This site is an archive of ChiotsRun.com. For the latest information about Susy and her adventrures, visit the Cultivate Simple site.
Thank you for all your support over the years!

A Little Light

July 27th, 2015

I found an old lantern in the attic of the garage.  Originally, I planned to make it into a lamp for the guest bedroom, but I didn’t really want to dust it as it’s a little rusty.  Then I got these fantastic solar LED lights that are warm like incandescent, not the harsh, retina burning blue that they usually are.  At first I was going to put them on the trellis in the back garden, but we really needed some kind of light by the front door when we get home late at night. That’s what I had the idea to put the light in the lantern.
solar lantern 1
solar lantern 2
Perfection! It provides just the right amount of light without being too bright. We can see to get to the door and it provides a nice welcoming glow by the door.
solar lantern 3
The best part is that it’s solar. Sure there’s a little solar panel in the planter below the light, but that’s OK with me. I might eventually hang the lantern on a hook by the door and then put the solar panel on the roof where it won’t be visible. Overall, I love the look of this simple project, it’s the perfect way to add a little light to a dark corner of the garden.

Do you have any lighting in the garden?

5 Comments to “A Little Light”
  1. Chris on July 27, 2015 at 9:22 am

    Well I ordered these same lights after your previous post about them. I strung them across the porch for night lighting as well but they are a bit tiny so I think I may try bunching them together like this in a lantern too for a brighter effect. I love that they are solar and cast a warm glow!
    Thanks for telling us about them! :)

    Reply to Chris's comment

  2. Nebraska Dave on July 27, 2015 at 9:28 am

    Susy, the lantern looks great. It makes me think there’s a bunch of fire flies inside the globe. Nope no lighting in the garden here. Being in the inner city and 20 minutes away from where I live the odds of surviving a single night before disappearing would be pretty low. That’s not to say that some day I may have the potential of lighting. The power company wants to replace a pole on my Terra Nova Gardens property and it sounds like they may want the use of an easement. So instead of a monetary exchange, I’m thinking maybe they would install an outdoor electrical box instead. It would be handy to have electrical power on the property. I’ll just have to see where this all goes. I am waiting for a letter from the power company explaining all the details about the process. Urban farming has much more things to deal with than country farming. I never thought that would be true but I’m realizing that it’s not just a challenge with weather, bugs, and wild animals but with EPA and utility companies as well. :-)

    Have a great day with lighting.

    Reply to Nebraska Dave's comment

  3. Melanie J. on July 27, 2015 at 11:28 am

    I absolutely love this idea, and will be jumping back to it. I have two old lanterns like that handed down from my dad, but they’re just old enough where I’d be worried about putting kerosene in them anymore. What a great way to upcycle!

    Reply to Melanie J.'s comment

  4. David The Good on July 27, 2015 at 12:08 pm

    Cute idea.

    Reply to David The Good's comment

  5. Tonya on July 28, 2015 at 10:22 am

    “Bright” idea!!! One that I will probably replicate here. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply to Tonya's comment

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

Admin
Read previous post:
Quote of the Day: Shauna Niequist

"I believe that this way of living, this focus on the present, the daily, the tangible, this intense concentration not...

Close