During the summer months, there is nothing more enjoyable than entertaining guests in the great outdoors. Opting for a grill out — rather than hosting your party inside — can not only create a bigger space for entertainment, it can also save you from sweating over a hot stove. However, when you take the party outside, you want to be equipped with the best lighting possible for the event.

As Greensboro’s outdoor lighting showroom, we are here to help you design the perfect outdoor living space for evening parties. Whether you are throwing a small intimate get-together or a large rowdy party, the right lights will help set the mood and allow guests to enjoy the event well into the night hours.

Check out these tips for creating the perfect outdoor lighting for entertainment and come visit our showroom for a lighting consultation today.

Start With The Seating Area

The first place to begin when you are creating an inviting outdoor living space to entertain in is with the seating area. Make sure that wherever your guests will be seated, they will have ample light to enjoy their meal, drinks, or games. By focusing on this area first, you will be able to add in lighting features afterward that compliment this focal point.

Lighting the seating area can be accomplished in a myriad of ways. You can opt for a soft ambiance by stringing lights over the area, casting a glow over your guests. If you want a more traditional lighting scheme, you can implement the use of tall lantern lights surrounding the seating area.

If your seating area is covered by a porch or other solid structure, you can even get creative with pendant lights hung over the space or an outdoor chandelier for extra flair. For a more practical but beautiful piece, opt for a ceiling fan/light combination. Whatever you choose, make sure that it will match the design of the rest of your outdoor living space while providing ample illumination.

Consider Task Lighting

Another great way to ensure that your patio is ready to be used into the late hours of the night is to invest in task lighting. This lighting does exactly what it sounds like it would — it illuminates areas where a specific task will be completed.

For example, if you have an outdoor stove, you can add task lighting over this area. This lighting can then be used as needed, but can also be shut off when you are finished using the space. Not only will task lighting provide the best illumination possible for a specific spot, it will also help create a better ambiance as it can be turned off when not in use. In this way, task lighting is a great way to avoid the use of floodlights, which effectively light up every area but ruin the ambiance of the space.

Add To The Design With Detailed Touches

Once you have enough lighting for your seating space and for the tasks you need to perform, you can move on to the best part — the small touches. This is where your creativity can shine and you can tie together the design theme of the space as a whole. The great part is that you are not limited to just the patio area — you can spread lights throughout the entire landscape.

The following are a few examples of extra design lighting you can add to your outdoor space:

• Hanging lights
• Pathway lanterns
• Wall sconces
• Strings of lights
• Landscape lights (such as fountain lights, waterfall lights, etc.)
• Step lighting

You can combine these elements with your larger light features to design a specific style and ambiance. For example, adding ornate lanterns around the area will complement a more traditional style. Conversely, you could add hanging Edison bulb pendants for a trendy look.

Come Visit Our Showroom For Outdoor Lighting

If you are hoping to upgrade the outdoor lighting at your home, we hope you will stop by our lighting showroom in Greensboro today. Outdoor lighting is one of our many specialties and we will be happy to provide you with a lighting consultation to help you determine the best solution for your needs. Click here to view all our locations.