Latest Trends Inspire Kichler Landscape Lighting Designs

Outdoor Fans, Green Products, Potted Planters Make a Statement with Lighting

CLEVELAND —March 30, 2009—As consumers spend more time at home, it’s no surprise many are enhancing their existing living space. This spring, that sentiment means homeowners are embracing value-added decorating changes outdoors. To ensure their investments can be enjoyed day and night, Kichler introduces a variety of professional, low-voltage lighting products that combine functional illumination with today’s design trends.

As identified by the designers and researchers at Kichler, the newest trends and lighting products for the landscape include:

• Outdoor Fans : Homeowners want to enjoy their outdoor spaces without being consumed by outdoor heat. Outdoor fans cool a space while also lending a stylish accent. Kichler offers several outdoor ceiling fans that offer built-in lighting and coordinate with other landscape offerings. Many even incorporate reversible blades with different finishes on each side, giving homeowners enhanced flexibility.
• Green, Energy-Saving Products : Landscape lighting is left on for several hours at a time, making energy-efficient solutions extremely important. LED lighting, an ultra energy-efficient light source gaining in popularity, uses 75 percent less electricity than typical incandescent lighting products. Kichler offers a variety of outdoor LED fixtures, including deck lights, step lights, path lights and accent lights, that emit the warm, white light homeowners have come to expect from their lighting and carry the added bonus of low energy consumption.
  

• Lighted Potted Planters : Flowers and plants are great inexpensive decorating accents. They can help small spaces appear larger and add warmth to larger areas. Kichler introduces two lit planters inspired by vaulted cathedral windows -- a standing lighted planter that spreads beautiful shadows on path and patio surfaces and a wall-mounted planter that spotlights flowers at eye level.
  

• Slate : Slate has long been used in outdoor pathways and walkways. Now, slate and other natural materials are being incorporated into other outdoor elements, such as outdoor furniture and landscape lighting fixtures. New to Kichler’s repertoire is a mission-style path light that combines the richness of mission aesthetics with the beauty of natural slate.
  

• Owls : It’s the year of the owl. New owl-inspired decorations are making a statement indoors and out. Decorative owls have become particularly trendy in outdoor spaces, adding a welcoming, natural presence and an exciting accent. With this in mind, Kichler is offering a decorative owl fixture with a natural-looking owl perched on a lighted tree branch.