A Magical Garden Tour....Let's Go To The Saffert's!

It's true when they say that sometimes you don't need to venture too far from home to find wonderful places to visit and things to see!  Case in point... the wondrous gardens and garden art at Paul and Marilyn Saffert's place here in Rice Lake about three miles from my home.   A couple of weeks ago I decided to take my Mom and go see what their place was all about as I have been hearing from everyone who's been there how awesome it is!

We weren't disappointed!  

The gorilla head mound of dirt ( pic above) was just too funny!

And that was only the beginning!

Paul and Marilyn work many long and hard hours to create the magical landscapes on their homestead and consider it a labor of love and joy!  

So come along and you'll see what I mean!

 How about THIS bottle tree!  Whimsical and beautiful as it refects the sunlight in the garden !

And shouldn't every home have a castle among the hosta's?!!!

I LOVE their entry way to their house! The cool bricks and stone make for a nice place to rest on a hot day!

I couldn't resist a shot of these iris blooming and admiring themselves in the glow of a gazing ball!

An awesome gazebo! One of the many sculptures made by Paul from welding horse shoes together!   I want one of these!!

Another sculpture made from horse shoes is this magnificent horse which stands proudly amongst the apple trees.

And a covered wagon and horse team made of MORE horseshoes!  I need to ask Paul where he got all those horseshoes!

 Whimsical tall and wavy birdhouses!   Even the birds here live like artists and reflect the owners talents!!

I absolutely LOVE this metal tree that stands so proudly by the barn!  Paul is an expert craftsman and handy with the welder!

Hand hammered spoons and dippers make a soothing wind chime in a shade garden.

Brick archways invite you to step through to explore!

A vine covered path leads to more gardens, the pond and so much more!

Mirrors and frames on the side of garage with a hedge of ferns.

Kids and adults alike love following the yellow brick road to explore the land of the Wizard of OZ!  Dorothy's red sparkly shoes start the adventure!

In the garage Marilyn has created a space for play and fun!  

I think I need to redo MY garage!  Move over Dave's tools and garage junk!  I want a playhouse in my garage! This is just too fun!

Meet Paul and Marilyn and their dog Max!  Wonderful friendly souls who greet and welcome you to come tour their gardens and artworks!  They are master gardeners and have a wealth of knowledge about all things garden and plant related!  I need to go back as you know gardens change through out the seasons and I bet the fall blooms will be spectacular!  

Thanks Marilyn and Paul for letting me share this on my blog!

And Marilyn..... that Eyeball plant I bought from you is growing great!  And thank-you for digging up some of your specialty Black-eyed Susans for me!  They are doing great as well!!

Hope to see you soon!

Cathy G