I love when customers call and emphatically state, "I cannot believe how much time I spent on your website last weekend - I think I listened to all the chimes at least five times!" As an online retailer, I love that folks take time on our site to pick out just the right chime.

But I know, I know - it can be quite overwhelming to encounter a wind chime website for the first time. There are SO many chimes in SO many sizes and SO many colors. And then there's the sound of each to consider... it's no wonder customers finally just pick up the phone and call us!

To help you choose, here's a primer on the chimes you'll find at BuyChimes:

Background basics:

1. We only sell U.S. made wind chimes. So rest assured, everything you buy here is made in the U.S.

2. We sell contemporary, traditional and semi-contemporary chimes (see below).

3. We ship many, many chimes as gifts. If you're not sure if that special person will like a chime or not, take it from us, they will!

Chime basics:

Contemporary chimes have aluminum in the majority of their components. These are the contemporary lines of chimes we sell: Corinthian Bells, Bells of Vienna and Gentle Spirits. They have powder-coated (this means unique colors) aluminum tubes, top/crown and wind sail. The striker is a high-density composite material. All sizes have six tubes (only exception is the Gentle Spirits 27-inch chime at 8 tubes). The same sizes are always tuned to the same keys (in other words, the 50-inch chime in all three lines will always be tuned to the key of A). The only difference between the lines is aesthetic - the top/crown and wind sail look different. So pick the look you like the best & the sound will still be the same high quality no matter what. FYI - the Corinthian Bells chimes is our best-selling line.

Traditional chimes have wooden components to them (a top/crown, striker and/or wind sail). These lines of chimes are traditional: Arias, Arias Elite, Festival, Majesty Bells and Weatherland. They ALL have a wooden top, striker and wind sail. Couple of notes on these chimes: The Arias line was the original chimes manufactured by QMT Windchimes and folks that have those original chimes keep coming back for more. The Arias Elite line was upgraded several years ago and has a fine, clear sound - check it out!

Semi-contemporary chimes combine both a traditional look with some wooden components (the striker), yet achieve a clean, contemporary look with an aluminum top/crown and wind sail. These lines of chimes are semi-contemporary: Shenandoah Melodies and Majestic Spirits. All have five tubes. They are less expensive than the full contemporary chimes simply because they have five versus six tubes. The wooden striker also impacts the sound, but not significantly.

Sound basics:

All chimes that we sell are tuned to a specific scale or musical key. Which is great news for those of us looking for more than just a pretty chime! You'll see the keys on every page for individual chimes. But regardless of the key, the bigger the chime, the deeper the sound. So if you're looking for a "soprano" chime, pick a small chime. If you're looking for a deep, "bass" chime, look at the longest chime within each line. They will also have the largest tube diameter, which creates that unique, gong-like sound that customers love! Most importantly, there are sound mp3 files for every chime - so be sure to listen. Just look for the pointy hand (manicule) in the middle of each page.

And please, call us if you find yourself on our website for HOURS listening to every chime five times! We're here and we know these chimes.

- Carolyn

BuyChimes, LLC