Brides who did DIY Eiffel tower vase centerpieces

I haven't done them but it appears that all you really need is a Styrofoam ball with a dowel stuck in it to form the base for flowers. But I think that set up is best suited for silk flowers. For real flowers, all the set ups I've seen are green floral foam balls with a water reservoir attached in the form of a stake.

I found a six pack on Amazon:

On 2nd thought, these may be better if you're using real flowers:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00XI479R2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_buShAb11ZDKAF

Ahhh, those look like the bouquet things, clever.

Not using real flowers!

If the vases are clear and you use the foam pieces pictured above (those are bouquet holders, by the way) you'll have 2 things happening: You'll see the white handle through the glass, and it'll be swiveling and bobbing all over the place unbalanced in the top of the vase. If it doesn't fall straight to the bottom first.

My suggestion? Do not try doing a mechanically elaborate setup like this yourself, you'll end up with a mess and a whole lot of stress on wedding day. However, if you must try it, you're going to need a design dish (sized precisely to the opening of the vase so it doesn't fall in) secured with waterproof adhesive, with a pre-soaked and pre-treated fresh floral foam sitting in it...you'll need to use a floral preservative. The foam then needs to be secured to the design dish so it doesn't tip. You insert your florals into the foam. Then you treat the foam again with a floral adhesive so your stems don't come out once inserted. Then you need to treat the flowers with a sprayed-on finish so that they don't wilt. All of this will either have to be done the day before your wedding, or you'll need a walk-in cooler to store them.

Keep in mind that you will have to figure out how to transport your finished design dishes to the venue. You'll probably lose some stems on the way through all the jostling so you'll need to bring extra flowers to do touch ups once you get there. The assembly to the top of the vases will have to be done once you actually get them on the tables. You need to make sure the vases are stable and balanced once the flowers are placed on top. Hanging crystals will make that pretty difficult, honestly I'd just skip that for a DIY...that's just one more element you'll have to assemble once you're on site.

All that to say, there is a lot more involved in elevated centerpieces than you probably realize. Many of the supplies I listed above are things that I have to order specially from my floral supply wholesalers and are extremely expensive to buy retail, though most can be purchased individually on Amazon. I'd guess you're looking at about $200 worth of supplies alone, not to mention your flowers. If you want to take it on, fair enough and best of luck, but temper your expectations of the final product and expect to do all the work on your wedding day.

ETA: Just saw the update that you're not using real flowers. Same rules will apply except for the preservatives. Although, make sure you're using good quality silks - centerpieces like this will look cheap and tacky if your flowers are obviously fake.

Thank you for the suggestions!

I'm with Talia on this one, on every one of her points. Even with fake flowers, you're looking an alligator in the mouth with this one.

I'm with Talia on this one, on every one of her points. Even with fake flowers, you're looking an alligator in the mouth with this one.

I'm with Talia on this one, on every one of her points. Even with fake flowers, you're looking an alligator in the mouth with this one.