It is too easy to overlook lighting as an integral piece of interior design. Two lights, though both functioning the same way, will illuminate your space in entirely different ways, some better than others. When carefully chosen, the right lighting will enhance your garden room’s decor and evoke an intentional and specific mood in the space.
Things to Consider When Lighting Your Garden Room
Before you start shopping for new lights, it is important to consider three important things first:
- The intended purpose of your garden room: How you light your garden room will depend entirely on how you plan to use it. A garden bar favours ambience and low light whereas the same cannot be said for a garden office or gym, where ample lighting is vital.
- Natural light sources in your garden room: Consider the position of your garden room in relation to the sun – where and when does natural light come in? Your choice of lights should balance with the light already present in the room – if the space has more of one then lessen the other, and vice versa.
- Access to electricity in your garden room: It seems obvious, but electrical supply is an important consideration and will affect the lights you can and cannot include in your garden room. But if your garden room is not wired, you can always rely on battery-powered alternatives.
8 Garden Room Lighting Ideas and How to Use Them
1. Let in That Natural Light
Before you start rigging your space with an elaborate lighting scheme, it is important to remember your existing light sources – be that from windows or skylights. From there, you can decide how much additional lighting you need in your interiors. The last thing you want to do is waste time and money on daytime lighting when your windows/skylights are already pulling most of the weight themselves.
2. Flexibility is King
When it comes to lighting your garden room, flexibility is crucial. Garden rooms are versatile spaces that can change function easily, from a second living room to a garden office. So wireless or portable lighting is a fantastic way to make future change-ups easy. You can opt for floor lamps to move around the room as needed or, especially for garden offices, table lamps for handy task lighting in a pinch.
3. Vaulted Ceilings, Vaulted Expectations
Most of our garden rooms are single-storey, so often feature beautiful oak beams – however, this stunning feature can make flush-mount ceiling fixtures almost impossible to use. Instead, pendant lighting is the way to go, especially if you want to make the most of your vaulted ceiling. Alternatively, for smaller builds, you can exaggerate the height of your garden room using wall lights, specifically washers. Their light spread will give the illusion of grandiose high ceilings in a smaller space.
4. Set the Mood With Ambient Lighting
When you are using your garden room as a yoga studio or garden cinema, ambient lighting is extremely important. Track lighting can provide directional adjustability, so you can light your space easily and precisely. When creating the perfect ambient space, if you remember to do one thing, let it be installing a dimmer switch – you simply cannot beat the versatility and control that one provides.
5. Harness Solar Power
For garden rooms that lack an electrical supply, you can still light your space beautifully with solar-powered lights. For interiors, you can wire a solar panel from your roof or garden back into your garden room. This can be fiddly, but when done right the effect is seamless. Exterior solar-powered lighting is easier to manage, as most have built-in panels. This allows you to put them anywhere you like, either on a patio or dotted throughout your garden.
6. Remember Your Outdoor Spaces
On the subject of exterior lighting, it is important not to forget it. You can have a perfectly lit garden room, but an outdoor space in the dark. Your garden room is meant to be enjoyed both on its own and alongside your garden. They work as a team. So you can utilise solar lights, as above, or illuminate your garden room’s entryway with recessed lighting or wall lights, to keep your space clear but well-lit.
7. Lighting Meets Temperature Control
Your outdoor spaces and garden room verandas could also benefit from outdoor heaters. Not only will they keep you warm in the colder months, but their heat also doubles as an atmospheric light. On the contrary, for your warmer months, you could install ceiling fans that can double as semi-flush light fixtures. Whether you need warming or cooling, stay bright all year round.
8. The Cherry on Top
Once you have your practical task lighting in place, you can afford to play around a bit with additional lighting. Decorative lighting can really add a flair of personality to your garden room. From ornate light fixtures, wall sconces, and chandeliers, to beautiful and versatile fairy lights to string across your rafters or walls. Most lights can be fitted with coloured bulbs too, or even colour-changing bulbs, allowing you to set the ideal mood at any time.
Light Up Your Garden Room Today
Lights are often treated as a finishing touch, but they are so much more vital than that. Choosing the right lighting scheme for your interiors, as well as your exteriors, is crucial – and means the difference between a garden room that works and one that does not. But there is no reason for it to be difficult. We hope our ideas have helped you to make the right choice and to see your garden room ‘in a new light’.
If you have already chosen the perfect lighting for your garden room, but would still like some more design inspiration, check out our articles on garden room furniture and interior design ideas.
