Are You a Rope Light Addict?

When I hear party decorations, I automatically think Christmas lights. I am not talking gaudy displays that have people wondering about y sanity. I am talking accent lighting that adds something different.

Now, I have to admit, I am addicted to rope lights. Here is an example. My son was having a few of his little friends over for a party. He mentioned that it would be cool to have a spaceship party. Who am I to say no? My mind drifted to rope lighting and effects to transform my basement into a spaceship. That idea, a collection of LED rope lights in white, blue, and red, and animated rope light controllers were all I needed.

With the help of some rope light clips, I laid out the lights across the ceiling of my basement in alternating rows of of the colored LED rope lights. I alternate the lights so I can have them fade or sequence using my rope light controllers. I then placed white rope lights along the floor to act as an entrance path to the ship. Once that was setup, I utilized some tables, desks and chairs already in the basement by wrapping rope lights around them to simulate a captain's chair, a lighted control panel to fly the ship, and a few random mini control panels for my son's co-pilots.

After all the rope lighting was set up, I hooked them to the light controllers, turned off all non-rope lighting, and invited the family down for a brief show. The fading and random blinking of the rope lights (with a little imagination) turned my basement into a spaceship which was ready for its mission. It was all worth it when my son came in and begged me to do the same to his room. While I was more than willing, my wife's glare said otherwise.

The party was a HUGE hit and a few parents came down to check out the rope light ship. While some thought it looked like a lot of work, one dad, in particular, seemed to understand. He said "I see I have met another rope light addict". Yes you have.