Extending Your Summer Nights with Outdoor Lighting

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These warmer months are wonderful for hosting backyard BBQs, wine nights with the girls, and other outdoor events. Adding outdoor lighting to your outdoor entertainment areas allows you to extend the fun! There are many options for homeowners to have this done.

Bistro Lighting

 

One popular option is Bistro lighting. Outdoor bistro string lights create a unique ambiance perfect for entertaining into the evening. Sometimes referred to as festoon, café, or globe lights — decorative string lights can be used to add ambiance to any outdoor space.

Often used at weddings and other nighttime events; however, outdoor dining and gathering areas are also popular choices. Bistro lights are a great option for decks, patios, pergolas, among other outdoor areas.

Whether you are hosting a special event or simply enjoying the evening view, bistro string lights provide a nice soft ambiance for your outdoor areas. They are adaptable to endless design patterns or configurations, making them ideal for various types of decks, patios, pergolas, and other outdoor spaces.

Lakeway Rough Hollow Outdoor Lighting

Pool Area Lighting

When you have a pool on your property, you want to be able to use it just as much in the evening and at night as during the daytime hours. Even if no one plans to swim at night, you might want to extend gatherings to a poolside deck space.

Outdoor Lighting Design Spicewood

Permanent light fixtures help you enjoy your pool deck no matter what time it is. When the sun sets, your family can continue to use the pool, or you can easily host your get-together. Your pool deck also becomes safer when well lit. You can prevent children and guests from accidental injuries and keep an eye on swimmers.

There are many solutions to lighting your pool area. This can include your pool deck and gardens, trees, or lawn space that surround the space. Outdoor lighting can surround your pool to give you a space you can enjoy at all hours.

Texas Outdoor Lighting’s award-winning designers work with homeowners to produce a well thought out and laid out design plan to highlight your outdoor living spaces to create a warm and inviting space to entertain in to the hours after sunset. Call us today at (512) 504-3030 to schedule a consultation.

Fredericksburg Exterior Lighting Installation

 

Association of Outdoor Lighting Professionals Project Awards

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Every year, the Association of Outdoor Lighting Professionals (AOLP), honors our industry with awards for lighting and design. This year, Texas Outdoor Lighting was honored to receive four awards from the AOLP for an array of projects completed last year. It’s a true honor and a bit humbling to us at TOL, and we believe highlights our mission and goal to continuously provide unique outdoor lighting designs to our customers in Texas and beyond. Read on for how we brought these unique projects to life using our outdoor lighting design, expertise, and continual education.

Thanks to the AOLP members for this recognition!

2019 Award of Merit for Feature-Focused Lighting Project

Project: StickWorks-Pease Park, Austin

Designer: Joel Mayor

Details: This is an incredible art installation on the banks of Shoal Creek in the Pease Park area. The project highlights our expertise in creating unique environments through color temperature contrast. The warm (2200 Kelvin) color temperature on the inside of the huts creates the illusion of a glowing fireplace inside. The cooler (5700 Kelvin) color temperature lights casting down from the peaks of the large trees surrounding the Installation simulate bright moonlight and serve to provide a stark contrast and depth of vision when viewing this installation from a distance. 

2019 Award of Merit for Commercial Lighting Project 

Project: Horseshoe Bay Resort

Designer: Joel Mayor

Details: The Yacht Club at Horseshoe Bay Resort is on the most beautiful and exclusive lake front properties in Texas. This expansive property was lit using a large variety of methods, fixtures and techniques. Well over 200 individual lights and over 5 football field lengths of commercial grade LED tape lighting were used. We paid special attention to installation methods with the high traffic of the area in mind. This installation will be looking great for years to come. 

2019 Award of Merit for Residential Large Lighting Project

Project: Barker Estate

Designer: Joel Mayor

Details: This enormous property included the expansive main home as well as a full-sized indoor basketball/volleyball facility for their children. This project provided several unique installation challenges requiring specialized methods to achieve the clients desired effect. 

2019 Award of Merit for Outdoor Living Lighting Project

Project: Man Cave

Designer: Joel Mayor

Details: The white limestone bluffs surrounding Lake Travis provided this client with the perfect space for entertaining. A natural fissure in the bluff left this family with a unique cave-like location where they constructed a waterfall, natural wading pool and seating area. The low color temperature used along the face of the bluffs creates an incredibly warm and inviting space for the family to enjoy on a quiet Hill Country evening

Ways to Enhance Your Outdoor Lighting Design This Spring

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Spring is here! It’s that time of the year where we all get outside and get our yards and outdoor living spaces spruced back up. Here are a few tips and ideas to enhance your outdoor lighting as well.

