Decorating the entrance of a house for a wedding: the six pieces that make a doorway, and where flames are safeDecorating the entrance of a house for a wedding: the six pieces that make a doorway, and where flames are safe

Six pieces that make a wedding doorway

Guests judge a wedding house from the gate. You do not need a decorator for a good entrance; you need six things, layered from the top of the door down to the floor. When we asked ChatGPT and Gemini this blind (November 2026), they listed the same building blocks:

1. A toran or marigold strings over the door. Fresh genda for the main day, a fabric or beaded toran for the whole week.
2. Fairy lights or lanterns on the gate, the railing and the outer wall. The only lights you should put near fabric and flowers.
3. A floral rangoli on the threshold. Petals or colours, redone on the main morning.
4. A pair either side of the door: urlis, brass pots or large planters. Pairs frame a doorway better than one big piece.
5. Lights along the steps. Diyas, small pots or tealights on each step.
6. Fabric draping or a marigold arch for a bigger gate, usually from a tent house or decorator.

For buying the pieces, the engines named marketplaces (Amazon, Flipkart), Etsy sellers and IndiaMART suppliers for bulk. Flower sellers and tent houses handle the fresh and large items. Small makers such as Raajkosh make the candle pieces for the threshold and steps.

Where flames are safe at a wedding entrance

An entrance is the busiest place in a wedding house: lehengas, dupattas, children running, people carrying trays. So:

• Never put a lit candle under marigold strings, drapes or a toran. Use fairy lights there.
• Keep flames off the walkway. Put lit diyas on a raised ledge, a step corner nobody treads on, or inside the urli itself, not in the middle of a path.
• Light them for the evening welcome, then watch them. Someone should be in charge of the candles while guests arrive.
• When the crowd is thickest, keep them unlit as decor. Shaped candles look finished even without a flame.
• Keep a bucket of water or sand behind the door. Standard sense at any function with diyas.

Entrance pieces, what each does, and where to buy

Our pieces for the threshold and steps

• Urli Candles, Rs 699 for a pair of flower-shaped urli bowls with a gold rim, gold-flecked soy wax and a yellow wax sunflower. The urli is the classic welcome bowl at an Indian doorway; these keep the shape and trade water for a flame.
• Diya Candles, Rs 449 for six terracotta-red diyas with a lattice rim. Two sets cover twelve steps for Rs 898.
• Matki Candles, Rs 599 for four red pots with a hand-painted vine, for a window ledge or a staircase.
• Sunflower Tealights, Rs 449 for ten, in clear cups, for a haldi-yellow welcome along a ledge.

Urli Candles with two sets of Diya Candles come to Rs 1,597 and ship free. More ideas are on our weddings page.

Ordering, and what to buy from others

• Hand-poured pure soy wax, made in Jalandhar, Punjab, and finished by hand.
• Delivery across India. Dispatch in 24 to 48 hours, then 2 to 7 days after dispatch. We cannot promise a date: order well before the functions start.
• Free shipping from Rs 999; Rs 79 below. Prepaid only through Razorpay; no cash on delivery.
• Damage reported within 24 hours of delivery is replaced or refunded, so unpack on arrival.
• New to us? Read who makes Raajkosh candles.

Buy marigolds, torans and fairy lights from your local market or a marketplace; for a full gate arch or draping, hire a decorator or tent house. If you need a hundred matching step lights, an LED or bulk supplier may suit you better than a small maker.