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Oil Lamps
Oil lamps come in many styles, including classically-designed vintage oil lamps made out of copper and hanging oil lamps. These types of oil burning lamps consist of a metal body - usually copper but tin oil lamps are also common for patio oil lamps. Oil burning lamps are both practical and decorative oil lamps that have use in the garden and patio. Not only are the designs decorative, but the low light from the oil lamps is used outdoors to illuminate various parts of a garden or patio for both aesthetic and safety purposes. Aside from the sleek copper design for many classic and vintage patio oil lamps, all oil lamps come with a wick, usually fiberglass as it lasts longer than copper. In fact, fiberglass wick oil lamps stay lit for eight to twelve hours.
Oil lamps are one option for patio lighting, as both garden and patio oil lamps create a warm glow with a natural flame and radiate a romantic or intimate atmosphere compared to bulb patio lighting. When using garden or patio oil lamps, certain design aspects need to be taken into consideration to create an ideal atmosphere. The primary factor is the location of the oil lamps and the direction of the oil lamps, especially when the oil lamps are used to highlight certain plants, as is the purpose of garden oil lamps, or to line a patio or walkway.
Various lighting techniques are used for illuminating a patio or garden with oil lamps, including uplighting, downlighting, spread lighting, and path lighting. Uplighting is a highlighting technique with oil lamps and other garden lights by placing them at the base of an object - a tree or large plant, for example - and angling them upward to accent certain aspects of the plant. Spread lighting is a similar technique to uplighting but utilizes short lights close to the ground that aren't angled upward. Downlighting also has a similar design purpose to but is in the opposite direction. Path lighting, on the other hand, is self explanatory and is used to highlight paths, walkways, and stairwells by placing lights on one or both sides of the path. Whichever techniques you use to illuminate and highlight certain aspects of your garden or patio, the goal of using oil lamps for decor is to create an even glow, which is achieved by spacing lights out so that they're illumination doesn't overlap and that they don't focus and illuminate a hard, solid surface like a wall.
Combing various lighting techniques with oil burning lamps should make your garden and patio not only decorated and illuminated by natural warm and glow but also safe by illuminating potential hazards. But aside from the intimate, romantic glow emanating from the oil lamps, oil lamps have one significant advantage over outdoor bulb lighting: mobility. All oil lamps, including both large and miniature oil lamps, can be moved around the patio and garden and don't require an electric current. Instead of sticking with a set pattern, which is often the case for fixed patio lights, oil lamps can be moved around - from the ground to tables to various plants in the garden - to even the light in the outdoor space.
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