I have a sunny area and a shady area in my garden!

hi lyndsey there is quite a lot for shade from my experience. in no particular order: tellima grandiflora, heucherlla, heuchera, mitella, aconitum(monkshood), anenome japonica hybrids, fuchsia, pulmonaria, any fern almost, astrantia, phygelius(light shade), perenial foxgloves eg digitalis lutea, tiger/martagon/leopard lilies, dicentra spectabilis, brunnera,
lamium, pachysandra, astilbes, primula vivali, candlestick primula, hardy geraniums especially phaeum. lily of the valley, many spring/autumn bulbs too.
full sun is a rarity in my garden but i do grow all of these successfully, helianthamum, asters, hemerocallis, perenial salvia, bupthalmum, oriental lilies, dahlias, hollyhocks, dierama, iris bearded, poppies, paeony, lavender, echinacea.

i also use annuals to fill gaps. let us know what you decide to grow.

how could i forget hostas for damp shade. just watch out for slugs.

If all these names are confusing and don't mean much to you, don't worry! Go to the local library and get some books out on gardening in the shade. Pick ones with lots of pictures. There are so many to choose from. Also, a good nursery would be able to advise you on plants to try.

sorry if I make it sound more complex than it is, but some plants dont have common names and some have common names, such as cleavers/sticky buds/sticky annie/sticky willy. depending where you live t his is the same plant. you can google these plants lyndsey to get an idea what they look like. or as volunteer says pop down to your local libray. the Dr series of garden books does lists of plants for typical situations. eg shade/dry/fullsun etc.