Ever since we spotted artichokes, carrot greens, and whole beets used as tabletop flowers (see Babel Restaurant in Cape Town), we’ve been seeing vegetables in a new light. With their dark, leafy greens, winter veg in particular are perfect for decorating a long Thanksgiving table: they’re cost efficient (totaling under $10 for as many as ten arrangements–and you can add the leftovers to the soup stock.
Photography by Alexa Hotz.
The Arrangements
Above: All of the leafy produce in your vegetable bin are fair game: just pick a vase to roughly match the shape of your veg. Original photography shot with the Canon EOS 5D Mark III digital SLR. The filmmaker’s camera. Here’s how to recreate the look for your holiday table:
Materials
- 2 fennel bulbs with stems attached
- 1 bunch green chard
- 1 bunch heirloom carrots, tops included
- 3 leeks of varying sizes
- 1 bunch white radishes
- 6 to 10 clear-glass vessels of any sort: I used a Chemex Coffee Maker, a Bedside Water Carafe, the carafe’s cup, a vintage glass vase, and four Weck Glass Storage Jars in different sizes.
Instructions
Step One: Wash and clean the vegetables and dry excess water from the leaves.
Step Two: Fill vases with water about halfway full; be prepared to pour out water when adding weighty items such as fennel bulbs.
Step Three: Add the vegetables in groups to the vases. For each vase, decide if you want the stems and roots to be fully or halfway submerged, or sitting on top of the lip (this works well for radishes and other round vegetables).
Above: Two carrots criss-cross in a Chemex Coffee Maker put to use as a vase.
Above: The finished set looks hearty in a group; it can also be paraded down the length of a table, mantel, or kitchen shelf.
Looking for more floral decor ideas? Sift through Gardenista’s archive of Flora posts.
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