For your next dinner party, casual gathering, or holiday event consider a showstopping floral display at minimal cost. We’ve created seven different dried flower tablescapes to inspire and save with beauty and budget in mind. Read on for easy to follow tips, tricks, and techniques to make a striking scene for you and your guests to enjoy all party long.
- FLOWER FROGS
Kenzan or flower frogs are handy, easy to use and lend to creating beautiful, airy designs. Traditionally used in Ikebana, a Japanese style of floral design, flower frogs only require a few strategically placed flowers to create a natural, organic arrangement, paying homage to a plant growing from the ground. We recommend starting out with one large flower frog, or multiple smaller frogs like this Niwaki set. Choose 1-5 different types of flowers and consider the compatibility of the stems with the frog. Flower frogs are typically used for fresh flowers making use with dried flowers a little tricky with thin or hard stems, but we’ve found an easy hack to make most any stem work! A small bundle of thin to medium sized stems can be made by grouping the stems and pinching them at the point where you want them to attach to the frog and place a small rubber band, cutting the stems just below. The grouping now has the surface area for the spikes to grab onto and hold the stems upright. We recommend doing this with one type of flower per grouping. This makes it easier to design by maintaining the capability of moving the different elements without having to redo each bundle. The groupings are also often visually more coherent and organic. For this table display, we chose 3 elements, rice grass, nigella and tapestry millet. We used 4 small flower frogs offset from one another and placed down the center of the table. The rice grass, tapestry millet and nigella all have very thin stems that have to be banded together. Medium sized stems such as peonies are thicker and often stand alone, however if the spikes of the frog still aren't catching, try banding the stem at the bottom. The rubber band will add width and grip. We arranged the groupings and stems naturally by placing them in a clump, spraying outward as if growing from a single spot out of the table. The ends of all the stems do not have to be in the center of the frog, nor do they have to be squeezed together. Just keep in mind the image of a plant sprouting from the ground and that with this design style, less is almost always more! This makes for a quick and easy display that's easy on the wallet. Once you have the frogs, just grab a bunch or two of flowers for every dinner party and easy peasy! And with dried flowers, you can keep up your display all season long.
Pictured recipe
1 x 4 pack flower frogs $26
1 x 1.5oz rice grass $11
1 x 2oz nigella $14
1 x 1.25oz tapestry millet $10
=$61
- HANGING CENTERPIECE
Instead of considering the space on your table, consider the space above it. Not only does a hanging centerpiece offer a unique solution that's sure to awe-inspire your guests, but it frees up space on your table, ideal for family style meals or tight spaces. First, choose a sturdy branch such as manzanita or one from the yard. We chose hakea stems. They are very sturdy, an easy to manage size and have the added visual appeal of seed pods. Choose 1-3 floral elements that are appealing from the top and sides. Lemon mint has multiple flower heads going up the stems, and caspia has loads of tiny flowers branching out in every direction that come to a natural point, both ideal for this style of design. Begin by attaching rope to either end of your stick with slack in the center, making a triangle shape. Tie an additional piece of rope to the top point of the triangle and the spot you wish to secure your centerpiece to. It’s wise to make a slip knot here to adjust later if additional or less space is needed. Now you are ready to hang your flowers. Use twine or fishing line to hang your stems, tying the twine in a tight knot around the end one or two stems at a time. Trim the stems as needed. Be sure to hang your elements at various heights with appropriate spacing. None of the elements should touch or crowd each other. Negative space is your friend, don’t forget to keep it in mind as you are designing. Use the same strategy of tying a slip knot where your twine attaches to your branch for easy rearranging and adjusting. Once you are pleased with how the elements are spaced, double knot the twine attached to the branch and the knot you used to secure the centerpiece above your table, and voilà! Just like that you’ve created a magical canopy for a night to remember.
Pictured recipe
1 x 3 stem hakea $12
1 x 4oz lemon mint $34
1 x 4oz plum caspia $24
1 jute twine $9
=$79
3 . BUD VASES
One of the easiest and quickest options on this list, bud vases make for a beautiful centerpiece display that's low effort and low cost. If you are someone usually operating on a time crunch, this one’s for you. You may already have a few bud vases at home you could reuse, or you could grab a few from a thrift store or check out our offerings for stress free, time saving delivery. For a 4-6 person table, we recommend 3-4 bud vases. For an 8-10 person table, we would probably bump it up to 5-6 bud vases. When choosing flowers, 2-3 materials will suffice. We kept it minimal with mostly only 2 colors. Clean your materials removing leaves and debris from the areas of the stem that will be in the vases, especially if they are clear vases. This will give you a cleaner look. Strategically place your stems at varying heights, only a few to each vase. We kept some stems dramatically longer to give more impact, but feel free to experiment with what length you like best. Just remember, you can always cut shorter but not the other way around! For a finishing touch if you are feeling ambitious, grab a few citrus fruits from the store, lemon, orange or grapefruit will all work. Cut in half or leave whole to add a little extra pizazz. The best part about this method is that once you have your vases you will be able to refill them for the next dinner party and lower the cost even more.