Spring Landscape Lighting Maintenance:

Outdoor lighting requires periodic maintenance to keep it looking and performing its best.  If you haven’t serviced your lighting system in a while, a thorough “spring cleaning,” can make a difference to the look and performance of your system.

At Texas Outdoor Lighting, we offer maintenance programs where our service technicians perform an all over system maintenance. Give us a call to receive more information and schedule an appointment with our dedicated service team (512) 504-3030.

Halogen to LED Landscape Lighting Conversions:

Converting from Halogen to LED is another way to freshen up your outdoor lighting design. LED technology has come a long way in the last several years. It is the preferred choice among homeowners because of its bulb longevity and energy-saving benefits. Not only that, switching to LED can enhance the brightness and performance of your system. Schedule an appointment with one of our lighting designers to come out to your property to discuss the switch to LED lighting today.

Lighting Design Adjustments for Major Renovations:

If you are adding a new deck or a new pool to enjoy the next few months, make sure lighting is also on your mind. During a home or landscape renovation, it’s easy to forget about how these changes might impact your lighting design. Small changes usually won’t affect it very much, but major renovations could leave some obvious dark areas. Depending on the scope and size of the project, it could be something as simple as moving, adjusting, or adding a few lights.

Lakeway Rough Hollow Outdoor Lighting

Call us today at (512) 504-3030 or click here to schedule a consultation and one of our award-winning lighting designers will work with you to create a finished product that you will be proud of.

Investing in Quality

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One of the most important aspects of a Texas Outdoor Lighting design is bringing value to the homeowner through a beautiful outdoor lighting system.  A professionally designed and installed landscape lighting system represents a significant investment in your home and property.

Just like any other investment in your home, you receive the benefits of what you pay for.  Investing in cheap fixtures or trusting other discount installers may seem an easy decision but a solid investment in your home today will pay off in the years to come. Texas Outdoor Lighting’s high quality fixtures, expert installation and warranties on products will assure that your home will shine bright at night for many years to come.

Our fixtures come from the best manufacturers in the United States and are made with the highest quality materials available.  Couple this with Texas Outdoor Lighting’s annual service program and your system will shine brightly night after night.

While high quality materials are extremely important, the design and installation are an integral part of a high value system. Our installation crews are professionally trained to install fixtures and transformers so that they will stand the test of time.  Other outdoor lighting companies simply do not have the experience or training to install a Texas Outdoor Lighting-caliber system. At Texas Outdoor Lighting, we are confident that we will provide an expert installation that you can be proud of and will feel that you received a strong value for the investment that you made in your home.

A new outdoor lighting system is a significant investment in your home.  There are inexpensive, easy ways of installing a new system, but unfortunately those systems do not last and often have continuing problems.  Texas Outdoor Lighting will put your mind at ease that you are not only receiving the highest quality products, but also receiving a professional installation. If you are looking for a great investment in your home, Call us today at (512) 504-3030 or click here to schedule a consultation and one of our award-winning lighting designers will work with you to create a finished product that you will be proud of.

Preserving the Texas Sky

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As the song goes, “The stars at night, are big and bright, Deep in the heart of Texas”.

In the Texas Hill Country, preservation of the natural night sky is important to all who live here.  There are organizations such as the International Dark Sky Association who are dedicated to protecting our beautiful Texas sky by spreading awareness of being Dark Sky compliant.

What is dark sky compliant? It’s a campaign to help reduce the amount of light pollution. Light pollution is wasted energy in the form of artificial light that impairs the ability to see the night sky. By using the right fixtures, bulbs, and controlling where the light goes, we can decrease the light pollution our lighting systems emit.

Several cities in Texas regulate outdoor lighting with city ordinances. When you work with one of our lighting designers at Texas Outdoor Lighting, they will be knowledgeable about your city ordinance, if applicable, and can show you how you can have the light you desire while not adding to the light pollution or hindering your view of the stars. Texas Outdoor Lighting designs, installs and maintains our lighting systems which are all 100% LED and dark sky friendly. We have a line of our own fixtures that are Made in The USA that carry a lifetime warranty.

Call Texas Outdoor Lighting today to schedule a consultation with one of our designers. Don’t let your city ordinances or your love of the stars at night keep you from having a beautifully lit home. You can have a beautifully designed lighting system in your outdoor living space while enjoying the bug and bright stars, Deep in the heart of Texas!

