At Christmas time, Shirley Pepys often sits across the street from her home in Newport Beach, Calif., and covertly listens to the oooohhs and aaaahhs of delighted passersby.
Ms. Pepys, a retired business owner, has been decking her home with boughs of holly—and much more—for the past 20 years. With each year, the décor has become more elaborate. Her display now features twinkling lights, illuminated snow, a family of faux penguins and a four-minute light show coordinated to "Carol of the Bells." Everything is custom built. But not by Ms. Pepys. For the past two years, she has enlisted Dillon Wells, an audiovisual professional, and his family to put together the full display, paying under $15,000 for the whole shebang.
More Americans are forgoing the difficult and sometimes risky endeavor of installing their own holiday lights, asking professionals to take their place on the ladder. National chain Christmas Decor, which has 40,000 clients across the U.S., says it has seen sales increase 11% every year for the past four years.
This shift means that holiday displays can get even more extravagant and elaborate. Many installers say they have worked on décor that cost as much as $80,000. Prices are typically based on the number of lights and the size of job.
Vance Brand, a Christmas-light specialist in Salt Lake City who works with 1,500 clients in Utah and Colorado, offers his customers 10 shades of white LED Christmas lights. With schematics planned out using computer models, the bulbs dance and twinkle, often to coordinated music. Mr. Brand, who says his business has grown 22% a year since 2008, installs and takes down the lights after the season is over. He says he has even rappelled over a cliff to hang strands on one precariously situated holiday enthusiast's home.
A self-described perfectionist who draws inspiration from nearby Disneyland, Mr. Wells says he was determined to interpret Ms. Pepys's vision into an extraordinary reality, rather than the do-it-yourselfers' version with exposed cords and hardware. It was a challenge, he says, to ensure that her home looked as great during the day, when many visit, as it does at night. But as he watched the lights display run for the first time a few days after Thanksgiving, he says it was his "Walt moment."
Scores of people come to view Ms. Pepys's home on Balboa Island, an area known for all-out decorations. Old and young have their pictures taken in front of her display and many return year after year. One man, standing next to a plush penguin, even asked his girlfriend to marry him, Ms. Pepys says.
For Ms. Pepys, these moments make the effort and the price tag worth it. "The amount of people it brings joy to people," she says, "it's worth the whole thing."
This year, she upped the ante and incorporated a vintage look into the theme to celebrate her home's centennial. There are 17 different floodlights and spotlights. The strings of lights, reminiscent of those along the nearby boardwalks, can be controlled individually and had to be ordered from Hong Kong.
The magic of Christmas lights remains rooted in holiday nostalgia, says Chuck Smith of Light-O-Rama, a South Glens Falls, N.Y.-based company that produces the software that syncs lights and music for displays. "It all boils down to that thing almost everybody remembers from when they were a kid," says Mr. Smith. "Everybody would jump in the car and drive around looking at Christmas lights. There's always one house that's decorated more than anyone else. A lot of people think back and decide they want to be that house."
Ms. Pepys, a retired business owner, has been decking her home with boughs of holly—and much more—for the past 20 years. With each year, the décor has become more elaborate. Her display now features twinkling lights, illuminated snow, a family of faux penguins and a four-minute light show coordinated to "Carol of the Bells." Everything is custom built. But not by Ms. Pepys. For the past two years, she has enlisted Dillon Wells, an audiovisual professional, and his family to put together the full display, paying under $15,000 for the whole shebang.
More Americans are forgoing the difficult and sometimes risky endeavor of installing their own holiday lights, asking professionals to take their place on the ladder. National chain Christmas Decor, which has 40,000 clients across the U.S., says it has seen sales increase 11% every year for the past four years.
This shift means that holiday displays can get even more extravagant and elaborate. Many installers say they have worked on décor that cost as much as $80,000. Prices are typically based on the number of lights and the size of job.
Vance Brand, a Christmas-light specialist in Salt Lake City who works with 1,500 clients in Utah and Colorado, offers his customers 10 shades of white LED Christmas lights. With schematics planned out using computer models, the bulbs dance and twinkle, often to coordinated music. Mr. Brand, who says his business has grown 22% a year since 2008, installs and takes down the lights after the season is over. He says he has even rappelled over a cliff to hang strands on one precariously situated holiday enthusiast's home.
A self-described perfectionist who draws inspiration from nearby Disneyland, Mr. Wells says he was determined to interpret Ms. Pepys's vision into an extraordinary reality, rather than the do-it-yourselfers' version with exposed cords and hardware. It was a challenge, he says, to ensure that her home looked as great during the day, when many visit, as it does at night. But as he watched the lights display run for the first time a few days after Thanksgiving, he says it was his "Walt moment."
Scores of people come to view Ms. Pepys's home on Balboa Island, an area known for all-out decorations. Old and young have their pictures taken in front of her display and many return year after year. One man, standing next to a plush penguin, even asked his girlfriend to marry him, Ms. Pepys says.
For Ms. Pepys, these moments make the effort and the price tag worth it. "The amount of people it brings joy to people," she says, "it's worth the whole thing."
This year, she upped the ante and incorporated a vintage look into the theme to celebrate her home's centennial. There are 17 different floodlights and spotlights. The strings of lights, reminiscent of those along the nearby boardwalks, can be controlled individually and had to be ordered from Hong Kong.
The magic of Christmas lights remains rooted in holiday nostalgia, says Chuck Smith of Light-O-Rama, a South Glens Falls, N.Y.-based company that produces the software that syncs lights and music for displays. "It all boils down to that thing almost everybody remembers from when they were a kid," says Mr. Smith. "Everybody would jump in the car and drive around looking at Christmas lights. There's always one house that's decorated more than anyone else. A lot of people think back and decide they want to be that house."
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