Easy Forced Amaryllis Bulbs | DIY for Busy Gals

"perhaps, had we chilled them,
they would have bloomed in time. "

 Paper Whites are so dang easy.
Especially given that last year's attempt
at growing Amaryllis, was an utter fail.


We (and by "we" I mean "I")
thought to myself
if these are bulbs that require
a chilling period, I am doomed.


And, I also thought I would start a lot earlier this year.

Negative.

On both fronts.

There was no chill/deep freeze this year.

And I started these less than 4 weeks before Christmas last year.

Even the strongest grow light in the world can't help that procrastination.

Guess I'll be enjoying the holidays

long after they are over.

And this time, I won't do it with 

a fire hazard Christmas tree.

Just. Saying.

Another super easy project.

Especially if you buy a kit.

I did alter my kit supplies with my own clay pots
AND

I don't know WHAT kind of moist peat they are trying to pull,

but my ONE peat pellet in one of three kits

was enough growing medium for three gigantic bulbs.

Really now.

Enjoy!

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Week 74 Random Pinehurst

Home.

In so many more ways

than you will ever know.

I love gardening.

And mini houses.

And terrariums.

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Sew What - Pinterest Weekly 10

I have a sewing machine.

I really need to get it out

and make some really cool stuff.

what are you going to make

with your domestic skills?

Check out the 

B3HD Sew What Pinterest Board

for pinspiration!

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Project 14: Mini Terra Grande (DIY for Busy Gals)

Been a while eh?

Summer time means more time to craft.

So let's get back on the horse with 

B3HD's 31 Days of DIY for Busy Gals.

(Hint, if you click on that link, you can get ALL of the projects)

31 minute project

You will need:
Clear glass vessel
a bunch of rocks
(Perhaps dug up from your yard)
a plant or two
soil

newspaper
a little doodad
(seaglass, seashell, miniature deer...you'll see)

You are going to create one
(or a bunch)
of these

In pictures:

For the readers:

1. Clean your clear (glass) vessel until it sparkles.

2. Gather your rocks.

3. Gather your plant material.

4. Pick out a doodad or two to decorate with.

5. Plop some soil into the bottom of your clear (glass) vessel.

6. Carefully place your plant in the midst of the soil pile.

7. Even more carefully, arrange rocks over the soil/roots.

8. and 9. Place your doodad (a mini deer) on your rocks.

Enjoy your mini bit of terra grande.

aka, terrarium.

Check out more 31 DIY projects for Busy Gals
by clicking the logo above.

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Linking up of course
Funky Junk Interiors

Crafting from the Sidelines - Round 2 (Upcycled)

Welcome to the official second contest of ***Crafting from the Sidelines!*** 

Jennifer over at Northeast of Eden contacted a few of us who didn't make it into the finalists for Crafting with the Stars over at SewDangCute Crafts.

We were all game to play along in an effort to "practice" for next time.  Okay, maybe that was just me.

In any event, Jennifer summed it up nicely on her blog:

"  This contest is really little more than crafting along with those rockstars over at Crafting with the Stars. Come along, join in on the fun! no commitment, not many rules, join in anytime (if you miss a competition, no big deal- try to beat our butts on the next one ) and meet some other crafty bloggers. No prizes other than a virutal pat-on the back and the awesome title of "WINNER". This weeks theme is Knock-off. Find something you really like in a magazine or on a blog and you do it better or cheaper or with more pazazz. You have until Monday, Oct 3. Then polls will open for 24 hours and you can put down your glue gun and rally some votes. Linky Tools subscription expired. List not available. On Oct. 4th, sewdangcute.com will have a place to post your entries on their site and they have a REAL prize. FANCY and loads of viewers. "

Here are the rules folks: 

1)  Post an awesome self-made craft on your blog.  Link back to this post so that others can find the linky list.

EDITED TO ADD:
I'm a moron and can't figure out how to get the actual Linky Code.
So.  I'm going on vacation.  If I have a moment this weekend, I'll try to figure it out.  Otherwise, sorry, but I'll figure it out on Tuesday when I'm back.

In the meantime, just leave a LINK TO YOUR BLOG POST WITH YOUR PROJECT in the comments of this post.  That will get you more page views and I'll manually go through and pull a photo from each of your blogs and do a whole new post with direct links back to your blogs (also good for traffic.  Sorry so clueless.

  You don't have to post a button, but Please copy and paste this line into your blog post:

I'm linking up to Round 2 of Crafting from The Sidelines

That way, other folks who want to link up and find where to leave a link to their blog.

2)  vote at sewdangcute.com 

3) vote here by "liking" your fave projects, leaving a comment about your project and encouraging your friends to do the same (this will be so much more fun if we all meet some new followers to brag over our haute crafteur). Take a moment to visit your fave's blogs and leave them some love if you have a moment.

