String lights might be the most polarizing Christmas decor stance a person can take. You’re either fiercely loyal to winter whites or you’re chasing that candy-colored, ’90s nostalgia. Whichever side you land on usually dictates the rest of your tree – whites read crisp and composed; colors feel lived-in and familiar.
There’s no wrong answer in the great white-versus-colored-lights debate, but ALDI’s new multicolored Icicle String Lights are making a very compelling case for Team Color.
The Belavi design strings 300 cool-touch LEDs in blues, yellows, reds, and greens, cascading with the same poised drape as the icicles they reference – a balance between Hallmark-era cinematography and the polish of a contemporary Christmas tree LED. Might this be the colorful string light that finally converts the white-light purists?
There’s a softness that’s often missing from traditional colored lights, which is one reason decorators default to white. But these cascading strands of tiny LEDs get surprisingly close to that elegance. On a white wire, they all but disappear against a flocked tree, creating a glamorous, barely-there glow.
It’s entirely possible. A lone strand of color can skew a little… earnest. But these ALDI lights can link up to 15 sets end-to-end. In theory, that’s 4,500 tiny points of color to drape across the tree, the Christmas mantel (ideally with a mirror to bounce the glow), and every orphaned corner gasping for charm. Here, more really is merrier.
What really sells these lights, though, is how seamlessly they support the other kitschy Christmas trends taking over this season – the felted ski bunnies, the half-opened caviar-tin ornaments, the knit pillows that look pilfered from someone’s family winter house. Colorful lights act as connective tissue, shifting a room from a broadly ‘tasteful 2025 Christmas’ to something closer to Home Alone (1990), or better yet, to whatever childhood holiday still lives in your mental Christmas B-roll.
ALDI isn’t the only one pushing the pendulum. Plenty of brands seem over the too-cool-for-school Christmas. Call it crafty, call it cozy – either way, color’s back on the tree.
Shop Multicolored Christmas Lights
Multicolored Christmas lights bring a soft, storybook glow to mantels, trees, stair rails, and anywhere else calling out for chroma. I rounded up the best strands to jog the nostalgia and maybe even tempt the white-light diehards.
With over 2,700 reviews, these lights might be cheap, but happy customers praise the lights for how easy to put up and how reliable they are. There are 300 glowing bulbs and 68 ft. 6 in. of lighted length for really extensive coverage, and if you need more, you can connect up to three sets.
Orb lights have been everywhere this year, so of course Terrain translated the trend for the holidays. Their take feels fresh on a tree, and because each bulb is about button-sized, they’re just as good looped over a living room doorway or swagged along a wall.
These lantern-style lights have a hand-wrought, old-world quality. Where colorful strands can occasionally read like throwaway accessories, each of the ten bulbs here behaves like its own tiny statement piece. Try tracing the length of a stair rail or wrapping a banister for a grand entrance moment.
If you prefer a whisper, AllModern’s fairy lights offer the subtlest spin on this vintage lighting trend. They’re so fine they nearly vanish into the branches, leaving you with pure glow instead of visible hardware. Their scale also makes them perfect for tucking into a jar, a pedestal bowl, or any vignette that could use a soft, enchanted shimmer.
Curlicue bulbs are a classic Christmas silhouette for a reason – and in color, their retro beauty resonates all the more. With a solid 4.4-star rating over 44-plus reviews, these strands can leave just as easily indoors or out. But why choose? Run them inside and outside for a cohesive, color-washed glow.
Another orb moment, this time miniaturized in Target’s Wondershop collection. Each strand is tiny but surprisingly punchy, and (like the ALDI version) they’re built to link. Up to 22 strands, in fact, which means roughly 2,200 bulbs if you choose to go all in. A customizable dose of color for whatever corner needs a playful pop.
ALDI is already behind some of this season’s best Christmas decorating ideas, so styling your new colorful LEDs is almost too easy. Try draping them alongside the retailer’s wooden beaded garland to double down on the charm.
