Silk flowers make attractive and affordable wedding centerpieces, and your guests won't know that the calla lilies, roses, tulips or sunflowers on their tables aren't the real thing. Start with quality silk flowers and combine them with your own personal touches, such as ribbons, mirrors, candles, lights or greenery. With a little creativity, you can make unique arrangements that capture the spirit and style of your wedding.
Submerged Flowers
Underwater flowers lend a sense of romance and mystery to a wedding table. You can use any kind of silk flowers you'd like for these arrangements, though you'll want to test them by dipping them in water for a few minutes first to make sure their colors won't bleed. Wrap floral wire around the base of the stems, threading the wire through a washer to weight down the flowers. Place them in a clear glass vase or fishbowl, line the bottom with decorative pebbles and fill the container with water.
Individual Centerpieces
Guests love to have their own individualized centerpieces, and these play the dual role of take-home party favors. For each one, use a small glass vase and several flowers with short stems. Mini roses work particularly well. Wrap a ribbon around the vase, threading it through a note card with the name of the couple getting married and the wedding date and finishing it off with a bow. Place one vase at each table setting.
Floating Water Lilies and Candles
Floating centerpieces make a bold statement at weddings, and they're easy and fun to make. Choose wide glass bowls and fill them with water. Place floating silk water lilies and candles on top of the water, and let them drift around. These centerpieces will entrance your guests and cast a warm glow. You can choose either matching or contrasting candles, and for an unusual touch, place a mirror at the bottom of the glass container to reflect the floating flowers and flames.
Gerbera Daisies
For more informal wedding celebrations, silk gerbera daisies lend an especially friendly and inviting tone. Their bright oranges, pinks and yellows express hope and joy and will make your guests smile. Be creative with containers, choosing square glass vases, polka dot pottery vases, wooden boxes, baskets or bowls. Fill them with an abundance of daisies, arranging them simply and artistically. You can use just daisies, if you'd like, or you can mix in ferns and other greenery.
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Writer Bio
Vivian Wagner's work has appeared in publications such as "American Profile," "Bluegrass Unlimited," "Relish" and various websites. Wagner's book, "Fiddle: One Woman, Four Strings and 8,000 Miles of Music," was published by Citadel/Kensington in 2010. She has a Ph.D. in English from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.