Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Garden art

Walking the dog has health benefits, and it keeps me in touch with neighborhood goings-on. I meet people working in their yards or out walking, too, and I look at houses and landscaping to see what works and what doesn't.

Some people like to load their gardens up with "whimsy." To me, there's a not-very-fine line between intriguing and tacky. A weathered piece of old iron can make an interesting statement. A herd of mismatched ceramic figurines not so much. The latter tends to be rare around here, though. And I never see that old classic, the cutouts of the farmer and his wife, bending over.

This spot of color in a nicely landscaped parkway (a.k.a. hellstrip) caught my eye the other day.

Mushrooms!
How pretty, and unobtrusive. You wouldn't notice them unless you were right there.

I find it reassuring that the homeowners don't fear vandalism. In some parts of the city such a thing would be stolen or broken in short order. I have friends who can't even put a flower pot on their porch for fear of it being taken (they learned the hard way).
Another house in the neighborhood, on a more heavily trafficked corner, has some clever, handmade fence-post toppers that I like. You'd think someone might try to swipe them, but they show no signs of damage.

What tchotchkes are in your yard?

11 comments:

  1. Okay, I have my flamingos but I think I have them in a spot where they don't look too tacky. They're staying there because I love them.
    I'm going to have to picture of this house up the street from us, it's lousy with decorations!

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  2. the glass art is really nice, do you know dale chiluly?

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  3. Those mushrooms look kinda like those Acquaglobe things that you can find sold everywhere now to automatically water your plants.

    I do have one area of my garden filled with tacky little things. Mostly animals, turtles, mermaids, etc. Even a crazy looking peacock.

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  4. Weeds. Only weeds. :-D

    But I do go to garage sales looking for that one something - just haven't fond it yet!

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  5. Those are surprisingly pretty!

    No yard art here except for a few piles of interesting rocks ....yet.

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  6. We have this 7 foot tall glockenturm I designed and built for my Fräulein in a month of artistic mania http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_5ZhmwisyQGg/SP5Pplje9iI/AAAAAAAABUc/KCc6ws8eyEo/s1600-h/20070103215740.JPG It is inspired by glockenturm I saw on a ski trip to Austria (and yes, it is missing the bell).

    Rick in VT

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  7. I had the "front" steps decorated with some pumpkins. I even posted in my blog about them. Our side door has a porch and is the main door to our house. The kids in the neighborhood have now stolen all of my pumpkins. And because they make me feel like a cranky old lady, I'm done decorating...

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  8. We have an "Obama Biden" sign in the front yard

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  9. Denise, if you love them, keep them! Just watch out for the slippery slope ...

    db, yeah, I've seen his stuff. I tend to think he's overrated, though. There are a lot of good glass artists out there.

    JGH, I hadn't seen aquaglobes before. They do look a little similar. More attractive that those spouts you put on soda bottles for indoor watering. I like the idea of a tchotchke garden, as long as you can keep them from breeding!

    Manisha, what do you have in mind, roughly?

    Miss T, rocks work!

    Wow, Rick, you made that? Very cool. Check eBay for bells ...

    Aw, Mary, that sucks. Damn kids. Get off my lawn!

    Peggy, ha! I guess that's attractive or tacky depending on whom you're asking.

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  10. I LOVE the fence post toppers!

    We have a Sheltie flag out by the mailbox. We have been lucky so far in that we don't have to worry about anything getting stolen. I even (gasp!) forget to lock the doors most of the time.

    I also have a "No on 8" sign out front now. It's the California proposition that will eliminate gay marriage, and after failing in the polls it is now drawing even. I'm concerned. (Yes on 8 would eliminate gay marriage that is now legal in California.) Funny, those gays keep trying to destroy traditional marriage and yet we are in our 38th year . . .

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  11. Lovely garden art..esp love rusty things and the toadstools are a very nice touch of colour..unfortunately I can no longer have pots on the deck..but it's not intruders..just my naughty black dog!

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