Wedding Cake Topper: How to Combine Flowers With A Cake Topper For The Ultimate Topper

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Sophia_Rodriguez]Sophia Rodriguez

Are you wondering how you can combine your original idea of decorating your wedding cake with flowers with that cute little topper you found? A combination of flowers with a theme cake topper can be the ultimate way to top a wedding cake when done right. Follow the instructions in this article so that you can have your cake and eat it too...literally!

The easiest way to bring your floral theme to your cake is to add a few choice flowers in water picks here and there on different levels of the cake and surrounding your cake topper.

What you will need

* Chosen cake topper
* Small water picks
* Chosen flowers
* Glossy leaves

Step One
Let's say you have chosen a golf themed topper and your flowers are yellow roses and baby's breath, plan to place the topper on the top section of your cake at the center, then add a yellow rose in front of it resting on a small piece of foliage such as leather or pittosporum. Add another little piece of foliage over top of the water pick to conceal it. Please note that all roses should definitely be inserted into picks since they are heavy drinkers and will need the moisture to look great throughout the night.

Step Two
Add more roses at different angles all around the cake, depending on which sides of the cake will be visible. To camouflage the water pick and to add style to your cake, use glossy leaves such as leather, camellia, ruscus or pittosporum and simply lay them on top of the water pickholder. Most foliage and fillers such as baby's breath will look just fine out of water for an evening. Baby's breath is great to fill in the gaps between flowers however it will look out of place unless you are using it elsewhere in your wedding flowers. Many tropical plants with short glossy leaves would also work wonderfully. The glossier they are, the longer they will look fresh. Other single flowers that look great on a cake are daisies, bits and pieces of hydrangea, lilies and sunflowers.

Petal Pointer:
Water picks are available at your local florist. When purchasing them for the purpose of cake accents, ask for orchid water tubes. They are the best since they are the shortest and easier to camouflage on the cake. If you can't get those, a regular pick, the shortest you can get it will be fine.

if you want to know more than just how to decorate the top of your cake with flowers and wish to know how to make floral centerpieces, bouquets and corsages, check out my book called: Unleash Your Inner Florist: How To Make Your Own Wedding and Special Event Flowers. Save hundreds of dollars by making your own wedding flowers here: [http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com]How To Make Wedding Flowers

Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?Wedding-Cake-Topper:-How-to-Combine-Flowers-With-A-Cake-Topper-For-The-Ultimate-Topper&id=6173342] Wedding Cake Topper: How to Combine Flowers With A Cake Topper For The Ultimate Topper

FAQ'S About Making Fresh Flowers Last Longer

By Sophia Rodriguez

Should I place my fresh cut flowers in the sunshine to help open them up?

No! Since temperature is the #1 factor in keeping flowers fresher longer, placing them in the sunshine will overheat them and promote early death. Set containers in a cool, dark area overnight before starting to work with them. The darkness helps to eliminate transpiration or water loss to keep the blooms at their freshest.

Where should I put my flowers while they are waiting to be arranged in bouquets?

The area used to recondition your flowers should have lots of air circulation but no drafts, heaters or fans. Ideally, this would be a fl oral cooler with a 38-50 degrees Fahrenheit (3-10 degrees Celsius) temperature and with a very high (80%) of humidity. Of course, in a home setting, this is rarely possible. Therefore, just do your best at finding the coolest area in the house (must be at least 3 degrees) to store your flowers. A cold cellar or basement would be great.

To increase humidity, just before leaving them for the night, use a mist sprayer to spray a fine mist of water into the air above and around the blooms. A simple procedure like putting the bloom in a cool spot overnight helps them recuperate from the journey and last longer. Even placing finished bouquets on the floor where it is naturally cooler can help with the freshness.

What about foliage, how do I keep it fresh until I am ready to use it in my bouquets and corsages?

The best way to preserve foliage until you are ready to use it is to first re-cut the stem underwater about 1" (2.5cm), then spray them with a fine mist of water. Place them in a plastic bag in the fridge or in a cool location. This helps preserve maximum moisture into the leaves.

