Recently, I had a bride who wanted to include green apples into her floral design. Her colors were lime green with navy and green apples went well with her vision. I looked at an apple, trying to envision a new way of using them. Then I found an idea of turning the apple into a vessel to hold flowers. An adorable look we used to line the ceremony aisle, the perfect touch to her wedding! I wanted to share with you how to make your own hanging apple vase with this tutorial.
The supplies you need are pretty minimal. These were all found in my kitchen and craft closet. If you don’t have exactly the same tools as I show, I am sure you can find a substitute in your home that will work. You will need:
Grapefruit spoon
Paring knife
Apple
Small flowers and greens
Small and large skewers
Ribbon
Start by cutting a circle shaped hole into the top of your apple. Make it large but not as large as the width of the apple itself. Then take the grapefruit spoon and scoop out the center of the apple. Carve it like you would a pumpkin, only go about half-way down into the apple.
Take your larger skewer and poke a hole through the center of your apple. This will allow you to push your ribbon through.
Cut a length of ribbon that, when doubled over, creates a long enough handle for you to handle the apple with. Using the smaller skewer, push the loose ends of the ribbon through the hole in your apple. The ribbon will be a bit wet. Just wipe off the portion of ribbon that comes through the bottom with a towel.
Now that your ribbon is pushed through the apple, take the ends at the bottom and tie them in a knot. Pull the knot back up so it rests against the bottom of the apple. Hold the apple up by the ribbon handle and test it out. Does it hold? If your concerned, make it a double knot. I did!
Now comes the fun part, adding the flowers! Your apple will not hold water, it is too porous. You can either choose flowers that will last out of water well, knowing that the arrangement will only last a few hours. Or, you can add a bit of wet floral foam into the hole to help keep your flowers fresh. Either way, this is a short-term flower arrangement that will only last a day or two. Ripening fruit emit ethanol gas, which shortens the life of flowers. But the arrangement is so cute and they are so easy to make, I think it is totally worth it!
