With the help of a landscaping professional, you can build the landscape of your dreams that truly elevates your entire home. However, the lack of outdoor lighting in your landscape can completely negate any of the positive changes you make as soon as the sun goes down. Great outdoor lighting can not only provide a safe and welcoming environment, but also improve the aesthetics of your landscape. Here are three reasons to include outdoor lighting in your landscape design plan this spring in Trenton, MI.
Related: THE MANY WAYS OUTDOOR LIGHTING CAN MAKE YOUR DAYS LAST LONGER IN TRENTON AND WOODHAVEN, MI
A Focus on Safety
No matter what else you put in your landscape or what decorative lighting strategies you use, an unsafe landscape will quickly turn people away. Landscape lighting that illuminates the ground surfaces is the ultimate priority. These ground surfaces include your patio, walkways, pool deck, and driveway.
Walkway lights should be placed around the perimeter of your paved surfaces and angled down towards the walking surface so that all parts are adequately illuminated without any harsh contrasts between light and dark areas. There are many designs of walkway lights that can fit any sort of aesthetic of your existing landscape features and home. Hardwired walkway lights have an advantage over solar-powered walkway lights in that they will always stay lit even when covered with snow, or during long stretches of cloudy weather.
Creating a Warm Ambience
Part of building a successful outdoor living space is creating a warm ambience that attracts family and friends. One of the best ways you can do this is with a gorgeous masonry fire feature. Fire features include a fire table, a fire pit, or an outdoor fireplace. All of these fire features will not only provide some wonderful warmth, but also a substantial amount of ambient light. Light fixtures can be incorporated into masonry for a sleek and unobtrusive look.
Landscape lighting should always be designed to incorporate ambient fire light instead of competing against it. While the ambient light will surround the fire feature while the fire is burning, lighting fixtures should be focused on enhancing the look of the masonry and provide adequate illumination once the fire is out.
Honoring Beauty and Creating Interest
Every homeowner wants to draw attention to beautiful features in their landscape. Using landscape lighting to highlight this beauty will make the front yard and outdoor living space even more special. Spotlights are excellent lighting fixtures that can make your most cherished landscape features more prominent. Spotlights are pointed upwards towards the object, such as a tree, a sculpture, a water feature, or a masonry wall. This also will help add dimension to the landscape, and increase depth perception.
One of the best lighting techniques to draw attention to your home or a special feature is called backsplashing or washing, which adds to the ambient light in your outdoor living space. This technique bounces light off of a vertical surface, somewhat more directly than a spotlight. Bouncing light off a garage or home or a retaining wall will highlight the beauty of the illuminated feature, but the light will “splash back” over the surrounding area.
The refractive properties of water allow you to take advantage of your water features in landscape lighting. Use the fountain, waterfall, reflecting pool, or even the swimming pool to create a soothing and special atmosphere. Placing light fixtures underwater will not only make the area safer by making the water much more visible, but it will also create a dancing bluish light show on the surrounding surfaces.
Related: EXTEND THE USE OF YOUR OUTDOOR SPACE WITH OUTDOOR LIGHTING IN NEW BOSTON AND GROSSE ILE, MI
