Here are some ideas to bring beauty into your home for our special guest of Ramadan, that will motivate everyone in the house in espousing the ethos of this month:

• Create a prayer space/are of worship in the home: Illuminate it, have new or special prayer mats and prayer beads, a Qur’an holder (Rehal).Make this a masjid in your home that is easy on the eye and alluring for the whole family. You need not spend a great deal of money; sectioning off a corner of the home with simple additions like tea lights and flowers will be transformative

• Frame the most beautiful names of Allah and hang them around the house where they can be seen – illuminate them for added effect.Allah’s names such as of Al- Ghafur (Most Forgiving) or Al-Wadud (Most Loving) are great reminders of the blessings of this month. Having such names of Allah around your house, will inspire you to draw nearer to him and call upon Him with his names.

• Put your favourite verses of the Qur’an on pieces of canvas and adorn your home with them:Make this a project with your children or family members, and talk about those verses as you create these pieces and us them as points of reflection throughout the month. They need not be lengthy at all as some of the shortest verses evoke the strongest feelings in us.

• Place tall clear vases around the house functioning as ‘good deed jars’ – designate each one of them to the children in your family and get them to fill them with colorful, transparent marbles each time they do a good deed.This will not only adorn your home with colorful glass decorations, but encourage family members to have a friendly competition over whose vase gets the most marbles.

• Place lanterns around the home – Multicolor lanterns, inspired by Islamic architecture, are a great way to liven your house and change the mood this month, especially at night!

• Have a countdown wall running – This could be a chalk board that or a decorative calendar that is easy on the eye.This is fun way to stay cognizant of the days left in Ramadan, encouraging everyone to do as much as they can in observing this month , while looking forward to the joy of Eid!

• Place incense burners (mabkhara) in your home –

  Having a fragrant home during Ramadan is another way to beautify your space.

  Scents are powerful stimuli that can evoke emotional states, and support learning and memory. Having scents associate with your experiences this month, will add another layer experience and thus memory to your Ramadan.

  Moreover, your incense burners will pair up wonderfully with your lanterns and your home masjid.