by Carol Wallace

Created on: April 18, 2009

Donald Featherstone- the guy who created the ubiquitous pink flamingo said it best when he said that until the invention of plastic no one but the rich could afford to be tacky.

Yes - tacky is now within the reach of everyone, regardless of income or social status. Of course, not everyone who is tacky knows it. Not everyone who sees something tacky knows it. That's because tacky is in the eye of the beholder. One person's love affair is another person's eyesore. It's all a matter of opinion.

So I'm about to give you mine. After running a Tacky Yard Art contest for the past four years, I am slowly but surely drawing certain conclusions about the politics of "tacky". About those things commonly called tacky that I don't think are - and the ones I think are past all redeeming value - unless they are part of a kid's garden. Here they are - in no particular order.

GAZING BALLS- I do NOT think gazing balls are tacky. They have a history behind them that makes them romantic. In medieval times they were once used as protective devices - field workers would keep one handy to make sure no one was sneaking up behind them on the attack. Later they were thought to attract the garden fairies and spirits. And they actually do allow you to gaze into them and see your garden in a whole new perspective.

Of course if you have a color other than silver you will also see your garden in a whole new color. Green leaves turn a very strange color in a red gazing ball. You may not care for that. Gazing balls other than silver may be tacky.

PINK FLAMINGOS. This is a tricky one. I do think just plunking a pair of pink flamingos straight out of the box and onto the front yard is tacky - because it is so boringly predictable. Now getting them to perch high up in a tree, as one of the contestants in my annual Tacky Yard Art contest a few years back last year - that's original. And fun. So was one of last year's winners whose pink flamingos were peering intently into a Porta-Lav that had been left in her front yard by workmen. Original and fun is NOT tacky.

I admit - I have a pink flamingo. But in the first place he is only 8" tall - and he is peeking out of the door of an antique bird cage because I couldn't bear to put a real bird in it. That MAY be tacky. My husband thinks it's cute. (Guess who gave me the baby flamingo?)

BOWLING BALLS Yes, you read that right. We had a couple of entries with bowling balls last year, including a long row of them used to edge a flower border. Bowling balls in

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