Poinsettias are standard Christmas and winter-holiday blooms and are given and received with much joy. Their crimson, star-shaped flowers bring much-needed color to the shorter days of winter.

While displaying a potted poinsettia brings colorful cheer to any room, we offer two ways to expand on the decorative powers of the flower.

To get more use out of the blooms, first sear the stems. After you snip the poinsettia from its stem, hold the cut end over a candle flame to seal. Then you can use the blooms to…

• Replace or join other bows on wrapped Christmas presents. You can tape the flower stem directly to the wrapping paper using clear tape. Or, if you have also wrapped the package with a ribbon, you can wrap floral wire around the cut flower stems, then twist the wire securely around the ribbon.
• Before you hang a gorgeous evergreen wreath on your door (or wherever you hang it), you can use floral wire to attach a half-dozen or so (depending on size of the wreath) blooms among the greenery. The bright-red flowers will make the Christmas colors pop!