More people are decorating their front gardens and the outside of their homes. But are inflatable Santas and animated reindeer one step too far or part of the festive fun?
Be it a string of white lights peeping betwixt the branches of a conifer, or a house outlined in animations with a blow-up Santa dangling from the chimney, more people are choosing to decorate their front garden and the outside of their home. And nearly a third of Which? members told us they put decorations outside their house as well as in.
A waste of energy?
I must admit to having mixed feelings about this. When we’re all trying to cut back on the energy we use, there’s something rather decadent about choosing to light up the outside of your home when you’re huddled indoors. Plus, you can’t even admire your own handiwork, trying to keep warm.
And just over half of the people in our survey agree with me, as 54% think outdoor decorations are a waste of electricity.
To be honest, I wouldn’t choose to decorate the outside of my own home in this way. I also hope that my neighbours don’t, so I can understand the 12% in our survey who wished that their own neighbours would stop.
Blackpool Illuminations down the road
But saying that, I do like looking at other people’s displays. When I go to visit family in the countryside at Christmas, there’s one house in the small village that stands out. It’s completely covered with flashing lights and animations. Is it in keeping with the village? Not at all. Is it tacky? Perhaps.
But I’m the first to volunteer to take the kids for a visit, as it does look amazing, and the honesty box on the front gate asks all admirers to donate money to charity. So it makes people happy and raises money for charity, what’s not to like?
Do you decorate the outside of your own home? If so, do you care what other people think? Or are your neighbours driving you crazy with their decorations?
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