Create Your Own Live Evergreen Centerpiece

 

Here's a fun activity that you can do with your family, with a group of friends as a fundraiser, or as a  hostess gift.

 

You will need containers such as baskets, or metal buckets, the plastic liners that fit inside, oasis (flower foam that can be moistened, tape, wire, candles, clippers, garden cloves, floral wires, floral picks, ribbons,  and pine cones.

 Fit the plastic liners into the various containers.

Cut the oasis with a kitchen knife and pop it into the liners.

Tape down the liners so that they will not move while creating the centerpieces.  Floral tape, wire, string, or other tapes may be used for this step. Add plenty of water to soak the foam before starting.

 Try to save your trimming of shrubs until December, so that you can take advantage of all the different plants in your garden.  Here are sprigs of Yew, American Holly with its berries, Japanese Holly, and some sort of variegated Euonymus.

 Here we see English Boxwood, White Pine, Spruce, and Leyland Cypress.

 These are two shiny shrubs with interesting leaves, the Acuba and a sort of  large leaf Euonymus.

Snip the evergreens to about 9" long.

 

Start with the four corners and work inwards,

 to fill the foam with branches.

 Add contrasting evergreens and a candle.

 Make a pine cone pick.

 Make the design a bit asymmetric.

 To create the bow, pinch a loop of ribbon.

 Add 6 loops in all and then wind a wire around the middle, attach the pick.

 Tuck the tape in better than I did when you are finished.