In honor of Earth Day, I’m sharing this easy tutorial for creating your own chic, eco-friendly bouquet.   Sola wood flowers, sometimes also called tapioca wood flowers, are an entirely natural product derived from the tapioca plant.  They can be purchased here.

For this bouquet, I used a mixture of sola daisies with thistle centers, shell flowers and tallow berries.

Because the flowers are soft, they are quite easy to pierce with floral wire and arrange into bundles.

Once you’ve created several bundles, use floral table to bind them together.  Arrange your bundles into a bouquet and wrap the stems in a ribbon of your choice.

Sit back and marvel at your creation!  I had a few stems leftover and they were just enough to create a matching boutonniere.  And the best part – your bouquet will live on indefinitely.  I love the idea of tucking it into a bookshelf as a sweet memento of your wedding day.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my little run down of the common elements in fantastic, swoon-worthy treat tables. I really believe using these 6 tips, you’ll be well on your way to creating some amazing interactive displays at your wedding.

Whether it’s a candy buffet, a gourmet popcorn spread or a table inspired by the season or your event location, a little planning, creativity, and someone like me obsessing over all the details and then reporting them back to you is all you need! I hope you find these helpful and inspiring.

So tell me…what kind of interesting, personalized treat table are you planning?

And just so you have all the tips in one, succinct spot, here they are again:

Tip #1: Arrange toward the center

Tip #2:  Elevate your table elements

Tip #3:  Keep colors to a minimum

Tip #4:  Get busy labeling

Tip #5:  Use creative filler materials

Tip #6:  Symmetry is your friend

{Photo credits:  Amy Atlas}

Tip #6:  Arrange your items simply and with an eye toward symmetry

Really you needn’t look any further for proof of this than the work of the reigning queen of treat tables, Amy Atlas.   Creating clean, easy to digest (no pun intended!) lines is a feast for the eyes.  Less really is more!

Keep things low on fussiness and high on style by choosing low profile trays and containers (I love these from CB2) and setting your smaller items toward the front of your table on them.

{Photo credits: Top row: Martha Stewart Weddings; Bottom row:  Martha Stewart Weddings, Amy Atlas}

Tip #5:  Fill up those trays with creative, edible “fillers”

Overkill?  Practically speaking, of course.  But who cares, it’s so cute!  If you’re not lining your trays in a coordinating, decorative paper like I did, consider returning to your list of brainstormed “themes” for inspiration on container fillers.  The sky is really the limit here but think of it as another opportunity to introduce texture and coordinating color to your table.

Try to keep fillers edible if you’ll be setting treats right down into them.  I mean sea glass might look great but do you necessarily want to eat cookies that have been sitting on it?  Probably not.  Think small candies, dragees, colored sugar and edible pearls.  CakeArt is a great source for all things edible and decorative.

{Photo credits:  Top row: Eat, Drink, Chic, Martha Stewart Wedddings; Bottom row:  Amy Atlas}

Tip #4 :  Get busy labeling!

One of the defining characteristics of all those magazine spreads we drool over is the adorable labels.  It may seem like overkill to label items as clear as jelly beans but I promise, your guests will appreciate the guidance. 

On a practical note, with the proliferation of nut allergies these days, labeling is an easy way to prevent a mini-disaster at your wedding!