A Homeowner's Guide to Urns & Planters

Urns and planters are a best-kept secret when it comes to creating a beautiful lush garden or outdoor living space. These unique pieces are a great way to add dimension, create visual interest, and enhance the natural landscape. Both urns and planters come in many different styles, shapes, and sizes, making them a versatile element for all outdoor settings. In fact, the term “urnology” was coined by our founder, Kenneth Lynch, and refers to the many shapes and styles of urns, planters, and finials.

Choosing the right types of urns and planters is key to creating a space that will enhance the natural beauty and add character to your garden or outdoor living area. Here are several tips to consider when selecting these elegant elements for your garden.

Shape, Size & Style for Every Setting

Urns come in an endless variety of shapes, sizes, and styles, making them incredibly versatile for all types of outdoor spaces. From the most elaborate designs that create visual interest, to simple designs that fit seamlessly into the natural landscape… there’s always a style that will help enhance and add character to your home garden or outdoor area.

Illustration of the “Urnology” Guide, originally from Kenneth Lynch & Sons’ “Garden Ornament – An Encyclopedia”

The first step when choosing an urn or planter is to take a look at the current design of your outdoor space. Are you looking to create a focal point among the natural landscape or your garden, enhance the other elements of your outdoor space, or elevate your home’s facade or entryway? This will help inform what type of urn would be best suited for your space. In terms of functionality, it is also important to consider the size of the urn for your space, and whether you’d like the urn to function as a planter. Open urns are typically used to display seasonal blooms and greenery, while closed urns are primarily used to create visual interest.

Here are a variety of different styles from our Estate Elements collection:

If you are looking to create a focal point, you may consider a larger and more decorative urn that will be placed on a column or pedestal to create dimension. On the other hand, if you are looking to enhance the elements already present in your outdoor space you may consider planters that will add visual interest and create a designated space for flowers and plants in the spring and summer seasons. A decorative urn can also add character and make quite a statement in the garden, on the veranda, or paired elegantly in an entryway.

Material & Durability

The urns and planters in our Estate Elements collection are made from natural lead or cast stone, making them incredibly durable for outdoor use in all seasons and weather conditions.

Much of the inspiration behind our cast stone urns is based on original Italian designs that were carved in natural limestone. Our founder, Kenneth Lynch, traveled to Europe in the 1950’s to collect classical garden ornaments with the goal of making these beautiful pieces just as durable and more accessible to the garden ornament market in the United States.

Meanwhile, lead is also an incredibly durable material that is cast in sections from molds and then welded together to make a cohesive whole. The lead urns in our collection are generally smaller than those in cast stone, but they often have very fine detailing making them truly exquisite pieces.

Urns in Every Season

The best part about adding urns, planters, and finials to your home garden and outdoor space is that they will surely add beauty, character, and visual interest in every season!

Explore More

We invite you to explore the wide variety of urns, planters, and finials in our Estate Elements collection.
And find inspiration in our Project Gallery featuring some of our favorite projects and gardens across the country.