Have you ever seen the movie Father of the Bride? There’s a scene wherein which Steve Martin (who plays the eponymous father) sits in the aftermath of the wedding surrounded by empty glasses and wilting flowers.

For reasons both thematic and spiritual, you don’t want to be Steve. You want to take care of yourself, and the people around you, and your gorgeous flowers. So let’s talk about how to do that!

This fall, when you buy or receive one of our fabulous centerpieces, your first step will be to trim and arrange your flowers. We’ve written posts about this in the past, but it’s always good to revisit the basics:

• Fill your vase with a mixture of cool water and flower food.
• Trim your stems so that your blooms sit 2-3 inches above the lip of the vase.
• Begin by arranging your texture or foliage stems into the vase to create a “grid” that will support your other flowers.
• Then add focal stems (like roses or carnations, anything with a big showy face) into your arrangement.
• Finally, add form stems (anything with a unique shape that deserves celebration, like calla lilies or butterfly ranunculus) so that they float a bit above other stems.

After you enjoy the flowers at your Friendsgiving, or dinner, it’s time to keep them happy.

With centerpieces, specifically, we tend to assort them with shorter vases. This means they’re a better height for dining tables because everyone can see over top of them, but it also means there’s less room for water in the vase. Be sure to check the water level in your vase, and top it up daily! Also, you’ll want to fully change the water (and trim about ¼” from the bottom of your stems) every two to three days to ensure your flowers last as long as possible.

Once your party is over, pull your flowers away from any other produce (bowls of fruit, bunches of bananas, etc.) that might be sitting out or ripening in the same room. All produce releases ethylene gas, which ripens fruit and ages flowers. Likewise, pull any stems from the bouquet that are past their prime. They’ll have less than ideal effects on the blooms around them.

Finally, keep your flowers away from any sources of heat or direct sunlight. Warmth of any kind encourages bacteria to grow in the vase water, which will choke and kill your blooms. Then, all that’s left is to enjoy the air of glamour drifting around your apartment and the beautiful blooms sitting on your table.