WITH only 20 days until Christmas, plenty of people are getting into the spirit by adorning their homes with festive lights, but one Southend effort will take some beating.

For the past 20 years, Sharon Lambert, 53, of Honiton Road, has gone all-out with her yuletide decorations, spending thousands on illuminating her home.

But it just isn’t the outside of her house that receives a festive makeover – inside is just as spectacular, with no less than seven trees in the Lambert household.

Mrs Lambert said: “I just love Christmas and I absolutely love the lights. It’s lovely watching children’s faces as they come down the street and stop to have a look at it.

“I’ve been doing it for about 20 years and parents ask me each year when the decorations will go up so they can show their children.

“I would keep it up all year if I could, but I’ll probably take them down at the end of January.”

Mrs Lambert, who lives with her husband Bob, 63, daughter Sophie, 27, and granddaughter Ellie-Mae Slater, seven, started putting up her display in the middle of November.

It took the family three weeks to put it all together. They even bought a 12ft tree for the house, which they had to shorten just to fit it in.

Mrs Lambert added: “My husband loves it too.

“I’ve had him up the ladders putting it all up.”

But despite having her decorations up early doors, she still hasn’t finished her Christmas preparations.

She said: “I’ve done the majority of my Christmas shopping but I haven’t prepared for our meal yet. The decorations come first.”

  • Do you have special Christmas decorations up on your house? Would you like to be featured in the Echo? Email ian.weinfass@nqe.com or call 01702 321 142 with details of where you are.