Christmas Lights Tips
Read these 21 Christmas Lights Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Christmas Decoration tips and hundreds of other topics.
Color Schemes for Christmas Lights
As you drive through your neighborhood, you can't help but notice the difference between your house and all the other homes on the block. They are beautifully illuminated with color coordinated decorating schemes that make them seem tasteful and elegant. Your house looks a bit like you bought a bunch of differently colored lights on sale and them strung them up one after the other. While that might actually be your decorating strategy, you certainly don't want it to look obvious. What you need is an attractive color scheme for outdoor Christmas lights.
- Try using strands of blue, pink, green, red, purple or gold lights on a white home. Simply outline every part of the house with the lights and you will have an elegant, one color look. If your home is not white, make sure you do not choose a color that clashes with the home. A red house would look good with green lights, but may not look very attractive with purple lighting.
- Consider combining your main light color with coordinating accent lighting. For example, if you use blue lights to outline your home, you may want to use clear lights on the foundation shrubbery.
LED Christmas Lights
Almost everyone's seen them, those especially bright Christmas lights that seem more brilliant in color than other lights. These bright and beautiful Christmas lights are LED Christmas lights and are growing in popularity for several reasons.
- LED Christmas lights last longer than typical bulb lights some lasting up to 50,000 hours, thus saving you money.
- LED Christmas lights are energy efficient, using up to 90% less energy than non-LED lights.
- Christmas LED lights shine more brilliantly than other types of Christmas lights.
- LED Christmas lights come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and themes, such as solid colored LED lights, multi-colored LED lights, lighted garland and LED lights shaped like pinecones. You can even purchase battery powered LED snowman lights to decorate your home and save electricity to boot.
- LED lights may cost a bit more than lights that aren't LED but in the long run they save you money.
Color Trends for Christmas Light Bulbs
This year you want to make sure your Christmas tree colors are just right. However, you aren't quite sure which colors should to choose.
Actually, you're probably feeling a bit confused because the single color trends of the past have morphed into a selection of trends for every field—from the fashion industry to the home decor arena. The different industries have realized that consumers have different needs and tastes. Of course, this doesn't mean there aren't any trends. As you shop for Christmas lights, you should:
- Think about home decor trends that are hot right now. Pink and green patterns and jewel tones are both big in home decor. Natural colors are also hot because of concerns about the environment. While you may not be able to find beige lights, there are plenty of greens and blues to choose from.
- Consider fashion trends. The fashion world tends to be a few years ahead of home decor, but if you want to be seen as a trendsetter, choosing hues from the current fashion season for your light colors may be the way to go.
Outdoor Christmas Lights
Decorating with outdoor Christmas lights is a long standing tradition in many households. It's amazing how simple outdoor Christmas lights can take an average home and turn it into a festive display of holiday cheer. When choosing outdoor Christmas lights you will definitely have an enormous variety of lights. If you wish to shed a more traditional light on the outside of your home, you may wish to use outdoor lights in all one color, such as white, to illuminate your house. White lights can be found in all shapes and sizes. You can even choose from pure white lights that shine a bright white or a warm white light that provides a more subdued glow. If white isn't your color of choice but you still wish to go with a solid color, you can choose from all red lights, all blue lights and even all green lights.
Many people prefer to light the outside of their homes with lights that are multi-colored. You can choose from multi-colored outdoor Christmas lights that are slim, shaped like icicles, shaped like balls and even outdoor lights that are multi-colored and shaped like lilies.
Outdoor Christmas lights are also available in shapes of some of your favorite things. Christmas is a fun time to display lights that are shaped like snowflakes, penguins or even pineapples. How you decorate the outside of your home is up to you and if you like to add a little flair to your Christmas, then themed light sets may be the perfect match for you.
Easily Hang Outdoor Christmas Lights
You are decorating your first home for Christmas and you are feeling a bit nervous. Are you going to be able to handle putting up Christmas lights? After all, in the holiday movies, this is the point where all kinds of mishaps occur. However, outdoor Christmas lights are actually pretty easy to use. The key to success with outdoor lighting is to make sure you are prepared before you start the job.
