A Clever DIY That'll Give Your Garden Pathway Lights A Natural Touch

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Outdoor lighting has the power to do far more than highlight the beauty of your garden and illuminate your yard — it can completely transform your outdoor spaces. Patios, decks, walkways, and planting beds can be made to look both warmer and more welcoming once the sun goes down. Additionally, by adding an extra layer of visibility to your property, well-placed lights can safely guide guests along paths, illuminate steps, and discourage unwanted visitors. Your home's exterior lighting can also create a low-maintenance oasis in your backyard, creating an easy-going vibe for evening gatherings, family dinners, or just quiet nights underneath the stars above.

While traditional hardwired lighting can be expensive and difficult to install, solar options are an affordable alternative. They can also be a great DIY project, since they generally don't require tools to implement — simply stake them into the ground where they can bask in a few hours of sunlight, and they'll provide bright, energy-efficient illumination all night. Better yet, solar lighting is available in an impressive variety of styles, sizes, and finishes, making it easy to find pieces that will complement any outdoor aesthetic. Local Dollar Stores even offer budget-friendly options. With a little creativity, you could easily customize a set of your own to light up your patio and walkways and achieve outdoor lighting that is just right for your yard.

There are lots of easy and fun ways to give a Dollar Store solar light a complete makeover. One great example comes from Donna of CreArtive by Nature, who transformed a lantern-style solar light that originally had a more classic and formal appearance. To get started, she first removed the lantern's clear panes and set them aside. She also detached the light's compartment door and carefully shielded the essential mechanisms with painter's tape to protect them as she worked. 

Donna used a light sanding block, followed by a coat of black gesso, which she applied with a thin paintbrush, to give the entire piece more dimension and allow the paint to adhere better. She layered on two acrylic paint colors: a rich brown and a warm terracotta orange, dabbing off the excess and repeating to create both an aged look and texture. For extra realism, she even brushed on a matte decoupage glue by DecoArt and sprinkled real cinnamon over it — however, she noted that this step should probably be skipped for pieces that will be used outdoors. (The delicious scent might be too tempting for hungry critters!)

After she was done painting, Donna set the finish with a matte sealant spray before reassembling the lantern. Instead of returning it to its original stake, she secured the now rustic-looking lantern to a stick she had foraged with a weather-resistant glue and some hot glue. Finally, she removed the painter's tape and pulled off the lantern's paper tab to activate the solar battery. The result — a one-of-a-kind, rustic-looking solar light that shows that even budget-friendly finds can be transformed into gorgeous pieces for the garden.