Use Silhouettes for Unique Lighting Patterns  

As the sun goes down your outdoor lighting sets the stage for your home. Path lighting is important for safety and visibility at night, but you can still get creative. You don’t have to use traditional path lighting to illuminate your space. 

Moonlighting, or down lighting, softly illuminates the space beneath it to create a shadow design along its path. Use moonlighting over trees to emulate the moon shining through leaves and branches. 

Before you buy lights you should know that moonlighting may not be feasible for your home. These are important considerations with exterior moonlighting: 

• Installation requires either equipment and expertise, or professional help 

• Your yard needs enough trees of 20 feet or more to mount moonlighting 
• Spacing is important for a consistent pattern throughout your path lighting 

As you can see, there are a few caveats for moonlighting to be effective. If you can use moonlighting though, your home’s exterior will look unique, natural, and delicately lit. 

Consider using moonlighting to play with the shapes throughout your yard as part of your light pathing design. If you have many trees, this lighting style is especially beautiful.  

Set the Mood with the Right Spacing 

Spacing your exterior lights is important for safety and light design. Some Poway area homeowners choose parallel path lighting for a minimalist and chic approach, while others choose staggered spacing for a homey and soft pathway. 

Your exterior lighting should be spaced differently based on the flow of your home’s pathing.  

If your yard features mismatched stones that curve and twist, staggering path lights can highlight the natural curve of your path while gently guiding new visitors. 

If you’re lighting a straightforward concrete path, evenly spaced path lights will actually make the path look more fashionable and less utilitarian.  

Of course, there’s more to spacing than these two methods. For the more creative designer, you can place inlay lights in the center of your path, place lights beneath stairs for a sleek and modern glow, or even add arched lighting twinkling over your path. 

Your spacing possibilities are endless. The layout of your path lights can influence the atmosphere of your home’s exterior; so think about the mood you want to create when you design your nighttime lights. 

Create a Glow Around Your Garden 

Are you proud of your garden? If you are, then light it up and show it off! 

If your garden is luscious and colorful under the sun, then it can look ethereal under the stars. You can use path lighting to guide everyone’s eyes to your garden, especially if your plants already line the path to your house. 

Here are a few common methods for nighttime garden lighting: 

• Lanterns hanging from tree branches 
• String lights woven through bushes and shrubs 
• Sidelights along garden walls 
• Garden lights set under plants 

Any of these garden lighting ideas can provide a beautiful glow to your garden depending on its layout. 

Illuminate Your Pool 

If you have a pool, you’ve put in the work to maintain and keep it swim season ready. Don’t be afraid to light up the centerpiece of your landscape. 

Pools already need lighting under the surface, so you can start there to create soft blue light. However, you can add more than simple pool wall lights.  

To add some pool illumination to accentuate your pathway, think about safety first. Can visitors see around the edge of your pool at night? Are the lights pool safe? 

Many landscape lighting lovers add a lit archway as an entrance to the pool area. You can also add classic bollard lights to create a subtle pathway while keeping the attention on your pool. 

Next, try throwing in some floating lights, pool stair lights, or even a glowing fountain. Pools can be the most fun part of your yard, so have fun with the lighting. Your children, visiting family, or friends’ children will especially love the creativity you have put into your landscape lighting plan for your Poway home. 

Light Up Your Patio 

Your patio is more than an extension of your landscape. It’s an area for people to hang out and have fun outside. Patio lighting is especially important if you want to create a comfortable and inviting atmosphere. 

Everyone loves string lights for a fun and trendy patio design, but you can add more than string lights to illuminate your patio, but not all string lights are patio safe. 

Consider these trendy nighttime patio lighting ideas: 

• Entertain with an outdoor fireplace 
• Keep some candle lights and lanterns around your patio furniture 
• Add a heating lamp to stay warm with a glow 
• Hang outdoor chandeliers for some patio statement pieces 

Since your patio rides the line between interior and exterior, you can use both indoor and outdoor lighting. Mix and match different types of lighting to create a comfortable yet stylish patio. 

These Path Lighting Ideas Will Transform Your Poway Home 

Now that you know landscape lighting can be beautifully illuminating as well as practical, you can take the next step and start evaluating your exterior lighting with a critical eye. 

Use these creative path lighting ideas to elevate your exterior lighting. Create moonlit shadows, accentuate your most beautiful flowers, and have fun designing a nighttime oasis in your own yard in Poway. 

Ready to light up your home? We prioritize flawless installation and economic solutions to give you perfect landscape lighting. See our landscape lighting services and request a consultation here.