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Christmas decorations, whether indoor or outdoor, bring happiness to many people. Children especially love the bright colors, sparkle and shine of the season. Stores put out decorations for all of the holidays a bit early. You’ll see Christmas items start to appear in stores even before Halloween is over. It’s certainly tempting to decorate early if you enjoy decorating. However when is the appropriate time to string those lights up on the outside of the house? Do the lights actually bring happiness to adults? What do psychologists say about the effects of outdoor lights on mental health?
There really is no rule regarding when it’s safe to hang those outdoor lights. The stores try to sell Christmas decorations early to get a jump on sales. People may buy decorative items early, but most consumers avoid hanging up the Christmas lights before Halloween. There’s just something odd about combining skeletons and cobwebs with colorful lights, Santa Claus and scenes of a Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus.
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When is the Earliest Socially Acceptable Time to Hang the Lights?
Although when is the most popular times to hang the lights, the second and third weeks of November are the earliest socially acceptable times to put up outdoor lights. Halloween has come and gone and Santa will arrive within just six or seven weeks. The weather has turned colder, but it’s still warm enough to work outside. Additionally, people understand that stringing lights on a house is a job that would be more worth the effort if there were more weeks to enjoy them.
Before or on Thanksgiving day is not normally the time lights are strung. This holiday has its own set of activities which commonly revolve around preparing and eating food and visiting with family. Cleaning, entertaining house guests, and traveling are also common activities associated with Thanksgiving. Unless your family members want to do it after eating their Thanksgiving meal, this job may be something you want to put off just a little longer.
When do People Normally String up the Lights?
What a difference a few days make. The most popular time to string lights is the weekend after Thanksgiving – in late November. This is almost a national event, it is such a popular light-stringing time.
There are many reasons why people choose this weekend to hang their lights. Thanksgiving is over. Most people are often decorating the inside of the house and sending out holiday cards around this time.
People are often home from work an extra day or two during this weekend. There may be so much to do and a lot of time is needed to hang the lights. This is especially true if the outdoor artist plans to also top the roof with Santa and his reindeer and adorn the front yard with more light-up decorations. It’s the perfect time to get the light stringing job done.
What are the Psychological Effects of Holiday Lights?
Some psychologists say that Christmas lights and other decorations do actually elevate people’s mood. Some even say the colors and bright lights spike our feel-good hormone, dopamine. This color therapy is called chromotherapy.
It is widely accepted that the beautiful surroundings also affect our behavior. This new scientific field is called neuro-architecture. The colorful lights and things are good for our mental health.
People who decorate early are a tad more excited than the rest of us are about the upcoming festivities. Nostalgia may factor into the joy associated with the season because this holiday is especially geared toward making kids happy. Adults remember happy times they had as kids when they see the holiday decorations.
It is the generally the people who were not fortunate enough to experience good Christmases as a child who say bah humbug at the first sight of holiday decorations coming out in the stores. They need to create new memories.
Conclusion
Holiday lights lift the spirits of most people for various reasons. Many of us want to string up the lights as early as possible, but within the time frame that is both socially acceptable and convenient. The second and third weeks in November are acceptable times, but the first weekend after Thanksgiving is by far the most common time to put them up.