I heard that I should never put flowers with fruit. Is this true?

Yes. Ripening fruit causes the most amount of ethylene in a home setting and can greatly damage fresh blooms and foliage. Ethylene is a hormone that is like an odorless and invisible gas that speeds up floral maturation and death. Ethylene is produced by two main sources. The first is outside factors such as the burning of fuels, by bacteria forming and by the ripening of fruits.

The second source of ethylene in a home setting is from the flower itself. Even when you cut stems, small amounts of ethylene escape. This is not a huge concern as long as you store your blooms in a fresh and cool atmosphere. Make sure not to bunch them all in one vase: spread them out and let your floral beauties breathe. Also, make sure to keep all your tools, buckets and water solutions clean. Finally, remember to always store your flowers away from any fruit.

Do you want to learn a lot more about handling and preparing fresh flowers? If so, my book may be perfect for you. It is called: Unleash Your Inner Florist: How to Make Wedding And Special Event Flowers. Click here to get more information about how to make pretty bouquets, corsages, centerpieces and lots more: Unleash Your Inner Florist http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com

How To Cut Costs When Planning Your Wedding Flowers

How to cut costs when planning your wedding flowers is easy when you follow some or all the suggestions in this article.

First of all you will save big if you make your own flowers for your wedding. if you can tolerate the thought of having fake flowers at your wedding, you will save if you make your own artificial flowers.
Of course there are artificial flowers that will cost you an arm and a leg and there are real flowers that are just as cheap as fake flowers.

However, if you love calla lilies, orchids, stephanotis and other exotics, the artificial variety will be cheaper. If you are getting a florist to make your flowers ask for a price for both fake and real flowers.

Making your own wedding flowers will greatly decrease your bottom line price. Even if you don't feel comfortable making all your wedding flowers you can focus on one aspect of your wedding flowers.

Centerpieces is the number one thing you can do to reduce your costs. Centerpieces, even ones made with real flowers can be made at least 4-5 days before the wedding; artificial ones can be made weeks ahead of the big day. You could get together with your bridesmaids a few days before the wedding and have a go at creating your centerpieces and bouquets.

To save the most on the actual bulk flowers, you can order a growers box online which could be a large bundle of roses or hydrangeas fresh from the farm at incredible prices and base your floral wedding theme around an abundance of that flower. Of course, you will need proper instructions and a complete plan of action to ensure your floral success.

Boutonnieres and corsages are another area where you can definitely cut costs when making your wedding flowers. Consider that it can cost you $1 for a rose and.50 for greens. Add floral tape and a corsage pin and you have yourself a recipe for a boutonniere for under $2 whereas if you order one all made up for you at the florist, it will cost you at least 3 times that amount.

Reusing bouquets is another way to cut costs on wedding flowers by making the most of each bouquet.If you have bouquets in flower holders, you can purchase or rent bouquet holders that can be clipped on the front of the head table to decorate the head table elegantly. Bridal bouquets can also double as bouquets to decorate the cake table, the sign in guest registry table or another focal table at your reception.

Not sure if you should use fresh or fake flowers at your wedding? Take the quiz here to make sure you do what`s best for your personality type Fake or Fresh Quiz
http://makeweddingflowers.com/should-you-use-real-or-fake-flowers-for-your-we...

If you want complete and inexpensive instructions on how to make your wedding flowers, get my book called Unleash Your Inner Florist. It will guide you every step of the way and make it look like a professional florist made your flowers. Read more about my book here: How To Wedding Flowers http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com

What Makes a Special Event Look Professional Vs Tacky?

By Sophia Rodriguez

Are you wondering what makes a special event look professional vs. tacky? If so, this article will shed some light on the subject and help you achieve a professional look for your special event.

We will discuss color choice, unity of decor and richness of materials.

Color choice is the number one element that can make or break an overall elegant look. Please refer to a color chart before picking your definite colors or go with a look of the year color combination to make sure you choose modern colors that coordinate well together.

A bad color choice can create tackiness. For example, we once decorated a wedding in a beautiful timber framed ballroom. The decor was sheer elegant draping on the ceiling with twinkling lights. The head table and the cake table had mini light accents as well.

