Bottle Tree Dreams and Yard Art Fantasies

Help! I'm becoming one of those people! You know the one...the crazy neighbor down the street who has so much yard art, the addition of just one more tchotchke will take his yard from tasteful to tacky, from whimsical to wacky. Okay, I'm not that bad. Yet. But I'm working on it. ;)

If you've been reading BNOTP for a while, you may remember I started saving bottles about a year ago for a future bottle tree. (You can read more about the history of bottle trees and view additional pics in THIS post.) A voice was whispering in my ear, "If you collect bottles, it will come. If you collect bottles, it will come."

I must have been channeling the movie, Field of Dreams because my bottle tree materialized on a visit to the Ballard Design's Outlet in Atlanta recently.

It wasn't exactly the style tree I had planned when I was having bottle tree fantasies. I had pictured a free flowing, tree-like form, but whenever I came across those, they were ridiculously expensive.

The one that found me was originally priced at $349 (who the heck would ever pay that?) and was marked down to $60. It did look very much like another bottle tree I had seen and loved in the book, Southern Style by Mark Mayfield. So, I went for it. But she was sooo big, she wouldn't fit in my SUV. (I've decided my bottle tree must be a "she." Next I'll be naming her and then you guys really will know I'm off my rocker. ;) I had to enlist the help of a friend with a van to get her home and onto the deck.

I had planned on holding off sharing my tree until I had her all decked out. But since that may take a while, I'm gonna let the ole bottle tree cat out of the bag. Then you can watch her get prettier and more colorful over the coming summer months. :)

Actually, you got a little view of her in my Tablescape Thursday post. Yep, you did. Only one person noticed her, though, and that would be Jo. Jo, you're scary good. I'm impressed! :) I didn't expect anyone to spot her. I thought my bottle tree secret was safe. ;)

So here she is, still mostly "neked." I'm trying to NOT buy bottles. Instead, I'm trying to be patient and let her evolve with time as I collect a few here and there. This represents a year's worth of collecting, so that could take a while. ;) Well, actually I've had one of those blue bottles for years and I opened the red bottle and poured the Luna di Luna Merlot wine into another container just so I could see it on the tree. :) Inpatient = my middle name.

This is what she aspires to be when she grows up one day. ;)


(Image from Southern Style by Mark Mayfield)

On a recent trip to a fun antique shop called Fleu de Coop in Kennesaw, Georgia, I found a large, glass, float-ball in a pretty green color for just $20. That was the best price I'd ever seen for one of those. I'm sure it's not an antique. It turned out to be a great topper for my tree. I placed the tree here on the deck where I can see it and enjoy it. If I had placed it down in the yard, I would rarely see it.

This tree is approximately 6 feet tall and 38 inches across. It seems smaller in these pics but it actually feels pretty big in person. Wouldn't it be pretty encircled with flowers in clay pots around the bottom? It's so excruciatingly hot here in Georgia now, I'm having trouble keeping my potted plants watered, so I think I'll wait on buying additional flowers.




I'll be reading back to all the comments left on THIS post when you generously shared suggestions for drinks that come in pretty bottles. If you see a drink in a pretty, sunny-golden bottle, let me know. She needs some sunshine-yellow bottles for her bottle dress.

While at Fleu de Coop, I snapped a few pics of some of their fun, garden art. The friends who were with me that day each bought something silly and whimsical for their yard. They tell me I've corrupted them...my work is done. ;)

I am so wanting a flying pig. Every yard needs a flying pig, don't cha think? They were $25 for the smaller ones. All the garden art appeared to have been made from scrap metal and car parts. What a fun way to recycle.

Hilarious! Life is too short to not surround yourself with unexpected bits of whimsy and foolishness. That's my motto; maybe I should stick it on my header. lol

You can't ride this bike, but wouldn't it be a delightful surprise to find on a stroll down a garden path? I can just see it tucked in among the flowers and filled with more flowers.

These roosters don't eat much, they won't wake you up at the crack of dawn and they promise to never, ever peck at you.

So funny! This big guy was $189. The white one above was $49.

Got a horsey lover in your family?

I loved these darling bird houses. I was a tad worried if I bought one and placed it in my yard, a bird might actually nest inside. They are metal and were extremely hot...would be unbearable for the birdies.

So, I resisted, but aren't they beyond cute? Maybe they would be great on a screened-in porch where the birdies couldn't get inside. They were $79.

Totally love this guy...and he was huge. Aren't praying mantises supposed to bring good luck to the garden? This guy was only $29...very reasonable for a piece this big.

So, what's your take on garden art? Do you love it or hate it? Do you like it in back yards, but not so much in front yards? Be gentle, don't break my yard-art loving heart. ;)

Pssst: To view the tablescapes linked for Tablescape Thursday, click HERE or just click on "96 Beautiful Tablescapes" shown under "Miss a Post This Week" at the top of the blog.