new season

I was buying flowers to give to a friend when I saw a bucket of tightly curled, pale orange parrot tulips and I couldn't resist a couple of bunches for myself as a promise of things to come.

It's not quite the season yet (although I've seen a few species tulips popping up here and there) and I know these are forced for the market, but they served as a welcome reminder that it's long now till tulip-time. I've started surveying the garden on a daily basis to see what's happening with our own tulips, and already there's enough going on to keep me in a general state of low-key excitement. 

Although these weren't labelled, I'm pretty sure they are 'Orange Favourite'. They start off relatively peachy and palely blushing but they turn into raving tangerine beauties as they open up. They are lighting up my windowsill and making a wonderful still-life with the best brand of sliced bread, the electronic egg-timer Simon & Phoebe gave me, and a subtle colour of sock yarn.

And in the spirit of looking forward and thinking about what comes next, last night I read The Creative Habit by Twyla Tharp from cover to cover. This is a book that Jan recommended to me a long, long time ago, but somehow or other I never found the right moment to read it. Like the tulip bulbs, it lay dormant under a few layers of books until I unearthed it the other day during my big office tidy-up. It's very focussed, well written, thought-provoking and, for me, reassuring and revealing.

New books, new thoughts, new flowers. Ah, the joys of a new season.

 

Comments

[strikkelise]

Again I am amazed at your ability to find and combine coloured objects. And I have to ask - what on eart is that time glass looking thing to the right of the flowers?

[Kay]

At first glance, I read "carrot tulips".

Congrats on getting to the other side of March 14.

xo Kay

[Ali]

The Warburtons thick sliced toastie loaf is a welcome visitor at our house - because despite the deliciousness of homemade bread, you need Supermarket white for the perfect bacon butty.

Thank you for sharing the tulips - wonderful.

[ambermoggie]

fabulous signs of spring:) what is the sock yarn Jane?

[stinkerbell]

I love signs of spring that joyous... I also love that I always find them and some sort of uplifting inspiration of sorts here :)

[Rebecca]

I chuckled at this, well done for letting all of us secret Warburtons fans come out of the closet. I am reminded of the time a friend had to take our children to the supermarket and when she asked them what bread Mummy needed they pointed at the Warburtons, my friend thought they were trying to take advantage of her as she could not imagine my organic wholegrained self eating Warburtons. She was amazed when I owned up to always keeping a loaf in the house.

[Marisa]

Oh aren't the tulips just so beautiful the colours are gorgeous the green and orange a perfect combination, like Strikkelise said you manage to get it right every time!!! But today of all day's everything should of been GREEN, HAPPY ST. PATRICKS DAY to you and your family, bit late but the thought is there.

[Marisa]

Oh aren't the tulips just so beautiful the colours are gorgeous the green and orange a perfect combination, like Strikkelise said you manage to get it right every time!!! But today of all day's everything should of been GREEN, HAPPY ST. PATRICKS DAY to you and your family, bit late but the thought is there.

[catherine]

Gorgeous Jane! I wish I could get "special" tulips more readily here ... (it's just too warm to grow them succesfully myself - after years of trying and disappointment I've come to accept this and buy them cut). And, orange and green - one of my favourite combinations.

[Kat]

The Creative Habit has helped/inspired me a lot. I hope you enjoy it! And Orange seems to be the color of the week.

[Kerry]

It's not quite autumn weather here in the south of Australia, as we remain in the midst of the hottest driest summer I can recall. I long for cool days and cardigans. Of course in 6 months I will, like you Jane, look forward to spring and its warmer weather. I have work to do and long for a date to tie me down to my desk. I envy your post March 14th euphoria. Jane, thanks for the view into your world, you remind me that there is always something to look forward to. Good luck with the latest book!

[Mrs. Lear]

I really love Twyla's book. I go back to it again and again.

[geek+nerd]

I *love* the Creative Habit! Aside from crafting my "real" job is a dance teacher/choreographer, so Twyla really speaks my language. A good read, indeed!

[Jolynn]

I love coming to your blog because I know I will always be able to see something bright and colorful! It's so nice. It's still all blah and grey here.

[Lorie]

I walked by some huge, red tulips in bloom here yesterday and thought of your tulip extravaganza you have here each year. Just lovely, and the orange and green are great.

[Janet Brown]

The colours are fantastic - I could look at that orange all day. I also wondered which sock yarn you had bought as the colour is so vibrant. Roll on Spring!
Janet

[Sharon]

I don't normally like orange, but those tulips . . . Wonderful!

[wren]

I caught my breath when I saw your tulips. I have had my nose pressed against the window waiting to see the tiniest hint that my tulips bulbs are thriving in the ground. I'm ashamed to say that the bulbs which were planted were less good than the bulbs which arrived. Having learnt that your bunch was purchased I can breath easier, enjoy their splendour and maintain the hope that all is not lost.

[Sharon]

I'm glad you've seen sense on the Warbies front. There's a lot of philistines out there.

[April Taylor]

We are a long way off from tulips here in Vermont. There are a lot of other signs that spring will eventually come, sap running into buckets on the sugarmaple trees; the new yellow branches of the willows; a few other signs. But tulips, well those I have to resort to buying. But it is an extravagance that becomes necessary to get through this last 6 weeks until things start blooming on their own.

I envy you your early spring, but I thank you for your beautiful photographs, which nourish my eyes and soul until my own flowers take bloom.

[IMR]

Hello, just one question, ever since I saw your diamonds cut out for a quilt I have been waiting to see the result? Anything going on there? You make lovely quilts.

[Sheila]

Beautiful orange temptations - darned near as delicious as the cake in your previous post. Oh, I love orange . . . and red too.

[Cassi]

Orange parrot tulips = happiness! I'll have to bring my copy of The Creative Habit out of hibernation too - thanks for the reminder :)

[gillie]

I almost bought the Creative Habit yesterday when adding to my Amazon wish list... maybe I'll go back and make a little purchase!

I am glad I am not the only one wandering round the garden inspecting shards of green. I have orange favorit in our courtyard (well I will when they come up!). We are so far north and high that our daffs have only just started to flower so I will have a long wait even for the species. I shall just look longingly at the bunch at the top of this page instead :)

[Helen Chisholm]

I knew it tulip season approaches. Yipeeee....eee!

[Kristel]

Those tulips are lovely! I posted about tulips some time ago: http://vlijtig.blogspot.com/2008/01/tulips.html

Just discovered your blog. It is great.

[Nicky]

You always make my day with your happy flower pictures! How lovely and bright are these tulips in their graan vase!In our garden the first tulips are blooming.So are the tiny narcissus.Have a happy Easter!

[IZZYR]

I DONT KNOW IF YOU SAW MY COMMENT , HOWEVER I WAS WONDERING IF YOU HAD THE DIAMONDS QUILT TO SHOW US, YOUR QUILTS ARE SO LOVELY AND WAS WONDERING IF ANYTHING CAME OF IT.

[Diana]

Excellent colors! I love the tulips and the vase you have them in is perfect! even your yarn goes good with them. what a delight to see splashes of color when all I see it white outside. I haven't heard of that book before, I'm going to check it out.

[Di]

Fantastic tulips!! I love them!! I have red ones at the moment but they are not all curly.......

Must read the Twyla Tharp book as I have heard so many good things about it!

Happy Easter!!

[teresa c.]

Thank you again for your reading suggestion. I've found it very useful before and I'm sure I'll learn something again.