How to Make Fresh Christmas Centerpieces for Under $10

Need a fresh Christmas centerpiece this Christmas? You know it would make the house more Christmassy, and if you have guests, the centerpiece will set your table apart from others. It will bring the beauty and fresh aroma of Christmas and festivity to the occasion. But you don’t want to spend too much on one? I hear you. What if I tell you that you can easily make one for under 10 dollars? And we’re not talking about short-changing the beauty and quality of the arrangement. In fact, it may even look better than the one you’re eyeing at the store or the flower shop.

Now, if you’re thinking that’s a task for florists or flower wizards—not so. The task at hand is relatively simple. All you need is some degree of eagerness—an eagerness to create and be surprised by your own creativity.

In this article, I will show you how to keep your cost down, and I will show you how to make a simple table centerpiece. Ready?

If you look around, you can find free stuff—there for the taking—like free Noble fir or Douglas fir. If you go to any Home Depot or places selling pine trees at this time of the year, the chances are they’ll have a bin for discard fir branches. Drop by one of these centers and cart away the discard branches. Free and waiting to be used.

You can also gather free stuff when you go for nature walks. Pine cones fall at this time of the year—collect some. If you have a big yard, be sure to plant some Christmas plants, they’ll come in handy at this time of the year. And if not, you may know of someone with such a yard, don't be afraid to ask. Of course, it would help if you know her well. I’ve developed a thick skin (as my mother used to say) and am not afraid to ask my friend for her Christmas greens. Thankfully, she’s obliges every year. I only hope she doesn’t move away.

Why buy anything at full price when you can get the same item at a discount? I practice this sage advice with great militancy. …especially when it comes to Christmas containers, candles and any Christmas decorative item. You can easily get a discount coupon on their website or look out for blowout sales. Michaels usually have a 40% coupon and sometimes, you can even get a 50%. Of course, buying items after Christmas is quite the way to save and you can always save them for use next Christmas. Again, I’m quite guilty of that. I rarely spend anything over $10. In fact, all the Christmas décor, candles, pots, containers are anywhere between 79 cents to $5.99.

Recycle and reuse not only help your budget, it is very eco-friendly. That way, it costs you next to nothing. Bottles, vases, candelabra, candle votives, Christmas figurines or decorations make good recycling candidates. Sometimes, I have even gone so far as to recycle ribbons and anything else that looks like it would survive another use without looking shabby.

This centerpiece is appropriate for a long rectangular table. However, the principle will still apply to round centerpieces—just use a circular or square base.

1. Soak floral foam (make sure they are for fresh flowers) until totally soaked through.
2. Insert candles. You may use one or more.
3. Cut Christmas greens a couple of inches longer than the container.
4. Stick green across horizontally, vertically and diagonally so they make a frame around the container.
5. Continue cutting greens, shorter and shorter as you go further up and sticking them into the foam so the whole foam is covered. Think of it as building a floral fort around the foam.
6. Add flowers, cones, ribbons or any decorative item after the whole foam is covered. You may have to floral wire or floral sticks to anchor pine cones or ribbons to the arrangement. This is explained further in the video you will see at the end of the article.

Done! Just make sure you keep it watered and it should last you a while. Mine have been known to last for weeks, especially the greens.

The resulting centerpiece is shown below.

Here are some of Christmas centerpieces I made just by using some noble fir from Home Depot. The only things I had to buy were some candles, Christmas tea-lights, containers—all well below $10.

Adding flowers can make the centerpieces even more beautiful. Buy long lasting flowers like carnation, mums or orchids--they typically last for two weeks or more. Here is an example.

Enjoy creating your own centerpiece this Christmas. You can get fancy if you wish. Add more flowers or use cylinders to hold festive candles. You can make it elaborate or simple. If you need more tutorial on how to create a centerpiece, I've selected one for you.

Merry Christmas!