Do it yourself Free
One weekend, a sheet of plywood and some string lights. Costs almost nothing and still stops traffic.
| Spot | What to get | How big | How many | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A |
36 in. Lace Heart Panel (opens in a new tab)
Amazon
The star. Dead center on the front walk, 8 to 10 ft back from the porch steps. Pick something with actual sides to it, not a flat cutout. One of your two streets is going to be looking at the back of this.
|
3' H | 1 | $49 |
| B |
18 in. Lighted Heart Stakes, 6 pack (opens in a new tab)
Amazon
6 pieces
Sidekick, left. Left of the walk, 5 ft out from the edge. Keep it under about 60 percent of the centerpiece height.
|
1' 6" H | 1 | $24.99 |
| C |
24 in. Lighted Heart Wreath (opens in a new tab)
Amazon
Sidekick, right. Right of the walk, mirroring the left one. Same distance out, same height.
|
2' H | 1 | $24.99 |
| D |
Pink Solar Path Stakes, 10 pack (opens in a new tab)
Amazon
10 pieces
Path and perimeter lights. Both edges of the front walk, then keep the line going along the side yard. Do not stop at the corner of the house. This run is the thing that ties your two street faces together.
|
1' 3" H | 2 | $46.78 |
| E |
Heart Yard Signs, 4 pack (opens in a new tab)
Amazon
4 pieces
The corner moment. Set back 6 to 8 ft from the actual corner point, and keep it low. Most cities cap how tall anything can be right there so drivers can see through the intersection. Look yours up before you buy something for this spot.
|
1' 8" H | 1 | $16.99 |
| F |
Pink Mini Lights, 300 count (opens in a new tab)
Amazon
300 pieces
Roofline and porch. One continuous run along both street-facing rooflines. Skipping the side roofline is the number one corner-lot regret.
|
2" H | 2 | $25.98 |
| G |
Bare Arch, Dressed
Build it
Side yard scene. Lace panels down both legs and nothing on the crown, then one warm light on the ground BEHIND it aimed back towards the road. This theme is light coming through a pattern, and the arch is the only thing in the yard that can hold a pattern up at eye level with air behind it: everything else is flat against something. Lit from the front you see fabric, lit from behind you see the cut. Weight the bottom hem of each panel with a rod or a line of washers, or the first breeze wraps it round the leg and it stays there.
|
7' 4" H | 1 | $31 |
4 things need an outlet, about 0.7 amps all together. That all fits on one 15 amp circuit, you are fine. Outdoor GFCI outlets only, and leave a drip loop in the cord at every plug so rain runs off instead of in.
You will also need
The cord is the part everybody forgets, and stores run out of them at the peak of every season. Outdoor rated only, and plugged into a GFCI outlet.
- 2× 25 ft Outdoor Extension Cord, 16 gauge (opens in a new tab) 4 plug-in pieces across 3 spots $33.96
- 1× Outdoor Timer with Photocell (opens in a new tab) Switches the whole display on and off on its own $14.98
About $48.94 of hardware, on top of the $219.73 of decorations. Buy it once and it comes back out every year.