Perhaps the root of the wind chime lies in ancient China where an instrument called a “chime” was used to create music. The chime was a collection of different sized bells, each with a different tone. It was fitting, then, that the earliest use of elaborate wind chimes was in Asia to decorate temples and pagodas. Asians began decorating their homes with wind chimes and eventually the use of wind chimes spread to other parts of the world. It’s believed to have been introduced into the western world through the teachings of Feng Shui.

Wind chimes are believed to have healing powers and to enhance the mind, spirit and body of the whole person. Tubular wind chimes, in particular, are said to enhance the Chi of a home. The number of tubes and the material of the wind chime are very important to Feng Shui beliefs.

Steel and brass tubes represent the metal element and are best suited for placement in north, northwest or west corners. The number of tubes on the chime will change the purpose. 6 or 8 tubes will give you luck but if you wish to avoid bad luck you should use a chime with only 5 tubes.

Bamboo and coconut wind chimes represent the wood element and should be placed in the southern corner to bring fame and the east or southeast to create luck. If you place metal chimes in the south corner (wood element) you are asking for trouble because metal destroys wood. The preferred number of bamboo rods is 3 or 4.

Signs of a QUALITY Metal Wind Chime

One can easily distinguish between a low and high quality chime by comparing the sounds. There is no comparison. One can even hear the difference in mid to high quality without any special musical background. There is a trick, however, to knowing what’s highest quality and not without hearing the chime at all. If the strings that hold the tubes are thread through each side of the tube it interferes with the music of the wind chime. A single string running down the middle of the tube is a sure signal that it is a quality chime. The picture at the top of this page shows a high quality wind chime. The picture to the left shows a mid-quality wind chime and the difference is how the tubes are strung.

Mid and high quality chimes are hand-tuned, the tubes are thick and one can play a tune on those of highest quality by striking each tube like the keys on a piano. Deepest tones come from the largest tubes and highest tones come from the shortest.