Call us today at (512) 504-3030 or click here to schedule a consultation.

Benefits of Outdoor Lighting

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We put a lot of time and energy into our homes and properties. Mowing the lawn, adding landscape, fixing up the exteriors to be more visually pleasing, only to lose sight of all these visual enhancements when the sun goes down. Outdoor lighting can enhance the beauty of your home at night by highlighting the home’s features while also adding other benefits.

  • Up lights highlight the stone exterior on a home in Austin Texas

The most common reason homeowner’s have outdoor landscape lighting installed is for the added curb appeal. We’ve all seen that one home on the block that looks great both day and night. While it may not jump out at you, there is a reason the house looks great at night: outdoor lighting. Curb appeal is your home’s first impression. To create excellent curb appeal after sunset, light up your home and your surrounding property.

Another benefit to having outdoor lighting installed is the added security element lighting provides. One of the simplest ways to avoid becoming the target of a burglary is to make your home less attractive to criminals. Having an outdoor lighting system will do that.

One key benefit of outdoor lighting is making your outdoor living spaces usable at night. A great deck, patio, or garden deserves to be enjoyed by day and by night. Without adequate lighting, your outdoor spaces can be impossible to navigate and enjoy after dark. Lighting these spaces extends your livable area and gives you a whole new part of your home at night.

Cafe Bistro Lighting in a beautiful outdoor living space poolside in Lakeway Texas

A professionally installed system can be set up to turn on and off automatically, so you don’t have to worry about it. Our smart home automation systems allow you to set your lighting schedule with ease from an app on your phone. Texas Outdoor Lighting also has a dedicated service team to keep your lighting system working properly all year long.

Commercial Resort Lighting bistro lighting in trees in Burnet Texas

Texas Outdoor Lighting’s award-winning design team can design a new outdoor lighting system for you that can offer added curb appeal, security, enjoyment, and that is easy to use and have maintained!

Call us today at (512) 504-3030 or click here to schedule a free consultation.

Smart Home Automation & Outdoor Lighting

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Everything we do is automated with technology. We have apps on our phones for everything. We can see who’s at our door when we aren’t home,order almost anything to be at our doorstep within 2 days, watch the big game from our child’s baseball game. If you can think of it, you can probably do it from your phone or tablet! Did you also know you can control your entire lighting system from an app? Texas Outdoor Lighting can offer most homeowners the option to use smart home automation with their lighting system.

There are many benefits to being able to control your lighting remotely:

Security – Lighting will always deter potential intruders. Lighting makes a home look and feel more secure. You can use your smart home automation solution to set vacation settings that will allow you to make your property look occupied when you are away.

Convenience – Wouldn’t it be so nice to turn off all of your lights with a button as you rush out of the house? Wouldn’t it be amazing to have your lights scheduled to automatically come on at sunset so when you come home at dark, your home is already lit up? Our smart home automation solutions can do all of this for you.

Energy Savings – Smart home automation systems can reduce energy costs by programming lights to turn off when you leave a room using occupancy sensors and with the use of dimmers.

Ambiance – Homeowners have the power to set tones for social gatherings or an evening in. You can create the perfect ambiance in one single area or throughout the entire outdoors with your mobile device.

Texas Outdoor Lighting is Central Texas’ premiere lighting company with award winning designers. Let us show you how to brighten up your property and demonstrate how you can control the lighting system we install with your smart device. You can program the lighting, dim or brighten your lighting system and turn on/off your lights no matter where you are in the world. Our smart home system we utilize, Lutron, will also connect to any other smart device you may have in your home such as Nest thermostats, Amazon Alexa,Google Assistant, Siri and Sonos speakers.

Call us today at (512) 504-3030 or click here to schedule a free consultation.

Importance of Reviews to Consumers

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For most potential consumers, reading a business’ reviews online is the first step in choosing which company they decide to use. A review read on Yelp, Google, Facebook, etc can be just as important as a recommendation from a friend. According to Bryan Caplan, 73 percent of consumers have more trust in a local business with positive reviews.

Before you choose an outdoor lighting company, google the business and read their reviews. Consumers read an average of 7 reviews per company before trusting a company. Here at Texas Outdoor Lighting, earning a positive review is important to us and how we do business. You can ensure that Texas Outdoor Lighting will go above and beyond to make your experience with us a positive one and you will be extremely happy with the finished product.

