Bright LED neon signs that light up spaces in a lot of ways glass tubes could never. Here’s something about seeing that warm glow - it just feels different. NeonChics started making LED neon signs because we got tired of neon stuck in the “open” signs at stores or those ads.
Anyone who has tried hanging real neon should know, it is a real pain, as it is heavy, fragile, and costs a fortune to fix. That’s the reason we switched to LED neon that’s bright enough for you, won’t shatter as easily, and looks just as aesthetic as it should be. Curious about LED neon? Keep reading.
Key Takeaway
- LED neon signs don't break the bank or your walls - they're lighter, safer, and last way longer than glass.
- We'll help you design something that's totally you, whether it's for your living room or your coffee shop.
- From sketch to shipping, we make sure you get exactly what you want (usually within 2-3 weeks).
Glass Neon vs. LED Neon
Glass Neon Vintage Charm
Glass neon signs exude a strange magic—part of vintage Americana, like the "Vacant" signs common in vintage motels.
The Power Behind the Glow
That's where LED neon comes in. It's basically the next step in sign evolution - bends like a rubber hose and won't shock anyone. Here's something wild: old school neon signs need enough electricity to power a small house (somewhere between 3,000 and 18,000 volts), which is why you can't just hang one up yourself.
Picture running your microwave, toaster, and air conditioner all at once - that's about what traditional neon needs just to light up. LED neon runs on the same kind of power as your phone charger (12 to 24 volts), stays cool, and doesn't make a peep. You can let your kid touch it without freaking out.
Costs
Glass neon costs an arm and a leg - you're paying for some seriously skilled glass benders who spend years learning their craft. Every tube's got to be heated, shaped, and filled with gas by hand. Then there's the replacing broken tubes, and regular maintenance checks that'll have you on first-name basis with your electrician.
LED neon? Way simpler. We can box it up, ship it anywhere, and you won't need to call anyone to hang it. Most folks get theirs up in about the same time it takes to make coffee.
The Look and Feel
The look's different, sure. Glass neon's got this all-around glow thing going on, kind of like a light sculpture. It's that classic Vegas strip vibe - beautiful but kind of stuck in its ways.
LED neon throws more light forward and keeps its color better - plus you can get wild with different colors (even ones that'd be impossible with glass). We've done everything from hot pink bedroom signs to perfectly matched corporate logos. The silicone coating we use gives it this soft, modern look that fits just as well in a nursery as it does in a nightclub.
Installation and Upkeep
Traditional neon's a pain to move - one wrong bump and you're out hundreds of dollars. The glass tubes are filled with gases like neon and argon (sounds like science class, right?), and if one breaks, you've got to replace the whole section.
With LED neon, you can literally roll it up like a yoga mat and take it with you. If something goes wrong, it's usually just a matter of switching out a small section or checking the power adapter.
Quick Specs From Our Workshop
- Traditional glass neon: Lasts 10,000-30,000 hours (about 3-8 years if left on all day), heavy as a mini fridge, breaks if you look at it wrong, needs pro installation, gives off that classic warm glow, but can get spotty over time.
- LED neon: Goes strong for 100,000 hours (that's over 11 years of constant use), light enough to hang with Command strips, wrapped in bouncy silicone that can take a hit, anyone can install it, brighter and uses less power than your kitchen light, comes with a dimmer if you want to tone it down.
Why We Started NeonChics
The whole thing started because we got tired of seeing blank walls everywhere - in apartments, stores, doctors' offices, you name it.
There's something kind of sad about a plain white wall just sitting there doing nothing. Neon always seemed like this fancy thing you'd only see in art galleries or expensive nightclubs, which didn't make much sense to us. Why should cool lighting be just for people with deep pockets?
We built NeonChics with a pretty straightforward idea: make LED neon signs that don't cost a fortune and actually mean something to the people who buy them.
These days we ship to pretty much anywhere with a mailbox. Every sign's different because, let's face it, nobody wants the exact same thing as their neighbor. That's why we show you exactly what your sign will look like before we make it - no surprises.
Walking through our workshop's like reading people's diaries in light form. There's always something new: somebody's wedding date in hot pink, an inside joke that probably only makes sense to five people in the world, or song lyrics that meant enough to someone to put on their wall. Each order feels more like working on an art project together than just selling something.
Our Core Products - And Where They Shine
Custom Neon Sign / Custom Neon Quote
Custom signs are where things get interesting. Last week we made a sign for some guy who used it to propose (she said yes), and the week before that we did one for a bakery that's become their Instagram hotspot. Sometimes people send us pictures of their kids pointing at their names glowing on their bedroom walls - that kind of stuff makes the whole thing worth it.
