Smart tips for decorating for the holidays

The holidays are just around the corner, and before you know it, they’ll be here! Though this time comes with its fair share of added stress, there is also the joy and cheer that accompanies it. In particular, one delightful aspect of the holiday season is decorating your home to reflect the holiday spirit, and this is the perfect time of year to do it. However, although putting up holiday decorations is fun, it’s also important to be smart about how you do, so that you can take the proper steps to keep your family and home safe.

Put up lights before it snows

It’s incredibly festive to put up lights on your home, and it is a tradition which is, sadly, becoming less and less common. However, getting up onto your roof can be quite dangerous if you wait to do it after it snows. The wet and cold weather increases the chances that there will be an accident that causes a serious injury, or even worse. Because of this added risk, it’s simply a much better idea to put up your lights for the holiday season before the cold weather ever comes around. Also, don’t forget to use proper ladder etiquette when getting onto your roof!

 

Be smart about Christmas trees

Nothing can put you in the holiday spirit like getting a real, traditional Christmas tree. However, this can come with its own set of dangers, if you’re not careful. Always be mindful of how fresh a Christmas tree is when you are picking one out. If one seems like it might be dry, at all, don’t bother getting it. Also, you want to get your Christmas tree when it gets closer to the actual holiday. Getting a tree at the beginning of the month increases the risks of it drying out and causing a housefire. If you are going to have your real tree for longer, make sure to consistently hydrate your tree so that it is not drying out too quick, or else you could have a real fire risk in your home. For more tips on how to avoid Christmas tree fires, check out this informative blog post here. If you are worried about this being too much work, it is probably worth it to invest in a fake Christmas tree and skip the fire risks, altogether.

 

Get approved christmas lights

Underwriters Laboratories (or UL, as it is commonly known) is a safety organization that conducts safety research on new technology and electrical products. When you are looking for decorative lights for the holidays, check the tag for the “UL” endorsement. This means that this particular product has been examined by Underwriters Laboratories, and has been cleared for consumer use. Purchasing these lights will greatly reduce the risk of electrical malfunctions in your product, which can cause short circuits, or even electrical fires.

 

Keep small decorations out of children’s reach

If you have small children running around your home, we’re sure that you just can’t wait to share the holidays with them. However, you don’t want to share them too much. Lots of holiday decorations can be sharp, or small enough to get caught in a child’s throat. Keep these decorations out of reach of your little ones. This goes back to your Christmas tree, and making sure that the smaller ornaments, or any ones that could pose a threat to a small child need to be kept higher up on the tree.

 

Keep outside walkways clear

The most common form of injury that happens in winter is simply when a person slips and falls on ice. Indeed, slips and falls are a major cause of accidental death. Only traffic accidents cause more accidental deaths in the United States. Because of this fact, when getting your home ready for the holidays, it can help to think of having clear walkways outside your home as part of the decorations (it is an aesthetic factor, as well, after all!). After you have cleared your walkways of snow and ice, it can also be a good idea to ice them, to prevent freezing. Be warned, though! Certain types of rock salt can cause cement to crack and break.