Outdoor Lighting Solutions for a Lake Austin Mid-Century Bungalow

Plan Creates Subtlety, Beauty in Low-Light Neighborhood

Vincent Landscapes Inc. of Austin, Texas had two challenges in lighting this unique, upscale mid-century bungalow on Lake Austin. The first was that the area is very low in ambient light. Out of respect for the neighboring homeowners, the bungalow’s lighting was designed using a more intimate approach. Utilizing state-of-the-art technology, the home features an integrated Smart Home system with a fully dimmable and programmable controller that covers three different landscape lighting zones, keeping everything in sync.

“Using this system and being sensitive to our surroundings, we avoided over-illuminating the property. Instead, we concentrated on using a large amount of down-cast lighting,” says Kellan Vincent, Vice President of Vincent Landscapes, Inc. and the project lead for this home. “We were faithful to the feel of the neighborhood while still enhancing the home.”

The second design challenge was that the fixtures needed to look as good in the daytime as they did at night. Fulfilling this need was made easy by selecting Auroralight’s PVD nickel solid copper, brass and stainless steel fixtures to compliment the home’s finishes inside and out. “The clients were very particular about finishes and there was a lot of attention to detail at every level,” says Vincent. “They were extremely pleased with our recommended choice of Auroralight,” he adds. “Once they held the heavy, solid fixtures in their hands, saw the attention to detail in the design, and learned that they are milled, not cast like most fixtures, it made all the difference. When you consider all this, combined with the fact that Auroralight offers a lifetime warranty, it made the decision even easier for them.”

Path Lights and Outdoor Wall Lights Play up Home’s Architecture

The home’s lighting design plan included several key elements:

• Outdoor path lighting that guides guests around the property.
• Stainless steel wall lights embedded within the masonry walls provide lighting to adjacent stairs and pathways
• Stainless steel in-grade fixtures within the paver driveway highlight its unique texture and give reference to drivers as to where the walls are located.
• A series of moonlighter pendants mounted within trees at heights of between 25 and 40 feet creates a very gentle cast of light throughout the lower lawn and dock areas.

Landscape Lighting Highlights Design

“We also wanted to highlight the landscape features and create dynamic interest beyond what can be seen during the day,” says Vincent, “In order to accomplish this, we used a series of wash lights on the urns along the front. This scheme highlights their mass while also casting textural shadows on the monumental brick wall.”

The LMG1 Maglio was the ideal choice to light the urns as it is among the most versatile in Auroralight’s line of high quality, high performance LED luminaires. Unique in form and function, its sleek silhouette allows it to blend seamlessly into the surrounding landscape while artistic styling provides critical thermal management. Powered by a single high brightness LED and featuring a rotational glare shield, the Maglio’s light output is profuse yet allows the designer to control direction and aperture for a glare free presentation. Machined from solid brass, assembled with stainless steel hardware and sealed with silicone O-rings, this fixture is as durable as it is magnificent.

The circle area on the side of the house now glows seemingly all by itself among the dark basalt, providing a pop of color for nighttime visitors created by Auroralight’s LSL1 Sago luminaires. It is a high performance, low energy LED directional spot light. Machined from solid brass and copper bar, its artistic styling and precise machining make this fixture both attractive and functional. Engineered to provide an ideal heat-sink for the High Flux LED, the Sago addresses the need for thermal management head on. The Auroralight exclusive AMS™ mounting system offers and extensive selection of mounting options.

Additional path lights featured in this project include the Borealis LPL10s. The Borealis graces the landscape with its classic profile and unparalleled craftsmanship. Assembled with the finest components available, the Borealis redefines industry standards for quality, performance and longevity in landscape lighting. Machined from solid copper and brass bar with stainless steel hardware, the Borealis is well-suited to harsh coastal environments. Designed for larger scale areas such as driveways or large patios. Adding a frosted lens will diffuse the light for a softer glow with no shadowing.

Like all the Auroralight Inc. luminaires featured in this project, they are made exclusively in Carlsbad, CA USA, come with a lifetime warranty and offer a generous, long-term savings in power consumption with their LED light source. We are certain this project will shine bright for many years to come.