Creating a beautiful garden is a lot of work, but once you’ve laid the foundations in place, it’s all about the upkeep. A perfectly manicured lawn, flowers and plants blooming throughout the year and an opulent furniture set-up are all essential to creating a luxurious feel – but one element of a garden that is often overlooked, and that can make the biggest difference, is lighting.
Lighting up your outdoor spaces in the right way is a quick and easy way to add an elegant and sophisticated feel – but get it wrong, and you could spoil all of the hard work you’ve put into getting it looking its best.
Here’s how to choose an option that will show your front or back garden off in just the right light.
Draw up a plan of your garden
The first step to choosing your lighting is to get a piece of paper and draw out a rough plan of your garden. Using this as a point of reference, you can quickly identify which areas you would like to highlight – for example a tree, pagoda or statue that you’d like to show off to its full potential.
Get some inspiration online
If you’re new to garden lighting, then heading online to check out some home and garden lights for inspiration is a good idea. Here, you’ll be able to see the ways in which others have accentuated their luxury gardens with the use of light, as well as what works for particular features, and what doesn’t.
For example, if you have a large tree, using a warm white festoon lights kit would be an ideal way to light it up. The bulbs are nice and big, which means they cast a strong light that will easily reach ground level and be of use to the people using the garden as well as making a feature out of the tree itself.
For a yucca plant that has been planted towards the back of your garden, on the other hand, it will likely be best lit up using an uplight. This will illuminate the surrounding area, while at the same time, turn the plant into a beautiful focal point that anyone sitting on the patio will be able to enjoy.
Pinterest is a particularly good source of ideas, and creating a board on which to pin your inspiration is a great way to collate everything you find.
Think about safety
Lighting up a space isn’t just about ensuring your garden looks stunning, but also adds a layer of safety, making it easier for you and your guests to see where they are going while outside. Path lighting, step lights and deck lights that differentiate between the edge of two different surfaces are all good examples of this.
Think about protecting your home
Using security lights makes it far less likely that you will be the victim of a home invasion. This research article explains how lighting up your outdoor spaces changes the behaviour of would-be intruders, acting as a deterrent and thus helping to keep your family protected after dark.
Add interest and elegance
Lights can be used in creative ways to improve the ambience of your garden. Soft lights will make the space feel calmer and more tranquil, while spotlights can be used in a way that enables you to continue enjoying the garden features you love the most, even after dark.