The first step is to buy enough light strings to complete the job. Start by deciding how many feet you'll need to light up all the areas you'd like to decorate, such as your doorways, windows and roof line. Don't forget to include measurements for width and length.
Next, be sure you have enough gutter hooks to securely fasten lights that you are running along your home's guttering system. You can shop for extra hooks if you feel that there aren't enough in the light packages to do the job.
Finally, get someone to assist you with the job. A second pair of hands can hold the ladder steady while you are hanging lights from the roof. In addition, your helper can hand you the sets of lights as you need them, which means you don't have to run up and down the ladder carrying strings of lights.
Miniature Christmas Lights
If you are on a budget this year, as many people are, you may want to consider purchasing miniature Christmas lights to decorate your home this holiday season. Miniature Christmas lights are economical because you get many lights for a small price. What could be better than that when times are tight for people? Most packs of 100 miniature lights cost around $10. That's a lot of lights for very little money.
Miniature Christmas lights can be found in solid color choices such as clear, red, white, blue, gold, green and even purple. They are also available in multi-colored strands as well. You can even get miniature lights that twinkle.
There's also good news when it comes to having to deal with repairing broken miniature lights. Lights such as these can be difficult to repair due to their size. There is actually a miniature light repair tool that allows you to repair broken miniature lights with the squeeze of a trigger.
Miniature lights can be used indoors or outdoors and provide an elegant touch when decorating your Christmas tree, your fireplace mantle or even the bushes outside of your home.
Don't Worry About Outlet Locations When You Use Battery Operated Christmas Lights
You'd love to have electric candles shining in the windows, and you really want to illuminate your Christmas village. However, your electrical outlets are nowhere near your windows and you really hate the thought of having wires crisscrossing the artificial snow landscape of your village. So, you've been doing without lights to avoid the hassle of cords and wires. Before you spend another Christmas season in the dark, you may want to check out battery operated Christmas lights.
Let light shine safely from your windows with cordless battery operated candle lamps. These lamps will shine for hours on a single set of batteries. If you are worried about wasting batteries if you forget to turn off your candles, shop for models that are include a timer. You can set the candles so that they will automatically shut down after they light up the windows in the evening. They will automatically light up again the next evening.
Many accessories for miniature villages also run on batteries. This means you can set up a very realistic looking scene without having to fuss with wires, plugs and big, clunky looking adapters. You can shop for lights to decorate a miniature tree, street lamps and pre-decorated trees that shine brightly on battery power.
Add the Wow Factor With Christmas Light Shows
You carefully plug in your final strand of Christmas lights, hit the juice and stand back to admire the display. It looks just as nice as last year's display. In fact, it is last year's display, right down to the colored lights decorating the live Spruce by the driveway. You need to shake things up and bring some excitement to your decorating scheme, but you really don't want to change the way you put the decorations up because several years of experimenting have shown you that this is the most attractive display you can create. How can you add a wow factor to your decorations without ruining the beauty of that perfectly balanced decor?
A "Lights and Sounds of Christmas" synchronizer is designed to turn a static light display into a vibrant and exciting show where the lights flash or dance in time to the music playing through the system. You can choose from the large selection of Christmas carols included with the system to set the mood for a party or just to get your neighbors in a holiday mood.
LED Lights
If you are conscious about saving energy and want brightly lit Christmas lights, you will probably want to consider using LED lights. LED lights can display lights of a specific color without having to use a color filter. Because of this, LED lights are more efficient and cut costs on light bills.
Christmas lights are available in LED so if saving energy is important to you, you will want to do some shopping and find LED lights to use. You can choose from LED Christmas lights in all colors and multiple colors and you can purchase different light types, such as mini LED Christmas lights, wireless LED candle lights, C6 and C7 bulb lights and even LED light strands made specifically for those who collect Christmas village displays.
LED light strands cost between $15 and $25 dollars and are well worth the money you save in energy costs!
