Thread: Best retail store to purchase Christmas lights on clearance?

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A lot of stuff seems to be gone at the Home Depots and Lowes Hardware in my area. Any suggestions on picking up some string lights cheaply? Walmart? Target? Big Lots? Drug stores like Walgreens and CVS? Did I miss anything?

These would be lights to use with the Gemmy light and sound show unit I just purchased for $50 at Front Gate. I know some people say they don't work with LED lights due to the minimal power draw. But I've seen conflicting reports about this, e.g. if you chain enough of them together then LED light strands might work with the Gemmy.

Checked my local Walmart and Target. No lights left to speak of. Walgreen's still had a fair selection of lights. I picked two boxes of "200 heavy duty ice lights - outdoor" (one blue set and one clear set) for 50% off (~$5.50 each; regular price was $10.99). Got a similar set of 300 multicolored "ice lights") for the same price. Didn't check CVS. I've got 30 days to return them. Hope to test with my Gemmy when that arrives.

Walmart was out of LED lights 2 weeks before Christmas, they went way too far in their "we don't want clearance" underbuying and shot themselves in the foot. Of course they still have five aisles of <$1 ornaments, gift bags, and various other tacky items that no one will buy until it's at 75%. Also plenty of more expensive gift wrap.

Our Target pretty much ran out of lights last week when they put them on 30%. The ones a friend wanted (his Target was bought out two weeks ago like Walmart) I had to just go ahead and buy at that price. Both our local Targets had a crazy amount of battery powered strands left though. I'm holding out for 75% on those, but I bought one of each of the colors I really wanted.

Home Depot had lights on the morning after Christmas. I got exactly what I wanted but I'm mostly buying for next Christmas (the Martha Stewart no-flicker LED twinkle bulbs that look like the old fashioned ones). I went into another one today, nothing left except the timer LED candles. Picked up a dozen of those. Was waiting for the GE Light Show LEDs to go down to 75% because the other Home Depot still had racks of them left. They only had one set here, so I bought it just in case. They also have 500 lumen LED spotlights for $30 that there's still an entire rack left of. I will be keeping an eye out for 75% on those too.

Joann and Michaels went on clearance two weeks ago. Joann never had anything good to begin with. One Michaels I got a good deal on LED lights but the one I went to yesterday, the clearance price rang up as the same price as the full price at the other one. I thought store pricing was supposed to be standardized (especially in the same area of the state) so I think they messed up their inventory system.

None of the CVS in our area had anything left on Christmas Eve. I have yet to make it into Walgreens... the only thing I might buy are the LED taper candles that are utter junk (dim white bulb, no flicker) but I can use the plastic taper sleves and the battery compartment to put a better LED in it and make a better flame out of silicone or hot glue.

Absolutely nobody had moving deer.