The center of attention: An easy-to-make holiday centerpiece

Here's an easy way to make a centerpiece that will impress guests at Christmas dinner.

I can say it's easy because my daughter made ours in a class at Cantigny Park. I just watched and asked questions.

"I think the difficult part would be gathering all the supplies," said Joy Kane, my 23-year-old daughter. "It was easier in class because everything was laid out in front of us, and we knew what the finished product was supposed to look like."

If you think you might need help, Janet Gallagher, who teaches in the horticulture department at Kishwaukee College in Malta, Ill., is offering a class Dec. 20 in the Cantigny greenhouse in Wheaton.

Two things you can trust me on are that the flowers stay attractive for days, and the centerpieces are easy to transport. Ours traveled more than 300 miles to star at Christmas Eve dinner in Iowa last year.

For a centerpiece that looks like decorated Christmas gifts, start with a brick of Oasis floral foam -- the type that's called wet -- and soak it in water, said Gallagher, a Geneva resident.

She likes using three sizes of foam bricks -- standard and another cut into two pieces that are one-third and two-thirds regular size.

Supplies should be available at your neighborhood florist, and craft stores have some.

Wrap each brick in decorative poly foil, a special water-proof material, and printed cellophane. These go on the package together.

"The main thing is have the seam on the top so the water does not leak out," Gallagher said.

The wrapping is fastened to the brick with greening pins.

"It was a little difficult to deal with the wet block," said Joy. "The paper slipped a little bit."

A sharp knife is used to put a short slit in the top of the wrapping and into the foam so a sprig of long-living flowers can be inserted.

Flower ideas include pink wax flowers, starburst and snowflake chrysanthemums and orchids.

Other decorations on the "gifts" are small springs of greenery like incense cedar and pine, holly, pine cones, small glass balls and ribbon and bows, of course.

The stems of the flowers and greenery go right into the brick so they can take advantage of the water supply.

If the other decorations do not have a wire or stem, they can be wired to a floral pick that is pressed into the package.

"It was fun," said Joy. "I liked meeting other people who are into crafts and learning from them.

"We made a non-traditional centerpiece that looked really nice."

Advice from the pros

Here are some tips for making "gift" centerpieces from Janet Gallagher, horticulture teacher at Kishwaukee College in Malta.

• Pull extra greenery from the stem before you put it into your package.

"Sometimes less is more," said the teacher.

• Put one type of greenery like incense cedar on one side and pine on the other -- not a big fluff ball in the center.

• Keep the bow small. Twist the ribbon to make loops for bows. Many people find wired ribbon is easier to work with.

• Once you insert a floral pick, don't move it at all because the hole will get bigger and the pick will loosen.

A good thing about wood picks is that they swell when wet, then stay in the foam better.

• If the greenery -- such as the incense cypress -- is floppy and not woody, cut it with a nice straight cut and hold it close to the end when you push it into the package.

• To transport a finished centerpiece, put the pieces in a box and stuff balled newspaper around them so they can't move.

• And Janet will disagree with me, but I like to have something waterproof under the centerpiece to protect the table, such as a platter, plates or even a place mat.