Gnomes and Fairies Make Large Statements

Small statues such as gnomes and fairies can enhance your yard or garden.  Garden gnomes have always been popular. Take a look at a husband and wife team.  There is even one on a swing that you can hang from a tree and one that imparts his mystic wisdom.  These traditional garden ornaments add a bit of color to a garden or yard.

Fairies are popular too.  They can be placed anywhere and range in size from about 8 to 18 inches. Some of them are so detailed that they look like they were hand sculpted by great artists.  Fiona, the Flower Fairy Sculpture is an example of this.

Just think of the stories you could make up for your young children about why the fairy is riding the butterfly.  Maybe she is trying to escape from a wicked gnome, or looking for her fairy sister who is down by the pond.  The beauty of fairies is enhanced when they are made of stained glass.

Gnomes and fairies always add class to a yard or garden and they will do that for yours.

See others that are available by visiting http://uniquegiftsanddecor.com/fairies-and-gnomes-sculptures.html.

Remembering Your Loved Ones With Memorial Benches

Perhaps you have a loved one who has passed away and want to erect a lasting memorial to him or her.  A very personal way of doing so is to place a memorial bench in your garden or yard.

A beautiful cast stone memorial bench would be a thoughtful reminder and lasting memorial of your loved one.

Memorial benches come in a variety of designs and sizes with inspirational quotations engraved on them.  Examples include:

"If tears could build a stairway, and memories a lane, I'd walk right up to Heaven and bring you home again"

"Gone yet not forgotten, although we are apart, your spirit lives within me, forever in my heart"

Some benches come with a brass plaque on which you may have name and dates or even a few words of your own engraved on up to five lines.

When you lose a loved one you feel that you can never live without them, yet life goes on although they should never be forgotten.  By placing one of these memorials in your garden or yard you will make sure that they will never be forgotten, and whenever you feel down or if you are troubled and need some peace and quiet, you can sit there and remember.  Some people feel that their loved ones have never left them, and this is a good way to keep in touch with their memory.

More details on stone memorial benches are available at http://uniquegiftsanddecor.com/address-plaques-and-memorials.html.

Add Beauty to Your Patio or Garden with Water Fountains

Garden fountains bring a touch of class to any garden, patio or yard and are available online for any area, large or small. The range of these beautiful water features that is available is astounding, and most are affordable to any purse or wallet.

You can accentuate the fantasy with fountains made of angels, cherubs or Greek gods, or simply go for a young child playing with baby birds, as the water sparkles and dances into a basin set with acanthus leaves on a classical pedestal.

If you prefer a fountain with cherubs, then how about four of them playing in four foot fountain, a reproduction of a 15^th century French design with two bowls, one flowing into the other. Or how about something irresistibly cute – a well-mannered St. Bernard patiently quenching its thirst.  

There are many more fountains to be found for small or medium sized areas, and some collect the water so perfectly that they would be suitable for a patio or atrium.  Of particular beauty is a fountain with seven bamboo pillars.  Water cascades down from one to the other and is collected in the last to be recirculated back to the top.  This fountain is suitable for use outdoors or indoors.

You can even get a cherub wall fountain in a design from Tuscany, of particular benefit if you have no room in your garden for a full round design. This sits against any wall and also collects all the water that is circulated by means of the pump provided.

If you have a pond or a pool how would it look with a solid bronze otter sitting nearby?  This statue stands 16 inches high and will add class and a touch of fantasy.

Many outdoor fountains need care, especially in winter.   Freezing temperatures can cause damage.  Always follow the manufacturer’s care instructions to ensure years or use.   

Make Outdoor Walls Come Alive

Not many people pay a lot of attention to the outdoor walls of their home.  There is a real opportunity to add to the overall beauty of one’s home with outdoor wall décor.  There is marvelous range of outdoor wall accents that you can use to make your walls stand out, add that little bit extra to the walls in your garden area and even be used as part of a unique outdoor décor. 

Perhaps you need something to complement your garden, and are seeking a sculpture to sit on a garden wall, or maybe in a sunny window ledge?  What would look better than a beautiful wall plaque or sculpture?  A hand-painted, painstakingly sculpted owl or an angel sitting contemplating from outside your window also may do the trick.

