Wind Chimes Bring Music Into Your Life

If you don't find the music of "Red Hot Chili Peppers" relaxing, try the mellow music of wind chimes! While I really appreciate the sounds of silence, I also love the gentle tinkle of tiny brass bells, the clatter of bamboo tubes, and the resonating echoes of beautiful melodic tones from the wind chimes hanging from my eaves.  On my five acres here on Whidbey Island, I also have long strings of ceramic leaves that gently clang together hanging from low branches of trees.  If they are silent, there is no wind. If they produce music, there may be a mischievous windy sprite slipping around, or if they sound like a whole brass band, there is probably a pretty stiff breeze and even gusts! I leave them up year 'round, finding their music soothing and relaxing especially in the wee hours of the morning after a restless night. I might even be able to go back to sleep lulled by their sweet songs.

CHIMING SWEETLY IN THE WIND

For my birthday one year, a dear and thoughtful friend gifted me with a couple sets of Woodstock chimes. One set, called Mission Bells, I have hanging just outside my bedroom window. The music from the tiny brass bells is likened to "little bell kisses" - ringing faintly and delicately on the wind. You need to listen intently - as it is as soft as an angel feather to your ear.

The other set is made of metal tubes - much larger, but it's my favorite of all that I have. The muted melodic tone echoes softly until you wonder if you're only hearing a beautiful memory.  No matter what I'm doing, I pause to listen - that simple act brings peace to my busy mind as I listen to the music for a moment.

The musical ringing of the chimes, the sound of water trickling in the fountain on my deck combined with the songs of birds that come to my feeders truly creates my own personal Eden.

MANY VARIETIES OF WIND CHIMES TO CHOOSE FROM

You'll find wind chimes made of many different materials (ceramic, wood, metal, shell, resin, etc.), big and little, long, short, colorful, plain - there is no limit to artistic license with wind chimes. One thing they all have in common though, is that they all must hang to catch the breeze and they must have components that strike together in order to produce their sound. Actually, sometimes that's all they produce - just sound.  But it's the sound of the sound that makes them unique!

Some make clacking, dry sounds, others boom like harbor bells,  some tinkle, some clatter, some make beautiful chord-like tones. Wind chimes made of long metal tubes produce the most musical variety.  When shopping, don't be afraid to use the "hands on" approach even though you might feel kind of like a kid playing in a toy store!

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WHERE TO BUY WIND CHIMES?

Amazingly, although wind chimes are certainly a specialty item, you'll find a great variety in the garden departments of grocery stores, large department stores, home improvement centers, garden and nurseries.  There are also several web sites where you may go to purchase wind chimes - just do a Google search.

As I mentioned, I've received several as gifts over the years from family and friends who know my tastes, and bought many myself. I do like variety and this is another area that makes collecting wind chimes so much fun! I bought capiz shell chimes in Haiti ... little ceramic bluebirds in California ... coconut shell in Hawaii ... a brass bell with a metal "feather" clapper on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona.  Half the fun is poking around shops to see what strikes your fancy. Then, the other half of the fun that makes the whole adventure complete, is reclining in a lounge chair ... on my deck ... on a sleepy summer day ... listening to the memories of the wind chimes.