October Evenings - Outdoor Lighting Ideas for You

HGTV.

 October is upon us and the nights are getting darker.

So put on an extra layer and place some outdoor lights in your backyard and enjoy the last gasps of outdoor living. Early evening in the garden can be a magical experience in the fall if you add small lights here and there.

The other night I had some guests come for an outdoor dinner. I placed many flickering tea light candles (battery operated) in small glass holders and set them all around the area. 

Tall and low, the effect was dazzling. I placed them atop a low wall and on low tables. I would have had some hanging from low tree limbs but I didn't have the right lights. 

Now that there are tea light candles that are battery operated there are so many things you can do! This one has a a built-in timer that turns them off automatically (click on caption for a link) :

tea light battery candle

These are the ones I used below - flickering lights that you must turn off yourself. (These are great in jack o' lanterns as well)

flickering tea lights with battery 

I place them in small glass holders for a warm white light in a dark fall evening. 

A great idea is to place flickering tea candles in a hanging tea light holder and hang from tree limbs.  The effect is so lovely! :

Hanging tea light holder

You can even connect these for a chain of lights hanging down:

connected tea light holders of different sizes

And if you want to be colorful then try the multi-colored battery operated tea lights.

 There is so much you can do with light - especially in the autumn.

Colorful tea lights - battery operated 

If you want to add some sparkle - place the tea lights on small thin mirror bases. These will reflect light back in a subtle manner. Below are 3" round ones but you can get them larger.

3" diameter mirror bases for tea lights or candles

And for even more fun try a submersible or waterproof tea light! 

These LED lights are reusable and perfect for any water filled containers. They are great lights for placing in centerpieces. Can be used in or out of water.

The lights  shown here change into 7 rainbow colors. You can get solid colors as well. Each light uses two CR-2032 batteries (included) and lasts approx. 48 hours.

multi-color submersible tea light

Here is the link to additional batteries. Buy at the same time!

There are also an incredible variety of string lights out there. Too many to describe. But some interesting ones are the 25 foot cord of clear bulbs shown here. The light is clear and pure.

Hang them under an umbrella, in trees, around decks and more. 

outdoor string lights - clear bulbs 

string light  - bulbs 

Other options abound - Consider the following candle lights for your house and garden:

Rechargeable candle and holders

use everywhere, shake to turn off

And here are some non-rechargeable ones that I like. Frostfire - Remote controlled.  Uses AAA batteries. All sizes. They look yellow here but are not. 3" diameter.

Frostfire Candles

Then there is the solar charged outdoor lantern. 

You can hang it or place on a flat surface. Recharges with the sun! Very nice - and a great gift as well.

solar lantern

solar lantern can hang too

And lastly, consider LED Japanese Paper Lanterns

It is the safe and modern version of the ancient Japanese paper lantern that uses LED lighting to create a soft glow.  

THESE ARE NOT WEATHERPROOF ...but they look so neat I had to share.

LED Japanese Lanterns - lovely effect

Perfect for an autumn evening.....