Whimsy in the garden creates smiles. When people visit our North Bay area home, the main attraction is our garden. They laugh and are amused when they discover our unexpected surprises.
It took me awhile to adjust to yard art. When buying plants, I tried not to roll my eyes as my husband grabbed another metal sculpture. At least it was drought tolerant. We have an abundance of whimsy and if it is not your thing, I completely understand and used to feel the same way.
A friend of mine told me everyone needs garden gnomes because they are the guardians of the outdoors. She indicated gnomes helped injured animals, such as when a thorn needs to be removed from a deer’s paw.
There are various tales on the purpose of garden gnomes. I don’t believe they are helpers of landscape chores because no one I know ever thought their garden work was magically done. I would love it if those gnomes would clean up after the bay trees which are shedding and dropping nuts right now!
Since gnomes are supposed to rid evil from the lives of those whom own the gnome, we welcomed a few to our home.
Perhaps I should replace the above gnome with a metal sculpture version estreya found on www.thebirdhousechick.com/...
Once you have gnomes, why not add a pink flamingo?
Since we have a fairy, we had to give her a few gardens.
Why not make garden tool storage fun?
The remaining pictures are not from my yard.
If you are ever in Sonoma County and want to see a street filled with giant, whimsical metal sculptures, I would recommend Florence Avenue in Sebastopol, CA. I was running errands one day and for some reason my GPS routed me to this street. I think my car was possessed as it was not the usual way I cut across Sebastopol. This street of yard art on steroids took me by surprise. For safety, I pulled over and took a walk.
There are so many worthy pictures that several people have created photo journeys of Florence Avenue. If you want to see more of the artistic creations along this street, I would recommend this site: www.neverendingvoyage.com/...
Earlier this week, I went up to Sebastopol to my husband’s favorite place to buy clutter for the garden, Food for Thought. Volunteers run the store which supports a food bank organization dedicated to meeting the nutritional needs of all persons living with HIV and other serious illnesses in Sonoma County.
I came across this hidden garden while walking my dog. The owner started creating her garden thirty-five years ago to share with the community.
The last three pictures are from nearby garden and gift stores.
That does not even cover all our whimsy.
What is new in your garden? What makes you smile out there?