Professional Holiday Light Service! Just for you...

It isn’t easy—or often safe, for that matter—to hang up your own Christmas lights. This is especially true if you get around to doing it after snow and ice already exists on your property.

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) there were 13,000 emergency room visits due to holiday decorating in 2014, with that number increasing each year. In fact, approximately 200 people per day suffer injuries during the holiday season, according to Patty Davis, a CPSC spokesperson. This is no joke: Injuries (typically among older men) include broken bones, head and spinal cord injuries, electrical shocks, internal bleeding, and even death. No wonder healthcare professional recommend hiring residential Christmas light installers to hang your lights and decorations if at all possible.

So contact us for all of your Christmas light hanging services. From set-up to storage, our elf Christmas light installers will handle all of the work for you!

See how our service works:

STEP 1: Planning & Estimating

We come to your home to listen to your ideas and begin formulating 3–4 options for decorating your house and/or property. We will also walk around outside and carefully measure every surface that requires lights.

With all lighting and decorative objects accounted for and planned, we will respond to our visit within 24 hours with sketches and pricing for your approval.

STEP 2: Collecting Decorations

IF YOU WANT TO USE YOUR OWN CHRISTMAS LIGHTING: You are responsible for untangling your lights and inspecting/replacing broken or burned-out bulbs.

CHRISTMAS LIGHT & EXTENSION CORD RENTALS: We rent commercial-grade LED lights—recommended because they (1) reduce energy costs, (2) require fewer extension cords, and (3) are far less likely to blow a fuse vs. non-LED lights. (Please note that availability for rentals is limited, so book us early!)

All custom decor (inflatables, wreaths, statues, etc.) are to be provided by the homeowner.

STEP 3: Installing Lights & Decor

Our expert Christmas lighting installers will have your home exterior (including gutter lines, roof, chimney, window frames, doorways, etc.) and landscaping decorated within approximately 2-3 hours. If necessary, we can include professional-quality clips to hang each bulb in a uniform pattern, and install dusk-to-dawn timers.

Please note that we will also set up your indoor tree, with hanging your ornaments and tinsel available. We will also decorate your outdoor trees, bushes, and shrubs.

STEP 4: Maintaining Materials & Work

If any bulbs burn out or affixed lighting or custom decor slips loose between our set-up and pack-up, simply call us and we will come out to replace lights or make adjustments free of additional charge!

We proudly stand behind our services—which also includes a warranty for labor and materials that we supply for the duration of the display. Does not cover accidents or abuse, weather conditions, or defective materials/workmanship supplied by others.

STEP 5: Removing Lighting & Decor

Once Santa has returned to the North Pole (or the New Year has begun, depending upon your pre-arranged schedule), we will return to your home to take down all lights, extension cords, clips, tape, zip ties, screws, and other materials that we used to provide this year’s Christmas cheer.

Before we leave, however, we will complete…

STEP 6: Packing for Storage

Everything that you own will be neatly disassembled and/or wrapped, and placed in boxes or bags for your storage.

Then off we will ride in our sleigh (OK, our truck), with a hearty “Happy New Year!” and our hopes to see you next winter for a new and exciting Christmas lighting project!

Top 9 contractor excuses, you tell us the 10th!

Soooo, we are all aware of the stigma that surrounds contractors as a whole. Unreliable, never delivering on promises, always going over budget, not trustworthy - just to name a few. One of the biggest challenges to gaining access to new clientele as a contractor, is TRUST!

Here at HomeGlow Painting in Princeton, we are out to shatter that stigma, one brush stroke at a time. But, until we succeed in picking up everyone else's slack (and we will!!) - let's have some fun....

Here are our TOP 9 contractor excuses, sorry as they may be...

1. I am licensed and insured (when they definitely are NOT!)
2. I have over 25 years of experience, they're just not telling you what they have 25 years of experience in. (most likely, 25 years making license plates in the joint)
3. I'll be right over. (how many times have you heard this?)
4. Now who broke that? (if you're only working with one contractor, it's not going to be difficult to figure out who broke your dishes and won't own up to it)
5. I didn't do it. (this ties into number 4, but some contractors even take it a step further and feel the need to blame their problems on other people or even their employees.)
6. I can start your job tomorrow. (until later on that evening when the contractor tells you something different.)
7. What time did I say I was going to be there? Some contractors confuse Eastern, Pacific and Standard Time Zones.
8. Of course I have references. (They will get them to you later that day so they can scramble for friends and relatives phone #'s and addresses - and also give them a heads up)
9. We can use something else. (some contractors choose to replace items specified by engineers and architects, because they "know better" and have more experience.)
10. Share your favorite (more like least favorite) contractor or call-out-of-work type excuse here!

