Home Decor Gifts with a Story to Tell

Which unique home decor to choose?

Mood lighting

A science lamp gives little light, but it changes the mood of a room in the evening. The Large Himalayan Salt Lamp ($179.99) is carved from genuine pink salt, so no two lamps look alike, and it glows a warm amber. The Moon Wall Light (from $79.99) reproduces the craters and relief of the Moon, in four diameters up to about 31 inches. On the Heng Balance Lamp ($84.99), the switch is what intrigues: bring the two hanging wooden beads together, they snap shut with a magnet, and the oval lights up.

Glass instruments

These glass instruments work without batteries or screens. The Cube Weather Glass (from $39.99) shows crystals that transform inside a glass cube; their look follows mostly the temperature, with no real forecasting value. The Galileo Glass Thermometer (from $39.99) relies on a simple principle: the liquid's density changes as the room warms up, and each of its six colored balls matches a threshold, from 64 to 82°F. The Large Galileo Thermometer ($182.99) takes the idea further: with 11 balls in a 25-inch tube, the reading gets finer.

Hourglasses and clocks

Time can be measured with more than sand. In the Hourglass Abstract Art ($44.99), blue bubbles drift slowly down through borosilicate glass. The Empty Hourglass ($52.99) arrives empty: fill it with fine sand, salt or iron filings, and the duration depends on how much you pour in. The Steampunk Nixie Clock ($259.99) gathers six Nixie tubes, an old-time display: each digit is an electrode, and the gas around it glows orange.

Stones and plants

Nature has its own phenomena, only slower. The Amethyst Geode (from $59.99) formed in a rock cavity, where water rich in silica slowly left its purple crystals. The Solar System Gemstones ($54.99) gives each planet its own stone: blue agate for Neptune, tiger's eye for Jupiter, amethyst for Pluto. The Plant Observatory propagation station ($19.99) lines up glass tubes in a charred wood stand, so you can watch the roots of a cutting grow and branch out.

Levitating objects

Here, magnets steal the show. The Zen Levitating Plant Pot ($169.99) turns slowly above its base, which plugs into an outlet; the plant, a succulent or an aloe for example, is not included. The Levitating Cloud Light ($131.99) floats a glowing cloud about half an inch above a wooden base, with no contact at all. The Slow Dance Picture Frame ($107.99) plays on another effect: its strobe light makes a feather seem to move in slow motion, and two feathers come with the frame.

How much to spend?

Give the object with its story

A decor object with a science story is best given with its explanation. When you hand it over, say in one sentence what happens inside: the heated wax that rises, the Klein bottle with no inside or outside, the light that seems to repeat forever. That sentence is what they'll repeat to every guest who asks about it. To see every object, browse all our decor with a science twist; for a stronger surprise effect, our unusual gifts take over.