Scott Armusewicz lives for the light-bulb moment — that spark of inspiration that drives all landscape lighting designers.

“When I enter a project … I may see something that could set this client apart from the others in regards to illumination,” says Armusewicz, lead lighting designer of Hamptons Landscape Lighting in Southampton, N.Y. “I try to give them something very unique.”

That’s not always easy. Those in Armusewicz’s line of work tend to be limited to setting trees and shrubs aglow. But this project had an appreciated twist for Armusewicz and fellow lighting designer Bob Maheu, president of bdzing in Toronto: The four poolside umbrellas.

“When we discussed the pool area … we were thinking of ideas where he could have some aesthetically pleasing lighting, as well as some functional lighting,” Armusewicz recalls.

The solution came with a touch of irony. The very things used to block light could provide much-needed illumination for the homeowner’s main entertainment space.

“Part of the inspiration had to do with the size of the umbrellas” — a full 10-feet in diameter, says Armusewicz. “They were beautiful, a very pure white.”

To turn the umbrellas into lampshades, the lighting professionals installed a series of small bullet lights around the base, uplighting the fabric and casting a soft glow on the pool deck. Armusewicz, who likes to play with reflective surfaces, also liked the mirror image the umbrellas created on the pool.

The lights are wired to a junction box in the grass at the back of the pool. This way, the homeowner can freely move the umbrellas about the patio and unplug them when it’s time to stow them away for the winter.

Armusewicz has since added his signature umbrella lights at several more projects.

“It’s kind of become my specialty,” he says.