Anniversary filter: bronze edition

August 4, 2013 5:01 PM

Alright, we're down to the wire and I'm stumped for an anniversary present for my husband. The "traditional" material for this year is bronze.

Husband prefers practical gifts, and likes photography, assorted outdoors activities (camping, etc.), and astronomy. He is very informal in terms of style (does not wear jewelry, literally has a marrying-and-burying suit, and takes a metaphorical kick in the pants to get him out of jeans and a t-shirt). The only idea I've come up with so far is a bronze house plaque/welcome plaque of some sort.

posted by drlith to Shopping (12 answers total)

Bronze astrolabe or other useable old astronomy tool? Are there any studios that work in bronze near you, where you could take a casting class or tour exploring a foundry?
posted by jetlagaddict at 5:03 PM on August 4, 2013

Bronze (or at least bronze-colored!) frame for a favorite photo?
posted by easily confused at 5:11 PM on August 4, 2013

Bronze belt buckle?
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 5:12 PM on August 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Door knocker? Very cool sundial?
posted by DarlingBri at 5:13 PM on August 4, 2013

Best answer: Bookends? Paperweights? Key chain? Letter opener? Yard ornament? Compass? Ships clock? Barometer?
posted by dpx.mfx at 5:53 PM on August 4, 2013

Maybe some kind of camping gear in a bronze finish?

Hand Crank and Solar Powered Travel Camping Lantern Light

Army Lockback Knife - Small Bronze Antique
posted by stray thoughts at 6:07 PM on August 4, 2013

Serge Panchenko handmakes some beautiful bronze things. (I'd go with the keychain: definitely practical, but especially nice that the recipient has a multiple-times-daily reminder of the giver.)
posted by argonauta at 6:22 PM on August 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

Sculpt your own bronze buckle, bronze ivy leaf keychain, bronze pepper grinder - etsy will get you something useful.

I have been searching for a couple of years for a pair of bronze serving spoons, a reference to the Falco novels by Lindsey Davis as a prized possession of the newly married couple, and when I've found them available, they are very very beautiful and somewhat expensive. I couldn't get the style I wanted, but you might have better luck. Look for small forges like this or replica stores like this because bronze is not a popular metal any longer because it's somewhat brittle. A lot of what you'll see listed as bronze is brass.
posted by viggorlijah at 7:38 PM on August 4, 2013 [1 favorite]

I don't know if watches count as jewelery or not, but bronze watches are pretty neat--and practical. Bonus: if he's mechanically minded, an automatic watch might pique his interest.
posted by thack3r at 11:50 PM on August 4, 2013

Best answer: I always thought this sun dial proclaiming "Grow old with be, the best is yet to be" would make a cute anniversary gift. It isn't actually bronze but it is a bronzy color.
posted by dottiechang at 1:03 AM on August 5, 2013

Response by poster: Thanks for the ideas, folks! I decided to go with "perfect things" and make the compromise of antiquey brass rather than something true bronze that's not quite the perfect thing. I forgot to mention that he's also really into weather phenomena (because, seriously, who has the weather as a hobby? An HVAC professional, I guess...) and so dpx.mfx's suggestion of barometer led me down the rabbithole of multi-instrument brass weather stations with temp, hygrometer, and barometer. And I also looked at a lot of sundials, but dottiechang's aged brass sundial is more perfect than any of the many bronze sundials I found.
posted by drlith at 6:39 AM on August 5, 2013 [1 favorite]

If he's really into the weather, then he might be more interested in personal weather stations. I would probably steer clear of that. Who knows his thoughts on cup vs ultra-sonic anemometers; chances are that neither are made of brass.
posted by oceanjesse at 6:47 AM on August 5, 2013