Best outdoor lighting to choose in 2021

23rd April 2021 | Inspirations

Outdoor lighting can help maximise the time you can spend outside. Transform your garden into a magical wonderland of illuminated foliage, a softly lit al fresco dining room or a cosy corner for a little stargazing, all at the turn of a switch.

Browse our many types and styles of exterior lighting for inspiration and the outdoor lights to bring your garden to life.

6 joys of outdoor lighting

1. Being in the fresh air does us good and even the smallest outdoor space, if well lit, can add another room for many activities well into the evening all year round.

2. An outside space is a great place to exercise. Why not set up a space for your yoga or Pilates mat, or set up a circuit around the garden? Use lights to set the mood – good path lighting to guide you and lower level ambient lighting to create a warm and tranquil environment.

3. As the sun begins to set, patio lights help balance light levels between your indoor rooms and the garden, linking the spaces and allowing you to move between the two through your open doors.

4. In the dark of night, garden lighting can create a dramatic and inviting scene outside your windows. Lighting foliage from below and illuminating favourite outdoor features and areas can create a living picturescape to enjoy from a patio or indoors.

5. Exterior lighting acts as a great security device, lighting up the shadows and at the same time creating a feeling of space around the house. A well-lit drive way or path, as well as increasing security, also makes access to your home safer in the darkness.

6. Outside lighting provides practical illumination by which to leave and enter your home more safely. With our extensive range of exterior lighting even lighting for this practical purpose does not need to be boring. By choosing a style to complement your architecture, you can accentuate the character of your home from the traditional outdoor lanterns with their classic English home look to the ultra-modern compact LED lights that throw dramatic washes of light onto the walls.

Read on to find out more about choosing the best exterior lighting for your home.

Choosing the best light for your home

Outdoor lights come in all shapes, sizes and styles. So, should you stick to a traditional look or be bold with a contemporary style for your home?

Traditional outdoor wall lights

Our out door wall lights are the perfect solution for doorways, patios, balconies and outside steps and seating areas. Traditional outdoor wall lantern lights with authentic detailing and hardy, weather-proof metallic finishes make an enchanting addition to older or traditional properties. They look majestic as porch lights, beside doorways, alongside paths and driveways, or affixed to gateposts.

Contemporary outdoor wall lights

Modern lights with geometric design, clean lines and a sleek finish will enhance more recently constructed properties, though these are equally suitable for older homes due to their neat, slender profiles. These exterior lights can throw beautiful washes of light over a wall, creating dramatic architectural effects.

A selection of contemporary outdoor lights mounted on a pine planked wall

How to improve safety

Lighting will reduce the risk of injury due to trips and falls, enhancing safety for your family and visitors alike.

To light up steps, small downlighters like the Egham Silver and Egham Black work brilliantly in pairs either side of each tread; or use singly to illuminate other potential trip hazards or any dark spots along a path.

For a particularly dark area, box styles with clear panels give out a strong light over a wide space, especially when they feature two lights.

To make a long drive or pathway safer, install a series of path or post lights. A pair can also usefully mark the entrance to your drive, making it easier for visitors to spot and also reducing the risk of damaged gateposts.

A note on security lighting

All external lighting is security lighting, as by its very nature it provides a deterrent, but there’s nothing in the rules to say outdoor lights must look utilitarian! We hope you agree that even our utilitarian lights garden lights look rather stylish!

Do keep in mind the impact of any bright lights on neighbouring spaces. Any potential light pollution can be reduced by using adjustable lights and those with motion sensors.

As our outdoor lights are all durable and weather-resistant – well protected from the great British weather – installing such long-life security lighting means you can feel secure for years to come.

Lights for small spaces

Even the smallest balcony can be transformed into a magical space at night with the use of outdoor lighting. For a smaller garden or outdoor space that requires something unobtrusive, the compact Vulcan in gun-metal grey can be fitted horizontally or vertically and, casting a great light and creating interest.

