Shine a light on your entrance

Cheyenne style, from Troy

Many homeowners never enter their house through the front door. They come in through the garage or backdoor. Yet the front of your house needs to be attractive because you want to give a warm welcome to visitors. And, if you do enter and exit through your front door, you deserve an attractive entryway. Moreover, curb appeal is essential if you are selling your home.
Exterior lighting contributes to an attractive entrance. “When people are looking to upgrade their outdoor lighting, starting with the front of the house usually helps guide them through the complete outdoor lighting package,” says Toby Boyd, an executive with a lighting fixtures maker.
Here are some tips and ideas from Boyd and other experts for lighting the outside of your home.
At the entrance
If only one fixture is going to be used at the entrance, it should measures one-third the height of the door. If installing two fixtures, make each about one-quarter the size of the door.
Choose proper brightness. Any outdoor fixture should be rated for a minimum of 75 watts of incandescent or 20 watts of compact fluorescent lighting, says Joe Rey-Barreau, an associate professor at the University of Kentucky’s School of Interior Design. If there are fixtures on either side of the door, these recommendations would apply to both lanterns, he says.

Alameda style, from Kichler

In the landscape
Use lighting to illuminate the walkway for safety. Stagger the lights on each side of the path. You do not want it to appear as if you are lighting an airport runway.
Buy good-quality lighting products. The solar- and LED-powered models sold by some mass merchants might seem like a bargain, but the light output is not adequate.
Put more emphasis on illumination than on style. “When lighting landscape applications, seeing what the fixture does at night is more important than seeing the fixture in the light of day,” Boyd says.

Style
With homeowners extending living space to backyard patios, porches and decks, the lines are blurring between indoor and outdoor styles for furniture and lighting. New exterior lighting fixtures are designed to complement their interior counterparts. That means you can create a uniform appearance inside and out.

Cotswold style, from Kichler

“As a general trend, cleaner looks are being seen across all styles, not just in contemporary collections,” says James Thomas, senior designer for another lighting manufacturer. “Today’s fixtures have less fluting and detail, and highlight more of a simplified style. Many companies are starting to offer versatile fixtures that can be used indoors as well as outdoors.”
Additionally, many light fixtures use frosted, antique distressed or seeded glass to disguise the outline of the compact fluorescent light bulb.
See more lighting tips and design ideas at the American Lighting Association   website.
Then stop in to Lilli’s Lighting and Décor, 695 Summit Blvd., Frisco, CO, and talk to us about your indoor and outdoor lighting projects.