Best wind spinners for kinetic art in your garden

The best garden wind spinners spark new ideas and encourage upbeat feelings. This form of garden décor has its origins in Chinese culture and mid-century modern art. Kinetic art is epitomised by Alexander Calder's mobiles and like so many design ideas of the 20th-Century, has found its way into our everyday lives and our gardens. Taking the tubular steel furniture of the Bauhaus movement as a case-in-point, it may be almost 100 years old but would look en pointe in any modern garden.

Three-dimensional sculpture can be inexpensive and yet provide dramatic op art against the backdrop of your garden. Pair a mesmerising mandala with morphing movement in front of a garden mirror for a focus to meditate on. Or get your zenergy back with a lawn full of colourful windmills. Essentially a wind spinner has multiple spinning parts that create an optical illusion and reflect undulating colours. Similarly, there are mobiles, windmills and weathervanes that are transformed into pleasing, dynamic forms by the wind.

Best garden wind spinners at a glance

• Best overall garden wind spinner: Wind Spinner Emerald - View offer on Amazon UK
• Best handmade wind spinner: Pemberley Bronze Garden Wind Sculpture - View offer on Etsy
• Best windmill: Seaweed XL Windmill, Multi - View offer on John Lewis
• Best sunflower wind spinner: SZHTSWU 4 Pcs Sunflower Wind Spinners - View offer on Amazon UK

Amongst the blousy peonies, abounding wisteria and lolling heads of plump roses, why not turn your garden into a mini sculpture park? Create new shadows, reflections and movement with sunflower, rainbow and bicycle wind spinners. Imagine a rippling metallic heart shape popping against copper garden décor; sensory enjoyment is so good for unblocking emotional stress. Additionally, your outdoor art gallery can extend into the evening with light-up kinetic sculptures that are charged by the sun during the day.

Catch a gleam on a dull day, and even keep pesky pigeons at bay, garden wind spinners are an inexpensive garden accessory that adds colour and year-round interest. Also, a cute whirligig makes an excellent gift for a loved one who spends a lot of time in the garden. As much as possible, we try to recommend products that are made from sustainable materials and produced ethically. If we've peaked your creativity and you want to get hands-on with your garden décor, scroll to the FAQs at the end of this article. Otherwise, prepare to be blown away. Once you begin your moving sculpture collection it's difficult not to become that person whose front garden is full of windmills and pinwheels.

Best garden wind spinners

FAQs

What should I consider when buying a garden wind spinner?

First, there are all sorts of reasons why you might be buying a wind spinner. For some, it's purely a decorative device to brighten up the garden. It might be a gift for a loved one who has a particular passion for motorbikes or sunflowers. Also, a wind spinner might be for a memorial and therefore has a poignancy about the style you choose.

Consider the size of the wind spinner and bear in mind its scale in relation to your garden. Like a garden statue, an oversize ornament will make a small space feel cluttered.

Style is the essential factor, for example, you may be looking for a tasteful and traditional garden accessory rather than a bright and bold spinner.

Finally, if you want to display your wind spinner outside all year round, opt for a product that's made from a weatherproof material, such as powder-coated steel. Also, where you position the wind spinner is important too, a more fragile piece is best in a sheltered spot. You could hang it from a tree, balcony, lamp or wall. Additionally, there are some freestanding wind spinners stakes so you can position them in a planter or on the lawn.

How do I create my own garden accessories?

At Modern Gardens we're passionate about sustainability. We can all do better and reduce, reuse and recycle. It can be fun too. We all get through a lot of glass bottles each month, be it wine, beer, soft drinks or condiments. Instead of tossing them into the recycling, make something unique with them to style up your outside living space. Clare Howcutt-Kelly explains how to upcycle empty glass bottles into fabulous bottle lights for the garden that'll gently sway in the wind.

Bottle Lights

You will need:
Selection of wine bottles
Safety goggles and gloves
Bottle cutter
Sandpaper
Galvanised wire
Tea lights

What to do:
1 Make a mark on each bottle where you want to cut off the base.
2 Put the gloves and safety goggles on to protect from any stray shards of glass.
3 Position each bottle in the cutter and follow the instructions carefully. Sand off any rough edges after cutting.
4 Set the bottles aside and measure out three lengths of wire roughly twice the length of your bottles. Curl the wire into spirals by winding around the bottle neck.
5 Slightly stretch out the spirals and slide up into each of the bottles and feed through the bottle neck. Pop the tea lights on the bottom spiral inside each bottle.
6 Attach the lengths of wire to a piece of suspended string or sturdy tree branch.

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Natalie Knowles is a Homes & Garden Product Writer for Modern Gardens, specialising in garden trends. When she's not flexing her mow-how, Natalie is a successful artist and illustrator.