Whatever happened to proper, old fashioned coloured fairy lights???

[NannyR]

I've just put up my tree and I normally put warm white lights on it. For a change I thought I would try coloured lights this year.
When I was a kid, we always had multicoloured fairy lights, the kind with replaceable bulbs and I remember them being a softer, more sparkly light with pink, maybe purple, yellow and turquoise bulbs as well as the red, green, blue, orange.
The LED ones I've just bought are awful in comparison, too bright and garish and just red, blue, green and orange bulbs.
Can you still buy the more traditional lights anywhere? Or am I imagining (or mis-remembering) the lights of my childhood? It was 1970s/80s so a while back!!

[user27495824]

I've just bought these from Amazon with my birthday voucher 🙊.

[ParadiseLaundry]

Have you got a link for them?

Some of us are saddos and find this a year-round problem

[Showe]

Hello, this is probably all too late and you found a supplier some time ago, buy noma pickwick lights - multi coloured. Can buy on line.

[Intercom]

Couldn't someone invent a plastic with a filter which cancelled out the screen-y blueish light?🎄

[BertieBotts]

They are a fire risk because filament bulbs give off heat, if they're in contact with something flammable, like paper decorations or a v dry real tree, they can smoulder. Not a given but a possibility.

LEDs can be OK but you do need to be careful what you buy, I agree lots of them are overly bright. But there's no reason why they can't give off warm light as they can do light in any colour.

[GingerbreadMa]

See IMO even the good warm LED ones are only warm if you look directly at them, they still through out a cool screen-ey unnatural bluey periperal light into the rest of the room.

[GlomOfNit]

I loathe LEDs for the most part, though there are still some decent, soft ones out there, but often they turn out to be harsh even if they say 'warm white' on the box. Grrr. I also hate the way an entire section of LED lights will just fail, never to come on again, and of course you can't change the bulbs.

I'm ever so tempted to buy a string of Noma Pickwicks for the tree (to join the soft gold lights and replace the coloured LEDs) but do they get very hot? I'm a bit worried about them overheating. And why can't you buy strings of 80 or more?

[GingerbreadMa]

Yeah I just put them in a safety adapter and dont leave them on all night (like we used to do in the 80s!)

They are a fire risk but it was common practice to wire several strings through the same plug and overload sockets etc so I think that contributed to a lot of the fire

[Hijklm]

I agree but DH won’t have filament lights because of the increased fire risk. Also if one bulb goes it’s a total pain.

[GingerbreadMa]

Poundland : 100 filament lights (proper, incl pink) £2

They do "soft light" and "vintage" and "warm" LED lights but the peripheral light they give off is that odd blue tone light. They also do that LED thing of throwing the light a long distance rather than glowing on whats near them

I dont think LED lights are good for you. Its like screen time ramped up & not relaxing to look at

[CanIBuffalo]

Another benefit to the Noma lights - No Fucking Flashing!

[LunaFortuna]

Zevite - yes, the Noma ones are filament, I've just ordered another box :)

[aintnothinbutagstring]

Oooohhh I've got a collection, a small set of sequinned multicolour lights from a shop that's no longer going, was it Nauticalia or something. A set from B&Q from about 10 yrs ago which I think are LED but not overpowering, about 5 different colours and multiple sequence options. Most recently, a prelit tree from Amazon with very sweet twinkling lights. All very retro as we had multicoloured flower lights growing up that were hung around the fireplace so that's what I wanted to be reminded of, never owned any warm white or matchy decs!

[outabout]

The old filament lights had a fire risk, were usually unreliable and if you accidentally crushed a lamp, usually the possibility of a lethal electric shock (as well as broken glass).
It would not be a real problem to make low voltage LED strings with slightly muted (rather than piercing brightness) and nice shaped globes like the old LES screw in types (the conical shaped ones about an inch and a quarter long).

[PhilODox]

JL usually have coloured lights, non led ones. I only like the warm white ones though...

[Zevitevitchofcrimas]

Are they noma ones filament? I am happy to have one set of 40 and rest white.? It will still give some color.

The thing is in Xmas display out and about I see warm lights so they must be sold somewhere.

Maybe they will he the new bitcoin

[Fffion]

Old-fashioned lights = 240V ⚡️

[Lunde]

I bought these from Clas Ohlson
www.clasohlson.com/uk/LED-String-Light/18-1406

[Etymology23]

Primark have boxes of 100 coloured filament lights for £7. :)

[Zevitevitchofcrimas]

Never mind coloured lights, any lights that are warm and soft.
I spent fortune at ikea one year and the lights were harsh strip lights, horrid.

I just want soft fairy lights. I cannot stand led.

[BarbaraOcumbungles]

Until this year Tesco had proper bulb lights but now they are all LEDS.

I adore coloured lights

[GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER]

Yes, the modern coloured ones are harsh and garish. Ditto a lot of the modern white lights. And don't start me on the blue ones...

I'd love to drape our tree in old fashioned, soft, twinkly coloured lights. As a bonus, it would have the style police clutching their statement necklaces.

[Nancy91]

I used to have old fashioned multicoloured ones that played music! If I could find them again I'd pay more than I'm proud of!

[BertieBotts]

Should be OK to paint, not fire risk, because LEDs don't heat up like filament bulbs do.