Whimsical Garden Ideas | Quirky Outdoor Decoration

 Dear Garden Diary,

You know how I much I love quirk. So, today I thought I'd share a few of my quirky outdoor decorations and  objets d'curiosities in my garden for anyone who might be interested in introducing some whimsical garden ideas into theirs. 

So, step  into my whimsical garden and I'll show you around...

1. First things first, I place my "Welcome" mat facing outwards, welcoming anyone into the back garden, rather than welcoming them into the house!

2. I use interesting children's toys to create little nooks of interest.

Here's a pink army man that I found, who I thought might look best guarding the entrance to a dilapidated bird house. Placed in a bright blue glazed pot, this little vignette sits on the porch right outside my kitchen door.

An army man stands guard

3. Birdbaths are fun spots to dress up. 

Rather than just have a bird bath holding only water, I add some playful elements in there. A family of colorful ducks look just as good (and at home) in birdbaths as they do in bathtubs. And the birds that come to take a bath don't object at all.

Toy ducks have abandoned the bathtub. They much prefer the bird bath.

4. Dress forms in the garden do double duty.

They work as great trellises allowing vines to scramble up. Plus, they are super quirky and add height and interest to areas of the garden that you want to draw interest to. Here's "Mary" in my vegetable patch with morning glory forming a skirt around her.

In winter, I dress her up with lights and evergreens for a seasonal switch.

Vining morning glory forms the skirt on this dress form

5. Fairy gardens are delightful

Nobody can pass up a fairy garden and not smile. They are absolutely charming. I've seen many beautifully elaborate ones, but even just a small miniature fairy house placed on a cut log will get anyone wondering what it would be like to be tiny and live in there.

A fairy house waiting to be discovered in the garden

6. Monochromatic large objects create impact

Look at how stunning this cycle looks painted completely in one shade of sunny yellow. It stands out cheekily against the blue siding of the house. Painting large objects with good structural forms all in one colors delivers big impact.

A bicycle painted completely in one color stands out again the house

7. Wind catchers

This is one of my favorites. Plastic windmill pinwheel wind spinners are fun ways to bring movement to the garden. Now, you won't just feel the breeze but you'll see it too.

Large pinwheels are good in garden beds. And small ones will look great in window boxes.

Windmill Pin Wheel wind spinners in a garden bed

I don't use all these things at one shot. It might be a bit too tacky and way too much to have it all out at one time. But, I change things up through the seasons to keep my garden interesting.

So, there you go. A few fun ideas from my garden to bring you inspiration for yours.

Click right below 👇on the "Garden" label to see my other garden posts.