We love strands of white string lights for outdoor spaces. Our favorite layout? A canopy of them overhead in a zigzag pattern. It looks so casual and somehow "European" to us. Sounds silly, but that's just how it makes us feel:
The zigzag pattern of hanging lights is one of the easiest, too: Simply fix the strand in place back and forth across a space. Don't try to space it out perfectly or pull the strand tightly - let the lights hang naturally under their own weight. After all, it's the imperfections that make this look so wonderful!
How do you arrange string lights when you use them outdoors? Are they on your must-have list for outdoor entertaining?
(Images: via Daily Danny, Modern Outdoor Lighting, Sunny's Blog)
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I LOVE this look, too. Makes me wish I had a cute outdoor patio so I could string up some white lights.
Oh! This would be fantastic for my new patio -- so ethereal!
Laura
http://www.justalittlebit.net
love. love. love.
any tips on where to buy?
Yeah, there should be a post about good string lights to buy. Very pretty!
Mine are from Target's Smith & Hawkins line... they've been out year-round in NJ weather for 3 years.
That last pic is Freeman's in NYC right? I went there when I was visiting NY; I so wish I could go back again for the brunch! I love the whole atmosphere of the place and they have some yummy coffee. The alley it's in is really cool, definitely a great photo op.
Here is a place to get the larger bulb variety:
http://www.sivallighting.com/heavy-duty-commercial-grade-outdoor-light-string.aspx
Target has some lovely options as well...
I know this is a dumb question, but I always admire the outdoor lights. What do you do with the cords? I never see them in the photos. Do you just ignore them?
@tommiefremont, I don't think that's a dumb question at all. Because I have the same question!
I actually go some solar light strings last summer and strung them up across my backyard. I live in an area where we get strong sun most of the time so they've worked great. But I couldn't figure out how to get around all the cords that would be involved in electric light strings.
Two links now to the "modernoutdoorlighting" google parking page? Is one of your bloggers the owner/scammer or something?
Hey AT: that last photo is actually a photograph I shot for my blog of Freeman's. I'd really appreciate it if you could credit my blog — Sunny's blog picked the photo up from my site. Thanks!
http://www.thehaystackneedleonline.com/2009/05/globe-string-lights.html
I am going to have to second thehaystackneedle's comment here! This picture is all over Pinterest now but it is very difficult to find the original source. I just happened to be looking at Freeman's website today and recognized the entry way to the restaurant as something I had pinned. People deserve credit for their work. Both the designers of this space and the photographer who snapped the picture.