Candle Lights
Do you have a windowsill you want to dress up at Christmas time? You aren't alone if you are at a loss for what to do with that empty sill. How about purchasing a candle light to set on your windowsill that shines brightly out your window for your neighbors to see?
A candle light is a Christmas light that actually looks like a burning candle, only without the danger of leaving a burning candle sitting on a windowsill, you instead get a safe version of a candle. Candle lights even have what looks like a flame coming from the top of the candle and has a little stand that is attached to the candle, which makes for easy display.
You can purchase candle lights that are battery-operated, so you don't even have to worry about plugging them in or finding an outlet near your window in order to display the candle appropriately. Simply insert the batteries and flip the switch to turn on. You can instantly dress up a room with a lovely candle light. These types of Christmas lights aren't even that expensive. Expect to pay about $6 for one candle light.
If you want to add even more class to your window, you can purchase a more expensive candle light, one that has a pewter candleholder and runs about $15. This type of candle light will stay illuminated for over 120,000 hours and is also battery operated. You don't have to display these candle lights in front of a window, you can also place them on your dining table, your mantle or even a dresser. Wherever you want to add some light to a room, you can place a candle light!
Icicle Lights
If you are like a lot of people, you may look at icicle lights and say, "Wow! Those are beautiful lights!" Icicle lights are becoming increasingly popular throughout the country and really do add a special touch to your home at Christmas.
Icicle lights are for indoor or outdoor use and are the type of lights that have a main cord in which strings of lights hang down from, called tail cords. Icicle lights usually are six feet in length and can have up to six sets connected together at a time. They hang from your roof in a lovely fashion and come in a variety of colors from clear, blue, red and multi-colors. You can purchase icicle lights that twinkle or don't twinkle and you can expect the average icicle bulb to last 2,500 hours and cost about $17 for a strand.
Christmas Light Color and Type Choices
When purchasing Christmas lights you will notice you have a wide array of colors and types to choose from. To begin with, you will be able to choose from basically a rainbow of colors, including red, orange, green, blue, pink, purple and even yellow. Of course, clear and white are available also! You can also purchase Christmas lights that are single-colored strings or Christmas lights that come in multiple colored strings. What you choose is up to you and how you want to decorate your home.
You can also choose from many different types of bulbs for your Christmas lights. C7 bulbs are candelabra bulbs and are shaped in an oval type shape, screw right into cord sockets and can be used inside or outside.
You can also choose from C9 bulbs, which are similar to the C7 bulbs and come in a wide variety of colors. Both types of bulbs have the ability to stay lit for 2500 hours or more, which is a large amount of time to stay lit. You must make sure if you purchase a string of Christmas lights and you need to replace one or two, that you purchase the right replacement bulbs. C7 cords must have C7 bulbs and so on. You can't mix and match, which is why you must read the box and the light string to purchase the correct bulbs. Prices range from $.99 for one bulb to $5 for a pack of four. Or you can purchase an entire string of lights for about $12.
Christmas light colors and types are up to the person doing the shopping. You may want to do some homework and find which types of lights and what colors will look best in your home.
Christmas Night-Lights
If you want to brighten up a room at night during the Christmas season, perhaps you want to look into purchasing a Christmas night-light? Is there a better way to add light to your child's room during the Christmas season then to plug in a Christmas themed night-light?
If you want to start shopping for Christmas night lights you will see loads of choices in Christmas night-lights. You can search websites for Christmas night-light choices. If you want your darkened room to be brightened with a cardinal night-light - you are in luck, cardinal night-lights are available! How about a cute Santa with a Christmas tree night-light for your little one's bedroom? Or even two cute little penguins can help your child see better at night and most likely bring a smile to his or her face when they wake up each morning.
Christmas night-lights cost between $10 and $13 or more. When decorating your home each Christmas, why not think about purchasing a Christmas night-light to add to your holiday decor and make a dark room a bit more bright at night?
