I love to take the inside outdoors and to create a cosy lounge vibe in my garden. I have been waiting for their to be a more stylish selection of outdoor solar lighting that includes flexible pendants for hanging inside a pergola or on a bracket or branch.
The selection on offer is getting better but it's still limited and often can come with a hefty price tag so I decided to have a go at making my own.
I came across a lovely bright and summery plastic food cover in Home Bargains that I thought would make a great pendant and have purchased a good quality solar lightbulb with attached solar panel on a long lead from Amazon. The great thing about this is that the light can be hung from anywhere, including under a pergola or tree as the solar panel for the bulb is completely separate.
There are very few items involved and you will be pleased to know this is a very easy project for the most novice of DIYers. All you will need apart from the light bulb and pendant is a pair of plyers. Yes thats it !!
Now on to the process...
1) Start by creating a gap in the top of the food cover that is wide enough for the end of the cable to go through. You will need to manipulate the plastic using the plyers. Once you succeed you can pull the lead though the top of the cover.
2) You then just need to insert the lead into the bulb and hang the bulb from the top of the inside of the cover. There are some very handy twines of plastic at the top that slip perfectly around the hook of the lightbulb
3) All you need to do now is decide on where you wish to hang your pendant. The food cover comes with its very own handle which make a perfect hook for hanging from a bracket or screw or tying around some string to hang from above ( as in the example inside my pergola ). You will need to fix the solar panel in full sun, there is quite alot of lead so you should have options here.
4) Once in position the light is ready to use. The bulb needs to be turned on using the push button on top of the bulb. It does not automatically turn on at dusk like a usual solar bulb. The good thing about this bulb is that it is alot brighter than most solar lights.
NB - if not hung in a sheltered position then the bulb should be brought inside if particularly wet weather is forecast.
