Garden light is one of the most effective ways to transform your outdoor spaces after dark. It helps you navigate your way around at night and can also create a cosy atmosphere where people want to sit and enjoy the beauty of your landscaped gardens. There are two main principles that should guide your choice of lighting:
Functionality – This is the type of lights you need to get around at night and it includes path, driveway and step lighting. It is essential for making sure you can move easily in the garden after dark and that your guests stay safe when stepping out of a patio door or into the back of the house. Functionality based lighting should be subtle, with minimal light on show. This can be achieved with lights tucked behind bushes and walls, hidden in the foliage of a plant or buried within the ground.
Ambience – This is the more decorative type of lighting and is used to enhance a feature, mark a boundary or draw attention to seating areas at night-time dinner parties. It can be a simple way to add interest to your garden and you can achieve many different effects by using lighting to uplight, backlight or wash over a hedge or wall.
When choosing your garden lighting, it is important to take the colour temperature into account as this will determine the mood created. Warmer colours (between 3,000 and 3,500 K) look more natural and are best for creating an ambience, while cooler whites can feel cold and clinical.