When planning how I wanted my tiny urban garden to look, I took inspiration from my favourite London and Parisienne cafe. They managed to turn small outdoor spaces into a pocket-sized oasis with simple bistro sets and pretty table lamps, and Aldi is dropping the perfect set of solar table lamps for under £5 this week.

Cafe-gardens have become an emerging garden trend. This trend is all about turning any outdoor space you have into a version of your own at-home coffee shop/wine bar. It’s a look made for small garden ideas, as it romanticises the humble bistro set as the perfect spot for a quiet morning coffee or an intimate glass of wine in the evening.

An outdoor table lamp is an essential part of elevating a bistro set. You’ll see them on the tables of most chic cafes or wine bars, casting a lovely, romantic glow in the evening. I’ve been on the hunt for one, and Aldi’s mushroom lamps are not only chic but the most affordable I’ve come across.

The Aldi table lamps launch in-store on 9th July in two different styles. There is the mushroom lamp, my particular favourite, with its conical shape and a circular design that will cast out more light from the sides. Both of them are available in black, white/beige and sage; however if is the sharp black version that caught my eye as looking the most expensive and sophisticated.

Both styles of lamp are priced at £4.99, which is also a great reason to buy them. Most rechargeable outdoor lights will cost you around twice that price. However, there is another star reason to buy them: they’re solar-powered rather than rechargeable, so as long as you leave them out in a sunny spot, they can be left to do their thing without plugging into a charger every few days.

The most similar solar lamp I’ve come across in terms of look and price to the Aldi version is this Solar Black Metal Table Lamp at Habitat, on sale for £9.60.

These table lamps aren’t the only gems in the Aldi specialbuy drop this week. In the middle aisle, you’ll also be able to find the Solar Penzance Candle Lanterns for £8.99, which are perfect for elevating the romantic feel of a garden. I’m also very tempted by the solar decorative string lights for £7.99 that have a similar chic and simple design to the table lamps.

The best planned garden lighting ideas are all about creating layers and pockets of illumination. That is as simple as stringing up some lights along the fence for ambience, adding task lighting with a table lamp on a bistro set, and finally dotting in decorative lanterns as accent lights to illuminate planting.

Alternatives

Aldi’s lights will only be available to purchase in-store, so I’m having to go on a dedicated shopping trip on the 9th to hunt a pair down. However, if you don’t have a store near you, here are a couple of other affordable garden lamps I’ve been considering to get the cafe-garden look.

Will you be elevating your garden dining set with a new table lamp this summer?