I'm an Interior Stylist Who Knows How to Make Your Christmas Lights Work a Million Times Harder

The beauty of Christmas lights, if done well, is that they can transport you into a magical environment, creating a world where all is twinkly and the mood is one of escapism, comfort, family and friends. I’m a traditionalist - my mother is German and when we do Christmas the whole house is covered in lights from top to bottom.

The ambiance is so warming. Of course, it’s as easy to get lights wrong as right - too much and they lose their magic, the wrong colors and the whole vibe is off. Having done many Christmas shoots - and styled my own home countless times - this is how I always approach Christmas lighting ideas.

1. Frame reflective surfaces

The real magic of lights comes when you string them over a mirror as part of your Christmas mantelpiece decor or around a window. You create double the joy as the reflections in the glass bounce the light back into the room. I always wrap a string of fairy lights through some greenery and then use that to frame a mirror - it’s a high-impact approach that barely takes any time at all.

2. Treat string lights like festoons

You know when you walk into a wedding and large festoon bulbs are strung from one corner of the barn to the wall and back again in a zigzag formation? Why not treat string lights the same way? The long, thin shape of a hallway is crying out for this approach, lacing lights back and forth from one end to the other. So easy to do, so welcoming, and like a wonderland to come home to.

3. Focus on the center of the tree

My favorite way to light the tree is to get clip-on electric candles and place them on the edge of the branches — they’re so nostalgic and simple and sweet. But in order to make the tree really glow, I’ll get really small string lights and wrap them around the tree’s trunk, from the bottom to the top. This Christmas light hack gives a bit of depth to the illumination, and is prettier than having wires all over the edge of the branches.

4. Be sparing for dining tables

Keep it simpler than you think when it comes to the dining table — there are usually so many different dishes to serve you’ll need more room than you imagine.

Little battery packs with a string of lights, like this one from Target, attached can work as a runner with a slim line of greenery down the middle. Then mix in some very tall, slim candlesticks so that they don’t obstruct the view across the table or take up too much surface area.

5. Get everything on one control

Thanks to the wonders of modern technology you can control all your lights by one switch - there is nothing worse than going big on bulbs all over the house and having to spend ages turning them off and on one by one. You can buy plug adaptors that go into the wall outlet that you then plug the lights into, that all link up to one central switch or can be connected to your phone. One like this smart plug and switch from Amazon makes life so much simpler

6. Be spacious when lighting outside

Wrapping trees in your front garden is always an enchanting vision to come home to, but I find that the more spread out the lights are, the more sophisticated your outdoor tree lighting feels. Buy them as nets instead of as strings as they have wider repeat and there is more space between each glow. It stops your exterior from looking like Santa’s grotto.

7. Leave some areas undone

There always need to be some moments of calm, a surface or two that isn’t lit up like Vegas. It’s this contrast that allows you to appreciate the areas you have lit, so leave some windows un-festooned, or with just a simple star hanging in them. It will make all the difference.

8. Keep to warm

I only ever get warm lights — that golden glow is the one that is most familiar and heartening for Christmas. Buy the best Christmas lights you can afford so you’re not having to replace them often, and always keep a stash of spare bulbs handy. Future you will thank you for that.