Oh Nuts!

I was inspired by a photo of an amaryllis blooming in a vase full of seasonal nuts and pine cones that I saw in Carleton Place Nursery's 2019 Holiday Magazine.

The flower arrangement was so beautiful and seemly simple that I immediately thought "I can do that!"  It turns out that I am not the first person to make this kind of mistake.  In fact, this is exactly the reason that "Pinterest Fails" are a thing.  But, I am getting ahead of myself.

First, I got Ian to buy me an amaryllis bulb when he went to Canadian Tire.  Check.

Then, I bought loads of nuts.  Expensive but check.

Next, I collected pine cones from Charlie's paddock.  After having to surrender one to Charlie for the right to trespass on her field and then another to Ava in order to make it back to the house in one piece, check!  I should note that I now have sticky pine tar in both pockets of my winter coat.  Sigh.

Finally, I tried to fit the bulb into any vase I own.  Fail.  I own several glass vases but this bulb was too large for them all!  Double sigh.

The only glass container I could even get the bulb inside was Ian's beer pitcher....until it dawned on me that the bulb in the photo is not just placed in the pitcher - it is planted in a pot AND THEN the whole pot is placed in the pitcher! That is one deceivingly gigantic glass container!  Triple sigh.  Those magazine people are jerks.

So, I did what any self-respecting woman faced with a craft project threatening to spectacularly derail and the prospect of having to eat a bazillion nuts (when she does not even own a nut cracker) would do...I called my mom.  Sure enough, she got my project back on track with a huge glass container that she just happened to have laying around the cottage.

And the best part?  Nut consumption overload has been avoided or at least postponed until the amaryllis is done flowering; then I will have no excuse not to get the boys the nut crackers that they have been begging for.  I think I will tell them to put it on their Christmas lists.  If Grandma has a humongous glass container just waiting to be used, I bet Santa must have a few spare nut crackers kicking around the North Pole that would not mind being put to work here on the farm.