It could have been quite elegant. However, the bride wouldn't budge on the colors...olive green and dull red! It totally ruined the look and left the decorator and florist cringing! Another element of decor that makes it professional looking is unity of decor.

For example if you choose to use ivy in your wedding bouquets, it would be great to use ivy in your decor at the reception as well. Touches of ivy on the front of the head table could be used as well on the cake table. If you use the colors red and white in the wedding flowers, use the same colors in the centerpieces as well.

If your theme is a beach theme, you will want to follow through with your theme all the way from shells in your bouquets to a cake topper in a beach theme and shells sprinkled along a sandy candlelight centerpiece. Don't overdo it though. If you exaggerate one element too much, it will become tacky.

Finally, the best way to create unity and save money is to reuse bouquets, bows and an arch that you will use at the church.

Get trusted family members to move these items. Make sure to tell them, better yet, make them a diagram of what and where you would like things moved. They will appreciate your instructions and allow them to perform their task as per your wishes.

Finally, materials used should be rich looking, vibrant, healthy and modern.

For example: lace and lattice are now rarely used at modern weddings. Same goes for plastic and cloth flowers, flower fans and paper bells. Of course, there could be exceptions, but usually, try to leave these materials out.

For more information on how to choose colors for this year`s special event of yours, check out my blog: How To Wedding Flowers Blog Http://www.makeweddingflowers.com

If you want complete and inexpensive instructions on how to make flowers for your special event, get my book called Unleash Your Inner Florist. It will guide you every step of the way and make it look like a professional florist made your flowers and unified your wedding decor. Read more about my book here: How To Wedding Flowers http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com

The Best Flowers For a Fall Wedding

By Sophia Rodriguez

If you wish to know which flowers are the best flowers for a fall wedding, you are not alone.

While summer weddings are still the most popular, fall is right behind it as the best time to get married. Bride to be`s love the colors of fall, the ideal temperate weather that fall brings and the possibilities that a fall theme offers.

Fall wedding flowers are vibrant, stylish and equally masculine and feminine. The blend of reds, oranges, yellows, copper, rust, burgundy and brown are irresistible.

Here is a list of the most popular fall wedding flowers: roses, daisies calla lilies gerberas sunflowers

The reason that roses are the best flowers for a fall wedding is that roses come in a magnificent range of fall colors ranging from pure golden yellow, bright orange, dark burgundy to two toned chocolate brown roses and confetti roses with their lemon hue tinged with orange tips.

The variety of fall roses is stunning and roses are the number one flower that represents romance, therefore, it is ideal for a fall wedding. Modern bouquet styles such as the handheld rose bouquet with stems showing and the smaller all rose posy are surefire hits at a fall wedding.

Daisies come in many colors, many of them suited for fall. Burgundy, rust, yellow and orange daisies can be used in combination with other flowers in bridal bouquets. They can be used for corsages and boutonnieres, in centerpieces and in church arrangements.

Calla lilies are a popular choice of blooms for weddings. They are classy, elegant and easy to work with when making handheld bouquets. For bouquets, avoid the white ones and go for dramatic burgundy, yellow, orange and brown callas. Callas come in regular large sizes and in miniature sizes.

Depending on the size and preference of the bride, it may be more suitable to purchase small callas in larger numbers such as 12 to 15. For the large type of callas more than 8 or 9 is ridiculously huge for a bridal bouquet. Don`t choose smaller callas for the price though as they are the same price as the larger ones in most parts of the country.

Gerberas are also a preferred choice of blooms for fall weddings (and any other season of weddings actually). These versatile beauties come in yellows, oranges, peach, reds and burgundy and in many other colors in between.

You can use the large gerberas in wedding bouquets, arrangements and centerpieces while the smaller gerberas are perfect for corsages, boutonnieres and cake flowers.

Sunflowers are also a great choice of flowers for a fall wedding. They now come in a variety of hues and shapes such as yellows, oranges and bronze with single or double blooms, however the classic yellow sunflower is still the most popular and long lasting type of sunflower. Sunflowers also work great in handheld bouquets with the stems showing.