If you want to highlight particular features in your outside space or direct the light onto a path or particular spot then a shaded garden wall light, downlighter or adjustable wall light will enable you to focus the beam of light where you want it to be. This is especially useful if you want to avoid a general light spill over a large area and minimise light pollution.

How to light up a garden feature

Looking to highlight a particular feature, such as a statue or specimen tree? Features can look great when lit from below with the light flooding upwards; using directional lights to throw light downwards can work just as well. Our Ortega garden spotlights with either one or two adjustable heads is great to illuminate your favourite plants and trees as you can angle the light beam precisely.

How to add visual interest

Contemporary styled LED exterior wall lights are striking features in themselves, and often throw out fascinating light shapes.

Have a vast expanse of dull fencing or boundary walling, or a large, window-less area of house wall? A neat trick to add an illusion of visual interest and to highlight texture is with an exterior wall wash light or an uplighter and/or downlighter. Place several in a row to introduce some pattern or turn an up and down light on its side for a double fan effect.

To create your own shapes, check out the clever adjustable Adyson (below), the angled Paco or the Bohdan with its two rotating circular heads.

Homecoming

A porch light illuminating your front door from above is a very welcome sight.

These days, no-one wants to leave lights on all the time, but lights with a built-in motion sensor will detect movement and heat at a pre-set distance using a PIR – passive infrared – sensor and automatically switching the light on for you, your family or callers. Outdoor PIR lighting is perfect for when you have your hands full too!

If you find it hard to see your front or back door keyhole clearly, fit an outside PIR wall light like the Tien with its adjustable head for illumination just where you want it; with a motion sensor, it’s perfect for when you have your hands full too!

How to add kerb appeal

Make it obvious they have arrived! You can make a real statement with a grand carriage lantern wall light either side of the doorway. Make more of a doorway by adding plants such as standard bay trees in square planters either side of the door and illuminate them from below or above.

You can adapt this style tip for modern houses by installing a pair of our contemporary lights like the graphic Bohdan.

What about ceilings?

Even gardens sometimes have ceilings! Need to light a roofed side passage or a covered area? Bulkhead wall lights that can also be fitted overhead as outdoor ceiling lights are perfect for this. In sheds and outbuildings it is a good idea to use outdoor lights with their enhanced protection against moisture. In a range of finishes and styles, there is a perfect exterior light for every shed, whatever its use.

Cost-effective outdoor lighting?

Outdoor lighting comes in all shapes and sizes. For some great value options take a look at the three-panelled Dulbecco wall light for a traditional look and for a more contemporary style the round Ugo (below) and square Yukon, are great choices. Both these lights are ‘eyelid’ style downlighters in sleek anthracite grey aluminium, powder-coated for durability.

LED outdoor lighting

For a contemporary look, our sleek box LED wall lights will cast a soft illumination across your external walls for a calming yet dramatic effect while using less electricity.

Why not have some fun with our rechargeable portable LED lights and string lights? Great for creating ambiance for entertaining and al fresco dining, they can also be used indoors.

As an added extra, the Haxton and Euba outdoor wall lights have an integrated Bluetooth speaker, so you can relax in the garden to your favourite playlist or radio show.

Solar lighting

Another way to reduce energy consumption and protect the planet is to use solar lights. It is also the perfect solution if you need to avoid external wiring.

VIEW ALL OUTDOOR LIGHTING

Setting the scene

From the largest patio areas to the smallest balconies, it has never been easier to make any outdoor space a pleasure in the warm evenings. With comfortable outdoor furniture, patio heaters or a rug or two, our outside spaces are becoming our extra room; a favourite place for play, enjoying the view, a quiet space to read and take a moment, as well as for entertaining, BBQs and convivial evenings. As night falls, your exterior lighting will transform this space, bringing visual magic and enchantment, ambience and a feeling of tranquillity with the heavenly scents of the evening flora.

Best outdoor lighting to choose in 2021

6 joys of outdoor lighting