Everybody has a horror story about decorating their homes. From improper storage of their lights year to year to poor electrical work leading to some sections failing (all due to a single bad bulb!), everybody's experienced something that's just made it a pain. This year, give yourself the gift of time and calm--let us do your lights for you! You provide the lights, we hang them for you. Take all the hassle out of hanging your lights on your home or trees this Holiday Season. Not sure how many lights you'll need? Before Thanksgiving, we can come out and let you know exactly what to buy before the season starts so you're prepared.
We want to get your lights up before the season starts so that you can enjoy the splendor of having a fully beautified home for the holidays. Keep reading for our best tips and tricks on decorating the outdoor of your home below.
If you already have last year's decorations pull them out and run through a check to make sure that all the strings of lights work, that the inflatables inflate and that all the other outdoor decorations light up. Sketch out your house (or just eyeball it and decide if you like to live dangerously) what will go there and what you'd like to add. Don't forget to check that your extension cords work.
Decide what you'd like to do on your roofline. Do you want just the front of the house or do you want to extend down one or both sides of your home. What style of lights make you happy? Decide what lights you'd like to add, from simple white lights to icicle lights to led lights that change color via remote. We recommend LED because you can string up to 100 of them together in most cases without overloading the circuit.
Next, Measure your roofline either by guesstimating or using an app on your phone that can measure the distance from point a to point b (most phones already have this app, or one should be available in your app store). Once you see how many lights you'll need, add about 5-10% more to that distance to allow for a bit extra just in case you guesstimated short or in case some are defective.
Want to wrap your palm trees or other trees in your yard? Have columns on the front of your house you'd like to wrap? Measure what height you'd like and then multiply that amount by 3 or 4 (or 5!) and that's how many feet of lights/garland you'd need to wrap. For the tree branches typically you'd double or triple the length depending on the branches or palm fronds. Zip ties can be helpful for hanging lights in trees.
Outdoor decor can include a variety of inflatables, lighted garlands, etc. Add to your list what you'll need for these items as well and don't forget to include extension cords, etc to your list to avoid multiple trips to the store. Most stores sell clips and Command adhesive products that can stick to just about anything. Small brad nails work well too for areas where adding a nail to the surface isn't a deal-breaker.
SHOP EARLY. If you want until after December there's a chance that a LOT of the items you were eyeing are cleared out, and most stores won't be restocking. Light styles change from year to year too so if you need a few to match what you had in the previous year, you may have a hard time finding those. While you're at the store, grab some storage tubs for whatever you're buying so you have those ready to go in January when it's time to take everything down. Don't forget the clips to ensure hanging lights don't damage your roof or your gutters.
Pro Tip: Don't forget to grab electrical tape as well. You'll want to wrap each connection of electrical lights with electrical tape. Any place on your decor where you connect one electrical cord to another, wrap the connection well with electrical tape. This time of year we do see mist in the mornings and the occasional cold front rains can cause lights to short out and nothing dampens the holiday spirit faster than lights that won't light!
Wrapping trees, hanging lights from gutters, getting garland around doors and around pillars, choosing the right sized wreath and hanging it safely and securely over windows, and making sure it all works when it's supposed to--there's a lot that goes into making a house look ready for the holiday season! Don't be afraid to delegate this holiday season. Want to let us handle the decor for you? Fill out hour handy online form and we'll get you on the schedule! Click Here for our Holiday Light Estimate Request Form.
Comments