In my kitchen silverware drawer, I keep a pair of clippers handy for routine plant maintenance and spontaneous trips to the yard to forage. Before I begin, I’ll tell you that I don’t live on acres of land or have particularly great gardening skills, and you don’t need them for this! A fresh and modern way to bring some nature indoors and to add visual impact is a dramatic arrangement of greenery in a simple vase. You simply head outside, find something that looks good and snip away!

A few tips and reminders:

Use good clippers! You can get them affordably at a home improvement or hardware store.

Forage wisely. Be aware of where and what you’re clipping. Don’t disturb protected wildlife areas, or your neighbor’s yard!

Bring your vase with you. Sometimes translating scale can be a challenge. If you have the vase you can clip and fill at the same time (and it makes less mess inside).

Dead or alive! Living greenery is really wonderful, but dried branches or flowers can be really amazing too, and even last longer since you don’t need them to stay in water. Look for interesting shapes and differing lengths.

For a more modern, minimal look, go with a few longer branches, and vary the lengths.