Outdoor lighting is key to setting the right mood and ensuring your patio furniture set looks as inviting at night as it does during the day.
During the summer, we want to make the most of our outdoor spaces. One of the best ways to do this is to extend its use into the evening when the sun goes down.
The big problem here in the UK is that even in the peak summer months, the temperature will often dip in the evening. Plus, once the sun sets, there’s usually not enough light to continue using our garden furniture comfortably and safely.
Fortunately, there’s a whole host of stylish solutions that will keep your patio area warm and illuminated. The bigger problem, is often choosing the right type of garden lighting for the outside space you have and how you like to use it at night.
You want fixtures and fittings that illuminate the space enough to keep it safe to use but subtle enough that it doesn’t ruin the relaxing ambience. That is captured perfectly in the customer photo of our Olivia 8-Seater Patio Set (main heading image above). Wall mounted up and downlights highlight the brickwork but keep the patio table looking relaxed and inviting.
We think versatility is the key. A combination of security and party lighting that you can fully control. As a general rule, we often find that less is more when it comes to outside lights too, but you need to keep it flexible.
You want a lighting scheme that includes subtle ambient lighting for relaxation, the option to go brighter if you need task lighting, and then external lights that illuminate key parts of your outside space for safe movement or to ward off intruders.
Our top outdoor furniture lighting techniques
There are several types of outside lights to choose from, each will create a unique atmosphere, a timeless charm, and will highlight different aspects of your outdoor space.
In this article, we want to focus on the solutions that we think are best placed on or around garden furniture, so we won't be looking at driveway lights or porch lights, etc.
To help you get the balance right, the Lazy Magazine team have compiled our top outdoor furniture lighting ideas and used some of the fab customer photographs we’ve been sent for our Do Some Good charity campaign to help us.
We’ve chosen some of our favourite lighting techniques that you can pair with our patio furniture to make sure its safe, secure, and sets the right mood so that your summer garden party or relaxing alfresco evening can continue long after the sun goes down.
1. Ambient lighting for relaxation
Ambient lighting provides soft illumination, so it is perfect for setting the mood, and ideal for creating a comfortable and relaxing patio atmosphere.
We love to hang fairy or festoon-style lights (as shown below) above our patio tables for a cosy, twinkling glow that doesn't overpower the space. You could also scatter some LED lanterns around the patio or on the table to add a soft, diffused light.
This type of lighting serves more as a design feature. It adds ambience and visual appeal to your space rather than providing functional light. However, there are a host of solar or USB-chargeable solutions on the market, so it doesn't need to cost a fortune, and they're a laid back, convenient, versatile, and eco-friendly way to illuminate your outdoor space.
2. Task lighting for late evening meals or BBQs
Task lighting is more focused and used to deliver brighter illumination for specific tasks, such cooking or dining (as our customer is doing in the above photo with their combination of ambient fairy lights and brighter lantern for dining).
A weatherproof outdoor table lamp on your patio dining table, for example, is another great functional solution. It will add a decorative touch, while often being dimmable, so you can illuminate while you eat and dim down as the evening unwinds.
Alternatively, you could hang an outdoor pendant light or chandelier over your outdoor dining set to illuminate meal times or use a brighter wall or fence-mounted spotlight to safely highlight specific areas such as the BBQ grill area.
3. Accent lighting to highlight your garden furniture
Accent lighting is used to highlight features like your patio furniture, plants, garden art, or architectural elements such as pergolas or rustic walls. It is used to add drama and visual interest to the space when the sun goes down.
There are two types of garden accent lighting you can incorporate into your outdoor areas:
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Uplighting
Uplighting is a great way of adding contrast and highlighting key features in your garden. The other big advantage of uplighting is you get a good level of illumination and ambience without eye-level glare. In the evening, well-placed uplights can be used to add interest and accent landscaping or architectural features such as garden structures, trees, plants, and outdoor furniture. -
Downlighting
Downlighting can be used in several ways, such as creating zones, safety, security and also to highlight. Downlights are great for illuminating feature walls, flower beds and patios, and where uplighting is generally better for highlighting outdoor furniture, downlights are better suited to illuminating for functions/tasks.
Placing recessed uplights or ground lights in your patio or decking (as shown in the decking above with our Anna) is a great way to add drama and visual interest at night, whilst remaining subtle and unobtrusive during the day.
We love to see low-level lights that shine upward on any beautiful trees, plants, or sculptures positioned near our seating areas too. They create beautiful shadows and highlights.
