Buy Christmas Lights - A Practical Guide

If you're anything like my girlfriend, you'll start off with the colour scheme. Every year has to be different - I don't know why. So this means every November we'll be out buying new Christmas lights and decorations. So here's my top tips for buying Christmas lights:

1. Start off with your colour scheme (ok she is right!)
   
   a) Indoor Christmas Lights - Think about the decor of your home as it is - which colours will match your walls and carpets? Also think about if you want to buy more tinsel or other Christmas decorations or if you're trying to save money and would prefer to match a previous colour scheme.
   
   b) Outdoor Christmas Lights - You may want to consider the colour of your home, what colours are your outside walls and roof? Also if you have any plants or foliage that are of distinct colour you may want to match that?
   
   If you're going for an understated look then try white Christmas lights which are probably going to be in the form of string lights (PLR-190's or PLR-200).
   
   
2. Think about buying the best Christmas lights you can afford
   
   It is advisable to go for high-quality lights as you don't want to have to find yourself up a ladder in the snow, fog or wind trying to twist the bulbs to get them to work. Buy decent Christmas lights and spend the time inside with your family knocking back the Sherry that you seem to get every year.
   
   Be careful not to buy the 'mass-produced' Christmas lights as they're often more trouble than they're worth - we don't recommend the lights you'll possibly end up buying from your supermarket - look for a specialist Christmas retailer. Often the only way that a manufacturer can produce the lights for so little is that they have to reduce the voltage to pass the European standards. Obviously you won't get as bright lights if they're cheap!
   
   
3. Where should I put Christmas lights?
   
   It's entirely up to you, but think about where you ideally want them then measure the distance to the electricity source. Always buy the lights slightly longer than you think you need as you'll invariably need that extra bit of cord.
   
   
4. I want really bright Christmas lights - what should I buy?
   
   If you want really bright Christmas lights then consider an LED outdoor option. Think about a blue LED Christmas light as you'll get a nice "icy" effect and look great on the trees in your garden.
   
   LED Christmas lights are generally 3 times brighter than traditional Christmas lights and you can have them in all the formats you'd like, such as circle lights, rope lights, string lights and net lights.
   
   
5. Are outdoor Christmas lights weatherproof?
   
   They'd be silly to call them outdoor Christmas lights if they weren't safe to use outside in the wind, cold and rain. Check to see that the lights are IP44 standard. Also make sure that they have the European 'CE' Standard.
   
   Check to see if the bulbs are double-sealed and have a "fuse bulb system" which means that if the bulb does 'go' the rest of the lights won't go off with it.
   
   
6. I want to buy extendable Christmas lights, can I?
   
   Of course you can, many retailers have light systems where you can safely "bolt on" more lights, just search for "Christmas lights" and make sure they're "extendable" or "connectible".
   
   
7. I don't have an outdoor socket - can I still have outdoor Christmas lights?
   
   The best way may be to get a IP55 rated weatherproofed outdoor socket for about a tenner and get it installed by a fully qualified electrician - you're no longer allowed to install it yourself - and why would you? Often having an outdoor socket can be beneficial in other ways such as making it easier to mow your lawn, power other tools, hook up music systems etc etc.
   
   
8. What Voltage should I look for?
   
   Our sources say that you should only use 24 volt LED Christmas lights near children as they're cooler as well as generally last ten times as long as traditional fairy lights.
   
   It may be safer to buy new high-quality lights over trying to repair old fairy lights. It's important to think about safety over saving a few pounds. Also LED lights are generally cheaper to run - especially if you leave them on most of the time.
   
   LED Christmas lights generally have a much longer life than traditional fairy lights - you can expect to have them last for 100,000 hours.
   
   
9. Where can I buy Outdoor Christmas lights?
   
   There are a range of online shops that sell outdoor Christmas lights:
   
   a) Nigel's Eco Store - they have a Solar powered Chrismas rope light for £22.49.
   b) EAD Lighting - EAD have a large selection of light accessories, battery lights, blow molds, Christmas lights, Christmas lighted scenes, icicle lights, indoor lights, LED lights, LED snowmen, net lights, outdoor lights, rattan lighted snowmen, reindeer, animated rope sillouettes, static rope silhouettes, sisal lighted penguin, sisal lighted snowmen, sisal lighted Santa and window lights.