Complete Your Tree's Theme With Christmas Light Sets
Maybe you have one or two ornaments in your desired theme, but your tree is looking a bit sparse. You need more than a few ornaments to make your tree seem like it has an actual theme and not a mish-mash of ornaments. How can you give your tree that finished themed look? The answer may be as simple as shopping for themed Christmas light sets.
Stringing several themed light sets on a tree makes the theme you want to create very obvious and helps you carry the theme from top to bottom. Since there are so many different options, you are sure to find lights that fit your theme perfectly.
If you are putting together a tree that reflects your sweet tooth, M&M's®lights, peppermint candy lights and gumdrop lights are all great choices. If you want to add additional lights, consider using red and white strands that mimic the pattern of peppermint candies.
If you love the Snowbabies figurines, decorate your tree to reflect the simplicity and adorable innocence of these collectibles by using soft, white twinkle lights, white and sparkley Christmas balls and streams of long white ribbons to reflect the light and maintain the look of a soft, snowy tree.
For a water themed tree, you may want to consider lights that have black labs, mallards, trout and lighthouses on them. If you prefer an ocean theme, there are flamingo, flip flop and tropical fish light sets.
Sports fans will be able to shop for lights that reflect their love of their favorite sport, from golf to football.
Light the Way With Outdoor Christmas Lighting
Outdoor Christmas lighting looks so festive and welcoming during the holidays. It is a shame to keep those colorful lights from shining for most of the year. Why not consider some of these ideas for having fun with outdoor Christmas lights all year long?
- Buy red, purple and pink Christmas lights. After you take them down in January, create a big heart shaped light wreath with them. Plug it in on February 1st and let it shine through the Valentine's Day weekend.
- Decorate the trees and bushes with pastel and white lights during the Easter month. If you really want to create a fun effect, consider looking for wire topiary frames that have Easter or spring themes and wrapping them with lights. Combine a bunny shape with a basket or wheelbarrow to create your own lighted Easter display.
- Put someone's name up in lights on his or her special day by using Christmas lighting to spell out a happy birthday message during his or her birthday week. You may also want to spell out other messages with your lights such as graduation congratulations.
Decorate Safely With Christmas Mini Lights
With all the improvements in lighting over the past few years, decorating safely with Christmas lights is rarely an issue. However, it is a smart idea to consider a few things before you start decorating with your Christmas miniature lights to be sure you have a safe and happy holiday. To be sure your Christmas is trouble free, you should:
- Be sure that you are not plugging different types of light strands together because plugging a strand of miniature lights into a strand of full size lights can be a dangerous idea. If you want different sized lights on your tree, you should string together two or three strands of mini lights and then plug them into an outlet. Then, string together two or three strands of standard Christmas tree lights and plug them into a separate outlet.
- Think about safety when you start to run extension cords across a room. Always securely tape down any cords so people do not trip over them. You may also want to place a runner over the cord to further avoid any accidents.
- Turn out the lights when you are not around. This helps you avoid electrical problems and conserves electricity. Just be sure not to put a runner over any electrical where heat can build up is a concern. And never use lights with missing or broken bulb, or frayed wires.
Use Miniature Lights to Create Some Illuminated Decorations
Miniature lights are such versatile and lovely Christmas decorations that it seems a bit wasteful to only use them to light up a tree. Why not use these softly shining strings of light to illuminate and decorate in some nontraditional ways this Christmas season?
Think about using lights and glass ornaments to make a decoration that is sure to be a focal point. Carefully coil a strand of miniature LED lights into a clear container, such as a large crystal bowl or glass vase. Don't forget to leave several feet of the light strand and the plug outside of the container so that you can light up your decoration when it is done.
Next, carefully place glass ball ornaments in the container, hiding as much of the light strand's cord as possible. Using glass balls is important because light will bounce off the shiny surface of the balls. You may want to gently shift the ornaments around so that most of the bulbs are visible between them.
Plug in the cord to see how brightly your new ornament shines. You may need to make a few more adjustments to make sure it really sparkles.
