Make Your Own Marquee Light in 5 Easy Steps

Oct 3rd 2017

Have you ever thought about adding a marquee light in your home? A marquee lights is a fun way to add some personal style to any room. Many people have one or 2 of them in their home to represent their initials or a few to spell a word. Now you can have one as well! Follow the instructions below to create a DIY marquee letter light!

Before we begin, you’ll need the following items:

-large paper-mache letter (available at an arts & crafts store)

-globe lights

-sandpaper

-knife or box cutter

-spray paint

-measuring device

-writing utensil

Cut and Sand: Take your paper-mache letter and a knife or box cutter. Cut off the top (front) of your letter. Once you remove the top, there is usually a cardboard piece inside the letter that should also be removed. After this, gently sand down the section that you cut with sandpaper.
It’s Time to Paint: Take your bottle of spray paint and spray your letter. You can choose whatever color you like. Popular colors include black and metallic. We recommend that you do your painting outside and put something underneath your letter before you begin spray painting so you don’t make a mess (an old newspaper, a tarp, etc).
Measure Your Marquee: Take your measuring device and writing utensil. Measure the width of your letter and draw a straight line down the middle on the backside. Decide how many bulbs you are using and evenly space them out on your letter. Mark these spots with your writing utensil.
Cut Your Light Holes: Using your knife or box cutter, cut an X in the spots that you have marked for the bulbs to create light holes. Make sure the holes that you make are wide enough for an unscrewed bulb to fit through. You can push your writing utensil through the hole (front to back) to widen it.
Add Your Lights: Unscrew the bulbs from their sockets. Once unscrewed, push the lights through the openings made in the marquee. Once the lights are through, screw the bulbs back into their sockets.

After this, you should be all set. All you have left to do is to simply plug in your lights, take a step back and enjoy!