Trendy centerpieces

The crown jewel in any table is its centerpiece, and there are lots of options for holiday tables.

Carrie Lenz of Flowers to Carrie On said that for Christmas she’s seeing a shift toward high-quality silk flowers.

“My customers like silk flowers that have a dried look because they last longer and you also can get a lot of different colors that aren’t available in nature.”

Theresa Frinzi of Twins Flowers, Gifts and Home Décor, said pieces made of natural foliage are popular at her store.

“I like using lots of fresh holly, pines and berries for a natural look and for the fragrance from the pine. The beauty of natural elements also gives a table a more elegant look,” she said.

Here some favorites are fresh white stock, white hydrangeas, dusty miller, Carolina sapphire, magnolia leaves and succulents.

Linda McFadden of Past Basket Milwaukee said in arrangements she uses pinecones, natural branches, some dried materials — even real fruit.

“I would put the fruit in a beautiful glass bowl or a beautiful new or old wooden bowl,” she said.

Annette Dowd of Xenia said because Hanukkah lasts for more than one day, permanent arrangements are a good choice.

But instead of using fresh or artificial flowers, she prefers to fill a beautiful glass or crystal bowl with blue and silver balls.

“Then I would tuck in five-point silver stars with rhinestone edges. It’s low so people at the table can converse over it, but it’s large enough to make an impact. You can see right through the bowl.”

Dowd said small containers also could be used, spread across the table.

“You could put small bouquets of fresh white flowers in them — mums from your garden if the weather cooperates — and then put some blue votives around them.

Frinzi said another popular look in centerpieces is bottle sets.

“Bottle sets are assorted bottles that are typically made of clear glass that come in different sizes and heights. We have them in wire mesh baskets that come in a shabby chic white and in brown. You can put one or two flowers in each bottle, and you can also add a bit of gold and silver.”

She said because bottle sets are usually long and narrow, they make a great centerpiece because guests can see the food as well as each other while at the table.

Lenz said she also likes to use arrangements that incorporate large candlesticks.

“You can make an arrangement on top of a tall and thick candle to take it up off the table, and it could include pine and berries and ornaments — even artificial fruit is pretty.

“The candle could be 16 inches high in a container that is jeweled, ceramic or crystal.” But because this piece would be larger, it would be removed before serving dinner, she said.

Frinzi said that if you have a large table, you could also put a larger centerpiece in the middle and then add smaller coordinating pieces at each end.

“That will give people at the end something pretty to look at, too.”