Now that we’re in the first week of December, things appear to be getting more festive every day. Christmas markets have sprung up in most cities and people are getting prepared for their work parties.
And while there may only have been a smattering of Christmas trees and lights visible while wandering your local streets a couple of weeks ago, now there are decorations in many windows.
If you have put up your lights already – or are getting prepared to dig them out of the cupboard – you may spot one bulb that looks a bit out of place. Many strings come with a small, red bulb that is set apart from the rest of the lights, The Mirror reports.
Some people ignore the seemingly-rogue light while others have confessed to being confused as to its purpose. Contrary to what many think, it is not actually a spare or replacement bulb.
And one woman has shared the red light’s true purpose on TikTok – and it could be a game-changer for your Christmas display. Posting on the video app as @viznelly, her clip has racked up a whopping 24million views and 1.8million likes.
She shared a demonstration of her putting the light to its intended use. You start by simply removing a single bulb and replacing it with the red one.
The extra light is not only a different colour from the rest, but it also sets off a flashing effect on the string of lights without the need for a remote. The woman admitted: “I was today years old when I found out what these are for.”
Flocking to the comments, many viewers were left stunned by the discovery. One person claimed: “I thought they were spares.”
A second added: “Wait what??????? I thought they were replacements!” A shocked third usee wrote: “I swear to god this app has taught me more in the last year than I have been alive.”
Meanwhile, a different user commented: “Dude all they had to do was write that somewhere on the box. I wasted so many years not knowing about this.” A a fifth added: “NGL I’m embarrassed that I didn’t know this.”
But some other people claimed that they’ve been aware of the little-known use for decades. One person said: “As someone who grew up in the 90s…I thought everyone knew this – We didn’t always have remote control lights!!” A second agreed: “I used to put up the Christmas lights at my parents; house, so I didn’t know that this wasn’t common knowledge.”
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