decor. You're welcome!
Apart from being one of the most important bridal accessories, sparkling kaleeras look equally magical as wedding decor, too. Whether it's the haldi, roka or some other wedding ceremony, hanging kaleeras from flower strings can be a pretty unique and great idea! All you have to do is get a bunch of traditional gold-toned kaleeras and use them instead of windchimes at different locations in your home. This simple decoration idea for a wedding is easy to execute and looks absolutely stunning.
Using colourful paper fans as the backdrop of food counters or at the entrance or as a photoshoot background can be a lovely idea. You can easily find these in art and crafts or stationery stores. All you need is a double-sided tape to stick them up et voilà. Whether it’s a family dinner, a bridal shower or your roka, these will always look fly and fabulous.
Now, isn’t this (literally) the easiest and prettiest way to decorate your place for a wedding celebration? Glass bangles, when bought in bulk, do not cost much but sure can take your wedding decor from drab to fab in no time. Hang them in colourful bunches or make long strings to do up your mehendi function. Use gota patti or ribbons as tie-ups for an even more festive feel and watch how they elevate the look and feel of your ceremonies.
Got stairs at your house? Let your guests catch a glimpse of your love story each time they climb up or down the stairs with a series of your photographs together. Hang some fairy lights on the walls showcasing the pictures or spiral them around the staircase' railing. After all, this seems like the best way to decorate a home that’s celebrating love, doesn't it?
Go ahead and make each and every wedding ceremony at your home sweet home no less than a dream come true!
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