There is a street-level residence on Hicks Street on the periphery of Cobble Hill which regularly puts out holiday-themed inflatable decorations. I have previously covered its Easter, Independence Day, and Valentine’s offerings. On the evening of July 20, 2025, I noticed a new inflatable outside the brownstone home. One may wonder what American holiday could be commemorated on July 20, 2025. I submit that the new inflatable decoration – a bikini-clad gnome with a beach-colored conic hat holding a pink inflatable (an inflatable with an inflatable) flamingo pool ring – is an estival rather than festival decoration.
I assume that this is a girl gnome from the hair and the choice of swimming attire. If you had told me that there was an inflatable bikini-clad gnome decoration, I would have been perplexed. But having seen it, I can conclude that it seems right somehow. On close inspection, I noticed that the bikini top straps appear to be on the gnome’s arms instead of her shoulders, reminding me of a Halloween pumpkin with a mask hooked to its arms that I encountered back in October 2020 (also in Cobble Hill).
While the gnome is a seasonal decoration, you can see that the home still has an artificial Christmas wreath on its door. The ensemble brings together a seasonal non-holiday decoration with an out-of-season holiday decoration.
