Up to this point, I have focused my flower arrangements around live florals, but today I am creating a faux centerpiece.
Faux florals have come a long way over the years, and these days you can find beautiful artificial flowers that look just like real ones.
My very sweet mother-in-law recently asked me to make her a flower arrangement for the July 4th holiday using red, white, and blue flowers. She wants to display the arrangement on the dining room table at her Lake house. I was more than happy to do this for her and wanted to make it extra special. I went to several stores, compared florals, searched high and low for the perfect vase and created an arrangement I am proud to present as a gift to my dear MIL.
Finding the perfect vase was a challenge. I wanted a white vase, in a particular size and having it footed was a bonus and textured..the ultimate find! White vases in July are hard to come by in retail stores, as Fall items are beginning to arrive. If I wanted to make a Fall arrangement in a pumpkin vase, this would have been a whole lot easier! But I’m up for a challenge and didn’t want to settle for anything less than what I had in my mind as the perfect vessel. My search paid off as I came across the ultimate find on clearance at 75% off!! The last white vase in the store was sitting there waiting for a new home and I snatched it up! You can find similar vases online HERE, HERE, and HERE.
When making a faux arrangement you can use craft foam or styrofoam HERE as opposed to instant foam. I cut an inch off the bottom of the foam to make it flush with the container. When I create arrangements using real flowers, I leave the foam higher than the vase, but making the foam flush with the vase worked better for this arrangement.
I went to several stores to find the nicest florals. The ones I used in my arrangement are from Michaels, it had the prettiest stems with perfect shades. I didn’t want to use traditional July 4 red, white and blue colors, but wanted deeper hues so the arrangement could be used all year round.
If you are new to creating floral arrangements, I suggest buying clusters of flowers already put together. All the guess work has been done for you and pretty florals are combined with coordinating flowers for a lovely prepared bouquet.
I found clusters of florals with deep blue hydrangeas and large white dahlias. Using wire cutters HERE, I removed each stem and placed them into the top of the foam at varying heights.
Beautiful bright, deep red roses I purchased individually were the perfect addition to the centerpiece.
Using 5 of these roses and placing them at varying heights around the container balanced the arrangement perfectly.
I placed the large white dahlias throughout the centerpiece on all sides.
I added small sprigs of blue filler to give the piece dimension and height.
Using a variety of fillers with deep hues adds to the interest of the centerpiece.
Buying clusters of faux florals and cutting off individual pieces, which is what I did with the white filler too, creates a full and beautiful arrangement.
I placed small flowers around the bottom of the vase to hide the white foam along with green leaves draping over the vase.
If you notice your foam moving a bit in the vase, use a glue gun HERE to secure the foam piece to the bottom of the vessel.
The arrangement turned out beautifully and my mother-in-law was very happy with her gift 🙂
The arrangement doesn’t have to look symmetrical on all sides but should be full from all angles especially if used on a table where it can be seen from all sides.
If the centerpiece will be placed against a wall, you can focus the details on the front of the piece to create fullness.
I hope my mother-in-law will enjoy this centerpiece for years to come in her Lake home.
If you are looking for high quality florals, check out Michaels or these HERE, HERE, HERE and these gorgeous peonies HERE. Hope you all are having a fabulous summer and enjoying the weather to the fullest!
Denise
XO
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