Transform Extra Produce From Your Garden Into A Stunning Floral Accent Piece

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

Anyone who has ever worked with fresh flowers and produce knows that these things are ephemeral — beautiful plants and tasty treats to enjoy in the few moments after they're plucked. Instagrammer @glenn.arvor captured the fleeting nature of these goods when assembling a vase made of orange-yellow long sweet peppers and bamboo skewers. This colorful vessel was filled with an explosion of peonies, tulips, and delicate greenery. It's a stunning floral centerpiece that follows a delicious decor trend that puts food at its center, and which, despite its delicate base, has the surprising ability to stand on its own veggie feet.

Given the always unpredictable, sometimes unruly nature of how long sweet peppers grow, making one of these arrangements yourself will require you to use your personal judgment. That is to say, while @glenn.arvor used about seven or eight peppers in total to make this living vase – five with their tops cut off and another two or three for appearance's sake — the number of peppers you may require to make this DIY may differ. The peppers will eventually be filled with water and flower stems, so they need to be long enough to hold the stems so that the flowers don't fall over. The veggies also need to be wide enough to accommodate a bit of water. Aside from this, you'll need a sharp knife, bamboo skewers from the Fu Store, the fresh flowers and greenery of your choice, scissors, and a bottle of water, which you'll use to fill the pepper vases with.

Because these items are fresh, you'll want to wash them thoroughly to rid them of any debris and dirt, particularly if they've come from your garden. Check both flower and fruit for bugs as well since the finished vase will go on your table as a centerpiece. To do this, you'll want to hold the flowers upside down and give them a gentle shake to dislodge any critters. Also check the undersides of their leaves and heads for insects and eggs. They might also need a good rinse under water and time to dry before you move on.

Once you've done your inspection and washed the peppers, dry them with a towel and cut the tops off three to five of the long sweet peppers. Pierce them just below the top of the veggie vase with the bamboo skewers, arranging them in such a way that they lean on one another. Continue to connect them to each other with the skewers until you have a base of vegetables that can stand up without you holding them up. You'll then add extra peppers, with the tops on, to the outer edges of the vase to create additional support and to give it a more polished look.

Before you fill the fresh peppers with water for the flowers, trim the stems of the cut flowers at a 45-degree angle. This trick keeps the flowers fresher longer. Additionally, you'll want to cut some of the leaves off of the flowers and greenery to ensure that everything will fit into the pepper vases without falling over.

Long sweet peppers come in an assortment of colors, ranging from yellow to deep red. To create a more colorful vase, choose peppers of different colors to be a part of your vase. Additionally, you may want to buy some regular bell peppers in different colors, along with some mini sweet peppers, to arrange around the base of the vase. These do not need to be skewered to the base of the vase. Rather, you can lay them on the table around the vase to add an additional decorative element to the arrangement.

Edible flowers are another thing to consider for this arrangement if you want to play up the foodie aspect of this more. Begonia and broccoli flowers, basil blossoms, carnations, and chocolate bellflowers count among the flowers that are edible and which would look lovely on the centerpiece. Of equal importance here is what you do with them outside of the arrangement, meaning you could use the flowers as an extension of the theme you've chosen for dinner. That is, you could feature edible flowers in your salad or in the ice cubes for your cocktails and then also add them to the pepper vase to create a cohesive theme between dinner and decor.