As the sun sets, outdoor spaces can quickly become dark and unwelcoming. However, with the right outdoor lighting, you can transform your backyard into a warm and welcoming space. So, what exactly are daylight sensors, and how can they level up your outdoor lighting?

What are Daylight Sensors?

Daylight sensors are devices that detect the amount of natural light present in a given area. These sensors can be installed in any outdoor space, such as walkways, patios, and more, to measure the available daylight.

Once the sensor detects a certain level of natural light, it can automatically adjust the lighting to compensate. This means that during the day, the lighting can be dimmed or turned off, reducing energy consumption and saving you money on your utility bills.

How Daylight Sensors Can Enhance Your Home

According to People Magazine, one of the most popular home design trends is using subtle energy-efficient outdoor lighting. Daylight sensors make this a breeze by being unnoticeable during the day when your lights aren’t needed, and then bringing their full value after the sun has gone down. 

Reducing your energy bill will make a big difference in the long term, allowing you to save money to utilize on décor and upgrades throughout the rest of your home.

Major Benefits of Outdoor Lighting with Daylight Sensors

Incorporating daylight sensors into your outdoor lighting can have a significant impact on the overall ambiance and safety of your home. By automatically adjusting the lighting levels, daylight sensors can help reduce the risk of accidents and potential intruders. 

Daylight sensors can also extend the lifespan of your outdoor lighting fixtures, once again another way that their efficiency will save you money in the long run.

Daylight sensors are a game-changer for outdoor lighting. If you have additional questions about how daylight sensors can benefit your outdoor lighting, contact Premier Lighting today to learn more about our innovative lighting solutions.

There’s nothing quite like enjoying a relaxing, peaceful evening in the comfort of your own backyard. Whether you’re hosting a backyard barbecue, relaxing with family, or simply enjoying the quiet, proper outdoor lighting can enhance both the ambiance and safety of your outdoor space. At Premier Lighting, we understand the importance of selecting the right fixtures to bring functionality to your outdoor areas. Here’s a guide to help you choose the perfect lighting to make the most of your outdoor evenings.

Consider Your Home’s Architectural Features

Before choosing outdoor lighting fixtures, take a moment to consider the architectural style of your home. Is your home adorned with graceful, curved accents, or does it have a more modern, minimalist design with clean, geometric lines?

Matching your lighting to your home’s design is key to maintaining a harmonious look. For example, if your home has sleek lines, modern fixtures with simple designs would enhance its contemporary appeal. Meanwhile, a more traditional home with arched windows or vintage features would benefit from ornate, classic lighting styles.

Additionally, you can use outdoor lighting to highlight architectural elements. Place lights near columns, arches, or other unique features to make your home stand out beautifully against the night sky.

Match Your Lighting Fixtures to Existing Elements

Achieving a cohesive design involves more than just picking out pretty lights—your outdoor fixtures should complement other elements around your home. If your front door is adorned with brass handles and knockers, consider matching your lighting fixtures with a similar brass finish. This will help create a unified and polished look that draws the eye to your entryway. The same goes for other materials such as bronze or chrome—by matching your lighting to existing hardware, you can effortlessly elevate the appearance of your outdoor spaces.

Lighting can also be used to complement the trim on your house. For instance, if your home features dark trim on a lighter-colored exterior, consider choosing fixtures in a matching dark tone. This ensures visual balance and prevents the lights from feeling out of place, creating a seamless design from day to night.

Coordinate Your Lighting with Outdoor Furniture and Accessories

Your outdoor space isn’t just about your home’s architecture—it’s also about how you use it. If you have an outdoor dining area or poolside furniture, your lighting should complement these elements as well. Metal dining tables, wooden benches, or brightly colored outdoor cushions can be coordinated with lighting fixtures that either match or accent these pieces.

Consider installing wall-mounted lights to illuminate dining areas or hanging string lights to create a cozy atmosphere for lounging spaces. Additionally, pathway lighting around seating areas and pools can improve safety while adding a charming glow to your evenings outdoors. Thoughtfully placed lighting can enhance the entire experience, making your outdoor space as inviting and functional as possible.

