A Quick $0 Trick to Make Supermarket Flowers Look Way Fancier

Few indulgences bring me a greater thrill than having fresh flowers in my home for no good reason (after xiaolongbao, gooey chocolate cake, and canceling plans on a rainy day to read with the window open, of course).

So when "rose reflexing" began making the internet hack rounds last year, I pulled up a chair. Despite evoking images of a flower doing deadlifts at the gym, the moniker actually refers to a method for turning the petals of a rose inside out, a trick that transforms those tight-as-a-fist grocery store blooms into something resembling a wilder variety.

The technique is simple: Use your fingers to gently flip out each petal, starting from the outermost layer and working your way toward the center, leaving a small bulb in the middle. According to Architectural Digest, reflexing isn't just for roses—tulips benefit from a little petal-flipping, too. I've tried it with both fresh and days-old flowers, and am pleased to report it worked seamlessly with both sets and gave the latter new life.

Here's the tutorial I used to get up to speed (special shout-out to Roger and Daisy):

Got any bouquet-sprucing tips up your sleeves? Let us know in the comments!