The process is pretty straightforward: pick your words, font, pick your colors, tell us how big you want it. We'll show you exactly what it'll look like on a computer first, so you can tweak anything that's not quite right. Want it in fancy handwriting? Block letters? Something that looks like a doodle? We'll figure it out together.
Man Cave Neon Sign
Everybody needs their own space. We've done tons of man cave signs for gaming rooms, and those garages where people spend their weekends fixing up old cars.
The requests are all over the place - sometimes it's just "Game On" in bright green, other times it's someone's prized '67 Mustang outlined in blue. These signs usually end up lighting up midnight gaming marathons or late-night wrenching sessions.
Open / Business Neon Sign
Store signs need to work hard. Our "Open" signs don't mess around - they're bright enough to catch someone's eye from down the block.
We work with shop owners to match their colors (like that specific shade of red your pizza place uses everywhere) or add little touches that tell people what's inside. The best part? You just need a regular outlet and about five minutes to get it running.
Business Neon Sign - Attracting Attention Online
Shop owners kept asking us about making signs that look good in pictures, so we learned a thing or two. Turns out there's this sweet spot when you photograph neon from below, or when it's glowing behind products on a shelf.
We've watched our signs show up all over Instagram, usually with a bunch of people tagging the location. One coffee shop told us their neon wall probably shows up in about fifty selfies a day.
Home Neon Decor
Not every neon sign needs to scream "drink specials." We've done plenty of subtle stuff for people's homes - soft phrases for living rooms, kids' names that give off just enough light to act like a night light.
The LED setup means it won't heat up the room or run up your electric bill, and you can put it pretty much anywhere without worrying about it.
Party Neon Decor
Nothing says "this is where the party's at" like a glowing sign. We've made signs for just about every kind of celebration - wedding dates that end up in all the photos, baby shower signs that parents keep for the nursery later, birthday messages that become permanent decorations.
One couple ordered "Best Day Ever" for their wedding and now it's hanging in their kitchen, which is kind of perfect if you think about it.
Our Product Advantages - Why It Works
After making thousands of signs and hearing what works (and what doesn't) from customers, we've pretty much got this thing down to a science. Here's the scoop:
Sizes for Every Wall
We've got standard sizes that run from 40 centimeters (about the size of a laptop) all the way up to 150 centimeters (think wide-screen TV size). But sometimes you need something weird - like that 3-meter sign we made for a movie theater, or those tiny 20-centimeter pieces for someone's bookshelf corners. Just tell us the size you need, we'll make it work.
Installation - Quick and Simple
Every sign comes with everything you need - those little nail things for hanging pictures and some wire rope that won't snap. We wrote our own instruction guide after watching too many YouTube videos of people cursing at confusing manuals. Most folks get their signs up in the time it takes to watch half a sitcom episode.
Safety First, Always
Our LED strips run on the same kind of power as your phone charger (12-24 volts), so they stay cool enough to touch. The whole thing's wrapped in this bendy silicone tube that won't shatter if it falls. We've got customers with toddlers and cats who knock these things around all the time - never had a single problem.
Factory Direct - Pricing That Makes Sense
We build everything right here in our workshop and ship it straight to you. No random markups from people in the middle. Since we make a bunch of signs at once, we can keep prices down without cutting corners. You're getting the same quality as those fancy art gallery pieces, just without the crazy price tag.
Some Technical Details
- Uses about as much power as a nightlight - way less than old glass neon.
- No weird humming noise or that annoying flicker some cheap signs have.
- Lasts longer than your car (100,000+ hours) and comes with a two-year warranty.
- We ship pretty much anywhere with a mailbox, and you can track your package the whole way.
- Comes with a remote to change colors or dim the lights, and you can mount it flush or hang it.
Living with Neon - Stories from Our Customers
Sometimes the best part of making signs is getting those random emails with photos attached. Like this one couple who put their baby's name "Oliver" in this super-soft blue glow above the crib - kind of became their built-in night light.
Or this writer who stuck "Write Badly With Pride" above her desk (she's published two books since then, so maybe it worked?).
The best one might be this tiny pizza joint in Chicago - they got one of our "Open" signs, and now their spot shows up in about twenty Instagram posts a day. Business doubled just because people wanted to take pictures with the sign.
These stories keep showing up in our inbox. Every sign we ship out ends up being part of somebody's daily life - maybe it's the thing they see first thing in the morning, or what catches their eye when they walk into work.
Make Life More Colorful - Your Story in Light
We don’t just sell LED neon signs. We help you say something unique - something only you can say.
Ready to start your own story? Try our easy online design tool at NeonChics.com, and see how simple it is to make your wall speak.
