Every year it goes roughly the same way. The Diwali safai gets done, the box of lights comes down from the loft, and on the evening before the puja somebody discovers that half the string doesn't light up. The diyas are still in their plastic bag. The rangoli colours are from last year.
Fixing this doesn't take a big budget. It takes a bit of order. Some Diwali decoration needs a full day to set, some takes ten minutes, and flowers have to wait till the very end or they wilt. Once you know which is which, decorating the house turns into a few relaxed evenings instead of one panicked night.
This year Dhanteras falls on Friday, 6 November and Diwali (Lakshmi Puja) on Sunday, 8 November. Below are our favourite Diwali decoration ideas at home, the order to make them in, and the spot in the house where each one looks best.
Make these first: the decor that needs time
Plan by drying and setting time, not by whatever you're most excited about. Slowest first:
- Anything in cement: give it a full day. A cement trinket tray takes 15 to 25 minutes to mix and pour, then 16 to 24 hours to set fully.
- Candles: an afternoon. Homemade candles need a few hours before you can move them around. Our cactus candle kit, for example, takes about half an hour to pour and 2 to 3 hours to set, a little longer on a humid day.
- Painted diyas: one evening, plus a soak the night before. Soak plain clay diyas in water for about an hour and let them dry out completely before you paint. Soaked diyas drink less oil later. The painting is the quick part. With the Diya Decoration Kit (₹649) it takes 15 to 25 minutes, plus 10 to 15 minutes for the paint to dry.
- Bottle lamps and glow jars: any evening. These take under an hour, so fit them into whichever evening is free.
- Flowers and rangoli: right at the end. Marigolds hold up for a couple of days. A rangoli gets walked over, so draw your main one on Diwali morning.
One practical note: our kits take 4 to 7 working days to reach you, so order at least a week before you plan to start.
A simple plan for the week before Diwali
Stick this on the fridge if it helps, and move the days around to suit your week.
- Sunday, 1 November. Finish the cleaning. Walk through the house and choose three or four spots to decorate properly, rather than a little bit of everything everywhere. Test every string of lights. Pour anything that's cement.
- Monday and Tuesday. Candles and bottle lamps, after work or after homework.
- Wednesday. Soak the diyas and leave them out to dry overnight.
- Thursday. Diya painting night. Spread out a mat or old newspaper and let everyone paint their own.
- Friday, 6 November (Dhanteras). Lights and the toran go up. The entrance is ready.
- Saturday. Buy flowers. Set up the urli and the mandir.
- Sunday, 8 November. Rangoli in the morning, diyas lit at dusk.
Diwali decoration ideas at home, room by room
The entrance
The doorway is where Lakshmi is welcomed in, so give it the most attention. Three things do most of the work here.
A fresh toran. Mango leaves and marigolds strung on a thread. Fold each leaf in half and push the needle through near the stem, then add two or three marigolds between leaves. It looks far better than a plastic toran and costs very little at the local flower market. (In Mumbai, Dadar's phool market is worth the early start.)
Lakshmi's footprints. Many families draw small footprints walking into the house, in rice flour paste or kumkum. Press the side of your fist down for the foot and add the toes with a fingertip. Hand this job to the kids. They'll be proud of it all week.
A row of painted diyas on the step. Diyas look best in odd numbers, five or seven, painted in two or three colours that repeat. Everything for this is in the Diya Decoration Kit: terracotta diyas, poster paints, mirrors, rhinestones, glue, a brush and a messy mat. For designs, our post on diya painting ideas has twelve, from easy dots to mandalas.
The mandir
The mandir already has plenty going on, so add light, not clutter.
- Hang an old silk dupatta or a saree with a good border behind the idols as a backdrop. It also looks lovely in the puja photos.
- Put up a fresh marigold garland on the morning of the puja, not before, so it is still bright when the aarti starts.
- Use a proper tea light holder here instead of loose tea lights. You can make one with the Jesmonite Tea Light Candle Holder Kit (₹2,499). You mix and pour it yourself and choose the colours, so it can match your mandir.
- Keep a small tray next to the thali for the matchbox, spare wicks and kumkum, so nobody goes hunting for them mid-aarti.
The living room
This is where guests sit and where most of the Diwali photos get taken. Two tips make a real difference.
First, put light at different heights: something on the floor, something on the coffee table, something up on a shelf. A room with every light at one level looks flat, however many lights there are. Second, keep open flames well away from curtains, sofa throws and little hands. That's where LED decor earns its place.
A painted bottle lamp is our pick for this room. The Light Bottle Painting Kit (₹999) comes with the bottles, paints, brushes and battery lights, plus spare batteries, so there's no wiring and nothing to plug in. Paint them in deep Diwali colours like maroon, gold and green and line them up along a windowsill. They'll still be up long after the festival.
For a softer glow on a side table, the Floral Glow Jar does the same job with flowers inside the glass, and it's done in under an hour.
The dining table
If family is coming for dinner or the cousins are staying back for a card party, the table needs one centrepiece, not ten small things. An urli filled with water, a handful of marigold and rose petals and a few floating candles is hard to beat, and it takes five minutes. Put a tea light holder beside it and you're done. Planning a taash night? Our list of house party activities has ideas for when everyone's had enough of cards.
The balcony and windows
Wind is the problem here. Diyas on a breezy balcony keep going out, and sometimes tip over. Put them on the floor in a sheltered corner and save the battery lights and bottle lamps for railings and window grills.
If you grew up in Maharashtra, you already know what's missing: the akash kandil, the paper lantern that hangs outside the window or balcony for Diwali. Making one out of chart paper and glue is a good project for older kids. Light it with a battery tea light, never a real flame, and it will glow every night of the festival.
Found this two days before Diwali?
No time to order anything? You can still make the house look ready tonight with what's already at home:
- Clean glass jars with a string of fairy lights pushed inside.
- Steel or brass plates, polished, with a diya in the middle and petals around it.
- A simple dot rangoli in rice flour, or in haldi and kumkum. Draw the outline in chalk first, then fill it in.
- Your best dupattas and sarees, draped over a doorway or behind a photo frame.
Three safety rules worth repeating
- Never leave a lit diya or candle unattended, and keep a jug of water close by.
- Keep flames away from curtains, dupattas, flowers and paper lanterns.
- Paint, glitter and rhinestones go on the outside of a diya, never where the oil and wick sit.
Diwali decoration: frequently asked questions
How can I decorate my home for Diwali on a small budget?
Spend on light and flowers and make the rest. Marigolds, mango leaves, plain clay diyas and a rice flour rangoli cost very little. Reuse glass jars, brass plates and old sarees or dupattas from home. Decorating three or four spots well looks better than spreading everything thin.
What are some easy Diwali decoration ideas at home?
A marigold and mango leaf toran at the door, painted diyas on the step, fairy lights inside glass jars, an urli with floating flowers and candles, and a small rangoli at the entrance. Each of these can be done in a single evening.
How early should I start decorating for Diwali?
About a week before. Start with anything that needs time to set, like cement pieces or candles, and paint the diyas a few days ahead. Leave flowers and rangoli for the last day or two so they look fresh. For Diwali on 8 November 2026, starting on Sunday, 1 November works well.
How do I decorate the mandir at home for Diwali?
Clean it first, then add light rather than clutter. A silk dupatta or saree as a backdrop, a fresh marigold garland, a few painted diyas and a tea light holder are enough. Keep every flame well away from the fabric and flowers.
Diwali decoration doesn't have to come out of a shopping bag. Start a few days early, make a handful of pieces together, and pack them away carefully for next year. You'll find everything in this post, and plenty more, in our Diwali DIY kits and gifts collection.
