Every Table Needs One!

A dining room table always needs a centerpiece! This might be as simple as a potted plant or a bowl of lemons or as elaborate as a beautifully arranged floral arrangement but, whatever the occasion, the table needs the focal point of a pretty aesthetic.

There is only one “rule”, for want of a better word, that centerpieces need to follow and that is, never make the centerpiece so high that your guests are unable to see each other’s faces over it.  If you are feeling that a high centerpiece is needed for a certain occasion, choose a “topiary” type centerpiece with a narrow middle and the arrangement part or ball starting above eye level so that the diners are then able to see each other underneath the arrangement or an arrangement, say of twigs, which one can see through.

There are so, so many variations on centerpieces.  Today we are going to highlight two types of centerpieces which we feel would be lovely for an Easter table.

The first of these are little plants which are put into egg shells which are then put back into the egg crate which has been spray painted.

You will need:

9 eggs
An empty egg crate
Gold spray paint (or whatever color you choose)
A knife
9 little, very little, potted plants in Easter colors

Spray paint an empty egg crate with the color of your choice.

Then, empty the insides out of 9 eggs.  To do this, gently tap the top, or the small part, of the egg with a knife to crack the egg but not break it.

Take off about a silver dollar-sized circle of the shell and empty out the egg into a dish.

Do this with 9 eggs.  Save the eggs for scrambled eggs for tomorrow’s breakfast.

Take the little plants out of their little pots and take away any excess soil.  Place the plant into one of the egg shells …

and then place the egg shell into the painted egg crate.

Do this nine times, placing the eggs in the carton.  You will not fill every hole in the carton so leave one space, every so often.

You end up with an adorable Easter centerpiece – ready for your guests to enjoy!

You would like something taller?  How about an Easter twig tree?  This is so, so simple to make but adds such a festive flare to your table.

You will need:

A few tall twigs
Spray paint – choose a color you like – could be pink or pale green or yellow or it could be dark brown, dark green or cherry
A tall vase
Hanging Easter eggs (Target, Michaels, Walmart)

Simply spray paint some tall twigs in the color of your choice (or you can leave the twigs natural), place them in a tall vase and  then hang some eggs on the tree.  You will find that Target or Michaels or Walmart will sell Easter eggs that you can hang – ready for your tree.  This really does add a lot, with just a little bit of work!

And the last Easter arrangement we would like to share with you is a floral arrangement in a cabbage.

You will need:

1 or 2 cabbages (maybe one green and one red)
Two pieces of Saran wrap about 9” x 9” square
Depending on the size of the flowers, you will need from 16-22 stems of flowers.  Choose flowers in Easter colors – pinks, lavenders, yellows, greens, etc.
A sharp knife
Small piece of oasis (maybe 3”x 4”)

Start by cutting a flat surface on the bottom of your cabbage or cabbages.  Cut as little off as possible in order to make a flat surface.  This is only to ensure that the cabbage does not roll over on the table.

Then cut out a circle on the top of the cabbage.  Going down about 3” – 4”, cut away as much of the cabbage as possible without coming through the bottom.

You can use a spoon to help scoop out some of the pieces once you’ve made your cuts.  Make the diameter of the circle as large as you can without going off to the side of the cabbage.  This circle will act as your “vase”.

Place a piece of  Saran wrap 9 x 9 square into the “vase”.

Place a piece of soaked oasis into the “vase”, as close to the size of the opening as possible and coming up over the top about 1”.

Pour water into the “vase” to the top.  Cut the Saran wrap at the top of the cabbage so that the Saran wrap does not show.  Now your “vase” is ready for you to do your arrangement.

You will find flower arranging great fun so make sure you have a good time with it.  There is no magic formula, although you will hear people say ~ and your Two Chums tend to agree ~ always put an odd number of flowers in your arrangement.  So, if you are using all one kind of flower, put an odd number in.  If you are using roses, hydrangeas and tulips, put an odd number of each.  (This particular arrangement will only take one hydrangea as your “vase” is not very large.) It is wise to put the largest flowers in first and then work your way to the smallest ones or the ones with the smallest stems.

As you can see from the photo, what you end up with is a darling little arrangement – ready for the Easter bunny to visit!

Enjoy!