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Christmas is a special time of year. Everybody decorates their interior; Christmas trees are a must, and we also include various lights and other decorations to put us in the holiday mood.

But many people also forget to decorate the exterior. Creating a magical atmosphere is important to get you and your family in the mood. Anyone who walks by will also be able to admire your decorations. Using lights is crucial for the exterior decorations, and you might even have to purchase more lights if you don’t have enough of them already.

The sparkling and twinkling lights can make all the difference. But coming up with outdoor Christmas lights ideas is not an easy task. You can mess it up and make the whole décor appear cheap and unattractive.

To create that magical atmosphere, you’ll have to think thoroughly about the decorations. If you’re out of ideas, here’s a list of the best outdoor Christmas lights ideas for you to consider. Choose between the ones you like most; but most importantly, have fun and enjoy!

Some Quick Tips for Outdoor Lighting

LED-Outdoor-Christmas-Lighting-by-Christmas-Lights-Etc Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your house
Image source: Christmas Lights, Etc

Before you take a look at the outdoor Christmas lights ideas, here’s a few tips and tricks for you to consider. They’ll make your decision much easier.

  • Use the right lights for the decorations. You should, ideally, only use the lights with the UL (Underwriters Laboratories) label. These lights are made specifically for outdoor use.
  • Start with the exterior. This means path lights, and then make your way up to bushes, trees, and ultimately, to your house.
  • Don’t forget about your porch railings and staircases! Decorate them with string lights that’ll match your roof lighting.
  • Make something your focal point. This focal point will have to carefully decorated with string lights, a wreath, some packages and maybe a snowman or two to go with it.
  • You’ll need to know how many lights you’ll need for your decorating project. A good rule of thumb is to use 100 for every 1 or 2-ft of tree or shrub. Of course, it all comes down to personal preference, and how many lights you have.
  • White lights are not all the same. Some white lights have a more yellowy taste to it, while others are icy-blue. Make your decision as to what white lights you want to use.
  • Use a combination of various colors; multicolors, single-color, and also white lights.
  • Use electrical tape instead of old-fashioned nails or staples. These can not only destroy your roof, but they can also ruin the design and the look of the lights.
  • Put lights on your windows, as well as wreaths. Add some flickering candles to make it even more stunning.
  • Illuminate and decorate unexpected places where people might not expect decoration.

Outdoor Christmas Lights Ideas

Use these outdoor Christmas lights ideas to spark up your home and make it stand out in the neighborhood.

Timers

Residential-Christmas-Decor-by-Christmas-Decor-by-Aqua-Pool Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: Christmas Decor by Aqua Pool

If you want to save money while also making your home look great, you can use lights with timers. Having an on-off module that works automatically with pre-set timers is a fantastic way to decorate your home.

You might not want to keep the lights open at all times, which will help you conserve some energy. You’ll perhaps need two or four modules for keeping the house lit at the appropriate times, set by the timer.

Topiary Animals

Acworth-Christmas-Lighting-2016-by-Lights-Over-Atlanta Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: Lights Over Atlanta

Don’t forget to keep some variety with your decorations. Don’t just use lights; instead, incorporate lighted animals and similar lighted characters that will make the decoration feel more pristine. A deer decoration from lights is an elegant way to enhance the decoration, and you can even position lighted reindeers in a row to create the Santa’s reindeer team.

Or maybe you can place the animals all over the yard, making it a more inviting and lovely exterior of your home.

Add Ornaments

Outdoor-spaces-by-BlissLights Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: BlissLights

How about adding some oversized ornaments to shift the focus to your décor? You’ll have an enchanting exterior with some simple ornaments such as a globe light. You don’t need to add much to complete the look, and oversized ornaments are the perfect way to complete it.

Graphic Shapes

stars Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your house

Adding some graphical shapes such as stars will make your outdoor lighting decoration even more magical. Moravian lights are especially popular this time of year, and you can put on a marvellous show for the spectators. Add some other shapes to break up the monotony of the design that only uses lights.

