Gone are the days where a floodlight and a lamppost by the front door is considered effective outdoor lighting. There are a whole range of outdoor lighting options that can incorporate safety, theft prevention and aesthetics. If you think of your home or business as a canvas – what textures, contrasts (shadow & light), and colour would you incorporate to create an appealing look? Let’s look at some of the enduring trends in outdoor lighting.

Function

Design follows function always. What do you need the lighting to do for your home or yard? Are you thinking of adding lighting just to the patio, looking to highlight the textures on the front of the house, or add security lighting around a pool? Each of these will use different fixtures installed for a different purpose.

Don’t think you can’t combine functions. Yes, you can get attractive security lighting for paths or pools that’s attractive and highlights aspects of your yard you’re proud of.

Artistry

Just as an artist plays with textures, contrast, shadows, light and shapes, your outdoor lighting can be just as nuanced and varied to create a one-of-a-kind nighttime landscape for your home and yard. A great design evokes emotions, just as art does, so whether you’re looking to relax, entertain, celebrate, impress, or just extend your living space outdoors, your outdoor lighting can create a feeling that can serve many functions.

LED lights come in a variety of colours, you can even change them out for different occasions. Want a Canada Day party and a Christmas light show, you can do that with the same fixtures.

Tips for artistic landscape lighting design:

Gentle Transitions – Ideally, light from one zone doesn’t overpower or glare into another zone, but rather blends artistically without compromising safety lighting.

Depth – Creating depth is easily accomplished by placing fixtures looking up a little farther from the object being lighted. The same goes for lighting placed overhead. Allowing the light to pass through moving foliage, for instance, is a great way to add interest.

Focal point – Whether you have a bloom-covered gazebo or arbor, a fountain, pond or other feature, highlighting these at night and making use of shadows and contrast can create a dynamic focal point for your yard.

Balance – Balance isn’t difficult to create because most of the time it’s simply symmetry. If you light the column on the right side of the door, also light the column on the left side of the door. If you light up a group of trees on one side of the pool, give the trees on the other side of the pool the same treatment. Balance means consistency and proportion with light and shadow.

Safety – Lighting pathways, stairs, docks, pools, ponds and other features is important to keep family and friends safe. There are many fixtures that can provide enough light for safety and still create nice ambiance or serve another purpose such as lighting foliage or other features for aesthetics.

We’d love to answer your outdoor lighting questions or help you design a unique lighting display for your home or business. Contact Nite Time Decor Oakville today!