Every homeowner would be willing to go the extra mile to make their living space beautiful. And the mindset goes much beyond beautifying the interior; it is about the outdoor space as well. When it comes to outdoor space, your garden is the focal point. While landscaping covers the basics of garden arrangement, you can use the right kind of lighting to take the aesthetics to the next level. But you need to think beyond investing in fairy lights or having some good-looking lanterns to light up your garden. The project needs a lot of planning and designing before you get started with the installation. You need to give careful thought to aspects like deciding the types of lights that would work, determining mix and match combinations and positioning the lighting in the right areas to create a stunning impact. Here are some great ideas that can help.
Start with a positioning plan
First things first, you must have a lighting layout in your mind and on paper as well. The best part about garden lighting is the room it leaves for experimentation. There is so much you can highlight, from plants to sculptures to sitting areas and play areas for the children. While deciding the positions for the lights, make sure that you illuminate only the best bits as even a little light can go a long way after darkness sets in. And this is the opportunity to get the ugly areas out of sight.
Zone the garden
Another wonderful thing you can do with garden lighting is to divide it into specific areas and make them prominent as zones. It is easy to achieve, considering that you can use different forms of lights to highlight different zones. You can create zones like access paths, decorative features, statement plants, and secluded areas. Light them up with different types and levels of illumination to create an amazing impact.
Use spotlights for highlighting
A novel lighting idea you can use to get attention to special features in the garden is by using spotlights. All you need to do is just position them at the right places. Positioning one at the base of a wall gets the light on the wall above and creates the most eye-catching texture. Similarly, you can use wall lights to provide illumination to one part at a time and move to another part after an interval. The role of spotlights can go beyond aesthetics as they serve the purpose of practical illumination as well.
Uplight trees
Another amazing way to bring an element of interest in your garden is by uplighting the trees. Try this on ones with interesting bark such as silver birch or Tibetan cherry. To take the special effect a notch higher, you can combine it with a spotlight at the base of the tree’s trunk. You will see the beam creating an alluring play of shadow and light through the branches.
Light up steps for safety
Even as you think about illumination with aesthetics in mind, lighting for features such as garden steps is vital from the safety perspective. And they will surely look beautiful with the lights while curbing the risk of trips and falls. You can have the lights recessed into the side walls by the steps or install them in small glass holders along the staircase.
Control the lighting
When it comes to creating a perfect lighting display for your outdoor space, you cannot undermine the value of a control. A good controller is what you need to get the most out of the LED setup. You can check https://www.ellumiglow.com/led-lights/controllers to understand how you can use the device to power up and down the intensity without much work. Apart from playing with intensity, you can also use them for changing the colors of the LED lights.
Use a projector for a dose of drama
If you are yearning for the element of drama for your garden, using a projector would be a great idea. It is easy to transform a plain wall into an outdoor projector screen. You just need to position a spotlight right in front of big architectural plants or tall ornamental grasses, and you are good to go. Let the wind do the rest of the work as it makes the silhouettes of these plants shimmy against the makeshift projector screen.
Play with fairy lights
Nothing can be more effective than fairy lights when it comes to creating a magical ambiance for a garden. You can play with them using a range of creative ideas, from draping them above French doors to make them visible from indoors and out or putting them around dining areas to get soft mood lighting. And the best part is that they are easy to handle!
Highlight water features
If your garden has water features, you can go one step ahead with lighting to accentuate them. The best part is that the slightest movement and refraction in them can create amazing patterns that reflect on the surrounding areas. A simple underwater spotlight can do the trick while you may even use fiber optics within the water jets for a magical effect. Your lighting experts can suggest more options if you want.
Don’t forget the driveway
With all the focus on garden lighting, it is easy to forget the driveway. But you shouldn’t do it if you want a beautiful outdoor space you can flaunt every evening. Pay attention to what the area would look like because this is the one your guests will have to traverse for reaching the garden. Lighting up the features like the facade, trees, and shrubs is a good way to give them a warm welcome. There should be enough lighting to prevent unauthorized access but make sure that the lights are not too harsh.
While you implement these amazing garden lighting ideas in your mind, do prioritize using quality products to get them implemented. Quality products will last long, of course, and also ensure that you don’t end up with massive energy bills.
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