I don’t know about you guys, but at Blooms by the Box, we’re OBSESSED with incorporating unexpected elements into our DIY floral creations. We wrote a post a few years ago about how to use fresh fruit in floral arrangements, and now we’re moving on to gourds and pumpkins for fall! We loved the idea of using pumpkins as a base for centerpieces because it instantly provides a unique and rustic fall look, no matter what floral combination you use.
Here’s what you’ll need:
A pumpkin
Floral knife
Floral scissors/bunch cutters
Crowning Glory
Some of your favorite blooms and any extra elements to give it your personal touch!
Here’s how we made ours:
1. Carve out your pumpkin and empty out all of the seeds, then clean and dry off your pumpkin. Soak your floral foam by putting it in a bucket of water, removing once foam sinks to the bottom.
2. Cut floral foam to the right shape, and put it in the carved out pumpkin.
3. Start with greens around the base – work your way up and towards the center.
Important to remember:
Once you create a hole in the floral foam with the stem of your flowers and greens, don’t pull the stem partially out to give it more height – take the stem out completely and create a new hole. If the bottom of the stem is not touching the floral foam, it won’t be able to drink or get nutrients!
4. Add your focal flowers. We used orange Cockscomb and red Celosia.
5. Add your filler flowers. We used Yarrow and dark purple Astilbe.
6. Add your leftover flowers and fillers to fill in any sections that may be bare. We added a few small gourds for a little more texture and extra pops of color!
7. Spray centerpiece with Crowning Glory solution to preserve it. Make sure to check floral foam every day to ensure that it is still wet. If not, carefully add water to the floral foam so your DIY centerpieces will be beautiful for your fall event!
8. Enjoy!
Joan Wyndrum
Joan is one of the founding partners of BloomsByTheBox.com. She holds degrees in both commercial design and business administration/marketing. One of her earliest jobs was in the retail flower business. For the past 30 years she has consulted a wide variety of clients - many in the wholesale florist industry - in marketing, design, and business operations. In 2007, she and partner Larry Fox joined forces to combine their talents and knowledge to create BloomsByTheBox.com to bring the beauty of the growers' fields directly to customers' doors. Joan is frequently asked to contribute to popular publications to discuss all aspects of the flower and floral design, including MarthaStewart.com, WeddingWire.com, Wedding Planner Magazine, Yahoo!Life, and The Wedding Academy's The International Wedding Trend Annual Report among others.
I want to make this for Thanksgiving this year! Will these flowers be in season? I think I want to change up the colors a bit. Do you think whites, greens, cream and pink would go well with the orange of the pumpkin? Also how long do the pumpkins last before they begin to rot??
Thanks!!
Hi Elle! Yes, the flowers used in this pumpkin arrangement are in season typically during the fall! I do love the color scheme and think that it will go great with the bright orange of the pumpkin!! I would suggest to to use white hydrangeas, green fancy hydrangeas, vendela cream roses, and perhaps pink celosia for your arrangement! The pumpkin should last over a week after making the arrangement! You can also add a little water into the floral foam to help extend the lives of the flowers!