How to Make a Floral Pillow Centerpiece

This is my go-to arrangement when I need cheap and chic flowers. Keep this recipe in your party pantry for style-in-a-second floral décor.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Scissors or gardening shears
• 3 dozen flowers (carnations, roses, peonies, orchids)
• Greening pins
• Wired ribbon
• Water, large sink or bucket to soak the Oasis and flowers in
• 2 blocks Oasis florist foam
• Plastic liner

1. Collect the supplies. The list below will make one square pillow centerpiece:

2. Completely submerge the Oasis into water and soak for as long as possible; overnight is good.

3. Cut a couple of inches off the stems of the flowers and let them soak in a bucket of warm water to open up overnight. If they did not fully open help them along by gently opening the petals in the way they would naturally grow.

4. Place the Oasis on the plastic liner.

5. Cut the stems of each flower about two or three inches from the head leaving enough stem to secure into the Oasis. Begin "planting" them in the foam until it is completely covered. Use the greening pins to secure any blooms that refuse to stay in place.

6. Accent the pillows with a contrasting flower. For example if you are making carnation pillows, stud them with a couple of cymbidium orchids at one corner.

7. Keep in a cool place until set for the party. You will have to move each pillow in two pieces unless you taped the two pieces of Oasis together with floral tape prior to making the pillows. Either way is effective.

Tips & Warnings

• Make the pillows the morning of the event if possible. If not then store with wet paper towels over them to keep wet and cool and spray them with water frequently to keep fresh.
• Tie ribbon around the pillows to make them look like gift packages. Wire ribbon works best - you can mold it to lie where you'd like

[sherbert]

on 4/5/2009 Very cool article on making a floral pillow centerpiece! 5*