3) Post the winner on your own blog so that sidelines crafter can get a little extra bloglove. 

So... On with the crafting and the posting!

Here's a link to my project 

A Rocky Collection

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Project 5: Pumpkin Eater...err...painter (DIY for Busy Gals)

31 minute project
(plus drying time if you do a pumpkin patch full of pumpkins)

You'll need:

Pumpkins (craft or real)

White latex or craft paint
Paint brush

You are going to "create" this designer white pumpkin:

In pictures:

For the readers:
1. Gather your pumpkins (mine: craft, multiple sizes, thrift store finds)
2. Grab your paint (mine: latex, freecycle garage purge find)
3.Use a big brush on big pumpkins and slap on some paint.
4. To hold on to (and flip over)  smaller pumpkins, I left an unpainted top ring

5. Impatiently, I painted most but not all of the bottom
(so I could sit them on newspaper to dry w/o getting stuck)

6. Set pumpkin down on newspaper to dry
(mine: about 10 minutes; depends on your paint/thickness)

7. Go crazy and paint a whole patch's worth.

8. Depending on the crafty quality of your pumpkins, some will look more real than others.

9. In the right light, that big one actually looks like the coveted blue pumpkin I want.

Locally, Fred Myer is selling pumpkins at .18 per pound.
If you want White pumpkins, they are .48 per pound.

Now you can be cheap and designer at the same time.

Bonus Pictures:

Check out what's to come with 31 DIY projects for Busy Gals by clicking the logo above.

Linking up to:

Show and Tell Friday @ My Romantic Home

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Project 3: A Rocky Collection (DIY for Busy Gals)

31 minute project

You'll need:

Rocks

Ultra Fine and Fine Point Black Sharpies
White Sharpie Paint Pen

You are going to create these:

In pictures:

For the readers:
1. Gather your rocks (I got mine from the yard).
2. Grab your sharpies (I like white paint because it layers nicely)
3.Start simple; a dot here, a dot there.
4. Admire your handiwork.

5.Branch out with your designs. Or,copy mine.

6. Be equal opportunity with them black and white pens.

7. Get crazy and duotone with it.

8. Intermarry those two pens (this IS the Merikle household after all)

9. Rock on with your bad, artistic self.

Who knew you were an artiste?
Now you do.

And you don't even have to pay someone Etsy
to doodle on rocks for you.

Check out what's to come with 31 DIY projects for Busy Gals by clicking the log above.

Linking this project to:

Just Something I Whipped Up  @ The Girl Creative

Get Your Craft on Tuesday @ Today's Creative Blog 
DIY Under $5 @ A Little Tipsy
Round 2 UpCycle CraftaLong @ Sew Dang Cute Crafts

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Week 40 Random Pinehurst

 Making homemade granola.

I love it so much.

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My fave season: Autumn

I think it is time

to start breaking out

the fall decor.

 

 

 

Of course, my fave DIY supplies

(natural, free, things like garden rocks)

get repurposed.

These were our place settings last year.

Love those rocks.

Will need to make more since I sold the others ones

at our annual neighborhood yard sales.

I'll also have to pick up some of these

 

Happy season change!

Linking up to B&B's Fall Decor and Crafts

Nest of Posies Fall Festival

Chic on a Shoestring Decorating Fall Festival

 

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Flora Nirvana - McClendon Hardware

 

I confess.

I would spend my whole

(really substantial)

paycheck on flowers.

If only I didn't go out of control in the store

only to not really gauge how much time it takes to plant them

and grow them

in my yard.

All said,

there are really about five places I shop for plants:

Fred's [Hobby] Wholesale Priced Nursery up the road

Home Depot/Lowes clearance racks

Fred Myer
Wal Mart clearance rack
McClendon Hardware

I know.
It is quite the assortment.

Today, let me introduce you to the place
where I pay full price
all the time
because the plants are that great.

McClendon's Hardware is a local (I think) semi-chain hardware store.
Think ACE without the nationwide network
but with the hometown feel
and the everything you could possibly ever want to buy inventory.

There is a McClendon's by my work and one on the way home by Wal Mart.
This was my recent trip to the one by Wal Mart.

They had these gorgeous fuschia baskets for $10 each

I promptly left it on my porch
not hung up
forgot to water it
and killed it in 3 days.

Sigh.

You already know the fate of my .99 each colorspots
(I love their color spot specials)

What I love about the Renton McClendon's is the variety.

I need to purchase moss, like I need another hole in my head.
I mean, people try to kill all sorts of this stuff off for days on end.
Although I do have some rocks that I want to grow specialty moss on.

Now that we finally stained the side gate,
I really want to do a really large pot
and stick some wisteria in it
and grow it over the side.

