Bringing the outdoors in, taking the indoors out, it’s all quite the rage, as if you haven’t noticed. And if you haven’t noticed, sorry but where have you been? Outdoor wall mounted lighting has come on in leaps and bounds in the past couple of years and it’s been a pleasure to specify some delicious industrial styles from companies like Cox & Cox and Industville on client work this year. Three gorgeous nickel ship lights are lined up waiting patiently to go up on the walls here at Moregeous Mansions, all IP rated and weather proof to ensure they stand the test of the wet British winter. Or summer, come to think of it.
However pendant lighting outside is another matter. Monty Don would have me strung up for this but gardens aren’t just gardens to today’s Instagrammers, they’re outside rooms and outside rooms call for indoor accoutrements. Think fireplaces, shelving, rugs and pendants.
Let me ask you first though. When you think of British gardens, do you think of this…
Er, not quite. These two hot bods might be stripped, waxed and shiny but most of us don’t have a reed bordered heated pool and giant drapes to keep the chill away come dusk. You’ve probably always coped, like me, with a windy flagged or decked area which endlessly gathers leaves, is strewn with half dead pots and occasionally on a warm night hosts an impromptu barbecue. But now we have Instagardens. Now the bar has been raised. And now more affordable, cool outdoor pendants are starting to appear, like these ones from Manchester firm Moonbeam Lighting.
The range is a bit of an investment with the fittings starting at £450, so maybe ditch the idea of hanging them together in trendy groups of three, However to stand the test of time & temperature, attractive external lighting needs to be good quality and we all know you get what you pay for. The other thing which crossed my mind when I read the emailed info this morning was of course that where some lead, other will follow. This two are the first cool looking, UK-available external lights I’ve seen which I’d consider buying, so I reckon 2018 will bring many more to our picnic table.
You might not have a curtained garden folly like Mr & Mrs Perfect above, but if you’ve a pergola, a big tree or a sturdy wall bracket, you can have an outdoor chandelier. External rated cabling is required to the connection point (maybe best getting a professional spark in for that), and don’t hang it too low or too near a fire pit.
Just add a pair of woolly socks, a fleecy blanket and a stiff G&T and ta-da, the perfect early Autumn evening in. Or out.
Disclaimer : There isn’t one. A PR sent the email and it caught my eye, which most don’t. Gorgeous looking external pendant lighting is still as rare as rocking horse teeth in the UK so I simply thought I’d share these with you in case you were looking for some. You’re welcome 🙂
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