When I brought home a stunning deep pink bunch of lilies from the store, I was disappointed when I unwrapped them to find five of the buds had already snapped from the stems.

I popped them into mismatched wine glasses with a tiny amount of fresh water in the bottom and clustered three in the kitchen and two more on a tray in the living room.

As they opened, they looked gorgeous and, in a way, even lovelier than the big bunch sitting in a traditional vase.

Creating pockets of beauty around the house makes me so very happy. I love them even more when they haven’t cost much or when the magic comes from groups of found objects that become truly interesting together.