Wrap the Trees

Deck-Lighting-and-Outdoor-String-Lights-on-Belmont-by-Light-Up-Nashville Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: Light Up Nashville

A great idea to make a stunning visual display for the onlookers is to wrap the outdoor trees with string lights. But choosing C7 or C9 lights will make even more of an impact. It’s a great idea to create something different and to make your exterior look even more inviting.

North Pole

Lighting-Customers-by-LKM-Mowing-Landscaping Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: LKM Mowing & Landscaping

Santa’s making his way from the North Pole to your home, and when he comes here, he’ll want to feel right at home. You can use vibrant lights combined with garland, red bows, wreaths and even candles that you can put in your windows. This is one of the more traditional outdoor Christmas lights ideas, but it never lets us down.

Illuminated Pathways

Transitional-Decorative-Lighting-FLIC-Luminaries-by-FLI-Luminaries-LLC Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: FLIC Luminaries, LLC

You can create a right winter wonderland by lighting up the path leading to your home. The thing with these lights is that you can easily create them at home, you just need some creativity and imagination. To do it, drill holes in 10-inch plastic cylinders, and enter small lights into the hole. Create more of them and put them next to the pathway to create a beautiful path.

Decorate the Trees

Duluth-GA-Christmas-Lighting-Project-by-NightVision-Outdoor-Lighting Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: NightVision Outdoor Lighting

Even if you have trees outside of your home, you can utilize them to put lights onto the branches. The twinkling branches will wow your guests and onlookers. Even if the tree loses its leaves, you can still use it to put lights onto the branches. It might be a bit of a challenge, but it can be an incredibly satisfying task.

Laser Lights

Christmas-Lighting-Fort-Worth-by-The-Perfect-Light Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: The Perfect Light

Laser light projectors are becoming increasingly popular in the recent years. That’s because they’re a fantastic way to decorate your exterior with something a little bit different. You can create a tree line, or decorate the lights in whatever way you want. Try to do something that best fits your landscape and exterior.

Cascade Lights and Falling Icicles

Christmas-Lighting-by-The-Perfect-Light Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: The Perfect Light

How about incorporating a dripping effect with your lights and create the feeling of falling icicles? It will catch people’s eyes, and it’s fairly easy to do it. Put the lights on your roof, and use the standard C7 or C9 lights. These cascading light tubes can add a lot of value to your design.

Neon

Nashville-Outdoor-Holiday-Lighting-2015-by-Light-Up-Nashville Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: Light Up Nashville

Neon might not be a traditional color for Christmas, but it’s still one of those interesting alternative outdoor Christmas lights ideas you can use. Neon-purple lights will mingle with the reindeer or Santa figures and candy canes.

Tomato Cage Tree

tomato-cage Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your house

How about something different here. Get two tomato cages, stack them on top of each other, and wrap the LED lights around the structure densely. It’s an interesting décor idea, but it can work, especially today when everyone is trying something different. Display this décor in front of your entrance and welcome your visitors with it.

Antique Sled

vintage-sled Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your house

If you’ve got an antique sled lying around, use it for decorating your home. And use bright colors with a lot of variety. This way, you’ll make the contrast between the antique and the colors even more apparent, creating an appealing design for your porch.

Wrap Bushes with Net Lights

Acworth-Christmas-Lighting-2016-by-Lights-Over-Atlanta1 Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: Lights Over Atlanta

Make use of the bushes around your home by wrapping some net lights around them. This is easy to make, and it makes a great deal of difference. It can add massively to the outdoor design of your home.

Roof Display

Transform-Your-Upper-Deck-With-Curtain-Lights-by-Christmas-Lights-Etc-1 Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: Christmas Lights, Etc

How about putting lights on top of your roof and matching the design with icicles on the edge of the roof. It’s a simple idea, but it can make a great deal of impact on your exterior.

Classic White Lights

Colonial-Christmas-by-Vernon-Wentz Outdoor Christmas lights ideas to use when decorating your houseImage source: Vernon Wentz

There’s something inviting about the classic. As many people are moving away from the classic white lights, you can make them the staple of your exterior design. If you’re looking for classic outdoor Christmas lights ideas, then use white lights to create a stunning scenery.

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