Non-edible garden additions

Many times Will and I scoff at the "garden art" we see in other people's gardens: the pink flamingos, the water features, the random sculpture that takes up the entire postage stamp size front garden....

Course, I am sure that these folks would laugh at what we have in ours-- which is why mainly the garden art stays in the backyard.

We have several new additions this year, and we are really quite pleased with the finds.

First up, a brass platypus from Australia that doubles as the hose knob:

It was just a little bit irresistible when we saw it at the botanical gardens in Melbourne. Facing up, the water is off, facing down, the water is on. He is surprisingly heavy even though he is only about 3 inches long.

Second up: a shoe-cleaning hedgehog from Birmingham, UK:
Another cutie, Will found this one in a garden shop near the hotel at which he stayed during his recent trip to England. This little guy is about a foot long and is saving me loads of time from cleaning up the mud that used to be tracked into my kitchen-- usually right after I had mopped the floor. Now, if I could get the dog to use it, I would be in business.

Third up: our mini Terra Cotta Warrior:
We had him in the bedroom, but his base broke. Instead of chucking out, we placed him in the garden to watch over it and us. Protection from the evil spirits, just what the bigger version was supposed to do...

4th: Our large, concrete snail:
This type of snail is the only type to have in a garden. We have had him a long time, but not in good places where we can enjoy him. We hope that its presence warns off other snails. A snail talus-man, if you will.

Finally, and my favorite, a birthday present from Will: Aunt Jemima Puddleduck:
Found at the same garden shop in Birmingham, UK, Will thought that with my love (bordering on an obsession?) of all things Beatrix Potter, that we needed something of hers in the garden. I quite agree. She is just lovely and the detailing of her shawl is exactly like the original drawings from Mrs. Potter. Seeing Mrs. Puddleduck makes me smile every time.

Now, you will have to visit and find these, and many more, treasures in our garden. Just no laughing at our "garden art."