Days shorten, nights lengthen, temperatures drop. We head inside for the winter, craving reminders of August gardens and September harvests.  You can have it all–to add drama, whimsy, and beauty to your home and workplace flowers, shop the food market!

Tomatoes of all shapes, sizes, and colors, blend beautifully with autumn hues, as do grapes, beets, and wild berries. Small gourds, pumpkins, and squash are eternal favorites mixed with fall flowers.

A “fence” of asparagus built around a glass cylinder and tied with twine makes a striking container. Create an arrangement of purple and white for an eye-catching centerpiece.

Artichokes and kale come in different sizes and colors, and both are perennial favorites to enliven seasonal arrangements. Think broader horizons, too, in the vegetable aisles, and go for endive, cauliflower, broccoli, and broccoli rabe. The shades of ivory, green, and purple found in these vegetables are irresistible additions to flowers groupings of all kinds. Want to go further outside the box? Try arranging with celery, carrots, or radishes.

The colonists in Williamsburg landed a lasting holiday decorating trend by including fruit, like apples and pears, in their decor. We like the small varieties for arranging, like seckle pears. Pomegranates are the perfect color for the season, or for a unique twist, to signify hospitality, look for tiny pineapples. Citrus fruits, like lemons, limes, clementine oranges, and kumquats, add great color and texture to floral arrangements. Fill a glass vase with the whole fruits, or line it with sliced citrus rounds for a festive touch.

After you’ve enjoyed the natural beauty of these fruits and vegetables, experiment with metallic spray paint–copper, gold, and silver. Small pumpkins, apples, and artichokes are great choices for your first attempts at gilding, but don’t stop with common edibles. Spray acorns, walnuts, pine cones, lotus and seed pods, sponge mushrooms, leaves, and sticks to give a pop to your design—the only limit is your imagination.

Raid your refrigerator, and your yard, and enjoy seasonal designing at home. Join us at Copper Penny Flowers for a design class using fruits and vegetables. Bring us your ideas and color scheme, and we’ll create a unique and personal design perfect for your home or event. Sumptuous, and always calorie free. Let’s feast!