christmas lights

Christmas Lights - Indoor and Outdoor String Lights

History of Christmas Lights

Christmas lights have been one of the most popular Christmas decorations for the past century. In 1882, three years after Edison invented the first sensible light bulb, Edward H. Johnson created the first Christmas lights in his home in New York City. The tree was hand-wired and lit with 80 red, white, and blue globes. The lights blinked and twinkled while the tree slowly revolved.

Christmas lights were first made available for sale in 1890, but were so expensive that most people could not afford them. They were a symbol of status among the wealthy and many people rented lights instead of buying them. In 1903, one set of 24 Christmas lights sold for $12.00. Considering the average person made about $9 a week, this was far too extravagant for the normal family. In addition to the cost of the lights, the service of a wireman was required and, if the house was not electrically powered, they also needed a generator.

Outdoor Christmas lights did not become practical for the average family until the 1930s. By this time, not only were homes decorated with electric lights, stores, community Christmas trees, and government buildings were also adorned with the twinkling lights. General Electric began to sponsor community Christmas lighting competitions in the 1920s, but it wasnt until the 1950s that it was common to see rows of houses lit on the outside. Today, the places you find the lights are as numerous as the types of lights available.

Varieties of Christmas Lights

Mini string lights are the most popular because of their versatility. Available in either incandescent or LED technologies and in a wide range of color options, these Christmas lights are the perfect addition to almost any Christmas lighting design. All of our mini string lights are very reliable and stay lit if a single bulb fails. Our incandescent mini string lights come with replacement lamps, and we carry LED testers and PODS for repairing the LED light strings.

Outdoor Christmas lights are most often C7 or C9 string lights. Either size is an excellent choice for those that want a more classic feel for your Christmas lighting. The difference between these types of outdoor Christmas light is primarily the size of the bulb. The number after the C represents the diameter of the bulb in eighths of an inch, for example a C7 bulb is 7/8 or .875 in diameter. So the larger the number, the bigger the bulb. These string lights are available in several colors and in either LED or incandescent options. If youre looking to customize the colors in your Christmas lighting design, we also offer C7/C9 light strands and bulbs sold separately.

Decorate mantles, wreaths, or even centerpieces in light without needing to worry about having a nearby outlet or running an extension cord with battery operated Christmas lights. From lit ribbons and InvisiLite strings to LED spheres and mini light strings, youre sure to find the right battery operated Christmas lights for this holiday season.

You cant go wrong with net lights or tree wrap lights for trees, columns, and bushes. Tree wrap lights are long and narrow; designed for tree trunks and columns. Net lights are shorter and wider which is better suited for bushes and shrubbery.

Dont forget about the holiday greenery. Our selection of trees, wreaths, and garlands are available in unlit and pre-lit options. For the living room or lobby, we carry a wide variety of Christmas trees from realistic pine, fir, and spruce trees to tinsel trees available in several color options. Wreaths are a classic holiday addition for residential and commercial buildings. We offer a variety of sizes, styles, and colors for you to choose from. For mantles and banisters, browse our Christmas garlands offered in a range of lengths, bulb quantities, and colors to customize your holiday celebration.

Check out our Christmas lights by application page if you need further insight on how to best use your light strings! Or do you need technical help with your holiday decorations this year? Our lighting experts are available at 1-800-624-4488 to help you make your Christmas really shine!

LED Mini Lights

Its a Brighter Christmas with Mini LED String Lights

With colors ranging from warm white, orange, green, and many more, you can choose LED string lights in your favorite color or to match your holiday theme. Want the nostalgic look of incandescent Christmas lights without the heat? While still whiter than traditional string lights, warm white LED light strings are designed to closely match the color of incandescent string lights. For an even warmer glow that most closely resembles the light output from antique lighting, use warm white deluxe LED light strings. If you to add bright pops of color to your theme, choose multi-colored lights. Most LED string lights are available in three different wire colors: green, white, and brown.

How Purple are the Purple Mini LED String Lights?

All purple Christmas lights skew towards red on the red-purple-blue scale because the only way to get a deep violet color is with a black light. The purple lights are closer to blue than our pink Christmas lights, but color is subjective and some customers still consider the purple Christmas lights to be pink when turned on.

LED String Light Shapes

Mini LED string lights offer much greater flexibility in size and shape compared to traditional strings, but are also offered in the same traditional shape youre used to with incandescent strings. Here are some of the popular LED light string shapes:

Are the Individual Bulbs Replaceable?

LED string lights do not have replaceable bulbs. In order for them to be outdoor Christmas lights, we use a single piece molded construction design. This protects the strings from water invading the sockets, making them safe for outdoor use. The string is fully rectified meaning it will still stay lit even if one bulb is out. Because some differences in color can happen between batches, if you are trying to match colors across a long string or full display, its best to buy all of your LED light strings at the same time. Buying the same LED string lights two or three years apart may have slight variations to the color between batches or bins.

From 17 to 25.5 feet in length, these LED string lights have either 50 or 70 bulbs per string. Using 3.5 to 4.8 watts, Christmas string lights are an easy way to add color and shine to the interior or exterior of your residential or commercial space. Decorate your tree with LED Christmas light strings from 1000Bulbs.com to make your holiday season sparkle.

LED Mini Lights

Its a Brighter Christmas with Mini LED String Lights

With colors ranging from warm white, orange, green, and many more, you can choose LED string lights in your favorite color or to match your holiday theme. Want the nostalgic look of incandescent Christmas lights without the heat? While still whiter than traditional string lights, warm white LED light strings are designed to closely match the color of incandescent string lights. For an even warmer glow that most closely resembles the light output from antique lighting, use warm white deluxe LED light strings. If you to add bright pops of color to your theme, choose multi-colored lights. Most LED string lights are available in three different wire colors: green, white, and brown.

How Purple are the Purple Mini LED String Lights?

All purple Christmas lights skew towards red on the red-purple-blue scale because the only way to get a deep violet color is with a black light. The purple lights are closer to blue than our pink Christmas lights, but color is subjective and some customers still consider the purple Christmas lights to be pink when turned on.

LED String Light Shapes

Mini LED string lights offer much greater flexibility in size and shape compared to traditional strings, but are also offered in the same traditional shape youre used to with incandescent strings. Here are some of the popular LED light string shapes:

Are the Individual Bulbs Replaceable?

LED string lights do not have replaceable bulbs. In order for them to be outdoor Christmas lights, we use a single piece molded construction design. This protects the strings from water invading the sockets, making them safe for outdoor use. The string is fully rectified meaning it will still stay lit even if one bulb is out. Because some differences in color can happen between batches, if you are trying to match colors across a long string or full display, its best to buy all of your LED light strings at the same time. Buying the same LED string lights two or three years apart may have slight variations to the color between batches or bins.

From 17 to 25.5 feet in length, these LED string lights have either 50 or 70 bulbs per string. Using 3.5 to 4.8 watts, Christmas string lights are an easy way to add color and shine to the interior or exterior of your residential or commercial space. Decorate your tree with LED Christmas light strings from 1000Bulbs.com to make your holiday season sparkle.