Pictured recipe
4 x allium bud vases (in-store) ($7 each) $28
1 x 1.5oz cream strawflower $13
1 x 1oz billy balls $12
=$53
Fresh orange/lemon halves if desired
- MOSS
Looking for something different to “wow” your guests but don’t have the time or energy? Having a family style dinner and don’t have a lot of space on your table for decor? A mossy landscape with pods, fruits or nuts can make for an interesting and unique display with minimal effort and ample free space. We chose a mixture of sheet moss and reindeer moss to make the base. Place your dishes and candles ahead of time and fill in the moss around them. This will look as though your food presentation is growing right out of the table. Use crumpled up paper to make mounds and shapes if desired and place the most overtop. Avoid holes or too much negative space in the moss to make it look as though it is one solid mass growing over the table. Avoid mixing the different mosses too much and instead group them in small clumps for a natural look. Once you have a nice shape and ample coverage, add 1-3 extra elements to add a little extra interest. We chose dried cyprus pods to scatter about to add little moments of complimentary focal points. And done! Once the evening has come to an end, store your moss in tupperware or a plastic bag, and throw your pods in a jar for next time!
Pictured recipe
2 x gold artichoke $12
1 x sheet moss $7.95
1 x reindeer moss $8.95
=$28.95
- FLOWER GROUPING
If you are thinking of keeping things simple and classic with a single large centerpiece, this option provides a beautiful, striking way of creating a focal piece while keeping the cost down.
Begin with a vase around 4”- 6” in width and similar in height. Keep in mind every inch wider the vase is the more flowers you will need. Choose 1-3 different bulky materials, like broom bloom, greek oregano, lepidium, spiral eucalyptus, star flowers, caspia, rice grass, setaria or baby’s breath. We chose berry broom bloom and added pink strawflower as a focal point. Begin by putting one stem of your bulky material in your non-dominant hand, continue by adding stems at an angle, spiraling around the original stem. After you are satisfied with your shape, add in your focal/complimenting stems by continuing to place them at an angle. Tie stems off with some jute, raffia or tape. Cut your stems a little at a time to decide the length which is needed for your vase. If the bouquet is too wobbly you may need to cut your bouquet down shorter or use a narrower vase. We added a finishing touch of some ripped pomegranate and limes. Pro tip: score the pomegranates and rip it in half instead of slicing.
Pictured recipe
1x 3oz berry broom bloom $16
1 x 1.5oz pink strawflower $13
1 x sidney container $15
=$44
1-5 x fresh pomegranate or dried pomegranate
3-6 x fresh limes
- PLANTS AND FLOWERS
Similar to the bud vase option but with an extra component, the combination of plants and dried flowers creates an unexpected moment of beauty and freshness. This option only requires a minimal amount of flowers and a few vases, both of which you can reuse, however you may already have in the house! Small potted plants may also be a fixture of your home already, and if not, they could certainly be after creating this table display with a little tender care. Once you’ve collected any found materials, gather the remainder. We used 3 billy bottles, ammobium and lavender for our bud vases. We chose very natural and garden-y flowers of only 2 kinds. Keep your vases simple, we love the billie bottles for the utility/apothecary look to them. Now, let’s see what plants you have to work with! Various shapes and sizes will work fine. If you don’t have any small sized plants, grab a few ~3” plants with pots from your local plant shop. Take care of them until your next gathering when you can reuse them or find a nice home for them around the house. They also work nicely as a party favor! Just get the same amount of plants as guests and let everyone take them home at the end of the affair. Not only is it a long lasting gift that will remind them of this special occasion, but it also makes for a speedy clean up!
Pictured recipe
1x 2oz ammobium $12
1 x 1.5oz lavender $14
3 x Billie bottle $6 / $18
3”-4” 3 x pots $8 / $24
3 x small plants ~$15
=$83
- SIMPLE GARLAND
Garlands have long been loved for dinner table gatherings. They are elegant, casual, traditional yet minimal, there is a garland for every genre of affair. The one constant with garlands is however, they get pricey fast. They require a lot of material and time, and the cost can add up. For this centerpiece, we created a simplified garland embracing minimalism. For materials we chose broom bloom and marcela, for a fluffy, monochrome cloud. Sticking to one color is always a safe bet, especially when you are going minimal. We recommend 1-3 elements for this strategy with at least one bulky material to create your mass. Broom bloom is an excellent choice that is easy to work with and fills space easily. First, cut a piece of thick jute or rope the length you’d like your garland to be. Next, make small bundles of your materials, each around 6”-10” long depending on the width you’d like your garland to be. Secure each bundle with tape, raffia or a rubber band. Make the bundles as fluffy as possible focusing on the side that will be facing up. Make one bundle per 5” of rope. Use wire to attach the first bundle on the end of the rope with the tied side towards the center of the rope. Place another bundle overtop the previous, hiding the tie and creating a cohesive thickness from one bundle to the next. Repeat this process until you reach the center point, then build your bundles going outward in the opposite direction. Be sure to tie your first bundle going the other direction snugly along the side of the last bundle. You may also need to add a few mini bundles to even out the middle and fill in any holes. Continue the bundles outwards until you meet the end of the rope, and voilà! Gently lay your garland down the center of your table. You can always go back and wire/weave in extra stems to fill out any areas that could use some help. Wrap in tissue paper and store in a box for next time!
Pictured recipe
1 x 3oz bleached broom bloom $22
1 x coco twine $9
1 x spooled Wire $12
=$59