“We have had such an amazing experience with Texas Outdoor lighting on our homes! We recommend this company to ALL of our real estate clients & our neighbors. The customer service stands above the rest. The attention to detail on the lighting design is custom, intricate & highlights all the attributes of our home! Highly recommend this company for your lighting needs!” – Julie DaSilva

“No need to look further . . . Texas Outdoor Lighting is the best!  Great people, great work, great customer service – all at a fair price.  What more can you ask for?” – Joan K.

“One of the best vendors I have worked with in Austin!  Joel and his team did an amazing job of designing a lighting plan and then executed it in a timely, professional and efficient manner.  They know what they are doing and the end result is beautiful!  I would use this company again in a second!” – John M.

“We are completely satisfied with the job that Joel and his team at Texas Outdoor Lighting completed for us. From the first meeting to the final night-time review of the installed lights, everything was done professionally and as promised. We got a complete written estimate for the work, and Joel was available to answer all of our questions both before and after we decided to go with TOL. The team of workers was very respectful of our property and left the place completely in order. We were so pleased with the result that we immediately decided to have Joel’s team add another string of lights beyond what we originally planned. I recommend Texas Outdoor Lighting without reservation. They really are customer-focused.” – Bruce M.

“If anyone in the area is in need of outdoor lighting, I highly recommend Texas outdoor lighting. These guys are professional, quick, and will work within any budget. Joel is a super nice owner with a crew that is just as courteous! Local as well which is a bonus! I love my new lights!! Thanks guys for making it such a pleasant experience.” – Nicole R.

Residential Lighting Fireplace

Patio Lighting

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Now that the weather has cooled off a bit, us Texans are able to enjoy our outdoor patios. A patio is an extension of your home, as it adds another entertaining or relaxing space. Outdoor lighting can make your patio more beautiful as the sun goes down and help you use it for extended hours. At Texas Outdoor Lighting, we provide expert lighting solutions for homes and businesses. We can turn your outdoor living space into a warm, inviting place to sit and enjoy this beautiful Fall weather.

Outdoor patio lighting outdoor entertaining

Our lighting designers can work with you to design your patio lighting to brighten up your space without distracting from your patio’s decor and design all while enhancing the architectural qualities. Adding lighting to your outdoor living space will provide more functionality. You can extend the hours you are able to spend out there, have family dinner, have a party, or just sit on your patio furniture and enjoy the peacefulness and bright stars.

In outdoor spaces like patios, LED lights provide an ideal solution. These lights offer an energy efficient lighting option that offers strong and lasting light. This type of light works well in outdoor weather conditions, even in areas with a lot of water. LED lights offer a low voltage solution that is stronger and longer lasting than other types of bulbs. LED lights also emit very little UV light, which makes them less attractive for bugs, which also increases your enjoyment of your outdoor living space!

Give Texas Outdoor Lighting a call or click here to meet with one of our award winning lighting designers to help create your perfect outdoor living space.

Creating a Budget for Your Lighting Project

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You’ve seen all of our posts and beautiful photo images of landscape lighting and are ready to move forward: You want to have a lighting system of your own installed.

Coming up with a budget can be intimidating. There are three things you need to do to be on your way to creating the outdoor living space you’ve been dreaming about.

  1. Figure out your budget. Think about how much you are prepared to spend on your outdoor lighting system. Like most any home improvement project, chances are you will end up needing to spend a bit more than you originally intended. So it’s important to have a realistic budget in mind.

  1. Decide what elements of the lighting design will be most important. Ask yourself – what are you wanting to accomplish? Is security the biggest priority? Is it most important to have functional lighting for your outdoor living space? Deciding on lighting priorities early will help you when you are looking at your budget. While having every element of your outdoor space illuminated with differing levels of ambient light would be spectacular, it’s important to set a realistic budget. If you’re looking at doing lighting for your own personal enjoyment, consider where you spend your time in the evening.

  1. Meet with a professional lighting designer. Landscape lighting can be intimidating when you don’t know where to start. This is where working with a professional lighting designer can make all the difference. It’s easy to design a lighting system when there aren’t any budget restraints, but this is not always the case. Don’t be afraid to let your lighting designer know that you have a budget and what that budget looks like. Our lighting designers can work within a budget to still create a lighting system that has a WOW factor. They can also help you revise and reconsider what is most important in the design and give you ideas how to stay within your budget while still being happy with the final look. 

Texas Outdoor Lighting has award winning lighting designers who can come out to your property and together work with you to create a beautiful design that will fit in your budget. Call us today!