That's SO *****ed up! (read this **** to fill in the blank)

KEY: That's SO caulked up! (read this blog to fill in the blank)

A homeowner's worst nightmare starts like this...

After a long month of working overtime to get that new bathroom renovation finally underway, you return home only to find that the, "carpenter," you hired left early this Friday - and when you look even closer, it's seriously a *****ed up mess! (we mean caulked, I swear... really, count the stars!)

You are heated! Your on the phone right away to confront him about how this level of craftsmanship came out of his company... after all, he seemed so trustworthy! He apologizes for this mistake, a new guy just started with him this morning. He swears it's a rookie mistake. They'll be back 7 AM sharp on Monday morning to fix it.... everything is under control.... disaster averted.

Flash forward... Monday 7:45 AM = No one shows. No missed calls on your cell phone. You've been at work since 7:00 and won't be home until later this evening - no time to call him now. Arghhhh.

By Friday, still no one has shown or called and now your seriously worried and frustrated. You call for the 48th time this week (yes, you've counted) and leave a message that he is fired. PHEW, that felt good. But now your left with a problem, one caulked up mess!

Here's a simple 5 step process to fix this once and for all...

1. Remove the old caulking by first applying paint thinner with an artist's brush. * Be sure not to over apply, the purpose is to loosen the material only!              
2. Next use a single edged razor blade to remove any stubborn caulk. 
3. Repeat steps one and two if necessary.
4. Once all of the old caulking has been removed, re-caulk the desired joint with a pea sized bead of caulking.
   
5. Wipe the excess caulk from the joint with a dampened rag (use warm water and a small bit of soap on the rag) IMPORTANT: Do not caulk joints larger than 1/4 of an inch.
   

After you've followed these steps on your first weekend off in a month, your happier than ever. Why? Your bathroom's finishing touches are finally coming together and your HUGE contractor bills have been unexpectedly eliminated (which means no more overtime, yahooo!! sorry Google). Great reasons, but that's not what really makes you feel good...

Your happy because on your nasty Yelp! review your able to actually school that carpenter with a lesson that everyone will see, along with before and after photos which not only inflates your pride, but is super sweet revenge.

Hahahaha, okay... maybe that's an extreme case. But you get the idea.

For more exciting stories about sub-par-contractors and all of their sorry excuses (there's a million), stay tuned to our next blog article which promises to be a crowd pleaser.

Princeton's Professional Painters - specializing in Retirement Homes and Home Owner's Associations

We take the "Pain" out of Painting

Secrets behind the RED DOOR.

It is a super common request to have your front door painted red in the Princeton area and for years and years now - we've asked ourselves why? What's the obsession with a red door? Is there some kind of significance or secret club that were unaware of?

Unfortunately, for all of your James Bond, Elliot Ness, and Da Vinci Code fans there is no such club. But in our QUEST to answer this question, we've found some interesting and reoccurring themes across the entire world...

Now when you see a red door, you'll know these interesting facts - but most likely the reason for painting your door red these days is just a matter of personal taste and a desire for a traditional/ historical look.

Knot an issue

If you've ever looked around your home and seen an area that looks like this, you're probably suffering from what's known as bleed through. This problem is common with both interior and exterior painting projects. It occurs most commonly in wood components that have many knots which are often difficult to cover completely, even after numerous coats of paint.

Here's how our Professional painting company from Princeton, NJ tackles the task to solve it once and for all.

1. We power wash all effected areas.
2. We then allow those areas to completely dry out, which usually takes around 24 hours.
3. Next we apply 3 to 4 coats of clear shellac in a fanning and dusting motion. The product pictured below can be purchased at your local Home Depot. 
   
4. Last we will apply two coats of our desired finish and color of Benjamin Moore paint products.

This simple 4-step solution will save you hours upon hours of frustration and sweat. For more tips on how paint like a professional stay tuned to this blog channel.