Our Editors Found the Easiest Way to Light Your Christmas Tree
Holiday decorating is a fun tradition, but the process of hanging Christmas lights can be tedious and frustrating. There's nothing worse then finding faulty bulbs or tangled wires as you're wrapping lights around the tree.
Luckily, our editors found an easier (and less stressful) way to light your Christmas tree. Lis Engelhart, GH's visual styling director, is always on the hunt for easy craft and decorating ideas, so it's fitting she decided to try this genius Christmas light hack.
Rather than stringing lights all the way around the tree, she placed the lights in sections up and down — hint: there were less tangled wires. "I'm the designated tree lighter at home and after trying this, I definitely think it's the best way to do it," she says. "It's easier to adjust the lights and also to remove them after the holidays."
Before you hang Christmas lights:
✔️ Test your lights. Check each strand for broken or missing bulbs. Plug in each strand to make sure it works.
✔️ Gather enough Christmas lights. A good rule of thumb: Use 100 lights per foot of the tree.
✔️ Wear gardening gloves. Even if you are decorating a faux tree, the branches can scratch.
How to hang Christmas lights vertically:
Divide your tree into vertical sections. Starting at the bottom of one section, string the lights in a zig-zag pattern up to the top of the tree.
Add new strands as needed and tuck the connectors deep near the tree trunk. Be sure to place some lights near the trunk, as well as the outer branches for a full look.
Once you get to the top of the first section, continue to the next section, zig zagging from the top to the bottom. Repeat for the rest of the tree.
Turn the lights are on, so you can spot any dark areas and make adjustments accordingly.
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