Peonies for Rita's Wedding - July 8, 2005
Dearborn, Michigan
Red, White, and Pink Peony Wedding Table Centerpieces
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I made all of the peony flower arrangments below for my sister Ritas' wedding which was held at the Dearborn Inn in Dearborn, Michigan. The Dearborn Inn is a very elegant, historic property and we needed a classy looking bowl or vase for displaying the fresh cut peonies. Each floral arrangement contains 2 dozen fresh cut peonies in various shades of red, white, and pink. Some flowers are fully open while others are more closed. After many months of searching in stores, on-line, and at floral supply wholesalers for just the right centerpiece container I found these beautiful silver metal antique looking bowls in the candle department at Target. They were perfect for displaying the peonies. Below is a list of the floral supplies that I used:
Antiqued silver metal bowls ($14.99 in the Target candle department)
Wet Floral foam (4-packs from Michaels)
2 dozen fresh cut mixed red, white, and pink peonies per centerpiece
Sharp scissors
5 gallon buckets for hydrating the flowers (you can purchase these are hardware or paint stores for about $3-$4) I ask my local grocery stores bakery department to save their frosting buckets. You'll have to clean them by soaking in bleach for about an hour and then scrubbing but they are free. One bucket can hold about 18 - 24 stems)
Needless to say the wedding was beautiful and the bride and groom were very pleased with how the peony centerpieces turned out. My expertise is in growing the peony flowers. These were the first wedding flower arrangements using peonies that I had designed so I was very pleased also.
How To Make Wedding Table Centerpieces Using Peonies
1) If your peonies are in bud form then cut fresh stems and place them in buckets of water 1 - 2 days prior to when you will make the flower arrangements. I made all of the centerpieces below (17 of them) on Thursday and placed half of the flowers in water on Tuesday night and the other half on Wednesday morning. The wedding was on a Friday.
2) Cut the wet floral foam a little larger than what is needed to fit snugly into the bottom of the bowl. Then soak in buckets of water for 20 minutes. It is important to sterilize the buckets with bleach first.
3) Remove the floral foam from water and fit it snugly into the bottom of the bowl.
4) Cut the peony stems on an angle to the correct height. Experiment if you need to cutting the flowers on the long side until you figure out the right length. If the bottom of your vase or bowl is rounded then there may be a space between the bottom of the bowl and wet foam. Be sure the stem does not go into this area as there will be no water for it. After you put a few stems in you will get a feel for it if the stem ends up in this area.
5) Allow plenty of time. It took me about 7 hours to create 17 peony centerpieces.
6) Add water to the peonies that evening and the next morning. A dry floral foam will suck the water out of the flowers.
I strongly recommend making all of the wedding flower centerpieces the day before the wedding and refrigerating as many of them as will fit in your refrigerator until the time of the wedding. Be sure to remove all fruits and vegetables from your frig as they give off a gas that damages the flowers. If it is not possible to refrigerate all of the floral arrangements then keep your house cool. If it is summer time turn up your air conditioning.
Here are pictures of how the peony centerpieces turned out:
Please visit our peony page to order peony flowers for overnight delivery from Bridgewater Gardens