5 Outdoor Lighting Tips For Instant Curb Appeal

The trees and spring flowers are beginning to flower and the harsh winter landscape is fading away. Agents say spring is the most popular time to list or buy a house, but whether you’re looking to move or stay put, you can create instant curb appeal with outdoor lighting from Landscape Lighting Ottawa.
View a gallery of homes with great curb appeal after dark with some of the lighting solutions we’ve had the pleasure of designing and installing for our clients.

Front Door
Your home’s front door or porch is likely the focal point for curb appeal. Your front door needs light for safety reasons, but don’t settle for just functional. Old or worn-out fixtures should be updated for a clean well-kept look. For a double door entrance, use symmetry to help create an eye-catching focal point by mounting matching fixtures on each side. For single door entries, a single fixture will do the job.

Porch
Many porches are using lights that are too small. Lights should be ¼ to ⅓ of the height of the door; too big and guests notice the lights not the door, too small and the door loses impact and the focal point can be lost.

Harsh lighting from above or below can cast long shadows. A blend of lighting is best, so consider using eye-catching pendant light or recessed lighting beneath the eaves with accents like wall sconces, LED lights around the front rails or on front steps. Add small lights to the planters on your step or porch.

Front Walkway
Many homeowners line their front walkway with stake lights and call it a day. Go the extra step to create impact for great curb appeal. Use downlighting for safety and to highlight landscape details. Don’t be afraid to use shadow lighting to complement pathway lighting to fill in the gaps so your walkway doesn’t look like an airport runway. Point eyes down using guards and glare shields to highlight details such as stone paths or clean straight lines.

Landscaping
Don’t let the time and expense you’ve put into landscaping your front yard go to waste after dark. Uplighting, as the name suggests, points light up. Mount on a tree trunk to accent that stately oak in the front yard or use surface uplighting on the ground to cast shadows in your garden while providing safety lighting for pathways or stairs.

Consider the shadows. Placing uplights behind or in front a bush, tree, or other feature can highlight a great part of your card and cast a shadow for safety on a pathway or porch or extend the look of your yard. Downlighting is best for security and aesthetics by drawing the eye down. Place lights high up in trees or under eaves to highlight wider portions of the landscape or architecture. Place low to the ground to provide safety lighting that won’t distract from focal elements.

Architectural Features
You love the look of your home, so don’t let its best features go unnoticed after the sun goes down. Whether you have a Victorian or century home, something more utilitarian or perhaps modern, every home has features worth highlighting. Century homes often have peaks, scroll work, or other unique features to accent. Uplighting using a flood or wash light highlights the height of the home. Adding downlights near the eaves highlights modern lines.

Wash lighting is very effective on vertical surfaces, and depending on how it’s used can make even a straight wall appealing at night.

Shine a light on your home for instant curb appeal by contacting Landscape Lighting Ottawa today!