How cool! I have never seen one of these intelligent Beings, but I have had a sense of their presence where I live. I was making a wooden "gnome home" 3 years ago after my first faery encounter. I just felt that I wanted to make something for the gnomes- besides just the Winged Faerykind. I think I even announced out loud in our yard to any gnomes nearby if they could help me find materials for this "home" and strangly, I started finding all of these cool pieces of wood laying on the ground during my walks. Even to the detail of a perfectly round piece of reclaimed barn door wood laying in this field which fit perfectly as a base.
I glued it all together and added a rough cut amthyst as an accent for them. Then I told our dog, Mindy, "Mindy, don't mess with the gnome home!" and while telling her that, I actually heard a reply in response (which was spoken to me mentally- not out loud) saying "Gnome MOTEL" after I had termed it "Gnome Home"
So I believe a gnome was actually helping me make it and this gnome Being who spoke with me wanted me to get it right- that it wasnt their home, but it was like a little something to indicate to them they were welcome :-)
Gnomes are not at all the way the media portrays them- they are very intelligent Beings not to be messed with – There are probably unseely gnomes yet there are those of their clans who are here on this Earth to serve the cause of Light and to minister to Creation and wild animals.
I beleive I have a gnome spirit guide, and it was that same gnome who helped me 3 years ago build that "gnome motel"… There is so much we humans have no idea…