Obviously, given my obsession with sustainability, I love the idea of lights powered by the sun! When Lights.ie were so kind to offer me a selection of solar garden lights, I spent ages poring over their beautiful range and eventually chose a gorgeous bamboo mesh lamp and some crackle-glass ball lights.
Bamboo Mesh Solar Lamp
The larger lamp is delicately woven from bamboo and topped with solid wood. It has a natural rope handle if you fancy hanging it up, or it works equally as well sitting on a table or on the ground. The pattern that the light creates when it shines through the mesh is so pretty!
The body of the bamboo lamp is so lightweight that the wooden top makes it a little bit top-heavy. I was worried that it might topple over and the inset solar charging unit would fall out. So, to combat this, I simply placed an elastic band around the removable solar unit to make it more secure. (Full credit to ‘The Engineer’ for this hack!)
Crackle-Glass Solar Lights
These glass ball lights are so much heavier than I expected! They are made from very thick glass with a really interesting crackle effect which beautifully diffuses the light shining through.
The lights come with a detachable metal handle which means they can be easily hung up orrr you can turn them upside-down and use them as an ambient table lamp – I love the versatility!
Solar Crackle Glass Table Lamp (Handle Detatched) 
Hanging Crackle Glass Solar Lights
Using Solar Lights to Create Ambience in Your Outdoor Space
Whatever type of outdoor space you have – be it a small balcony, a courtyard, patio area or a large garden – these solar lights will bring so much atmosphere to it! Lighting is such a simple way to transform your outdoor space.
I live in a townhouse with a small outdoor space. I have been meaning to spruce up this little yard for a while now and receiving these lights presented the perfect opportunity.
I played around with a few different settings and eventually decided on suspending the glass ball lights along a metal bar, enhanced by some delicate greenery. The lights looked really well hanging directly on the bar, but I decided to tie some natural jute rope to them and drop them a little lower.
If you are lucky enough to have a garden with trees, these solar lamps would look stunning hanging from the branches at various heights. They would also look beautiful hanging from strategically-placed wall brackets, rope, balcony railings, wooden trellis with climbing plants or in my case, a simple metal rod!
Once the lights are charged up during daylight hours, you can even bring them indoors to create ambience inside your home!
How Do Solar Lamps Work?
Solar lamps have a small unit built into them which houses the solar charging device. These are photovoltaic panels that use the power of the sun to produce electrical energy – the same process as solar panels on a house. You leave the lamps out in the sunshine to charge and the LED lights will automatically switch on once darkness beings to fall.
In this part of the world (Ireland & UK), our Summer days are especially long and the sun does not set until late in the evening. I was happy to find that I didn’t have to wait until complete darkness for the lights to start working. They begin to glow around dusk, depending on the orientation of your garden.
Each light has an ‘On/Off’ switch so you can choose to turn the lamps off whenever you wish. Although bear in mind that you can not turn them on in full daylight – They have a sensor that only allows the light to shine when it senses darker settings.
For your first time charging the lamps, it is recommended to switch them to the ‘On’ position and leaving them to charge for 36 hours. I found that mine started working much more quickly. I left them out one evening and they were lighting up the patio the following evening!
I must admit that I was a little sceptical of solar lights prior to receiving them, as I had never tried them out before. Now, after trialling them over the last few weeks (in both sunshine and torrential rain!), I can say that I have been very pleasantly surprised at how well they work. Much brighter than I had expected, and very reliable! The ambience that they create certainly does not disappoint! 
UPDATE! After trialling these lamps for another few weeks, I would definitely recommend hanging the bamboo mesh lamp rather than leaving it free-standing. I have found that it is so top-heavy that it has toppled over a number of times onto our stone patio, and the LED light now sometimes flickers slightly. Even with the ‘elastic band hack’ above, the solar charging device has fallen out a couple of times.
The bamboo lamp comes with a jute rope handle, perfect for suspending it from a tree branch, fence, railing, pergola, or wall bracket. If you are still keen to use it as a table or floor lamp, maybe just tuck it into a non-breezy corner of your garden so it is a bit more secure!
Also, while the lights are most-definitely intended for outdoor use, I tend to bring the bamboo lamp inside at night-time, especially during bad weather. I do this for two reasons: (1) It creates a beautiful atmosphere in my living room and (2) bamboo is a natural material and I believe it will last longer if not exposed to the elements year-round. I hope that helps!
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