As one of the important festivities in Malaysia, Muslims throughout the country, as well as the globe, will soon engage in a 30-day fasting rite from dawn to sunset. After which, they’ll celebrate the Islamic New Month, known locally as Hari Raya Puasa or Hari Raya Aidilfitri.

Considered as a celebration of their gratitude to their God, it’s an annual occasion that’s celebrated with families and loved ones. It’s also a time for Malaysian Muslims to feast on traditional home-cooked meals, return to their hometown, contemplate their decisions and choices, ask for forgiveness, and reconcile with families.

However, with the current pandemic putting a limit on physical meetings, it can be challenging for homeowners like you to get a feel of the festive season. Instead of letting the pandemic dampen your festive mood, why not take this opportunity to redecorate your home and celebrate with your families virtually?

In this article, we’ll share some of the tips to decorate your home for this year’s Hari Raya along with a guideline to revamp your old furniture so that you can stay safe at home.

Ramadan is nearing which means you’ll have plenty of time to redecorate your home, except that you won’t be receiving any guests this year due to travel restrictions and movement limitation. However, you can still decorate your home to impress your loved ones virtually.

That said, you don’t need a total overhaul of your house’s layout or a total renovation to install fancy light fixtures. It can be as simple as rearranging your furniture, replacing your worn furniture, or adding some plants to your dining table. Here’s our take on redecorating your home for Hari Raya:

It makes sense to start with what you already have at home. You’d be surprised as to how changing the arrangement of your furniture can make your house feel different and give your space a new look. The one space that you should rearrange is your living room as it receives the most traffic during the festive season. Position your furniture around the room’s focal point and see whether the formation makes sense of the space. If it doesn’t, put on your designer hat and start rearranging!

For many households, changing the curtains take a lot of time and effort, so it’s probably done every year. Now that you’ve got time, swapping out your curtains can be pretty simple and an affordable way of changing the look and mood of your home. This year, designs to look out for include floral prints, Pantone Colour of the Year, and perhaps the traditional Raya green to complement your home-cooked meals.

Is your sofa showing signs of sagging or your solid wood dining table wobbling at one side? Replace your worn furniture with trendier or sturdier ones to update your interior look. Also, this year’s trends are all about going natural – from basic wood textures and stone patterns to retro pop colours and florals. On top of that, it’ll give your living room a fresher, perkier feel.

What’s a festivity without the lights? As a common sight during Raya, adding some lights to your home is an easy way to liven up the occasion during this pandemic. The best part about this is that you can find plenty of options online or even in stores at affordable prices. From small fairy lights to colourful lights, your house will be basked in bright, mood-lifting colours. Not only that, but you can also hang specially shaped lights like the ketupat lantern to get into full Raya mode.

To prevent cabin fever from getting to you during this festive season, try adding some greenery or floral arrangements for a touch of nature, warmth, and cosiness. There are many ways for you to do it – from small succulents to large potted plants. If you prefer low maintenance plants, there are plenty of artificial plants in the market that look real enough to pass off as real ones.

Another easy way of redecorating your home is to switch up your tableware that generally doesn’t require a lot of investment. It can be switching up your plates for colourful or patterned ones, or your simple glassware for a more elaborate design. You can also replace your placemats, table runner or cloth to add some personal touch to your dining room.

Given that you have plenty of time to contemplate what you need and don’t need in the house, it’s time to declutter your space. So, switch on your Marie Kondo mode and start decluttering. You can start with places that are easy to accumulate things such as the shelves, counter spaces, and tables. Discard broken items and sort out items that are still in good condition so that you can either donate or recycle them. While you’re at it, don’t forget to wipe down the spaces for a dust-free area.

Aside from these décor tips, we also have ways for you to revamp your old furniture into new ones so that you can stay safe and healthy during the upcoming Hari Raya celebration at home.

Revamping your old furniture doesn’t have to be costly. You just need the right tools and materials to make your furniture look new again. If you have an old solid wood piece of furniture such as a wood dining table Malaysia at home, this guide is for you.

Rather than painting your solid wood dining table Malaysia, you can consider staining it to enhance the wood grain. To do that, you’ll need some sandpaper, a wood conditioner, some rubber or nitrile gloves, wood stain, a soft cloth, and polyurethane varnish.

Starting with stripped wood, smooth your solid wood dining table with sandpaper and vacuum away the dust. Apply the wood conditioner to further help the finish go on more evenly. Using a soft cloth, rub on the wood stain and finish with a coat of polyurethane.

Reupholstering your dining chair Malaysia can prove to be a challenge as it requires some serious DIY skills. However, if you’re patient and willing to learn, it can certainly be done. You can even get some inspiration from the internet based on your dining chair material.

Before you start to reupholster your chair, take photos at every step as you dismantle your chair. That way, you’ll know how to reupholster a chair the next time. Make sure to keep the original fabric to use as a pattern.

With this simple guideline, you can now go on to revamping your old furniture for this year’s Hari Raya. If you have the budget, you can consider replacing your old furniture with new ones from Ruma as we offer a plethora of furniture designs and styles to liven up your home during the upcoming festivities.