How to Hang Christmas Lights (Indoor & Outdoor Installation Guide)

Planning on decking your halls this Christmas? With the festive season fast approaching, it’s time to start thinking about how you’re going to decorate your home for Christmas, in particular, with lighting. 

But despite the merriment in the air, illuminating your home can bring its frustrations - especially when tangled cords, broken clips, and unsafe power setups are involved. In fact, nothing is going to ruin festive cheer quite like spending hours balancing on a ladder and pinning up 100 string lights, only to discover they don’t work… 

That’s where we can lend a helping hand. Here at NOMA, we’ve been giving the gift of Christmas lighting for over a century. With a heritage that spans decades of generations, we’re proud to be the UK’s oldest Christmas company and experts in festive home styling. 

In this comprehensive Christmas lights guide, we’ll show you how proper planning saves you time and effort. We’ll share our top tips on how to hang Christmas lights like a professional, both indoors and outdoors, covering everything from safety to finishing design touches.

Ready to make your home merry and bright? ‘Tis the season, after all…

Tools & Equipment You’ll Need Before You Start

Just like the elves in Santa’s workshop, it’s a good idea to create your very own tool checklist to ensure you have everything you need before you begin setting up your Christmas lights:

Step 1: Pre-Installation Check & Safety First

1. Unbox & Test on the Ground: To avoid any nasty surprises, it’s best to check that your string lights work before setting up. Plug in the lights while still unravelled to ensure all LEDs ignite before climbing any ladders. Sometimes, bulbs may not be screwed in properly. So, give each individual bulb a twist to ensure full connectivity.

2. Check IP Ratings for UK Weather: If you’re buying outdoor Christmas lights, it’s a good idea to check the product’s IP rating. This tells you how resistant the lights are to outdoor weather such as rain and dust. IP20 are suitable for indoor-only use, whilst IP44 are splash-proof and suitable for outdoor use. Most outdoor Christmas lights will have an IP44 rating.

3. Power Access: Check what power access you have to your outdoor space. If you don’t have any outdoor sockets or an indoor plug nearby, consider opting for solar-powered or battery-operated Christmas lights.

Step 2: How to Hang Outdoor Christmas Lights (Gutters, Rooflines & Walls)

Hanging Icicle & String Lights on Guttering

Hanging up outdoor Christmas lights? Whether you’ve opted for twinkling string lights or hanging icicles, both make for dazzling displays and are perfect for fixing along rooflines, gutters, windows, and fences. 

If you’re wondering how to hang Christmas lights on guttering safely, we have some tips. To secure your lights, we’d recommend using non-damaging plastic gutter clips to hook your lights on, rather than drilling, using nails, or a staple gun. This avoids causing any structural damage to your gutter or roof. Plus, it makes taking down your lights at the end of the winter season a lot easier. 

For a polished display, face the clip hooks in the same direction and with equal spacing between each clip, for uniform bulb dropping. This way, your lights will look super neat and professional.

Designed to withstand winter weather, NOMA’s weather-resistant hanging icicle lights create a beautiful cascading glow along your property, while energy-efficient LED icicle lights deliver long-lasting brightness all season long. Now that’s what we call a Christmas miracle.

Decorating Garden Trees & Shrubs

To decorate outdoor trees or shrubs, the best method is to start at the base of the trunk and wrap the lights upwards, prioritising the ‘primary’ (or largest) branches. 

Make sure you have enough outdoor string lights to cover the whole tree and avoid any gaps. For denser coverage on evergreen shrubs and trees, we’d recommend using Christmas cluster lights. This way, you can position the clusters to cover any darker, denser areas and ensure an even all-over glow. 

Staking Pathway Figures

Whether you opt for a glowing snowman, reindeer, or the Big Man himself, light-up acrylic Christmas figures and 3D lights are fantastic for brightening up your garden pathway and bringing some festive cheer. 

To anchor your light-up 3D figures securely, we’d suggest using metal stakes to pin them into the ground. Carefully position the metal stakes around the base of your 3D figure, and where included, attach any handy guide ropes for extra stability and security. You could also use additional plastic zip ties to keep things firmly in place. Now, your light-up figure is ready to face a blizzard!