To add texture and variety to your fall bouquets, consider adding berries such as hypericum berries, pepper berries, rose hips or viburnum berries.

Fall foliage such as oak leaves and beech leaves also enhance the look of harvest bouquets. From pittosporum greens to preserved maple leaves, yellow variegated ivy and seeded eucalyptus, fall greens add class to elegant fall wedding bouquets.

Last but not least, consider using autumn accessories for your bouquets or centerpieces. Possible accents to enhance your fall blooms include wheat, rye,cattails, fruit such as apples, pumpkins and pomegranates, raffia or gourds. Hollowed out pumpkins make wonderful centerpieces when filled with fall bouquets.

Unleash Your Inner Florist: How to Make Wedding & Special Event Flowers covers all flowers for your wedding. Http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com

The more you make yourself, the more you will save and most importantly, you won`t have to skimp on flowers at your wedding. Be surrounded by flowers on your wedding day...the guests don`t have to know how much you saved!

Follow along every step of the way and learn how to make wedding bouquets, centerpieces corsages and more the easy, cheap and right way. You can get the paper copy of Unleash Your Inner Florist on Amazon or order it as an ebook for $19.99 and be reading it in just a few minutes. http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com

FAQ'S About Centerpieces

Article by Sophia Rodriguez
Image from https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5pVIZKAnbEZJUqacRV619RsB6KamDV4VtUGo-ivbvkeOn9uA2p6Jb_3nzgJchJykqYBPv3zkDvk0dKj5SNNg63N_Wo5en6eqp7hZsR2hEWZc-GuR51_7-y5mC6j7NU_ovvaUrZkNlNVU/

If you have questions about centerpieces for your wedding and want to know what is appropriate, you are not alone.

As a wedding florist in a busy flower shop for 15 years, I noticed that many brides were unsure about what types of flowers and combinations of flowers and candles or other accent were better for centerpieces and wanted to know what was appropriate.

Here are some of the most popular questions that kept coming up:

We wanted to use candles and vases to keep centerpiece cost down. Can you give me ideas on inexpensive and pretty centerpieces?

Many options are available to you. You could put some decorative stones or river rocks in your colors in a low bowl type vase, add water and then put floating candles in the bowls. You could float a few daisy heads in low, wide bowls, and then use some inexpensive votive holders for candles around the flower bowl. The main vase will be the most expensive part of this; however, you should be able to rent them from almost any rental service. Mirrors under the centerpiece bowls can also be rented and used to reflect candle light from floating candles.

Balloons also make great budget friendly centerpieces. Use 3 to 5 eleven inch balloons tied at different levels and attached to either a water base covered with material in your colors or attach the balloons to a theme or wedding related object. Just make sure the object is heavy enough to hold down the balloons. Balloons need to be done on the morning of the wedding therefore, you will need to assign a responsible person to this task.

Our colors are navy and white. I have no idea what to do for centerpieces. I want something cheap but nice and unique. Do you have any ideas?

You could use shallow round bowls. Use food coloring to turn the water blue and use white floating candles. You could also use cobalt blue vases or bowls with white stones and floating white flowers with a touch of greenery to add contrast and make the centerpieces look more natural. Daisies would be the most inexpensive flower to use, followed by carnations.

Are candles allowed in reception halls?

Check with your venue as to whether they allow candles, many do not allow candles due to insurance costs and liability in case of fire. In our city, they ask us to go to the fi re hall with an example of the centerpiece we will be using to get it approved. Every municipality and hall will have different rules. If you are not allowed candles but still would like to have the romantic ambiance created by the use of candles, you can use LED candles or other type of battery operated candles to cast a soft glow on your centerpiece. Glow sticks can also be used to create a dreamy glow, just make sure to conceal the source of the light to preserve the mystery.

I really like arrangements with fruit in them like slices of lime or lemon. Is it a good idea to combine fruit with flowers?

