Why outdoor lighting?
Outdoor lighting is a great option to extend the use of your garden into the darker evenings. Decorating with outdoor lights will allow you to make the most of your outdoor space and really add value to the money you spent on that garden furniture set. You can even play with shadows so that your lighting scheme can add another level of artistry and creativity to your garden.
What to consider when buying outdoor lighting?
When thinking of what sort of outdoor lighting to buy, it’s important to consider how bright you want the space to be. Lighting brightness is normally measured in terms of lumens.
If you want just low-level background lighting 50 lumens is about right. However, if you’re lighting up a driveway or using the lights as security lights you’ll need 2400 lumens. Normally lights of this type are around this range so security lights will be up there in the lumen factor whereas string lights will have a low lumen count.
So you can see why it’s important to think about what type of lighting you require. Below we have an example of most lighting types to get you thinking about the benefits and disadvantages of each.
The best list
300 20m Warm White Cluster Silver Mains Powered String Lights
Of course, first up on our best outdoor lights list had to be string lights – they’re iconic and great at creating a moment. String around pergolas or in trees, there’s really no limit on where you can put them. String lights are also multifunctional in that they can be used in summer and around christmas time. If you need more christmas lighting inspiration take a nosey of our post.
These lights are LEDs, which is great for your wallet as they are cheaper to run and will last longer.
- Price: £31.99
- Features: 20m of 300 warm LED lights
Shop this Warm White Cluster Silver String Lights
Pack of 4 3L Solar Powered Stella Stainless Steel Bollard Lights
Path lights are a great option and can be used to uplight trees or highlight some statement flowers in your bedding – there’s no need for that beauty to go to waste at nighttime! They are great along a path as well, to assist in avoiding any nasty trips or falls. These lights are solar powered and will light automatically at dusk, this means no operating costs and no mess with fiddly wires.
- Price: £18.39
- Features: Solar Powered
Shop this Solar Powered Stella Stainless Steel Bollard Lights
Elstead Medstead Outdoor Half Lantern with PIR Motion Sensor
This wall security light is perfect for increasing visibility outdoors and helping to protect your home. This Elstead model is from a well-known brand and would work well beside your front door for an almost regal, classical looking doorway. Add some ivy for a romantic entrance way. Thanks to this light, you can stop struggling to find your keys in the dark!
- Price: £119.99
- Features: Classical style and motion sensor technology
Shop this Elstead Medstead Outdoor Half Lantern
Shubunkin Spills 4-Tier Cascading Water Feature with Lights
You don’t have to provide your lighting in the most traditional format, many products have lights added to them to ensure you get more use out of them and more value for money. This includes items such as artificial plants, wind spinners and sculptures.
Water features are a great way of adding some extra lighting to your garden, not only will this be aesthetically pleasing but they’ll also provide tranquil background noise.
- Price: £46.66
- Features: LED lights and frost resistant stone
Shop this Shubunkin Spills 4-Tier Cascading Water Feature with Lights
Solar Powered Eureka Retro Lightbulb String Lights
Battery or solar powered lights are ideal if you don’t want to fiddle about trying to set up mains electrics or don’t have any plugs near to where you want your lighting. Solar lights are a particularly wallet-friendly option.
These enjoyable faux light bulbs will add an element of fun to your garden and they helpfully automatically illuminate at night and power down at dawn.
- Price: £18.39
- Features: Solar-powered and automatic illumination
Shop this Solar Powered Eureka Retro Lightbulb String Lights.
80cm Carbon Steel Fire Bowl in Black
An alternative to traditional outdoor lighting, we can take a step back to man’s original light – fire. Use a fire pit to add lighting and ambience to your outdoor space, as well as warmth.
This fire pit will be a stylish focal point of any garden party, a classic bowl shape in black.
- Price: £133.33
- Features: Reusable as an ice bucket
Shop this Carbon Steel Fire Bowl
If you are unsure of the right type of lights to use still, you can always mix and match different styles of lighting to provide an all over glow to your garden, light up trees, paths and sprawl fairy lights everywhere. For more inspiration check out our post on how some of our customers have lighted up their garden.