ADD DRAMA WITH LANDSCAPE LIGHTING
A great home design incorporates many ideas. There’s the exterior view; how it looks from the street and its curb appeal. How do the windows play, letting light inside, but also how they look and balance the outside look. What unique exterior finishes or features distinguish this home and makes it stand out?
As a designer, architect, or builder, you know these things better than we do. But we do understand home technology and the role that lighting can play in differentiating a home, highlighting its best aspects, and creating the right ambiance for a home. Any good photographer knows the role that light plays in capturing an image. With the proper lighting, what could be a mundane photo can turn into a spectacular and memorable picture.
Landscape lighting can have that effect on the exteriors of a property. Let us postulate this: if you include the effect of landscape lighting from the beginning on your next home project in the Woodlands, you will multiply the impact of your imaginative designs. Intrigued? Read on for some ideas.
SEE ALSO: 6 Big Landscape Lighting Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
ACCENT AND SPOT LIGHTING
Designers and builders – architects, landscape designers, and home technology integrators like Refined Systems – working together can ensure that the home's design is an integrated whole. Decide on specific areas that can be dramatically lit, like the main entrances, driveways, and focal points in the garden. Thinking about it from the beginning as a cohesive design will portray the home in the best…light.
USE GRAZING TECHNIQUES
Use lighting close to a unique surface to bring out detail – whether it’s a special door, the bark of a large tree, or an antique brick wall. Think about how light will play off your unique feature and incorporate that into your plan.
SHADOWING AND SILHOUETTING
Lighting a unique feature like an outdoor sculpture or tree from the front and below can create dramatic shadows. Similarly, you can create intriguing silhouettes with the right light positioning. Planning for this early can ensure the finished look is as exciting as you envisioned.
POOL AND FOUNTAIN LIGHTING
Underwater lighting is commonly used to beautiful effect after dark. Today’s LED lighting can amplify that effect, with a rainbow of changeable colors to highlight water features.
DOWNLIGHTING AND AREA LIGHTING
If there are good tall trees, consider downlighting as an option to illuminate a landscape, the driveway, or a backyard. Soft lights can simulate moonlight, which adds light that seems natural but also augments the safety aspect of lighting a dark property as well.
CROSS LIGHTING AND UP LIGHTING
Create three-dimensional shadows by lighting a tree or other tall outdoor feature from multiple locations below. Highlight exterior walls of a home – like arches – with up lights that add height and drama. A tall, stacked outdoor fountain would be a prime candidate for up lights.
CHOOSE THE RIGHT VENDOR AND INTEGRATION PARTNER
Refined Systems has long experience with home technology integration for the most exceptional properties in the greater Houston area. One of our preferred lighting vendors is Coastal Source for landscape lighting, as they have a wide array of lighting for all the areas we highlighted here. Not only can we do exterior lighting, but we can also integrate and automate it to work with other home functions like shading, climate control, interior lighting, pool and spa control, audio-visual systems, and much more. Of course, you are the experts when it comes to design, and we aim to bring your vision to life.
Are you ready to maximize the impact of landscape lighting on your next project in the Woodlands? Call (281) 907-9620 or reach out to our team today; we look forward to working with you.
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