Sure, you could simply pop open a box of wine, set it on your buffet table and call it a party (we're sure your guests would be much obliged to sip it). But it's way more fun to dial it up a notch by ditching the box and getting crafty with a new vessel for the bag inside. Enter the flowerpot wine keg — can't you just picture Mom or your pals lighting up with glee when you set this out to celebrate? Yes it's a little hokey, and yes that's part of what makes it fun. Here's how to make it.

What you need:

• One 5-liter box of red, white or rose wine with a spout
• Plastic terra cotta-style flower pot (12 inches wide by at least 9 inches tall)
• 11-by-2-inch round Styrofoam disk
• 18-by-18-inch piece brown craft paper
• 6 inches twine
• Enough artificial flowers and green foliage to cover Styrofoam disc
• Small floral gift card with a wire post or garden marker
• 5 feet ribbon (1 1/2 inches wide)

Tools:

• Ruler
• Marker
• Craft knife
• Nail file
• Tape
• Hot glue gun and glue sticks
• Wire cutters

What to do:

Remove the wine from the box. Use a ruler to measure the width of the wine spout.

Draw a circle on the flower pot that is the same diameter as the spout 1 inch up from the bottom of the pot.

Using a fine point craft knife, poke 20 holes on the circle to score the edge of the hole. Score the center of the circle, making several passes of the knife and getting deeper each time. Use the knife to shave the hole to the exact size you want. Test to make sure the spout goes through. Clean up the rough edge of the hole with a nail file. Pipe a thin circle of hot glue around the hole. Press a circle of twine into the glue around the hole to make it neat.

Wrap the Styrofoam disk with the brown craft paper, using tape to hold the wrapping together in the back.

Snip the stems of the artificial flowers and greens to various lengths between 5 and 8 inches using wire cutters. Poke the stems into the paper-covered foam disk, making sure not to poke all the way through the bottom; arrange the flowers and greens to hide most of the foam.

To prep for your party, write the type of wine you will be serving on the gift card. Stick the card into the foam.

Put the bag of wine into the pot, and pull the wine spout loosely through hole.

Fit the disk of flowers in the pot on top of the wine bag, and press until it's snug.

Tie the ribbon around the upper part of the pot. Cheers!