I use solar string lights when camping. They pack up small, turn on automatically at dusk, and stay lit all night. Fun way to decorate your campsite, especially for music festivals!

When I first started buying them, they were only available in single colors and tiny bulbs (usually the cheap blue/white LED), so I never considered them for anything else. Now they are available in lots of colors, so I've considered adding some to my Christmas decor collection. My concern would be not getting enough sun in poor weather and keeping the panels clear of snow.

Can't speak to the Christmas lights but I have learned to bring in my solar garden lights. The COLD of winter keeps the batteries from holding a charge..if they light up at all it is dimly and not for very long. Maybe for the warmer winter places? The camping idea is fabulous!! Soo smart.

Not the solar lights, but someone here posted a thread a while back asking about that cheesy looking "Star Shower" light thing advertised on TV.

to my surprise, my neighbor's got two, one to point at their house and another they have set up in the ground pointing at a tree.

It's amazing!! It's really beautiful. I honestly thought the tree was perfectly strung with tiny blue lights. It works well because the light only hits solid objects, so whatever you're pointing at really does look like you've got stringed lights on it.

I have a HUGE tree off my porch, and I want to get at least a couple to light that tree up at Christmastime.

Errant - good point about keeping the solar panel free of snow, and I agree I bet there wouldn't be quite enough sun during the day to give the lights a good charge. I was thinking of putting a small Christmas tree in the pergola down in the orchard, which is way far from the nearest outlet. Battery strands don't last all that long in my experience altho I have two outdoor wreaths that run on batteries and which do a decent job of running on a timer for the duration of the Christmas season.

tibbrix - I saw that Star Shower advertised on TV. Then soon after I saw workmen at a nearby nursing home setting what I'm sure was three or four of them spaced and aimed along the side of the whole building. I hope if you install them for your tree you can post some pics.

I will, schoolhouse, but it definitely won't be this year. There is a pasture across the way from me, and it has an incline. When you're at the far end of the pasture, you can see the tip of that tree in the distance. It would be amazing if I could get it lit up, like a Christmas tree hanging high up in the sky is what it would look like.

I was just very surprised by how cool that Star Shower thing was IRL.

I have the "bliss lights" from QVC which are similar to the star shower lights, I think. I have them all the time and I love them. love, love, love them.

I have lots of solar lights (lots of sun here, even in winter). but have not used them for holiday lighting.

We used solar outdoor Xmas lights last year. Nice for a while, but none of them work any more. I still have to get out the tall ladder to get one set out of a tree. We will use plug-ins this year and hope they last multiple seasons.

Oaktown, your solar strands may just need fresh rechargeable batteries. The strands I use camping stay in the 4x4 that's parked outside year round (so they go through wide temp swings). The batteries in mine need to be changed out every couple of years with fresh AAA rechargeables.

Thanks for the tip, Errant_gw, I will try that before I toss them!

Oaktown, do you have snow where you live and plenty of daytime sun? How bright were the lights?

Schoolhouse_gw, I'm in California in an area with no snow. That plus the drought and our south-facing front yard meant we usually got a good charge on the lights except on the few days it rained. They were quite bright at the start and lasted long enough for everyone to go to bed. I was happy with them while they were working. I think you want to be a bit careful with the panels, though, the first set we staked in the ground we weren't thinking about placement and it got taken out by overflow from the kids playing basketball.

tibbrix

Could you post a photo of your neighbors tree? I have never heard of these. I have 3 Cleveland pears lining my driveway that would look great all lighted up.

Does anyone know of star shower lights that come in a warm white (not the harsh LED blue type of white)? I cannot find anything but colored lights.