Woman in Real Life

I once had a boss who was obsessed with faux flowers. She had plastic flowers in shades for all seasons, and she put them all over the office. They were ugly. And dusty. I was not a fan. But I now know that not all faux flowers are created equal. I have had a blast participating in the #12monthsofdiy project thus far. Our group of Canadian decor and lifestyle bloggers has focused on materials like vinyl, felt and spray paint. The challenge of creating a new project with a given material each month has been good activity for my brain.

This month's sponsor is Afloral, makers of gorgeous "silk" flowers and greens and also preserved flowers and grasses. You really need to check out Afloral's incredible variety of silk wedding flowers. You won't believe the kind of amazing bridal bouquet you can create with silk flowers!

Picking Out My Faux Flowers

When I first headed over to the Afloral website, I was looking to create a fall centerpiece, something fresh and pretty and beyond the usual pumpkin-based design (although I do love pumpkins too!). I was feeling a purple, red and deep pink colour scheme - something that would say fall, but not smash you over the head with it. I selected gorgeous silk spider mums in a mauve/hot pink blend, artificial berry pods in two-tone red, jumbo dinner plate dahlias in two-tone plum and flocked lamb's ear in green-gray for greenery. I think the combo of the mauve/hot pink mums with the plum dahlias would be stunning, however I had checked the height of the flowers but not the overall size of the flowers. Turns out the dahlias are gigantic (like the size of my head), so I'm saving them for another project. I didn't end up using the lamb's ear this time either.

Settling On A Project/Buying Tools

What I did decide to do is a small floral arrangement in a clear vintage vase. But I wanted to also incorporate tea light candles and a rustic feel in my centerpiece, so I headed to the firewood pile to pick out a suitably sized log. Then, because I'm not really handy with electrical tools (yet!), I researched the type of drill bits required to drill holes in the wood for the tea light candles and vase.

Obviously you need a flat-bottomed hole to keep your tea light candles and vase level. That requires a Forstner bit. I really wasn't sure I wanted to buy a Forstner bit, because I wasn't sure what else I would use it for. But, with my deadline looming, I didn't have time to travel to see friends or family who are better equipped with tools. I ended up getting a set of 16 Forstner bits of various sizes from Canadian Tire. The set was half price ($60). I will now constantly be looking for reasons to drill flat-bottomed holes into things!

What You Need To Make A Fall Floral Log Centerpiece

Wooden log (mine is basically firewood)
Faux Flowers
Drill (Ours is from Ryobi)
Forstner drill bits (a tea light candle without the glass holder requires a 1.5-inch bit; go for the next size up if you have the glass tea light holder; my glass vase needed an even larger Forstner bit, but you'll of course want to measure your vase)
Tea light candles/glass holders
Glass vase
eye protection (wear it while drilling, because the wood pieces fly around)
wire cutter (or something else to cut the stems of your faux flowers)



Once you have your supplies, this project is super simple. My husband measured out and cut the holes in the wooden log because I was having some kind of major stomach episode at the time. Generally experts recommend that you use a drill press for larger Forstner drill bits (maybe 2 inches or more) but my husband was able to cut these holes with a regular drill using some force. Each hole appears to be a little bit different in terms of level than the others, because the wood itself is uneven. Overall he was going for level candles rather than even depth of holes.


I think he did a darn good job, but in any case, this is a rustic sort of project that doesn't call for perfection. Once the holes are cut, you just pop in your tea light candles and your vase.


Arrange your flowers as desired, cutting the stems as needed. Seeing as this is to be a centerpiece, I aimed to have the flower arrangement look round, full and appealing from all sides. I put small rocks in my little vintage vase to keep the faux floral stems from tilting. I also secured the stems together with an elastic, which I hid up under the greenery. I think the mauve and pink spider mums get a nice punch of contrast in both colour and texture from the addition of the berry pods throughout. I like the bark on this side of my diy centerpiece too.


But I think the other side offers another interesting angle, with the roughness of the exposed wood.


This project - my diy fall floral log centerpiece with tea light candles - has definitely changed my opinion about faux flowers. In fact, I'm looking forward to developing a suitable diy for the other lovely flowers and greenery I got from Afloral!

Join Our Instagram Challenge!

This month, share your own faux floral projects on Instagram with the hashtags #12monthsofdiy and #SeptemberFauxFlorals for a chance to be featured on all of our Instagram accounts.

Now it's time to see the rest of the DIY faux floral project ideas from my Canadian blogging friends!

From the top left, they are:

Succulent Naked Cake from Life Is A Party

DIY Fall Floral Log Centerpiece With Tea Light Candles from Woman In Real Life

Daisy Frame Art With Free Printables from Lifeovereasy

Faux Floral Fall Decor from Brooklyn Berry Designs

A Fall Copper Centrepiece from Love Create Celebrate

DIY Vintage Succulent Centerpiece from Vin'yet Etc.

Silk Flower Lighted Branches Floral Arrangement Tutorial from Time With Thea

DIY Faux Floral Art from Heather in Heels

DIY Fall Floral Centrepiece from PMQ for Two

Easy DIY Burlap and Floral Fall Wreath from Sustain My Craft Habit

Faux Floral and Leaf Garland for a Fall Tablescape from The DIY Mommy

Plants for a Windowless Room from Fresh Crush


Aren't they incredible projects? What do you think of faux florals? Have you created any diy projects with them?