If you’ve ever decided at the last minute to throw together a floral centrepiece for an event but are left with supermarket pickings, fear not! It is very likely you have the ingredients for a gorgeous arrangement to not only wow your guests but yourself also!

Making an arrangement with supermarket blooms is more possible than you might think! Look for the freshest stems possible, with little to no colour fading below the waterline and fresh buds on the tighter side, and you’ll be surprised at the treasures you’ll find. With a few extra stems thrown in (and if you don’t have the resources for this, read on!), you’ll have your next shower or party looking marvellous!

What You Will Need:

  • For one arrangement, you’ll simply need one to two bunches of blooms. Look for healthy looking foliage, anything that takes your fancy! I stumbled upon these gorgeous Hellebores and couldn’t resist! Keeping blooms reasonably neutral is a safe place to start.
  • Small bundle of chicken wire
  • Bowl/container (this is a soup bowl from a department store)
  • If you’re lucky and can forage from your garden or a friends garden, help yourself to some lovely bits and bobs! Look for some light and airy pieces, as well as some textural interest.

Step 1. Cut a small piece of chicken wire (medium gauge), and bundle into a ball. Be careful of sharp edges! I highly recommend using pot tape, one strip from one side of the bowl, tightly across the top of the wire to the other side of the bowl. Mine was not where I thought it was, so we’ve gone wild and pressed on! Fill the container with water.

Step 2. When you bring home your supermarket flowers, remove all packaging and lower leaves, trim the stems and pop in fresh water. If picking blooms and foliage from the garden, take a bucket with you with a little water in it to keep the flowers as fresh as possible. When you’re ready to begin transforming your flowers, take them out of the water, group together and make sure each stem is clean and trimmed.

Step 3. If you are using foliage, begin by adding some pieces around the base. Start to frame the shape you are aiming for in the finished piece. I discovered some dreamy gum blossom, lucky me! Add in large, statement blooms next, keeping them low and short. If you are only using your market blooms, begin adding larger blooms in low, and work upwards.

Step 4. Begin adding your hero flowers, in this case, those sweet Hellebores! As they are quite leafy, I’ve clumped them together for more impact. If you are creating a centrepiece for a meal, keep the blooms low and elongated. Leave stems longer as you cut them. You can always trim them shorter, but will avoid a big clump of blooms by keeping the stems flexible.

Step 5. Trimming each stem on a diagonal to help them wiggle into the wire easily, continue placing blooms in. Place some tall stems in, with small pieces of greenery low to cover the wire, finishing with light and airy stems. I’ve used apple mint and purple basil, wattle, violet leaves and a few weeds I hadn’t yet plucked from the garden! Be mindful of the lines you are creating, keeping longer stems flowing in organic shapes.

Step 6. If you are pressed for time and garden-less, never fear! Once the arrangement was complete, I pulled all the extras out (leaving the violet leaves), to show that using just the one bunch of supermarket flowers will still create a gorgeous arrangement! And a gentle reminder, if you start out and nothing is working, which happens all the time, simply pop the stems back out, and start again. There are so many variations that can come from the same small collection of stems, and each one is magnificent!

Be sure each stem is reaching the water, and that the water is topped up regularly. Enjoy creating and transforming a simple bunch of market flowers into a stunning centrepiece!

Ms Zebra Says: I think we’ve all been caught out at the last second – what a fab idea to create a beautiful centrepiece! If you were planning a low key or a smaller budget wedding, it would be easy to keep costs down with this DIY hack! Thanks Ms Honeycomb!

About Ms Honeycomb  – Hi, I’m Nicola, the florist and crafter behind rubyandjoy. I’m a gardening, fabric loving, mint tea drinking, brownie baking, book obsessed maker! I love a good adventure having just moved back from five years in Scotland (with my lovely Scottish husband).