The right outdoor lighting can transform your backyard into a serene and stylish oasis where you can enjoy your nights to the fullest. By considering your home’s architectural style, matching your fixtures to existing elements, and coordinating with your outdoor furniture, you can create a beautifully illuminated space that reflects your personal style.

Ready to enhance your outdoor space? Contact Premier Lighting today, and let our team help you find the perfect lighting solutions for your home. We offer an extensive collection of outdoor fixtures that will add both beauty and practicality to your home!

When it comes to making a great first impression of your home, outdoor lighting is key. The right outdoor lighting fixture can transform the look of your home’s exterior and make it more welcoming. Read on to learn how thoughtfully designed outdoor lighting enhances curb appeal.

Highlight Architectural Features

Outdoor lighting allows you to illuminate the best parts of your home’s exterior design. Uplights in trees give a glow to highlight charming details. Post lights guide visitors along pathways and up to entrances. Wall sconces bathe the exterior of your home in a warm, inviting radiance. An outdoor lighting fixture strategically placed around porches, doors, garages and other exterior features will make them stand out.

Create Ambiance and Safety

In addition to highlighting architectural details, outdoor lighting sets the mood and makes your home feel safer. According to a study by the National Association of Realtors, neighborhoods and homes that had outdoor lighting fixtures were 7% less likely of being the victim of a crime than homes that did not have outdoor lighting. The right lighting deters crime while making your home look and feel more welcoming.

Landscape Lighting

Outdoor lighting integrated into your landscaping is both practical and decorative. Path lights illuminate walkways and prevent tripping hazards. Floodlights and spotlights can shine on foliage, gardens, fountains and other landscape features. Uplights in trees create a magical effect. This type of landscape lighting makes your home look well-designed and cared for.

Focus on Entryways

Your home’s entrance should be the focal point of your outdoor lighting. Install an inviting lamp post or lantern by the sidewalk leading up to your front door. Wall sconces or pendant lights flanking the door also help welcome guests. Accent lighting on columns and railings will further enhance the entryway.

A properly designed and placed outdoor lighting fixture is one of the best investments for improving curb appeal. Not only will your home look fabulous, but it will also feel safer and more welcoming after dark. Take time to highlight your home’s best architectural features with strategic outdoor lighting that matches your style. Finding the right light fixtures for inside or outside of your home is important. Visit one of our Premier Lighting showroom locations today to get expert help finding the perfect lighting for your home.

Posted 5/28/24

When it comes to outdoor lighting, there is definitely a right way and a wrong way to do it. Not only does high quality outdoor lighting boost the value of your home and the curb appeal, but it can also make your home much safer at night. The right type of lighting in the right placement, can really put a finishing touch to your landscaping and home exterior. When lighting isn’t done right, though, it can be unattractive and impractical. Here are a few outdoor lighting mistakes that you’ll want to avoid.

Failure to Plan

Great lighting starts with careful planning. Simply grabbing the cheapest fixtures at the home improvement store won’t be enough to create stunning outdoor lighting. You’ll want to take a walk around your property and consider the areas that will need lighting. Some people find it helpful to draw a map of their property as well. This can help you plan more strategically. Before you head to the lighting store you should have a clear idea of how many lights you’ll need, where they’ll be placed, and how big you’ll want them.

Choosing the Wrong Locations

It’s imperative that you place your lights in the right areas of your yard for the best results. The placement will be a big part of the overall lighting situation you’ll create. If some of your outdoor lighting plans includes security lighting, then you’ll need to know the most strategic places to install them. You’ll need to look for areas of the property that are particularly dark so that you’ll get the most benefit.

Too Little Lighting

Having too little lighting in your yard won’t achieve your objectives. According to Forbes, lighting at the front entry should be between 1,000 and 2,000 lumens, and 300 lumens is recommended for pathways. If you’re working on a budget, you might be tempted to go too small or too dim in hopes of staying on budget. You obviously want to keep an eye on how much you’re spending, but you also want to make sure you’re using your money wisely on a good investment and that means quality lighting which often costs a little more.

