How to Make a Silk Flower Arrangement in a Tall Vase

Cut a piece of Styrofoam to fit securely in the vase using a serrated knife. If there are gaps, fill them with scraps of foam. Tall vases often require several blocks of foam stacked on top of each other to provide a sturdy base for the arrangement.

Spray the top of the foam in the vase with spray adhesive. Pull apart pieces of moss and press them onto the glue-covered foam.

Open the packages of silk flowers. Spread them out, fluffing the blossoms and spreading out leaves if they have gotten pressed flat in the packaging. Also remove any tags or stickers.

Picture what you want the finished arrangement to look like.

Arrange your primary, or focal flowers. Hold one stem up to the vase and gauge if you need to cut off some the stem length to fit the vase. If so, use cutting pliers to trim the stem at an angle. The angle makes it easier to pierce through the foam. Push the stem into position, securing it in the Styrofoam. Place the rest of the focal flowers. Vary the height of the blossoms to give interest to the eye.

Add floral picks, using floral wire, to the stems if you cut any too short or they did not come long enough to fit securely in the tall vase. To do this, overlap the pick and the bottom of the stem by about 2 inches and tightly spiral floral wire around them both.

Bend the wired stems and leaves to your liking and so they look natural. Picture fresh plants and how they curve or sometimes twist.

Insert your other flowers between the focal flowers. Arrange the wired leaves and curve the stems for a natural effect.

Add greenery around the outside edge of the arrangement for fullness. Insert branches throughout the arrangement for extra height.

Step back and look at your arrangement. Make adjustments as needed. For instance, if the focal flowers are too far in, pull them out of the foam a little. As a final check, turn the vase and look at it from different angles.