I'm sure he (who shall not be named)
would L.O.V.E that.  Something about
wood rot
and plants too close to foundations
etc.

All things considered.
This is one of my many Flora Nirvana stops

Where do you shop for living decor?

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Bird Sketch Wall - Goodwill Find

So in this post about the progress in my MIL suite,

I teased you about what was going on on the other side.

You know, where the grass is greener.

Well on that green grass, there are some critters that frolic about.

I picked up a really awesome bird coloring book

from Goodwill

for 99 cents.

Yes.  One dollar.

Which, of course, meant I had to shop for a few other goodies

because really, who charges a quarter to their credit/debit card?

One of my fave DIY supplies are vintage coloring books

from the kiddie section at the thrift store.

There are no windows in this room

(hence, no natural light).

With the lights on at night, I love how the yellowish tinge

just makes them feel all that more vintage.

As you can kind of see in the first photo,

I just "tacked" them up with tiny finishing nails.

No frame, no fancy, definitely no measuring to get them straight.

Just eyeballed it after laying it out on the floor.

I like to do things the lazy way.

Happy thrifting.  Oh for spring to roll around again.

Linking up to Funky Junk's Themed Vintage Link Party

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Natural Decor |Twigs

I picked up this basket at the thrift store for $2.50
And I also got these twigs for free off of Freecycle
(here's to people with cool trees in their backyard)

  

Combined them and came up with this get up, for this space that was looking a bit sparse

Nice bit of impact for a small out of the way space.

We'll see how Ashley feels about that.

I love Freecycle for my fave DIY supplies:
free, natural or at least inspired by nature

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MIL Guest Room In Progress

In our MIL Suite

There are actually two bedrooms.

Which is perfect.

Because my mother is pretty much guardian

to my oldest nephew.

So she can have a room.

And he can have a room.

I'd of course let that teenager

do his room as he wanted.

But for now,

this is the MIL Suite Guest bedroom

in progress.

I LOVE striped bedding.

There's a blank wall by the bed

I think I'll hit the

NY Public Library Digital Gallery

to do something like this

NYPL is free for personal use.

And it is extensive and awesome.

As it is

I will have to take photos

of the bird wall.

LOVELY

vintage

bird sketches

for coloring in

out of an

"I can Color" kit

that cost me all of .99

as the Thirfty Find of the week

for 26 prints.

Vintage coloring books/pages

are some of my fave DIY supplies.

Now you want to see the photo eh?

When we're back in the saddle

I'll get them up.

Linking up to Show Off Your Cottage Monday at The House of Roses.

Stop in and check out some new blogs you don't usually frequent.

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Cheap Gardener

I admit it
I'm never going to pay a landscape architect
(sorry Cornellians)
to plany my yard for me

To design my firepit/swimmable water feature...
that is a different story.

But for my garden,
I am really fortunate that I have a very green thumb.

I stick it in the ground
or I forget to stick it in the ground for a few weeks

and the next year

I get these



I am cheap.

Aside from the clearance,

no really, just take them because they are dead

pots of plants I bring home regularly from

Home Depot and Lowes,

I also have a super secret supplier up the road

who sales GORGEOUS

peris mostly (you know, the ones that come back)

for dirt cheap wholesale prices

To the public.

Large plot of land,

but I like how uncrowded it is.

Not that the masses read my blog

but also, it starts getting close to home

if I post that address

But if you really want to know

and you live in East King County

(you know, not really Seattle)

let me know.

I would even say with $50 in your pocket,

it is worth the gas to come from the south and north ends

and even the west side. 

You will leave with a carload of

GORGEOUS

HUGE

plants. 

If they don't bloom the color they are labeled

or don't perform spectacularly for you

You get a credit to come get some more

Fred (oops) might even have a way of getting you your funds back.

Yes, because, you see,

to pay, you write on a slip of paper what you took

and you either tightly fold up some bills

and slip them into the cash box

OR, I've seen folks leave IOUs

OR, I've seen folks slip in a $50

(there is no change available,

unless there is the rare other shopper on site)

and shop on "credit" for a couple of visits.

It is awesome.

It is what I love about small town living.

Yes, this "city" girl said it.

Anyhow,

Another great source for me

is Grocery Outlet.

Yes. Grocery Outlet.

This time of year,

they often have out tomato plants

(I got two on my way to Costco for their plants which I skipped this year)

I am growing one plant upside down (it is HUGE)

and the other traditional

We shall see which I like better.

But, of course, you know what else I got

at Grocery Outlet

Thought I would not like pink ones.

I thought so wrong.

Especially next to the

tall, yellow spikes of Columbine

and the heavenly lavendar and purple allium

Man.

I love this time of year.