Wrought iron garden gates

There's no reason why functional items like gates should be boring. Use them as a focal point to your garden, to create a welcoming entrance, or to entice someone through into your special place.

It's been a while since I've blogged here as we started a Wordpress blog on our website at www.farmweld.com/blog and my little blogspot site got pushed to the backburner. That having been said I've been reluctant to close down this blog as it has it's own merits. Much has changed since the last post with the addition of a new blacksmith forge purchased from Adelaide. The blacksmithing equipment opens up the range of wrought iron we can now make in our Adelaide Hills workshop. Andrew has been very excited and passionate about his work and the additional equipment has spurred him on even more.

Iron works so well in the garden, it blends and complements stone and timber beautifully. Here are a couple smaller wrought iron gates that were made for customers:

The above wrought iron gate was for a chicken coop, and really dressed up what would otherwise have been a uninteresting corner of the garden.  The gate is now the main feature and focal point from the house.

The gate below was commissioned by a customer in Queensland and was entirely hand forged to match a piece of ironwork that was brought back from a trip to New Orleans.

Use your imagination, don't just see a gate as being something functional, but rather ask yourself how you can use it to create a focal point or an invitation into your special place.

Wrought Iron Garden Gazebo - for the wedding ...

Well the dust has settled.  Our daughter's wedding is over and I must admit it took a couple of weeks where we didn't really know what to do with ourselves. Months had been spent organising things, but the highlight was being able to design something unique for the day ... the wedding gazebo for the garden ceremony. 

It's been made up from separate panels and is very heavy with all the solid steel in it. We ran out of time and didn't get it powder coated, however we all decided that the olde world rusty finish worked well. 

Once it rusted up we sealed it with Penetrol. This is an oil product that dries like a varnish. It penetrates right into the steel so that it won't rust any further. It's given the gazebo a lovely natural brown finish and I'd strongly recommend this product to any of our customers who want a 'rusty' gate, garden arch or ornament.

We initially toyed with the idea of hiring the gazebo out for weddings but now that the wedding's over maybe I'll find a more permanent place for it ... just for me!

Edwardian and Art Deco Gates - the gap in heritage style gates

So many homes that are being renovated in metropolitan areas in Australia are from the Edwardian and Art Deco periods. Many of these homes have been lost to developers who saw the simplicity of the design from this period as being 'boring' and not worth renovating.  Consequently the gates and fences available on the market tend to cater for the Victorian architectural periods as they were more decorative.  In an effort to fill this gap we 'finally' got around to making a prototype of a garden gate which would fit this period. It's simple lines, curved top and symetrical scrollwork all work with the Art Deco and Edwardian styles. We've used a bit of artistic licence with the addition of the wrought iron baskets, but I think it works. We're also going to make a larger entrance gate version but I couldnt wait to post a photo of this unpainted gate:

 

It lends itself to being made into a taller gate as well, so many possibilities! It also reminds me of some of the Edna Walling gates I've seen in books and in her early blueprints. I'm tempted to call it the 'Agatha' as I was inspired whilst watching a murder mystery on the ABC one night.

I'd love to hear your comments.