I like the fact that it gets dark early now. This way, I can see all the pretty lights that people have put up outside their home for the holidays as I am heading home in the evening. Every once and awhile I also get a glimpse of a Christmas Tree that’s inside and I have to admit, that I prefer the multicolored lights. I remember when multicolored lights were considered “kitschy” and clear lights were all the rage. I’m glad to see that the pendulum has moved towards center. We have mostly red and white ornaments on our tree, so clear lights are better for us – but I’m strongly considering switching next year. As we prepared to entertain over the next few weeks, I’m adding little touches of lights to our home in other places. I purchased a French Country Lantern at Parc Monceau in Westport, Connecticut ages ago. It was one of those items that I had to have, and figure out what to do with it later. It found a home centered above the window seat in our livingroom and I added a little set of string lights for it. It’s so festive and I’m going to leave them there year round.

Here are similar lights and the best thing about these lights is that they have a built-in 4-hour timer. I simply pressed the timer button at the time in the evening that I wanted them to come on, and every evening, they come on automatically. They take 3 AA batteries and should last a long time. The timer is so helpful!

They look great wrapped around a candle holder too.