Christmas lights for Chadds Ford homes along the Brandywine, planned to be seen across open country.
Chadds Ford Township is the westernmost township in Delaware County, with Brandywine Creek running along its western edge. Chester County Christmas Lights provides Christmas light installation in Chadds Ford, from seasonal displays to permanent lighting, and we also light outdoor events and deliver fresh-cut trees.
It is a place with a lot of history for its size. The Battle of Brandywine was fought near Chadds Ford on September 11, 1777, and the Wyeth family of painters lived and worked here, N.C., Andrew and Jamie among them. The township was called Birmingham Township until 1996, when it took the Chadds Ford name.
Here the landscape is what we plan around. Farms, fields and older homes give a display room to breathe, and a few well-lit features can be seen a long way down a dark road. Tell us about the property (a few photos help) and we will send a free quote.
We outline the house, porch and windows, then light the trees and shrubs that frame them. On a Chadds Ford property with a barn or outbuildings, the display can tie them all together so the place reads as one scene from the road.
Getting up to the eaves of a tall old house every November is a big job. A permanent system mounts once along the trim and is controlled from an app, so it can glow warm white on an ordinary evening, take on color for a celebration on the land, and light up for Christmas when December comes.
Fields, gardens and big lawns make good settings for a party or a wedding at home. We set up string lights, bistro lights, and tree and pathway lighting for private events, then take them down afterward. Paths from the parking area to the party are lit so guests can find their way in the dark.
A fresh-cut tree delivered to your door, so it never has to ride home strapped to the car. It is easy to add to a lighting booking, or to order by itself.
In a built-up town, lights only have to carry across a front yard. Around Chadds Ford a house may sit far back from the road, behind a field or a line of trees, and that changes the design. Bigger bulbs on the main lines of the house, a lit entrance where the lane meets the road and a handful of wrapped trees will carry farther than a full outline in mini lights.
Cord runs need more thought out here too. Long runs across a lawn are planned so they stay tidy and out of the way of foot traffic and vehicles, and a timer can switch the display on at dusk without anyone walking out to plug it in. Ask about adding one.
We also keep the view from inside in mind. Lights on trees that face a big window or a back terrace can be enjoyed from the house all evening, not only by people driving past.
Out-of-town guests often arrive after dark in December. A lit lane and a bright front door help them find the house the first time.
Where a Chadds Ford house is old, built of stone or trimmed in original wood, lights go on the gutters and shingle edges, and anything that cannot take a clip gets a stake, a hook that is already there or a ground light instead. On slate we keep to the gutters, since slate can crack under a shingle clip.
Porches and doorways on older homes are worth special attention. A lit door surround, wrapped porch posts and lit shrubs on either side of the steps welcome visitors at the spot they actually stand, even if the upper floors are left plain.
Some properties also have stone walls, fences or gateposts along the road. A few lights on a gatepost or the end of a wall mark the entrance clearly on a dark night without any work on the house itself.
Warm white tends to suit the look of the valley’s older homes, though plenty of families want color, and the choice is yours. Once the holidays are over, we take everything down and store it until next year.
On a large lot, the landscape can carry as much of the display as the house. Mature trees near the road, a row of evergreens along the drive or a single specimen tree in the middle of a lawn are all good places to put light, and they stay visible even when the house is set well back.
Wrapping a tree takes planning. The trunk, the height of the first big branches and how the tree is seen from the road decide how far up to go and how tightly to wrap. A tree lit well from the trunk to its lower limbs often does more than a tree draped loosely all the way up.
Paths and walkways matter too. Lit edges along the walk from the parking area to the front door make the property easier to get around after dark and tie the yard to the house. On a farm property, the same idea works along a lane or toward a barn.
Yes. Chadds Ford Township is in our service area, along with the surrounding towns in Delaware and Chester Counties. Quotes are free. Whether your home is near the Route 1 corridor or on a back road closer to the creek, tell us about the property (a few photos help) and we will send a free quote.
Yes, if they are planned for distance. Larger bulbs on the main lines, a lit entrance and a few wrapped trees carry farther than lots of small lights. We plan around how the property looks from the road. Sending a photo taken from the road helps us plan which parts will carry.
With clips that attach to gutters and shingle edges. Clips hold the lights without nails or staples, which is why installers use them on older trim. Where a clip will not work, stakes and ground lighting do the job instead.
Yes. Barns, sheds and outbuildings can be lit along with the house so the whole property looks finished. Just include them when you ask for a quote. Lit trees and paths between the buildings help tie the whole property together after dark.
Yes. We put up string lights, bistro lights, and tree and pathway lighting for private events, then take it all down afterward. Tell us the date and the area you want lit and we will plan around it.
It depends on how much of the house and property gets lit, the height, the number of trees, colors and timers. Country properties vary a lot, so we price each one once we know what you want lit, and the quote is free. Sending a few photos of the house and the lane helps us put the quote together.