Too Much Lighting

On the other hand you also want to make sure you’re not going with too much lighting either. You want lighting choices that are adequate and achieve your purposes. If you want to light up a walkway or a porch or front area you need just enough. Too much will be overpowering and unattractive.

These are a few mistakes to avoid when installing outdoor lighting. If you’re interested in viewing our lighting fixture inventory, please stop by to see up soon.

Posted 4/29/24

Outdoor fun doesn’t have to end when the sun goes down if you have the right exterior lighting. According to Snow Brains, the average American only spends about 12 hours a week outside. Exterior lighting can help everyone get outside more often. Here is how you can get everyone outside more with exterior lighting.

1. Patio and Deck Lighting

Patio and deck lighting are an easy way to make these areas more appealing for nighttime use. Lighting strategically placed around the deck and patio can give these areas a room-like feel. Your family and guests will linger long after sundown.

Investing in lighting around your patio and deck can be a game changer for how often your patio and deck get used. Lighting can be an invitation for longer gatherings. It can also improve the aesthetics of your outdoor spaces.

2. Pathway and Garden Lighting

Stumbling around in the dark is never a good idea. Pathways and garden lighting make it easier to see where you’re stepping. This type of lighting can improve safety. It can also ensure your garden flowers are safe from foot traffic.

Lighting up paths will encourage more time outside. Having a well-lit option for foot traffic will encourage everyone to stay outdoors longer each day. Of course, adding lighting to your garden will ensure that all your hard work can be admired at night as well as during the day.

3. Spot and Floodlights

Spot and floodlights can really light up your outdoor spaces. They are an excellent option to heighten security in your outdoor areas and, of course, to illuminate the areas as well. This type of lighting is great for task area highlighting.

For example, spot and floodlights are ideal around a pool area or a cooking area. In spaces that need to be well-lit to ensure you can enjoy the area at night safely, spot and floodlighting are hard to beat. Luckily, today, there are plenty of options that are decorative, energy efficient (thanks to LED options), and can deliver the high lumens you need.

If you are like most homeowners, you put a lot of time and energy into your outdoor living spaces. Why not use exterior lighting to ensure you get the most bang for your buck and make sure those spaces can be enjoyed for longer periods of time? Shop today at Premier Lighting for lighting that will encourage everyone to be outside.

Posted 3/1/24

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, there are more than 114 million households across the country, and many homeowners use their yards to host friends and family. That said, if you want your backyard or other spaces to really shine, you’ll need to design it with intent. The right outdoor lighting and other features can make your yard stand out. Let’s consider how you can turn your green spaces into oases.

Light the Way

There’s a good chance that you’ll end up enjoying time in your backyard at night. You might invite friends over for a barbeque or outdoor movie night, for example. Walking around in your yard at night can be a bit dangerous, however, especially for guests.

Someone might trip over a rock or flower bed. Or maybe they’ll stub their toe on your garden gnome. If people are going to be walking around in the dark, it’s crucial to ensure that pathways are well-lit. This can greatly reduce the risk of accidents.

Fortunately, lighting pathways with outdoor lighting is relatively simple. You can find many different lights capable of getting the job done, including solar-powered lamps.

Make Your Best Features Shine

You may have set up some eye-catching features, like a Koi pond or a fountain. Perhaps you have beautiful flowerbeds packed with beautiful plants. Whatever the case, you can set up lighting to put these features in the spotlight. This way, attention will be drawn to the best aspects of your yard.

People form impressions within a matter of seconds. If you’re inviting guests over, well-designed lighting can help you make good impressions. Further, by highlighting greenery and the like, you can make your yard feel more like a lush oasis.

Set Ambiance

The right lighting can help people relax. Humans are very attuned to light, and lighting can impact our moods. Soft yellow light, for example, could provide your yard with a warm and inviting ambiance. A relaxing atmosphere can help people unwind and may lead to better, more relaxed conversations.

At the end of the day, there are many ways you can use outdoor lighting to make your backyard or other green space more welcoming and relaxing. If you want to build an oasis, it’s crucial to get the lighting right. Need assistance or have questions? Feel free to contact us.

Posted: 10/16/2023