Blog>Ideas>Outdoor lighting ideas for Christmas: Dazzling decorations to jolly up your home
Last updated: 8 November 2024
Outdoor lighting ideas for Christmas: Dazzling decorations to jolly up your home
Make your home sparkle with magical (and weather-friendly) outdoor lighting ideas for Christmas. Let it glow, let it glow, let it glow…
Lara Sargent
Lara loves writing about every aspect of the home – from the latest colour trends to emerging designs. She has a lot of experience writing about home trends and interior advice for leading titles such as The Telegraph, Metro, and Homes & Gardens.
We can’t promise a white Christmas, but our outdoor lighting ideas will certainly ramp up the sparkly factor for the festivities.
Yes, it's the most magical time of the year and Christmas light season has arrived!
So, if you’re wondering how to create your very own winter wonderland outside the front door, this blog is bursting with bright ideas.
Whether that’s rainbow outdoor Christmas light ideas, strings of icicle lights or glowing metal trees. 'Tis the season to be jolly after all!
We recommend hiring a professional tradesperson to help you hang your Christmas lights outside. A local electrician with experience in garden lighting is the perfect person for the job, or a handyperson.
See the tradespeople we've checked and recommend for your job
For a rough cost estimation to get a professional to hang your Christmas lights, read our Christmas light hanging cost guide.
Cost of Christmas light installation
With the festivities starting to get underway for the most magical time of the year, installing Christmas lights is one headache many people could do without. Considering passing that responsibility onto a tradesperson this year? Read on for the average professional Christmas lights installation cost.
Outdoor lighting ideas for Christmas
Get into the festive spirit with our outdoor lighting ideas for Christmas. Time to put on the razzle-dazzle!
1. Decorate with classic string lights
Hang white string lights all over your home for a festive sparkle you'll want to keep up all year.
Choose these classic outdoor Christmas light ideas in bright white or warm white - it's down to personal choice.
Then, decorate doorways, windows and trees and make every part of your property sparkle and shine.
2. Add sparkle to doorway foliage
Cast a rosy glow over the entrance to your home by entwining white lights around your front door displays.
Try adding simple strings of white lights to wreaths, urns and porch greenery and create the warmest welcome for family and friends.
It's a good idea to seek out LED outdoor Christmas light ideas for energy-saving and budget-friendly decorations.
3. Go for multicoloured outdoor Christmas light ideas
Dare to go disco this Christmas by covering fences, trees - even a gazebo - with bold rainbow lights. Seek out smart, colour-changing LEDs that can run on a timer or even set to 'dance' to your favourite music.
It's a good idea to get an electrician to install an outside socket. Find out how much it costs here plus useful hints and tips.
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4. Line paths with festive stake lights
Set the Christmas scene by using festive stake lights to line the path to your door. It's such a cheap and cheerful way to jolly up your home.
Try bold candy canes or Santa designs for kitsch Christmas decoration. Or go for plain white to match your Christmas lights outdoor ideas.
You'll certainly be walking in a winter wonderland. Have fun!
5. Drape greenery with outdoor Christmas light ideas
Have yourself a merry little Christmas by draping net lights over hedges, bushes and shrubs.
Net lights - much like a curtain of fairylights - are one of the easiest ways to add sparkle to bigger areas outdoors without having to hang up multiple light sources.
What better way to inject a magical festive feel in seconds. And great for giving bare brick walls a glow up too!
6. Cosy up a balcony with festive lights
You don't need a huge front garden to get the festive feels.
In fact, simply winding fairy lights around a balcony or front door canopy will make any entrance sparkle.
Choose between battery or mains operated lights and double check they are suitable for outdoor use.
All is calm, all is bright...
7. Oh Christmas tree, Oh Christmas tree
Why not put your Christmas tree in the front garden this year - and light it up for the whole street to see! It'll be a proper lightbulb moment to boost your kerb appeal.
Or go for an indoor AND outdoor fir to double up on the Christmas cheer. All that's needed are twinkly white lights and a smattering of snow - fingers crossed!
Have yourself a holly jolly Christmas.
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Let it shine: more outdoor lighting inspiration for your home this Christmas
Mix it up: Go for a merry mash-up of crimson and emerald green Christmas lights. Match up with your neighbours for a street full of fabulously festive lights.
Light up the back: If you've got patio doors out to the garden, light up the back of your property for a private winter wonderland.
Go full on fairytale: Channel 'Home Alone' style kitsch by lighting up every possible part of your property's exterior. That's what we call putting on the glitz!
Animal magic: Install super-cute, light-up reindeers and other woodland animals. Guaranteed to brighten up everyone's day.
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FAQs
What sort of outdoor Christmas lights should I buy?
Choose weather-resistant lights suitable for outdoor use – indoor lights are unsafe to use and will get damaged or broken. Invest in rechargeable batteries if you have outdoor battery-operated Christmas lights.
Do solar lights work in the winter?
Winter sunlight drops to around 1-2 hours per day (compared to summer’s 7 hours per day). So look out for good quality solar lights that work reliably all year round.
How should I prepare?
Work out which parts of your exterior you want to illuminate.
Are you hanging outdoor Christmas lights in tree branches, around a doorway or from a drainpipe to a fence? You’ll need to measure the area and make sure you have enough lights.
And always test your lights before you take the trouble to hang them up!
How to hang outdoor Christmas lights?
Decorating outdoor shrubs and trees is easy as you can simply unwind the lights around the branches, starting from top to bottom.
You’ll need gutter clips to attach lights to the edge of a roof. Get a sturdy ladder and someone to hold it for extra support.
Screw hooks into the mortar between bricks if you want to hang Christmas lights on outside walls. Use a masonry drill bit and wall plugs.
A hot glue gun is another option if you don’t want to drill holes in your brick walls. The glue should easily peel off once the festivities are done and dusted - but always check the manufacturer's instructions and seek professional advice if you're unsure.
Which professional tradesperson could help me hang my outdoor Christmas lights?
An electrician or handyperson who can help hang your dazzling decorations, safely and properly.
See the tradespeople we've checked and recommend for your job
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