Amaryllis Love

I'm in amaryllis love at the moment.  I purchased this beauty of a bulb yesterday at our neighborhood nursery.  The color, appearing on the card, seemed to be a pretty pinkish coral.

 These two babies above are bulbs I raised from a mother bulb.  I've had these stored in the garage for a month or so.  I really, really want these to pop and have my fingers crossed that they will.  I just potted them yesterday, and the bulbs are not nearly as large as the first one I posted, but hoping for a bloom.  Of course I check it every hour to see if there's any new evidence of a sprout. These should turn out to be a bright ruby red.

Below are my little Christmas clutches all done and ready for wrapping and gifting.  I'm a little "hooked out" at present... but am sort of jazzed to start a very simple rug that's planning itself in my head.  I just need some color inspiration to get started.

Extremely cold and a little snowy here today.  Got the fire going and trying to brace ourselves to head out to a movie.  Hope you're staying snug and warm!
xo
Dulcy

Christmas Clutches and Forcing an Indoor Garden

I've been trying to hook some for Christmas.  If you hook, you may find the dilemma of wanting to hook something for everyone, but not the time to get it all done.  Of course.... you may be someone who plans ahead, gets things done and put away, possibly even wrapped.  Oh, I so do envy your diligence!  The above is one of, maybe..... five, little hooked clutches I'm hoping to gift to friends.  This is the front and back of my first completed clutch, and another is just about done with construction.  I hooked this one with someone special in mind.... hence the colors, coffee cup, and bluebirds of happiness.  I really like making something small like this.  Done fairly quick (if I stay with it, and don't get lured by my drawing pad) and not a huge hooking commitment involved.

Today I spent the morning outside emptying flower pots, washing them out, and readying things to be put to bed for the season.  I volunteer at our Library Center gift chop, Between Friends, and I found this great book there about a month ago.  I thought, "How perfect to help uplift myself from the end of the gardening season blues!"

forcing, etc by Katherine Whiteside..... an autographed copy for only $4.00!  We sell gently used books in the gift shop, so I am constantly bringing books home.  This one was a real find for me.  The photos by Richard Felber are fabulous!  It's a "how to" book on forcing just about anything indoors.  At the moment I'm trying to force acorns.  I have them in a little bowl in my kitchen window with some rocks and water.  The book says it takes about a month.  I'm almost at three weeks and nothing yet.  Has anyone tried this with success?  In the book, these really cute little stems have popped up and look darling in the dish with rocks and shells.  Today I separated out my amaryllis bulbs, repotted, and stored in the garage for the next couple of months.  Katherine says that they're really best to bring in after Christmas.... first of January.  So, that's the plan.  Anyway, this book is great to just look at, and there's all kinds of things she's forced to bloom besides the standard paperwhites and hyacinths.  I particularly like the forced stems and branches.  It's a great way to bring some of your garden indoors for the winter.

Hope things are going well in your world, and all survived Halloween in one piece.  Off now to finished my second little Christmas Clutch.
xo
dulcy