Pathway lights on the other hand look great along walkways. They draw attention to the space, while safely guiding you around your garden when it is dark.
Downlights are also great for illuminating feature walls, flower beds and patios, but where uplighting is generally better for highlighting outdoor furniture, downlights are often best used as function/task lighting over a dining area (as shown in the photo of our June 6-Seater Table Set where they are fitted to a stunning gazebo).
4. Solar-powered garden lights for the environment
Solar-powered garden lighting is an eco-friendly option that requires no wiring and works well for illuminating patios and gardens.
Solar spotlights or wall lights are perfect for placing around your garden furniture to highlight the seating area and surrounding decor.
Solar string lights are perfect for hanging on the perimeter of your patio or wrap them around a pergola or parasol.
Spike lights (like the one shown above) are a great way to create interest around your garden. We love to pop them in pots or borders to light up planting or along the edges of pathways and patios to add aesthetic appeal and functionality.
5. Candles on your outdoor table
Candles are so simple but effective. They offer a combination of ambiance, decoration, and functionality, while significantly enhancing the beauty and enjoyment of our outdoor spaces.
They make the perfect centrepiece on our patio tables and they provide just the right type and amount of ambient illumination (as shown with our Alice 4-seater Garden Table Set above) to set the mood for a glass of wine or two on a summer's eve.
Pair them with a stylish glass lantern and they’ll provide greater illumination. They look great on our outdoor tables (as shown above on our Amy 4-seater Outdoor Table Set).
We also love to use citronella candles in the summer for a nice, soft glow that will keep the bugs away from food, drinks, etc.
6. Fire features for warmth and illumination
While not strictly lighting, fire pits or outdoor fireplaces offer both warmth and ambient light to create a relaxed, cosy atmosphere.
A fire pit placed near your patio furniture will not only provide warmth and light for evening gatherings but also creates a cosy ambiance and a natural focal point for socialising.
They're a great low cost way of effectively extending your outdoor living season and enhancing the beauty of your patio.
There are a host of solutions to choose from but we love the raised fire bowls and chimenea-style fireplaces. They pair great with our garden tables (as shown above with our Mia Patio Table).
7. Safety lighting around your garden
Of course, you want your outdoor space to look good and be a joy to spend time when the lights go on, but it is also important that it is safe to use too.
If you have a patio positioned away from your property, then it is important that any pathways or steps are illuminated to ensure you can move easily and comfortably around your garden.
The patio itself can make use of ambient lighting but the route to it needs to be safe (as shown in the photo above of our Ivy Patio Bistro Set where a candle is used but the doorway is illuminated with a brighter downlight).
Safety lighting doesn’t mean you need to install stadium-like floodlights too. Post lighting (as shown above) and ground lights are a fab way to highlight the way to your outdoor furniture area and around your garden without overpowering the seating area itself.
8. Security garden lighting for protection
Just like safety, security is another factor we need to consider. Outdoor furniture is a big-ticket item and is often seen as an easy target for thieves.
Security lighting is a great deterrent and research by the Home Office has highlighted that it can prevent crime by suggesting to would-be thieves that the property might be occupied and highlighting the presence of an alarm system or CCTV camera.
In the customer photo above of our white Jill 4-Seater Table, the patio is positioned away from the home so the bright spotlight with a PIR sensor is a great way to illuminate the space when there is movement. When using the patio, you can simply turn it off and switch to something more ambient.
Our final thoughts for outdoor space...
The best lighting schemes for outdoor use combine ambient, task, and accent lighting for a well-rounded, dynamic effect.
For example, you could hang string lights above your garden furniture to provide the ambient lighting, an outdoor table lamp for the task lighting you need to eat, and up-lighting to accentuate the natural beauty of any plants or architectural feature around the space.
When choosing outside lights, we would always look for dimmable options as they will enable you to adjust the tones and mood.
You also want to ensure that any external security or safety lights you permenantly install are well-distributed to avoid overly bright spots or dark corners.
While aesthetics are a key factor, don't overlook safety and function though. Highlight steps, railings, or uneven ground while also making sure your patio seating or dining area is well-lit for comfort.
Think about how you like to use the space, what features you want to highlight and design a scheme that gives you that important combination of style, looks, safety and functionality.
With our garden lighting ideas, you can create an inviting, functional, and visually stunning outdoor space.
If you’ve got any photos of your patio furniture in situ and lit up, then we’d also love to see a few snaps for our Do Some Good charity campaign. You can tag us @LazySusanFurniture on Instagram or Facebook or email them to sales@lazysusanfurniture.co.uk.
