Almost anything works as a container for cut flowers. It may be made of metal, glass, plastic, or other materials. Whatever you choose, be sure it will hold either water or wet floral foam. Having access to moisture prolongs the vase life of blooms.

In addition to standard bud vases and flower vases, consider the unconventional. Glass juice pitchers are wonderful. Ceramic pitchers are often used for flowers. Mason jars are great for impromptu summer bouquets. These are great for patio tables and informal occasions.

Soup cans work beautifully if the labels are left in place. Even an old sneaker or shoe can be used provided it is relatively waterproof.

All of these unusual containers are suitable for informal floral designs. For more formal ones, you will probably want to use the standard kinds.

You can buy many kinds of floral containers. Some of the newer ones are particularly striking. Gadjit is a soft, unbreakable plastic vase available in various sizes and styles. Suction cups attach these to windows.

The old bud vase may be a thing of the past. These have been updated to suit modern sensibilities. La Fleurette/Ultra Flora has a collection of retro-style glass vases in bright striking colors.

The Quattro Test Tube vase turns the idea of the bud vase on end. These are real test tubes doubling as flower vases. They come in a set, and are made to hang on windows, walls, headboards, or wherever you need a little color.

You get great flexibility with the Flex vase. This award-winning design contains several single-stem vials that can be arranged in different ways to form circles, hearts, and the like. It can be attached to mirrors and windows. This should be available at retail stores, but you can see them at the wholesale website of Andy Designs (www.andydesigns.com).

Though I haven’t tried it, I saw a folding vase advertised in a catalog. The Vaas is advertised as a water-tight folding vase. Available in an assortment of lovely colors, it is made of lightweight plastic with a plastic base. This can be seen at ww.englishcountrygarden.ca.

The Foldable Table vase is also available. Made of clear, flexible plastic, it is almost a foot tall. This vase is perfect for modern, minimalist décor.

Now there is a new way to display those flower vases. Bago Luma Collections designed a wrought-iron caddy that holds three vases. It is small enough to fit on a night table, desk, or windowsill.

Metal French floral buckets are the rage. These are usually hot dipped galvanized metal. They’re suitable for both fresh and dried flowers. In some cases, floral preservatives may dull the finish on these buckets. So, be sure that the water doesn’t drip over the rim onto the outside where it could mar the metal.

All of these new floral containers should be available at retail stores.

A tisket-a-tasket, what would we do without baskets? Baskets of all sorts are just made for flowers. Usually, these come with waterproof plastic liners. So the arrangements can be used anywhere you like without fear of water marks on the furniture. Baskets may be plain or fancy. Some wicker and wicker ones are the natural color, while others are painted in bright colors and patterns. For holidays and special occasions, you may want to buy ones decorated with special motifs. Or if you like, stencil a plain one.

Makeovers are the in thing now. These television shows are very popular. If you have lots of vases, but are simply tired of them, give them a makeover. An issue of Southern Living magazine had instructions several years ago on decoupaging these. They used colored tissue paper, decoupage paste or glue, and got stunning results. The article showed a newly covered red vase with red roses. The result was just gorgeous.