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DIY Evergreen Christmas Centerpiece

I see these Christmas centerpieces in the flower shops and garden centers and they look a little messy, like they were thrown together, and they want $50 or more for them.  I knew I would be happier with one I make myself.  I will give you all of the steps to make your own Christmas evergreen centerpiece.

Tutorial for making a Christmas CenterpieceThis post contains some affiliate links for your convenience.  Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

First thing, I gathered all of my supplies together.  Do you want some of these supplies delivered right to your door, click on the links in the list of supplies to order them from Amazon.

Supplies to make a Christmas Centerpiece

Supplies for an Evergreen Christmas Centerpiece
Container
Chicken wire
Wet floral foam
Red ribbon
Pinecones
Anchor Tape
3 Candles
Tiny red ornaments
Green wired sticks
Floral wire
Kitchen shears
Wire cutter
Evergreens – I used Cedar, White Pine and Boxwood

Evergreens for making a Christmas Centerpiece

Oasis in container

I used an inexpensive craft store container, because I knew it would not be seen.  Soak your piece of floral foam until it is thoroughly saturated.  Cut the piece of foam to fit in the container you have chosen.

Making a Christmas Centerpiece 2

Cut a piece of chicken wire to fit over the top of the oasis and down over the edges.  It is important to use chicken wire when you are making an arrangement with woody evergreens, as their large stems can break apart your floral foam without the chicken wire to keep it secure.  Use floral anchor tape to secure the floral foam and the chicken wire in the container.  If you would like you can run your tape all the way around your container, or you can just tape it down to the sides and then use a short piece of the tape to run perpendicular across the end of the tape to secure it as I did above.

How to make a Christmas Centerpiece step 2

Begin by putting two equal lengths of cedar in each end of your arrangement, the length of these will determine the length of your centerpiece.

Make your own Christmas Centerpiece step 3

The next step is to add pieces of cedar at an angle from the sides to help support the shape of your oblong centerpiece as shown above.

How to Christmas Arrangement Step 4

Continue adding cedar, now on the top of the floral foam placing the pieces between the ones you have already added, and moving up toward the top of your arrangement.

Making a Christmas CenterpieceNext you will begin adding the white pine. Place the pieces of white pine in between the pieces of cedar.  In the above photo you can see the piece of cedar at the bottom right hand corner is not a tip, you can use pieces that you would have after you cut the tips off.  Put a piece of white pine off of each corner and then 4 pieces out of the top toward each corner as seen above.

How to make an evergreen arrangementHere is another picture taken from above to show another view of how to add the white pine tips between the cedar.

Making an evergreen arrangementContinue filling in with cedar and white pine tips until your arrangement is looking full as this is in the photo above.

DIY Evergreen CenterpieceIt is now time to fill in all of the spots with boxwood.  Cut the boxwood into 3″ to 6″ pieces and fill in the shape of the arrangement that you have already made with the longer greens.  Your arrangement should be full and have no holes in it now.

Adding candles to a Christmas arrangement

 

Three candles in an evergreen centerpieceTo add candles to your arrangement, put down a piece of anchor tape and set down three of the green wood sticks that you have cut the wires off of.  Tape the green sticks around the base of the candle and push it down into the floral foam.   For this centerpiece I added three candles.

Adding a pinecone to arrangements

To add pine cones to your arrangement, use a stiff wire, bend it around the top of the pine cone and twist it so it becomes a single stiff wire you can push into the foam.  I added three of these to each side of my arrangement near the candles.

Evergreen Christmas CenterpieceAt this point, this arrangement looks pretty nice for Christmas, but we are going to make it look even better and add some more ornamentation.How to make ribbon loops

To make some ribbon loops for your arrangement, take a piece of ribbon and gather it onto the end of a wood wired stick.  Wrap the wire tightly around the ribbon to secure it and add it to your arrangement.  Be careful not to stick it in so deeply that the ribbon touches the floral foam or it will leach the water out of the foam.

Ribbon loops and tails

See how pretty the loops look when you add a tail to them.  It almost looks like a bow is hiding in the greens of your arrangement.  A DIY Evergreen Christmas ArrangementHere it is, your own DIY evergreen Christmas Centerpiece.  Looking at it from above you can see how pretty the loops and tails make your arrangement look.  You can add as few or as many loops and tails as you would like.  Adding ornaments to your arrangement

To add ornaments to your arrangement you will use those same wood wired sticks.  I used clusters of three tiny ornaments.

Evergreen and red Christmas Centerpiece with candles

There you have it, a beautiful centerpiece for your Christmas table.  If you keep this arrangement watered, you should be able to keep this and enjoy it throughout the holiday season.  Should you want, you could switch out the pinecones or ornaments for different holiday picks.  You could also add fresh flowers to an arrangement like this if you would prefer.  I completed this entire arrangement for just $18!  I could never have bought such a pretty arrangement for that money!


I will be linking up at:  The Scoop

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57 Comments

  1. This is so beautiful Chloe and you are so good at this! Have you taken courses before? I am always happy to see one of your tutorials and I would love to tackle this project.

    1. There is room at the base to add water, I just take mine to the sink, add the water under the greens directly into the container. I let it sit for a bit for the floral foam to absorb some of the water and then put it back where I am displaying it. If you are setting it on a wood surface I would always use a coaster or something else beneath it to protect the surface. If you keep it watered it can last for a month!

  2. Thank you for the inspiration to make my own centerpiece. The instructions are very clear and easy to follow. Can’t wait to make this, and upload a pic, so can see

  3. Oh, so pretty and colorful. I’ve made many, many different ones and would like to send pictures to you but don’t know how. I like the kissing ball and need to try that. Always enjoy seeing what you do. Good tutorial, and Merry Christmas!!! Blessings, Lynda

  4. This is such a great tutorial. You’ve made it so clear and easy to follow. Thank you for sharing this because it’s exactly what I was looking for. Merry Christmas!

  5. Hi Chloe

    Such an amazing project, the tutorial made it even easier to enjoy the piece. You were right about the presentation of those centerpieces, Years ago, I ordered one of those centerpieces and the cost was more than $50. I had it delivered to my best friend before Christmas. Not only did she received it late, it turned out to be a total disaster. There were no candles added to the centerpiece and the rest of the rest of it was falling apart. Although my friend was elated, she cautioned me about using the same vendor in the future. It has been a pleasure watching you at work like always.

  6. Chloe: This is so beautiful! It looks like the centerpiece my mom would do for her Christmas party each year. She loved to cook and entertain. My parents would do at least 3 – 4 parties a month with anywhere from 10-50 guests. This really brought back some beautiful memories for me. Thanks so much.

    I can’t wait to try this.

    1. Thank you so much Melissa! I used to entertain so much more often than I do now. Our lives seem to ebb and flow in and out of different stages. Thanks you so much for sharing your thoughts, it means so much to me!!

  7. Hi Chloe,
    I LOVE this simple, elegant and beautiful floral arrangement tutorial, and it has inspired me as a possible ladies night activity. Do you have any tips on hosting an event for a dozen people?
    Also where did you buy the evergreens?
    Thank you!

    1. I buy those evergreen garlands at Dollar Tree. They are great to stock up on this time of year and keep on hand throughout the year! If I was hosting an event for 12 people, I would plan a brunch or a cocktail party. Either way, I would make sure there is plenty of food on hand. I am not one for just light appetizers for a cocktail party, I want guests to have plenty to eat. Brunch is also a great alternative if the event can be something midday.

  8. I was amazed by the beauty of these Christmas centerpieces in the shops but dismayed by their prices – that’s when I decided to make my own and save some money!

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