About Patio Designs
 

Patio Lighting - Can You Combine Different Patio Lights?

Solar Patio Lighting

Using the correct type of lights on your patio is the best way to set a particular kind of mood. If you want to set a jovial, happy mood, you should use patio string lights such as lanterns that will keep your guests happy and excited during a party. On the contrary, if you want to set a romantic mood nothing beats candlelight.

Patio string lights have come a long way since the days of plastic yellow, red and green patio lanterns strung haphazardly around the porch railing. Nowadays, you can purchase a wide selection of lights in a variety of styles and multitude of colors. You can get very attractive lights to make your deck or patio look elegant and inviting. You can also purchase unique patio string lights that can be fun to display.

Here’s a lists of some of the most commonly used patio string lights. 

Christmas lights.

These lights can probably be found on thousands of patios. However, most people rather use the white Christmas lights but you can get the lights in green, red, blue or even multicolor all year round in any party supply stores or home depot. White Christmas lights are the perfect outdoor patio string lights because they have a soft glow effect and very reliable. The only setback is that you have to use an extension cord so that you can plug them in unless you have individual power sockets on your patio. 

Solar lights.

Solar powered garden and outdoor light is one of the most economical choices for outdoor patio lights over the long run because they don’t use any electricity.  During the day, the lights are charged by the sun and at dusk they start to shine. Of course, if it’s a cloudy on the day, you won’t get as much light that night. Overall, solar lights are a good choice for patio lighting. Solar lights come in lots of different styles and sizes but one of the most popular solar lights for patio use are the garden lights that that you stick into the ground.

These solar garden lights are usually less than $10 each available at home depots and is a great way to light the path to your patio. In addition, you can also place them all around the patio to provide enough light to play games, read or see the person that you are talking to without the light being too bright. One of the all time best outdoor patio lights.

Candles.

Candles are a great way to set a perfect mood on your patio because there thousands of colors, styles and scents of candles. For pure romance, you just can’t beat candlelight. Candlelight is also very gracious and relaxing. Is a undoubtedly a great way to get people to open up. Groupings of candles of different heights but all the same color and scent make a beautiful decoration. Even a few tiny tea light candles that cost less than $1 in most places can transform a patio into a relaxing, tranquil and romantic getaway.

You can also arrange candles in many different ways to alter the lighting on your patio. You can get a simple long and narrow, round or oval shaped tray very cheaply from discount store and then fill that with pretty rocks or sea glass or sand and then place scented tea light candles at regular intervals in the dish. You have a beautiful centerpiece with a romantic lighting element. 

A simple glass bowl with several floating candles in it and some scattered flower petals definitely makes a stunning centerpiece. Alternately, you can use it on a side table for some background lighting.

If you use groupings of citrus scented candles like lemon, lemongrass and orange or if you have scented candles like Sandalwood or Patchouli, not only you can provide light for your patio but also to keep insects away at the same time. Generally, insects and bugs don’t like those scents. Furthermore, these exotically scented candles will smell much better to your guests than plain Citronella candles.

Patio string lights

Lanterns.

There are two major types of lanterns that are common for patio string lights. First is the paper lantern, which is most popular. These can be in the price range from very cheap to very costly depending on the number of lanterns on a string and the type of paper used. Some call these patio string lights. Chinese lanterns, as they are commonly known are usually available at Ikea or home improvement stores in various sizes and colors for as little as $1 per lantern. If you do have an outdoor patio, you can consider buying electric lanterns that are weatherproof and look like Chinese lanterns.

The second most common patio string lights will be the fabric lanterns. They are becoming more popular and are often made with pretty silk fabrics that have elaborate patterns or designs on them that creates a more exotic ambience to the patio. Fabric lanterns are also sometimes referred to as Mediterranean lanterns or Moroccan lanterns.

Patio string lights such as Paper or Chinese lantern are easy to craft and at the same time, lots of fun. You can pick out appealing and exotic papers that really go with your party theme or you can personalize them with your own messages. A pleasant thing to do when you are making paper lanterns for your patio is to write inspirational or motivating sayings or poems on each one. Therefore, when the light shines through the lantern, the writing will be illuminated. It’s a pretty creative idea to do so.

Patio Lights - Enhance The Beauty Of Your Patio

Making your own fabric lanterns is pretty difficult. However, if you can sew, you can choose gorgeous fabrics that you like to make them. If you are having something special at your party, then it’s undoubtedly worth taking the time to sew your own lanterns. There are heaps of instruction and pattern books that you can find either from book stores or library. When you do make your own lanterns you should always spray them with a fire retardant spray before using them. Remember to let them fully dry before using the DIY lanterns.

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