When life hands you boxwoods...

Make an arrangement!

Who else has been caught in the situation where family or friends are stopping over, and you need some flowery pizzazz, fast? Typically, I find myself running to the grocery store, fingers crossed they have something I can work with. If that fails, I'm off to the florist; they usually have what I'm looking for but it's always more than I planned to spend. (Sidenote: anyone that claims "money can't buy happiness" has never been in this predicament, because money can most certainly buy hydrangea, and that's basically the same thing.) Either way, both options are expensive, time-consuming, and not optimal for entertaining on the fly. On that note, let me introduce you to my overgrown shrub: 

I get it... he doesn't look like much, and I'm pretty sure this boxwood is a "leftover landscaping" transplant. If he had a name, it'd most likely be "Earl" – he's nothin' fancy and doesn't ask for much, spending his days quietly hanging at the edge of our property, enjoying full or no sun (depending on the day), and maybe a little rain. That said, he's perpetually green, incredibly resistant, and grows like a gorgeous little weed. This past year, though – during wedding/graduation season, when every florist was down to pink carnations – I realized that this overgrown boxwood is FULL of possibilities! Desperation is a powerful motivator, peeps.

I went out with my garden shears to see if there was anything I could use for a vintage piece I'd planned to fill with flowers. Luckily, I keep floral foam on hand, so I grabbed that and dry-fit it into my vase.