A well designed lighting scheme creates another layer of interest and a new atmosphere in your garden. It also means that you can make the most of your beautiful garden for a longer period of time. In winter gardens come alive with strategic lighting and in summer the garden remains useable and inviting as dusk draws in.
Low voltage LED lights are flexible and can be moved and added to if required and are really cheap to run.
A few tips:
- Highlight the best and don’t light the worst features (I know that sounds obvious…)
- Put utility or security lights on a separate circuit so they can be switched off when your don’t want them to spoil the atmosphere
- Create balance within the garden; symmetry is sometimes important, but balance is always vital
- Highlight sculpture or a key texture or contrast.
- Point the beam away from the viewer to avoid a dazzling light
- Let the light beam itself do the work rather than creating a focal point with the light fixture itself
- Vary the shade of white light to create interest and contrast, e.g.. bright white to highlight a tree, a warmer light to wash a wall
- Light behind a bench to create a lovely warm glow and good reflected light
- Lights which wash over the step tread tend to work better than those placed on the riser as they can be too dominant
- Take care with spots set into a deck or a terrace as they can create a blinding glare or a ‘runway’ feel
- Reflected light is soft and creates a warm ambience, so spotlights in planting around the terrace work well when combined with wall lights washing down the wall
Your garden lights can be connected to a remote control or even your phone so you don’t even need to damage the paintwork in the house when you have your garden designed and lit.
