Holiday Floral Arrangement

Flowers add warmth and charm to any room, especially at the holidays. Finding just the right arrangement can be both time consuming and costly. For a beautiful and somewhat different holiday arrangement with flowers, greenery, cranberries and pomegranates, grab your vase and get creative. The stately arrangement shown was made in ten minutes, once the car was unpacked and the necessary components were laid out in the kitchen. Start with a large glass vase, often seen at Pottery Barn or Target. The one in the photo is a 24 inch footed vase, but other versions are available in rectangular or square shapes.

Head to a good supermarket, Costco's or Trader Joe's, whatever you have in your area, where you will purchase a bag of fresh cranberries and one large pomegranate. Flowers can be purchased in any hue that compliments the red of the cranberries, such as raspberry, deep red, maroon, even dark rusty colors, and stems can vary in length. Use a minimum of three different flower colors in your arrangement. Greenery in three different textures and colors needs to be purchased and it is often sold separately. Some of the greens in the photo were cut from a backyard shrub, while others were purchased at the market. Also be sure to purchase green floral wire from a hobby store such as Michael's or Hobby Lobby. Head for home and you are ready to start playing Martha Stewart.

With a smile on your face and a "can do" attitude, trim the bottom of the flowers with a sharp knife and quickly place them in a jar or tub of cold water. Once done trimming, arrange the flowers on pre-read newspaper by placing various colors together in a bouquet, add the greenery and tie it in place with the green floral wire. Be sure the flowers are of various heights and the entire bouquet is circled by the greenery. Now you are ready to create the final piece. Place a pomegranate in the bottom of your large clean vase. Add cold water and the bouquet of hand tied flowers. Center the bouquet on top of the pomegranate. Carefully pour the bag of fresh cranberries around the bouquet, to encircle it with the berries. Cranberries float, which keeps the bouquet centered in the vase and adds an additional element of color, surprise and texture to your hand made floral arrangement. Wipe off any water from the bottom of your vase and with pride, carry the vase to it's intended place of honor. Stand back and let yourself take in the beauty you have created, you clever person. Every room needs a colorful and unusual natural floral arrangement to create interest as well as entertain the eye. Yours will be a hit this holiday season. Give yourself a pat on the back, your mother would be proud.