Summertime inspires us to get out of the house and enjoy our outdoor living areas. Why limit the fun to when the sun is shining? Brighten up sultry summer nights in your back yard with modern exterior lighting that is both functional and attractive.

In addition to providing essential lumens, carefully placed lighting can help create a mood or ambiance in your yard, draw attention away from problem spots and highlight special features. Here are some of the brightest trends for 2016.

Bye, bye, bland white lights. Color plantings, accent lawn décor, and stylize entertaining areas. Filters can be used with white lights to create a cool tone, or create dramatic settings and focus attention on landscape highlights.

Small twinkle lights amassed together and hidden in plantings and walkways are very attractive and can add depth to an area or provide an understated accent to landscape features.

Cafe lighting with old style cafe string lights will add a trendy touch to back yard patios of all sizes.

Don’t be afraid to go big with statement lights. In contrast to small lights, big, bold, feature lights are also in be created with white or colored orbs (also known as illuminated globes and glow balls).

For the relatively inexpensive cost, globes provide amazingly sophisticated looks and can be quite the conversation starters. If you want a more personal look, consider novelty lighting. or to support theme décor. Lanterns aren’t new for the year but continue to provide a timeless glow to any backyard setting.

Homeowners are looking for lighting and LED lighting (light emitting diodes) gaining a reputation for being the best and brightest new choice for landscape lighting design, dimming the popularity LED’s have incredibly long lives of about 100,000 hours.

LED solar lights are becoming popular for their “monocrystal” solar panel with a conversion rate equal to or greater than 18 percent compared to amorphous solar panel rate of 9 percent, shining up to 10 hours when fully charged. Solar lighting uses renewable energy and is friendly on the pocketbook too.

Be careful before going DIY when adding outdoor lighting. It is always good practice to consult an experienced electrician when working on outdoor installations that may require a different set of considerations than indoor lighting.

Adriana Donofrio Podley Properties Glendora 626 926-9700 • adrianad@podley.com