The Lay of the Landscape

Landscape lighting is a Key Component of Creative Holiday Decorating

Investing in landscape lighting is a great way to jazz up your property no matter what the season, but it incorporating it into your outdoor Christmas décor is a particularly desirable strategy at holiday time. After all, no matter where you live, winter brings fewer daylight hours, and the area surrounding your home simply isn’t as visually interesting as it is at other times of the year.

Going Beyond the Basics–Outdoor Holiday Lights

When many people think of landscape lighting for Christmas, the image of outdoor holiday lights simply strung across a bush immediately comes to mind. However, there’s far, far more to it than that. An essential element of creative holiday decorating–which is all the rage these days– landscape lighting can feature traditional or LED Christmas lights used to outline shrubs, paths, beds, creeks, roofs, and driveways alike. Either type of lighting technology can also be put into place to wrap columns, tree trunks and canopies. If you’re particularly ambitious, garland, wreath, trees, topiaries, bows, ornamentals and the like can serve to augment some or all of these.

Debunking Other Myths

Another myth about Christmas landscape lighting is that it should be restricted to outdoor holiday lights. Nothing could be farther from the truth. As it relates to creative holiday decorating, landscape lighting also encompasses other types of illumination to set the scene for a wintry wonderland. For example, if you have spruce trees or distinctive shrubbery set against a stone or brick wall or a even a white fence, place a spotlight there to highlight the “scene” at night.  If you want to get a bit more “Christmasy” and the backdrop is of a light color (white, for example), use a red bulb.

Extending The Glow–Creative Holiday Decorating

Sure, well-designed, well-executed landscape lighting will brighten your holiday and beyond. But you can also leverage your investment at other times of the year. Leave a few lights (not the multi-colored ones) around a group of plants or in a tree. One creative homeowner puts away the strings of red and green lights in the attic once the Christmas season is over, but takes strings of lights and creates fanciful shapes–from flowers to summer dresses, on a few of her bushes throughout the year. So don’t be afraid to experiment–your landscape, and perhaps even your neighbors and passers-by, will thank you.