You can adorn your outdoor walls with themes such as French art nouveaux wall sculptures known traditionally as Le Printemps and Le Etoile ( spring and the star - L'Etoile is also a leading ballerina). These can be fitted to an outside wall and used to hold growing flowers.  A copy of Bernini’s masterful Dove of Peace that is the focal point of the Throne of St. Peter in the Vatican would look fantastic. You have to see this to appreciate it properly, but it is available if you know where to find it.  This also is great for the indoors.

Another idea for an outside wall is the North wind, huffing and puffing, but this one won't blow the house down. It is simply one of many outside wall accents you can use.  You can even add a new member to your household.  The fantastical “half cat/half goyle” Catgoyle on the Loose Wall Sculpture can show your playful or mysterious side.

Don’t neglect your outdoor walls.  Use them to make a statement.  It is these extras that actually make a home unique and show off the tastes of its occupant.  By using any of these beautiful wall sculptures or accents, you will place a stamp on your home and show your good taste in art and decor.

Old Phone Styles are Today’s Art Deco

Genuine antique phones that work make wonderful gifts, and are also excellent and unique conversation pieces. Of course, for them to be used in modern telecommunications networks, they have to meet current-day standards, and most antiques are useless for anything but viewing or as an investment.  Nevertheless, many have been refurbished and rewired to meet today's standards, and can be used as a regular phone in place of your current telephone handset.   

Let's discuss some examples of old phones that work because they have been suitably refurbished. Naturally, their prices will be a bit higher than modern phones because they are genuine antiques - they have simply been upgraded to meet the needs of today so they can be used for their intended purpose.

There is a number of old cradle phones that originated in the 1920s and were produced right up to the 1970s. In order for them to be used they have been thoroughly cleaned, inside and out, and refurbished to varying degrees.  They are still of the original design, and are not fakes, but the real actual phones that were used during these periods.  

One example is the Electric AE 50 phone known as the 'juke box phone' because of its design.  It came in a number of versions, and the art deco wall version is particularly good looking and would grace any hallway wall. With new wiring to modern standards, these are available online at under $250. For approximately the same price you can get your hands on a chrome English cradle phone, with a beautiful chromed finish and black handset.  It looks truly magnificent and was dubbed the 'Toaster Phone'.  Made in the 1920s, this phone has been made ready to plug into your existing system.

For something a bit different, made in the 1970s even though it is of an older-looking design, the 1970s Decorator Cradle Telephone is a beautiful work of art in antique white, with white figures on a blue background.  

Another unique phone is the Kellogg's 1932 Pyramid telephone.  As originally built, there was no dial on this phone since it was originally used with an operator.  Now you can also get the Pyramid with a dial added.

So there we have just a few of an amazing range of cradle telephones that have passed the test of time and can still be used today since they have been refitted with modern wiring and network capability.  They are worth every cent for offering a unique and distinguished look to your home, and many homes have more than one.

Pewter Goblets Enliven Home Bars

The proper wine and bar accents can make a home bar extra special. A home bar should not only be equipped properly but it also should include a few accents that will make it look that little bit special.

Start with the glasses: a dragon pewter 16 oz glass goblet is very inspiring. The dragon twists its wings around to hold the glass goblet, and its tail twists to form the stem - a set of these would look absolutely stunning on your bar.  

If you prefer your goblets to be 100% pewter, then the same artists in Brescia have designed a three dimensional goblet with pewter laid on pewter, using techniques handed down for centuries. The base is a ring of fire with the dragon rising out from it. As well as looking great on your bar, a set of these would make a marvelous gift.

There are other pewter-smiths in Italy of course, and a company in Viale, in the Piedmont region of North-East Italy, offers a beautiful olde world style of pewter goblet that celebrates the grape harvest.  This goblet is encircled with a lush bunch of beautiful ripe grapes.

It's one thing having a home bar, but to have one that stands out and is commented upon takes some work and a degree of selectivity in furnishing it.  It's not so much the bar stools that make a good bar a great bar, and it certainly isn't the drinks, because anybody can have them.  What it is is your choice of goblets, glasses and the touch of class represented by them.