EASY AUTUMN LEAF VASE

Whether you’re decorating your home or for a fall wedding, here’s a quick and easy tip for creating leafy containers for your floral arrangements or votive candles.

1. Start with 2 clear glass vases that are about the same height, one wider than the other
2. Place the narrow vase inside the wider one – I put a tall cylinder bud vase inside a small fish bowl
3. Fill the wider vase with autumn leaves or even petals, whatever you like – silk or more translucent is best
4. Fill the inner vase with a bouquet of seasonal fresh flowers to create a stylish centerpiece
   
   OR
5. Place a small candle in the inner vase to create a dazzling luminaire
   

Fast – Easy – Fabulous!

FLORAL JACK-O’-LANTERN

To decorate for the upcoming Halloween festivities this year, I took a slight detour from the traditional, carved pumpkin. I created this adorable, feline, floral Jack O’ Lantern centerpiece to ward off any wandering evil spirits that might dare gate-crash my Halloween party.

These unconventional punkins are very easy to make. Start with a foam ball and cover it with sheet moss, using spray adhesive – all available at your local craft store. I stuck a bunch of cinnamon sticks into the top to create a faux pumpkin vine. Next, create your facial design – I found an inexpensive silver and black beaded bracelet, unstrung the beads, and then pinned them to my moss-covered foam ball, using multi-colored pearl pins, to create a bedazzling feline face.

Finally pin pumpkin-colored flowers to your pumpkin form. I recommend floral varieties that are long-lasting without water and dry beautifully, such as chrysanthemums, marigolds, or craspedia.

Adorable!

For the complete and fascinating history on the origins of the Jack O’Lantern, check out the History Channel’s website @ http://www.history.com/topics/jack-olantern-history.

VINTAGE MILK GLASS CENTERPIECES

Known for its delicacy and elegance, milk glass is synonymous with American prosperity and wealth achieved during the American Gilded Age in the early 20th century. Use affordable, antique Milk Glass vases and bowls, easily found online and at local yard sales, overflowing with sumptuous florals, to create beautiful centerpieces and thoughtful gifts.

I used a variety of shapes and sizes of Milk Glass containers to create this stately ensemble centerpiece for a Bat Mitzvah celebration.

Milk Glass comes in so many styles that you can use for design inspiration. Above is a quilted compote chalice I filled with lush crimson blossoms.

Inspired by the “Grape” motif featured on a Milk Glass fruit bowl, for a friend’s birthday I created this gorgeous, grape-tinted floral arrangement, even working in bunches of concord grapes.