Adding fruit to your floral arrangements is a simple way to add color and visual interest to your centerpieces. The only problem with this is that fruit secretes toxic ethylene gases. The best way around this is to prepare your flowers separately and to add the fruit at the last minute. If you are using uncut fruit such as a full lime or lemon, the amount of gas expelled will be minimal. However, as soon as you cut the fruit, lots of gases will be expelled. So if your arrangement includes cut fruit, make sure to put the fruit together with the flowers only on the morning of the event to avoid flower damage from the ethylene gas.

If you want more ideas and want to learn how to make centerpieces the easy, cheap and right way, get my book called: Unleash Your Inner Florist: How to Make Wedding & Special Event Flowers. This easy to follow guidebook will save you hundreds of dollars on your wedding flowers. You can get the paper copy for only $24.99 on Amazon or Barnes & Noble or order it as an ebook for $19.99 and be reading it in just a few minutes. Click here for more info: http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com

Fresh Or Fake Homemade Wedding Flowers? How To Select And Care For Wedding Flowers At Home

By Sophia Rodriguez

If you want homemade flowers for your wedding but are not too sure how to make or select them, this article will set you off on the right track. Learn how to select and care for wedding flowers at home, then find out how to get the exact instructions that will guide you every step of the way into making your own perfectly fresh bouquets for your wedding.

Maybe you want to make wedding flowers, corsages, bouquets or centerpieces for your sister's wedding or your best friend's wedding. Let me show you how you can present flowers that will look perfect throughout the wedding day, even if you make the bouquets days in advance.

How can I make sure that my flowers will still look perfect by the time my event starts?

On the day of your special event, your first goal, when it comes to your wedding or special event flowers, should be to have your flowers be in prime condition, fully opened and fresh for the whole duration of the event. This requires special care and handling of the flowers every step of the way: from buying or picking them to arranging them, to packaging and transporting them to the event site. If you have selected artificial flowers for your special event, much less care is necessary however the result are not as stunning.

Is there any special care that I need to keep in mind when selecting and caring for artificial flowers?

When buying artificial flowers, the most important thing you can do is to choose the most realistic looking flowers you can find. In storage, make sure not to squash the flowers; stand them up in buckets or vases or lay them flat. Once you have arranged them into bouquets, corsages or arrangements, you need to package them in a way so as not to squash or harm the flowers in any way. Also, you will want to store them away from bright sunshine to avoid losing the bright colors of your silk flowers. When taking them out of their storage area a few days before your special event, you will need to fluff out your bows and reshape any bent or squashed flowers.

What are the steps that I need to take to make sure that my fresh flowers will be just perfectly opened for my special event?

Here is how and when to select flowers in the right stage to have them be at their prime on your special day:

1) Plan to get your flowers about 2-3 days in advance of your planned flower design day. For example if you are gathering with your bridesmaids on the Thursday night to prepare the flowers for your Saturday wedding, you will want to obtain your flowers on Tuesday. This will give you plenty of time to process your flowers and to make sure that you have everything required for the creation of your special event or wedding flowers.

2) Keep in mind that depending on the flowers chosen, some flowers, like lilies and roses, may need up to one week to open fully. For your special day, the flowers such as hydrangeas and daisies will look the same as when you bought them. I would not trust a sidewalk flower vendor to guarantee you freshness on your special day. Buy from a reliable source of fresh flowers.

3) For best results and the freshest flowers on your special day, process your flowers as soon as you get them.

4) Be careful not to put too many flowers in the same container when you are storing them for curing. Overcrowded vases cause damage to flowers once they open fully. Lilies are especially sensitive to bruising and breakage.

Do you want a complete plan of what flowers to buy when, how to process them and how to transform them into beautiful wedding bouquets, centerpieces and corsages? It's all in this one book that you can either buy from Amazon or you can just download it here. The book's name is: Unleash Your Inner Florist: How to Make Wedding And Special Event Flowers. Click here to get more information and to download. http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com

Don't be disappointed with droopy flowers and bouquets that fall apart as you are walking down the aisle. Prevent any floral disaster, get the book and follow the step by step instructions! http://www.howtoweddingflowers.com