Fire and Water


Ornamental Elementals for the Garden


Iris Watson
Photo by Al Wright

Mark Twain once supposedly said that the coldest winter he ever spent was a summer in San Francisco. These words are memorable and humorous, but the actual fact of living in the Bay Area can be quite a challenge. We spend all spring getting our gardens ready for outdoor living and then find that spring has segued right into winter, or so it would seem. What do we do indoors when the air has a chill in it? We turn on the heat, of course. Why not have your heat outdoors as well? There are so many wonderful versions of outdoor fireplaces on the market now that there is something for every taste and budget.The two most popular are the freestanding clay fireplace and the fire pit, which is basically a large, shallow, metal dish on sticks (think wok).

    Our favorite is the chimenea. This is an import from South of the Border that has really caught on in California. A chimenea is a free-standing fireplace made of high-fired clay in different textures and colors. The shape is round at the base and tapers up to create a chimney. The hole cut out of the side of the base is where you build the fire and gives it that cozy fireplace look. The chimenea sits on an ornamental iron stand that elevates it 1 foot to 2 feet off of the deck or patio with a decorative but practical iron fire screen that swings open or covers the opening for safety, and another iron grid that sits atop the chimney as a spark-arrester. There are some chimeneas that are small enough for a balcony and others that make a statement in a larger space. If you want to use them on a wooden deck like we do at Vines, use either clay or concrete pavers to form a good-sized safety pad.
    The chimenea not only gives you the visual coziness of a fireplace, but the warmth as well. We have had as many as eight people sitting around ours on a winter’s night and felt quite comfortable. A word of caution: use only natural wood, none of those artificial logs, as they burn too hot for the clay. Also, never build a fire when the chimenea is wet (we cover ours with a large black plastic bag when it rains). Always keep a 3-inch or 4-inch layer of gravel in the bottom as a base for your fire. Even when not in use, they give a wonderful, cozy and inviting look to wherever they are placed.
    Another way to light up the night is with candles and torches. Candles can be as simple or involved as your imagination and the occasion dictate. Tea lights in votive holders strung along a fence line, edging the lawn or nestled into plants create a soft, warm glow, and the more the better. Actually, tea lights sitting in almost any vessel will work. There are hanging lanterns now available in all manner of shapes and sizes that are designed to hold votive candles. These range from elaborate iron works of art that give you an exotic filigree look to small, frosted glass “twig lights” that can be hung from small twigs and branches and look like fireflies when the candles inside are lit.
    For that same function, we also use torches to light paths, frame doorways and stairways and to keep the mood. There are gorgeous copper torches that just push into the ground or a container. Fill these with lamp oil and they will burn, even in the rain. They stand either 3 feet or 6 feet tall, and the copper patina looks better as the torches age.

WATER WORKS
    Even though we are surrounded by water in Alameda, there are very few places where we actually hear the sound of moving water. But you can have the soothing sound of moving water indoors or out no matter where you live. There are small fountain ensembles made of an elegantly simple glazed ceramic bowl with a very organic bamboo spout. There are free-standing cement fountains that are as small as the average bird bath or as big as the historic one at High Street and Encinal Avenue. All you need for even the most elaborate fountain is a 110 electrical outlet somewhere nearby. The pumps are scaled appropriately to the distance the water has to be pushed.
    So there you are, wrapped in the warmth and glow of an outdoor fire and the soft relaxing music of moving water. What more could you ask for? Well, how about a lovely glass of Rosenblum’s finest Rockpile Zinfandel? Die happy.