Outdoor lighting has the potential to transform your Homer Glen, IL, outdoor kitchen and patio area. A skilled landscaper can customize a lighting plan for any part of your landscape.
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Lighting for Outdoor Kitchen
Most of the time, lighting for an outdoor kitchen involves two types of lighting, task and ambient. Task lighting can be brighter and more focused to allow you to see specific things in the night time hours.
Task lighting: Task lighting is usually placed closer to where a task will occur and has a brighter tone. Task lighting can be right for cooking when you want to ensure meat is cooked through, cutting vegetables and other foods where a sharp knife is needed, and any other activity where you need light for safety and clear vision. Task lighting is white in tone and casts a strong light.
Ambient light is usually for beauty and softness.
Ambient lighting: Ambient lighting can be a chandelier, can lights, lamps, pendants, any lighting that you might want on a dimmer to set a mood. Your landscaper can plan which lights are for ambient purposes and ensure that they are dimmable so you can change the brightness yourself. Ambient lighting has a warm tone and casts a soft glow to make the area feel special.
Other lighting to consider for your outdoor kitchen can be undercounter lighting to shine on the countertops and under-cabinetry lighting to allow you to see clearly to the back of the cabinets for cooking items.
Floor lighting can help you and your guests to see the floor clearly, especially when the lights are recessed into the perimeter of the outdoor kitchen floor to designate the edges of the space.
Lighting for Patio
Enhance your outdoor patio with the right outdoor lighting plan. Having your landscaper install discreet lighting into the adjoining landscape beds can bring a gentle glow to the space. For added drama, consider having them install lighted orbs in the beds themselves for a bright focal point.
If your patio is covered with a pergola or cabana, consider adding lights at the base of the structure for more interest and to highlight the texture of the stone or wood. A nearby wall can benefit from soft wash lights that shine on the surface and help to bring definition in the darkened patio.
An amazing way to add light to your patio can be to incorporate a fire feature such as a fire pit that brings flickering light from a fire. Adding a fire might be the most ambient light you could add as this feature naturally draws guests to its flames.
Fire pits today can operate at the touch of a phone app to bring ease and warmth to your patio and outdoor kitchen space. If your patio is not large enough to accommodate a fire pit, your landscaper can plan an adjoining patio paver area at an edge of the patio to give you a designated fire space. The addition of a fire pit can give you three outdoor areas to entertain and enjoy the late afternoon into evening time of day.
With more seating and outdoor lighting, your outdoor kitchen and patio can become the place to be.
Related: DON'T FORGET TO ADD OUTDOOR LIGHTING TO YOUR SUMMER LANDSCAPE DESIGN PROJECT IN MANHATTAN, IL
