Current:Home > reviewsAnd you thought you were a fan? Peep this family's Swiftie-themed Christmas decor -FundConnect
And you thought you were a fan? Peep this family's Swiftie-themed Christmas decor
Benjamin Ashford View
Date:2025-04-11 03:36:07
NAPERVILLE, Ill. – Amy and Brian Scott have become suburban legends for decorating the outside of their home in a Taylor Swift theme for the holidays and going viral.
“I think we were really naive with just thinking it would be like every other display,” says Amy Scott, 45, after thousands flocked to her neighborhood to look at her home.
The Scotts have been married for 22 years, and every Christmas they decorate their house along a theme to make the whole block shimmer. In 2022, they did Toy Story. In 2016, they honored the Chicago Cubs World Series win with a big “W” on the roof. In 2019 and 2020, the LED lights created Candy Land. But none of the previous versions drew the attention their Taylor Swift theme has.
"No parking" signs line the east side of the street. A trolley that takes visitors on a tour of the best Christmas lights stops by. It’s a lot of commotion, but it seems like the whole block has been on board.
“I personally went and knocked on everyone’s doors,” says Amy. "I wanted to say, ‘Thank you, and we appreciate your patience and grace.’”
Amy, an eighth-grade science teacher, went to see the "Eras Tour" film with some of her friends. When she got home she told her husband they had to enter their holiday era.
“We were like the only two people in the theater at the time,” says Brian, 45, about how he and his wife took notes and scoured Amazon for items to buy. "I’m sure if you would have seen us, you were like, ‘What are these two doing?’”
They sectioned their front yard into four eras: "Speak Now," "Red," "1989" and "Evermore." And put the remaining six album covers on the roof next to a life-size Travis Kelce cutout holding an electric sign that reads “Taylor’s Version.”
The details bring happiness to Swifties, from the Dear John letter to reindeer with red scarfs to a champagne glass.
“It was actually a lot easier than previous years,” says their 18-year-old daughter Rebecca. “Usually we have to build a lot more things, but my dad just prints a lot of it. So it’s like, we just bedazzled a bunch of stuff.”
Brian owns a printing business, which made it easy to create two-story, 20-foot mesh banners of Swift’s Eras Tour poster. QR codes are scattered around the yard like Easter eggs directing traffic to make a donation to Little Friends, a nonprofit organization that serves adults and children with autism.
“It’s been really cool to watch people donate $13 or $22 in symbolic numbers,” says Amy. “We do have a matching donor that will match up to $5,000.”
The bright idea is going to continue in future years if their daughter, Emily, 21, has anything to do with it. She’s hoping to continue the viral tradition next year.
“Maybe next year we would do different eras in the yard?” Emily said. “I feel like since our house has gone viral people are just going to come back.”
Follow Bryan West, the USA TODAY Network's Taylor Swift reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV
veryGood! (91)
Related
- Taylor Swift makes surprise visit to Kansas City children’s hospital
- As Wildfire Season Approaches, Phytoplankton Take On Fires’ Trickiest Emissions
- Who is Doctor Doom? Robert Downey Jr.'s shocking Marvel casting explained
- Rita Ora spends night in hospital, cancels live performance: 'I must rest'
- IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
- Harvey Weinstein contracts COVID-19, double pneumonia following hospitalization
- Video shows hordes of dragonflies invade Rhode Island beach terrifying beachgoers: Watch
- California firefighters make progress as wildfires push devastation and spread smoke across US West
- Residents worried after ceiling cracks appear following reroofing works at Jalan Tenaga HDB blocks
- Houston Texans lineman Denico Autry suspended six games for violating NFL's PED policy
Ranking
- Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September
- Black bears are wandering into human places more. Here's how to avoid danger.
- Powerball winning numbers for July 27 drawing: Jackpot now worth $144 million
- Oprah addresses Gayle King affair rumors: 'People used to say we were gay'
- Could your smelly farts help science?
- 7 people shot, 1 fatally, at a park in upstate Rochester, NY
- Vigils honor Sonya Massey as calls for justice grow | The Excerpt
- Quake rattles Southern California desert communities, no immediate reports of damage
Recommendation
'Most Whopper
Nellie Biles talks reaction to Simone Biles' calf tweak, pride in watching her at Olympics
Rafael Nadal's loss vs. Novak Djokovic suggests his time in tennis is running short
9 Self-Tanners to Help Make Your Summer Tan Last
What to know about Tuesday’s US House primaries to replace Matt Gaetz and Mike Waltz
Liberty University, Jerry Falwell Jr. settle legal and personal disputes
In New York, a ballot referendum meant to protect abortion may not use the word ‘abortion’
Torri Huske, driven by Tokyo near miss, gets golden moment at Paris Olympics