Best Outdoor Christmas Decorations

Snow comes early to some parts of the country and world than it does to others. The snow slipping slowly from the branches reminds us that winter will soon do it wondrous dance with snowflakes and west wind to weave another year of Holiday Seasons around us. Even in areas where the weather is warmer and snow seldom has the courage to frequence, outdoor Christmas decorations are a wonderful way to get ready for the on coming days of presents, shopping, and out-of-town family.

Just about everyone loves to put a Christmas tree, whether real or artificial, in their living rooms. But more and more homeowners are choosing to take Christmas outside in the form of outdoor Christmas lights, outdoor tree lights, and other outdoor Christmas decorations.

I think the first thing that someone adds is a few strings of outdoor tree lights in a bush or wrapped around the porch railing. These lights that twinkle when the sun goes down light the steps a little and also provide a sense of Christmas cheer to those who drive by. After a year or so of just plugging in a few lights many people are ready to look for more ways to add more Xmas lights to their yard. A few years ago someone introduced the idea of the icicle lights that hang down along the gutters of the home. What a neat look. Icicles that come alive and make the home look like it is under Jack Frost's spell even when the home is located in the deep South.

I can't help but think of the Holiday movie classic, "Christmas Vacation" when I see a dedicated soul climbing ladders and stringing lights not only along a few gutters but instead in many other places. Outdoor Christmas lights can be found around windows, doorways, outside corners of the home, and even sometimes the peak of the roof. When choosing to do an entire home it is a great idea to incorporate different colors for different home features. This gives a Ginger Bread effect to the home. One home owner did their home last year with green Christmas lights around the windows and doors, white lights around the edges, blues on the trees and bushes closest to the home.

For areas that are too far from the home for easy access to exterior plugs the solar Christmas lights is a nice choice. The small bulb style lights do not require as much wattage as the old traditional light bulbs do. The solar lights simply have a solar panel that pushes into the ground near the item on which the lights are strung. Then the solar panel collects the sunlight during the day and releases it at dark. Solar lights do tend to dim over the course of an evening, but they are the brightest right when the sun goes down. And of course this is the time that more people are going to be out where they would see the lights. Not many people drive by many homes in the middle of the night.

Another great addition to any yard is large outdoor Christmas decorations. Every year a parade of inflatable decorations, wooden manger scenes, and metal frame work deer can be found around the neighborhoods. When a home sits back from the road, larger items are more visible than small ones. Everyone loves trains. It is a treat to see train displays all aglow. Some trains even have the lights on the wheels set to where they light up in sequence to mimic the turning of the wheels.

Other great large outdoor decorations for Christmas are large Nativity sets. One elaborate set I saw advertised recently had 15 separate pieces. Each prop was larger than life. There were not only people but camels, sheep, and other farm animals around the manger. A great way to illuminate a set like this would be solar flood lights or other spot lights which are portable.

For those who love Barbie dolls or think that everything should be "Pink for girls" then pink Christmas Lights might be just up your alley. Yes, pink Christmas lights can even be found by the die hard shopper. I think the main reason people would choose pink would be a reflection of the breast cancer awareness.

Other ways to add more charm to an outdoor Xmas light setting is to take the time to change the flood light bulbs on your home to green, red, or blue colored bulbs. Christmas time is almost a fairy like time of year. Added color which is reflected off of the snow adds even more charm to a yard.

Whatever your choice for outdoor Christmas decorations be sure that they reflect what you hold special in Christmas. If you love toys than then a toy train might be the thing. If you hold to the true meaning of Christmas that a huge Nativity set might be a good investment for you. The Holiday Season only comes once a year so taking the time and energy to decorate for it makes it seem even more special.