I love this Easy DIY Ball Lights for Inexpensive Home Lighting project because it’s so simple and will add bright and fun lighting to your home. This DIY lighting project is quick enough to be done in less than an hour. This light string would work great in a kids’ room, a living room, outdoors at a patio, or any room of your house where you desire more light. Kids could help with this project too. Adding fresh flowers to the light strand brings beauty and a wonderful fragrance to your living room. I love this frugal DIY lighting idea for holiday decorating too!
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Guest Post by Callum Mundine of LED World
Thank you Callum Mundine for sharing your awesome DIY lighting idea with us!
How to Make this Easy DIY Ball Lights Project
Are you bored of the same old décor in your home? I hear you! Sometimes, you just want a change, even a small one. Allow me to introduce you to a versatile and fun DIY project you can complete in half an hour. You probably have all the materials already lying around somewhere – even if you do not, it does not cost much to buy everything you need. The end result is a really pretty design that you can put up anywhere. Best of all, it blends with every color scheme you can imagine.
What you will need:
- LED lights (white, clear, or colored)
- Ping Pong Balls
- Precision knife
- Hot glue gun or silicone (optional) (only use non-flammable)
- flowers (optional to tie onto wire)
Things to keep in mind:
For this project, you will be inserting LED lights into ping pong balls to create a beautiful strand of lights to hang up around your home.
Before you get started, you need to decide what kind of LED lights you want to use and how long you want them to be. Colored LEDs will make your ping pong balls glow red, green, yellow or blue, depending on what colors you choose. Clear LEDs will give your balls a soft white or golden glow.
If you want your lights to be neutral and highlight your décor, you should choose clear LEDs. If you want pops of color you should choose colored LEDs. Remember to consider the color of the wires as well when you are deciding what type of lights you want to buy.
After you have decided where you want to display your lights, measure the length of the strand (or strands) you will need. Short strands have about 10-20 lights while longer strands host around 100. The number of lights you have determines how many ping pong balls you will need. It’s a good idea to have extra balls nearby just in case a few are unusable. You can order balls in bulk online or buy them at sporting goods stores for less than $10.
Always Use Caution and Assess Your Light Strand Before Proceeding
Test your lights before you begin the project so that you know all the lights are working. Leave your lights on for an hour before you begin and see if any of them get really hot. Ping pong balls are made of plastic and can become warped if exposed to too much heat over long periods of time. This rarely happens with normal lights though, so it’s only a concern if your lights are hot to the touch.
**Make sure you assess the heat given off by your specific set of lights before proceeding. Don’t leave them plugged in while unattended, unplug them when you leave the room.
Use Glue or Silicone
For this project, the glue is optional but highly recommended. It will secure your lights inside the balls and prevent dust or dirt from getting inside them (especially if you want to hang them outside along your flower bed, on the patio wall, or on trees). A tube of silicone costs less than $5 and is a better option than glue because it is easier to remove in case you need to change out any dead bulbs or dirty balls.
How to DIY Instructions:
- Stabilize your balls on a mount or empty egg carton and cut a small X into it, away from the seams. The X should only be large enough to push the LED through.
- Gently push each LED bulb through the X.
- Seal the X with silicone or glue and allow it to air dry.
- Drape your lights on your wall or furniture and enjoy the magic you just created!
There are many things you can do with your lights like layering clear strands with multi-colored ones, wrapping the LEDs around an ottoman or even lighting up a cozy reading nook. Let your imagination run free and see what you can create.
About The Author: Callum Mundine is the co-owner (with his brother Simon) of LED World in Sydney, Australia. They are a lighting design firm who specialize in art lighting. In his spare time, he enjoys creating fun DIY projects with his two children.
Looking for more inexpensive DIY projects for your home that both adults and kids could enjoy? Try my DIY Pool Noodle Fish Float With Headrest
Or, my inexpensive holiday decoration Cheap Outdoor DIY Christmas Decoration for $10
I hope you enjoyed this DIY Ping Pong Ball Light project! Drop me a comment sometime if you make it, I’d love to hear about it!
P.S. I recommend you hit the after holiday sales to get the best prices on the LED lights:)
This is so flipping clever. I’m going to have to buy some ping pong balls and have a go! I’ll let you know how I get on!
Awesome! I hope you enjoy it!!
This is such a cute and good idea! I love it! I also enjoy engaging in DIY projects every now and again, and this is the perfect one. My best friend loves lights like these, so I think I may have to make her some for her birthday!
Thanks! I love this idea too, my guest post writer shared such a fun idea! It’s so versatile too because different colors could be used and different items could be tied to the string, such as the flowers pictured here.
Oh my goodness, what a great idea! You are so creative!
Thanks! It is a great idea, I love that my guest poster shared it with us!!
These are so fun and look pretty easy to do, I may have to try this out!
Yes, super easy with great effects! Thank you!!
That is SO pretty! What a clever idea. Wonderfull
Thanks! I love this too! So simple, yet so beautiful, exactly what I look for:)
Nice post with amazing pictures. LED lights are cheaper as compared to other lighting options so it’s a nice idea to go for them.
Thanks! I love LED lights!!
Great article, clear and with lots of useful information. Thanks for run down.
You are very welcome. Thanks:)