How to Create Curb Appeal with Outdoor Lighting

How to Create Curb Appeal with Outdoor Lighting

If you own your own home then you have probably spent a great deal of time improving your interior. But don’t forget there’s probably outside space to enhance too! A garden is an important aspect of a home and the exterior of a property is, of course, the first thing that visitors see. Judicious planting and pretty flowers will deliver the wow factor by day, but how do you create curb appeal after dark?

Landscape Lighting for the Wow Factor

Lighting is pretty much the only tool for creating the wow factor at night, or at least it’s the most essential. It is important to make the most of the landscape that’s available, so try using spotlights and floodlights to highlight any particularly attractive features in the outside space. This includes aspects such as statues, trees and ponds. Utilise more subtle lighting to illuminate pathways and steps.

Don’t Skimp on Your Lights

A few solar lights arranged sparsely around a garden will not create curb appeal. Exterior lighting should include a variety of lighting effects and different styles of lights if it is going to deliver maximum impact. Think about whether down-lighting, up-lighting or cross-lighting best suits each feature of the garden. Going bold and dramatic will pay dividends in some areas of the garden whereas a subtle approach will better suit others.

Plan your Lighting at Night

When planning exterior lighting, walk around your garden at night, not during the day. This will give you a better understanding of how the various trees, shrubs and features cast their shadows. Experiment using a couple of portable lights to see which aspects of the garden should be illuminated and which should remain in the shadows. Try up-lighting, down-lighting and cross-lighting each feature or area to see what works best and view your efforts from a suitable distance to gain a sense of their impact.

Eliminate Light Pollution

When experimenting with lighting arrangements, check that the position and angle that have been selected for each light doesn’t mean that it shines directly into oncoming eyes as it’s approached. Lights should not shine directly onto neighbours’ homes and windows either and too much lighting will create an unpleasant glare. If the glare is overpowering but removing lights isn’t an option or is undesirable, consider using lighting shields or glare guards.

Use Timers

It is all too easy to forget to turn your lights on or off at the appropriate time. The potential curb appeal of your lighting effects will be of little use if the lights are switched off. Linking your lights to a timer or timers will help in this regard and will ensure that your lighting wows when it should and without consuming more energy than necessary.

Perfect Your Wattage

If you feel that you have positioned your lights correctly but that somehow your lighting is not achieving the desired effect, think about changing the wattage you have used. High wattage bulbs can deliver light which feels harsh and overpowering whilst in some areas of the garden, low wattages will be underwhelming. You might be able to create the perfect look by simply changing your bulbs!

At O’briens Lighting we have a huge range of garden lighting available both online and in store. Use this and our wide selection of bulbs to find the perfect balance and illuminate your outside spaces in style.



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