Landscape Lighting for Radcliffe Estates
Radcliffe is a small, private gated community in north Raleigh’s 27614 ZIP code, laid out around a pair of cul-de-sacs. Its custom homes sit on lots of nearly two acres, and recent listings describe the neighborhood as backing onto about 157 acres of protected nature preserve. An established subdivision that became gated in recent years, it’s now filling in with large new custom homes, one of them a 2024 Parade of Homes winner.
Listings here mention heated pools and spas, stone patios, covered verandas with fireplaces, outdoor kitchens and fire pits: spaces meant for evenings, and worth lighting as carefully as the houses were designed.
Outdoor Living, Lit Level by Level
Big outdoor living areas are often built on more than one level: a veranda off the house, a pool deck a few steps down, a lower patio with a fire pit beyond. Each level is its own room, and each needs its own light. Joe treats them like scenes on a tiered stage. The veranda glows warm and low for dinner. The pool is lit from its edges and the trees around it, so the water reflects the garden instead of glaring. The fire pit gets just enough light to find your way, and the fire does the rest.
On properties like these, we pay close attention to:
- Steps and level changes, lit softly and safely without bright spots
- Pools and spas framed by lit plantings, so the water mirrors the scene
- Covered verandas and outdoor kitchens lit for cooking and conversation
- Fireplaces and fire pits supported by light, never competing with the flame
- Doors that fold fully open, so the porch and the room inside read as one space at night
The Preserve as a Backdrop
Living next to protected woods is a privilege, and it’s worth protecting after dark. The preserve doesn’t need to be lit. In fact, it shouldn’t be. Left dark, it becomes the deep, quiet backdrop that makes your lit trees and terraces stand out, the same way a black stage curtain makes a set glow. Joe keeps fixtures warm, shielded and aimed into your landscape, so wildlife and the night sky are left alone and no light spills past the property line.
For homes still under construction, getting involved early lets wire go in before patios and pool decks are finished.
A Lifetime of Stage Lighting
Joe Yanulevich spent more than 35 years lighting concert and theatrical stages. He learned there that light isn’t about brightness. It’s about where you lead the eye, and what you leave in shadow. His approach to landscapes follows the same rules: lower lumens, more fixtures and shadows on purpose, so you notice the home and the garden, not the lights. His work appears in Masters of Landscape Lighting, and he explains how to tell good lighting from bad in You Can’t Un-See Bad Landscape Lighting.
Every design is his own. He starts with a visit to your property after dark, walks each level with you, and returns at night after installation to fine-tune the aim himself.
Explore More
See our landscape lighting portfolio or read about lighting across North Raleigh and Falls Lake.
Nearby communities we serve: Bay Leaf Farm, Norwood Ridge, Morning Mountain Estates, Sanctuary at Falls Lake, Maple Ridge Cove, Glenhill, Alpine Creek Estates, Greywalls at Trego, The Cove at Falls Lake, Avalaire, Buckingham Manor.
Outdoor Rooms From the Lite Visions Portfolio
The photos on this page come from other Lite Visions projects around the Triangle.
Request a Design Consultation
If you’d like your Radcliffe home’s outdoor spaces to feel as good at night as they do on a summer afternoon, Joe would enjoy walking the property with you at dusk.
Or call Joe at Nine one Nine-518-9950.