Church Candelabra
The church flower decoration shown below was created in silk for a bride that purchased her own silk flowers. The design principals are the same, however, when using fresh flowers.
Be sure to process your dry pack flowers correctly. The is always the first (and most important) step to long lasting fresh flowers. Feel free to exchange colors, flower varieties, or add in fresh greenery.
- 1 rental candelabra
- 1 brick Florist foam
- Waterproof Floral Tape
- 3 Standard Gerbera Daisies
- 3 Line Flowers Lavender Snapdragons
- 3 Miniature Callas
- 5 stem Alstromeria
- 1 - 2 Dark Purple Carnations
- 1 blue delphinium
- 2 hydrangeas
- 2 stem white asters
- Floral Lock Adhesive
- Finishing Touch flower sealant or Crowning Glory
The first step is to attach your block of foam or floral cage to the candelabra. I used waterproof tape since these candelabras are mine. Rental companies may not allow tape, so you can use floral wire instead.
Oasis cages come with tabs and handles with holes especially designed to allow easy wiring.
I would normally green in the foam at first. Bulk greenery is an inexpensive way to get a large look. This bride didn't want greenery, so I used only flowers.
I began by inserting my focal flowers (white gerbera daisies) first. Stagger the placement of the flowers near the center.
If you are using soft stemmed fresh flowers (such as these gerberas), put your fingers close to the wet foam and gently work the stems into the foam.
Sharp poking may cause the stem to mash, damaging stem cells that are important in water take up. A sharp diagonal cut across the stem with a knife right before insertion helps the flower go in easier..
(Keep in mind that fresh Gerberas should only be kept in a bucket with only 1 - 2 inches of water. Soaking stems for a long time in deep water can lead to softening of the flower stem as bacteria builds. This can create a slimy stem to have to work with.)
Wiring the gerberas can give extra support to the flower head. Obviously I didn't need the support for silk flowers, but would definitely have wired had these been fresh.
Note how these flower heads come out a couple of inches away from the foam. This helps give depth perception to the arrangement.
Note how the flower heads slightly face in different directions. If all your flower heads were the same length and facing totally front, you would have a rather flattened look.
Angling the heads in different directions gives depth perception to your floral design.
Church wedding decorations as a rule have to be large, since they are seen from a distance of ten feet or more. Line flowers will give your design a wide, sweeping look, taking advantage of that extra length.
Line flowers define the width and height of your design and act as a frame for it.
See how I've used a stem of miniature cymbidium orchids to give a long, draping effect to this candelabra design.
I like to mass similar flowers together - it gives more of a color impact from a distance. If you wish, you can scatter the flowers, giving a more overall color distribution if you wish.
I begin using shorter linear flowers to fill out and shape the arrangement. I chose to keep these flowers within the length of the candelabra arm, but you can have them go longer if you choose.
Just remember - the larger the frame - the more flowers you will need to fill in the flower design properly. It's important to count out the allotted flowers you have purchased specifically for each arrangement, or it is easy to get carried away and put in too many flowers.
