Friday Favorites – Preserved Boxwood

Something I was recently turned onto is preserved boxwood topiaries. These are not the plastic, fake topiaries that don’t look real, oh no, these are hand made from real boxwood plants and are specially treated to retain their deep green color. They even have a faint hay-like smell that makes them seem more natural than just a plastic topiary. I have only had two fake (plastic) topiaries in my life and I had recently thrown them out, vowing to go only “real” from now on.

However, as I’m sure most of you have experienced, sometimes real doesn’t work. The room is too dark, or you forget to water, or they just keep dying on you. My main problem though, is my cat. Every time I would buy a real topiary, my cat would chew it. Not only was this making for an unsightly plant, but she would throw up little green leaves all the time!

Cut to preserved boxwood. I’m telling you, this was a game changer for me. They are beautiful. They look more real than plastic, having more the look of a “dried” plant vs. a plastic plant and that is something I prefer. They are not cheap though. I had seen them many times on One Kings Lane at prices less than you would find in the high end boutiques, but still more than I wanted to pay. I then found two great websites that sell them a little more reasonably, www.bella-marie.com and www.millsfloral.com. I have also now seen them at Home Goods for considerably less as well.

When you look, remember you want preserved boxwood, not artificial boxwood. You will know it’s the preserved by the hay-like smell (not strong, by the way, and does fade fairly quickly). I just love that I can have these on my coffee table or dining table and my cat is not eating my money and/or spitting out green leaves on my floor and area rugs. They add such great color to a room… they just make me happy!

 

 

Happy Friday!

Sheila
xo