Of course, winter in the UK can be unpredictable, to say the least. The good news is, all of NOMA’s light-up acrylic Christmas figures are carefully crafted from weather-resistant acrylic, so they’re built to withstand harsh winter weather. 

Top tip: If you’re particularly worried about the rain and snow, it’s wise to invest in an outdoor weatherproof box (see our handy checklist above) to protect any electrical mains plugs and timers.

Step 3: How to Put Lights on an Indoor Christmas Tree

The Golden Rule: 

Always dress your Christmas tree with lights before adding baubles or garlands. It’s far easier to tweak the light placement without any ornaments in the way. Once you’re happy with the light placements, you can move on to the decorating part. 

Top-to-Bottom vs. Bottom-to-Top: 

Wondering how to put lights on a Christmas tree? We highly recommend starting at the top tip of your Christmas tree, near the power source (or bottom plug) and working down in concentric circles, pushing bulbs slightly inward toward the trunk to create depth. This way, you can hide any unsightly spare wires or cables at the bottom of the tree. 

Choosing the Right Light Style:

The type of indoor Christmas lights you choose will depend on the aesthetic you’re striving for. Here are our top three picks…

• For a classic sparkle, choose Standard Fairy Lights.

• For customisable colour patterns, brightness, and animations, opt for clever, App-controlled Christmas Lights. 

• For a thick, frosted glow effect, choose twinkly Cluster Lights.

Step 4: How to Hang Lights on Bannisters, Mantels & Windows

Staircase Bannisters: 

Bring warmth and a touch of Christmas joy to your staircase by wrapping your bannister in an enchanting decorative garland. To hang your garland like a pro, start at the bottom of your staircase (or near the closest plug socket) and weave upwards around the bannister, leaving a sensible gap between each wrap. We suggest 2-3, depending on the size of your staircase and the thickness of the garland. Use soft zip ties or purpose-made floral wire to fasten them into place and avoid scratching any woodwork.  

Make sure to fluff out the foliage, once everything is secured in place, to ensure an even spread of both leaves and lighting. 

Windows & Mirrors: 

To bring the sparkle to your windows and mirrors, we recommend using a flexible, light-up Christmas garland to create a festive focal point. Given that glass surfaces can’t be drilled into and are prone to leaving marks and smudges, the best approach is to use suction cup hooks with built-in clips for a clean removal.

Hanging Christmas Lights FAQs

Can I leave outdoor Christmas lights up all year?

Whilst most outdoor Christmas lights are designed for outdoor use, it’s a good idea to bring your lights indoors at the end of the festive season to keep them in good condition. Even our outdoor Christmas lights, which are designed to shine through winter weather, may experience wear and tear if you leave them up all year round. Our best advice is to store away your Christmas lights so you can enjoy them year after year. 

How do I hang lights without outdoor sockets?

If you don’t have any outdoor plug sockets for your Christmas lights, choose clever solar-powered or battery-powered outdoor lights instead. With battery-operated lights, you can enjoy all the perks of outdoor Christmas lights without the hassle of running cables through your window or extension leads.  

How many lights do I need for a 6ft or 7ft Christmas tree?

Deciding on the right lighting density for your Christmas tree is a fine art. Too many lights can make your tree look too busy, whilst too sparse, and your tree may be left feeling underwhelming. To avoid this, we recommend matching your tree height to the appropriate light count. 

For a 6ft tree, we recommend approximately ~360 string lights or 720 cluster lights, and for a 7ft Tree, opt for ~480 string lights or 960 compact lights. Of course, all of this may vary depending on the width and density of your tree, as well as your desired look.

To find the perfect lights for your Christmas tree, we have a full lighting density guide in our Christmas tree sizes blog.

Hanging up Christmas lights shouldn’t be a chore. With a little preparation, you can gather all the tools you need and plan the perfect festive display. Whether you’re hanging icicle lights all the way around your roofline, wrapping your staircase bannisters in twinkling foliage, or setting up magical 3D glowing light fixtures in your garden, taking the time to plan ahead will help you create an illuminated winter wonderland that’s worthy of the North Pole. 

Ready to light up your home this Christmas? Explore NOMA’s full range of indoor and outdoor lights.