Decorate Safely With Christmas LED Lights
You love the smell of live evergreen trees and, as far as you are concerned, nothing compares to a fresh cut Christmas tree. However, you are a bit concerned about safety since you will be stringing electric Christmas lights all over your tree. While modern artificial trees use flame retardant technology, fresh cut trees do not benefit from such technology, right? Actually, while the tree itself is just like the one your great grandfather decorated for Christmas, there have been some big improvements in lighting in the past few years. You can decorate a fresh cut tree safely with Christmas LED lights. These lights are a great idea for safe decorating because:
- LED lights are designed to shine without emitting heat.
- The new technology used in LED lights makes them a much greener choice than most other lighting options. The lights are designed to use less energy without sacrificing their ability to shine.
- You don't have to choose between functionality and design with these lights. They are just as attractive and welcoming as old fashioned electric Christmas lights.
Rope Lights
If you hate taking out your Christmas lights each season and untangling them, hanging them, and replacing broken bulbs, have you considered using rope lights instead?
Rope lights have many benefits. First, they easily wrap around things, so if you have posts on the front of your home or in your home, you can quite quickly wrap a Christmas rope light around the post and viola! You have decorated your home with Christmas lights. Rope lights are also great for hanging on the outside of your home and can also be used indoors if you wish. Rope lights are typically made with a vinyl cord of which a rope light set is wrapped. There is no touching of the Christmas lights as they are wrapped in a vinyl cord.
Most rope lights are about 18 feet long and come equipped with mounting clips and cable ties for easy hanging. Rope lights typically can be connected for up to 200 feet and come in all colors imaginable. You can also purchase rope lights that are multi colored and has lights that chase, meaning the lights seem to move throughout the string of lights within the rope. These chasing rope lights are pretty cool and will cost about $22 compared to rope lights that don't chase, which cost about $14 online.
Novelty Christmas Lights
Christmas lights really do add a festive flare to your holiday decorating. If you want to go fun, funky, or a little sentimental, you might just want to try out novelty Christmas lights.
Novelty Christmas lights are those cool Christmas lights you may see in your neighbor's yard, you know the ones ... those lights shaped like candy canes, angels, or Santa Claus. The ones that you often wish you would remember to purchase each year because they look so cute!
What you may not know is that you can get more than just the novelty lights like the ones mentioned above. Did you know that you could get Christmas lights shaped like a bunch of grapes? How about Christmas lights shaped like moose, tractors, deer, dolphins, The Grinch, Wizard of Oz characters and even Sponge Bob? You name it; you can probably get it in the form of novelty Christmas lights.
If you want to start shopping for novelty Christmas lights like these, you need to be prepared to spend from $12 to as much as $25 and you also need to make sure that you read the box carefully for all sets of lights. If you want to use these novelty lights outside, please make sure the box says they are for indoor and outdoor use. Not all novelty Christmas lights are for outdoor use, so read carefully. Websites that specialize in Christmas decorations sell these types of lights year round or you can wait until the holiday season and purchase them at a retailer.
Miniature Christmas Lights
Who doesn't like Christmas lights at Christmas time? You can hang them on your tree, string them on your fireplace mantle, drape them around a banister, hang them on the outside of your home and even string them along posts or a fence outside. Christmas lights can decorate almost anything you can think of.
Many people who put up Christmas lights, especially indoors, prefer to use miniature lights. Miniature lights are a great way to save energy at the same time making your home look amazing for Christmas. Because these lights are smaller, they require less energy to use, so they are economical to boot!
Miniature Christmas lights come in all sorts of colors. You can choose clear, pink, red, blue, green, purple, orange and even light sets that have a variety or colors dispersed throughout them. These miniature Christmas lights usually can be found in strings of 50 lights or strings of 100 lights that range in price from $5 to $8 or a bit more. Christmas lights can be found online at sites, such as Bronners.com.
Christmas lights aren't just for Christmas anymore, either. They make for great decorations year-round on patios, porches, decks, arbors, even camping trailers and motorhomes. LED lights are another new trend in all sizes and shapes.
| Guru Spotlight |
| Sheri Ann Richerson |
