Carnations are Back!

Carnations really don’t deserve that bad rap they’ve been receiving all of these years… florists, party planners and brides alike frown at the idea of including carnations in centerpieces or displays (you know you’ve been there…). But really, carnations are a pretty ideal bud. They can be found in a selection of vibrant colors at almost any time of the year and are by far one of the cheaper stems on the market (probably due to that above mentioned bad rap).

‘Lollipop’ or ball centerpieces are one of my favorite ways to introduce carnations into modern tablescapes. By using floral foam, you can take advantage of a carnation’s full foliage by clipping them short and placing them tightly together to form a floral structure. I love this with wreaths, half circles and full balls. When placed a top risers, it creates a stunning effect.

Here is the How-To for creating your own lollipop centerpiece as pictured in the Colorful Candy Buffet posting from last week. Follow the jump!

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{Carnation Lollipop Centerpiece}

Supplies:

-Floral round foam: Since each carnation will poke out of the foam ball about 3”, subtract 6” from the overall ideal diameter of your final creation to determine size of floral foam necessary. Generally, a 2-3” ball is recommended.
-Carnations: You’ll need a good amount of these — a 6” floral ball, for example, requires about 25 stems
-Round, tall vase base: Be sure your finished carnation ball can balance a top the vase without falling in)
-Vase filler or cover: Get creative – river rocks, sand, scrapbooking paper, curled ribbon, dried split peas, coffee beans…)

1. Cut your carnation stems to about 1” below the base of the flower (so that there remains 1” of stem for poking into ball). Begin inserting stems in linear pattern all the way around the ball to create a thick, full shape. Stems should be placed about 1/2” from each other. I highly recommend using floral foam, but in a pinch regular Styrofoam will do (which is sturdier than the former but more difficult to poke flower stems into, wiring the base of each bud may be necessary).

2. Create vase base by adding filler or covering with a beautiful paper/wallpaper/fabric remnant.

3. Show off your beautiful display!

You can create similar floral structures out of roses, garden roses, dahlias, or mums. Any full flower with a strong stem will do! Below is an example from the Colorful Candy Buffet from earlier this week.

Here are two beautiful examples from Lollipop Events & Designs and InStyle Magazine. Earlier images are credited to Martha Stewart Living and Creative Productions.