Outdoor lighting ideas for your patio, deck, or entertainment area
With party season hot on our heels, making sure your outdoor entertainment area is well lit and lit well is important. Everyone’s decks, patios, and other entertainment spaces are different and lend themselves to some types of lighting but not others, but we’ve got some tips and ideas that can be pretty universal for outdoor lighting in entertainment spaces as well as for general life as well.
- Wall lights are useful in outdoor settings for both general lighting around the area, as well as some nice, unobtrusive lighting for when you’re entertaining guests.
- What works well in an outdoor setting is washing the light up or down a wall - an up/down wall light or other type of sconce that washes the light over the wall instead of shining outwards creates a cool effect and provides great lighting to the space too.
- Party lights like festoon lighting and fairy lights can be year-round fixtures in your outdoor space, or they can be put up especially for party season. There are many cool ways you can string up these kinds of lights - whether it be in strings across the ceiling over your entertainment area, wrapped around posts or trees in the space, or artfully placed in bushes or anywhere else in the area.
Security lighting is important for around entrances to your yard and house - front door, back door, gates, garages. Putting sensor light at these places give you some peace of mind that you’ll see the light come on if anyone comes into that space - whether friend or intruder. You can get spotlight types, or nicer looking wall lights that come with sensors so you can keep a sense of style even outside and around your home.
- If it’s not too hot when you’re having a party, a nice fire in the backyard can give a warm and inviting feel while providing subtle lighting also.
- Downlights can work well if there is appropriate roof and ceiling to place them on. The best part is they don’t take up any space that could be used with decorations or furniture - especially if space is limited in your outdoor area.
- Integrating your garden lighting with your outdoor entertainment area lights can work well to light the area without being obtrusive. Uplighting trees or special bushes, placing lights in water features, path lights, and step lights can really give a great atmosphere and style to your whole yard in combination with your other outdoor lighting.
So put some or all of these tips and ideas to use in your outdoor entertainment area and settle in for an awesome party season!
