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Beach Wedding: Beach Centerpieces Ideas

By Sky Seuring

You want your beach wedding ceremony and reception to be a picture-perfect event where your family and friends come together to share your new-found joy.

It is essential to choose the right centerpieces since these will serve as the focal point of tables at your wedding. Beach centerpieces should be striking and natural-looking. They should blend seamlessly with the beach theme.

The four primary ingredients of wedding beach centerpieces are sand, glass, sea shells and flowers. These ingredients can be easily interchanged allowing for almost infinite centerpiece designs that are dazzling as well as practical.

Here are a few tips on how to create eye-catching centerpieces.

Candles in Vases: This is the easiest design to make. Your starting point is a small transparent glass vase of the type sometimes used to protect candles from the wind. Fill the vase about one-third full with white sand, then put a candle on top of the sand. Put flower leis and sea shells around the vase and light the candle. The result is an easy but classic centerpiece for the tables at your wedding. Beach centerpieces of this type are inexpensive and fun to create, and they're pleasing to the eye.

Tropical Flowers: To create a centerpiece that blends perfectly with beach surroundings, choose a larger vase heavily textured with a sandy, rocky surface. Balance the muted tone of the vase by filling it with zesty red antherium, hibiscus and birds of paradise flowers. Surround the flowers with palm or banana leaves. Add a few large shells and you have an elegant, "beachy" centerpiece to complement your reception.

Beach Buckets: For a less formal, more playful centerpiece, find some small, brightly colored sand buckets of the kind that are designed for toddlers to play with. Arrange a small amount of sand on a table and place one of the buckets into the sand. Fill it about one-quarter of the way up with sand. Set a small votive candle into the sand in the bucket. Arrange starfish, sea shells, sand dollars and seahorses around the outside of the bucket. Light the candle and you will have a stunning beach wedding centerpiece that was easy to make. You can even add a further playful little touch by placing a few miniature rakes on the table. Your guests can then have their own serene little Zen garden.

Dos and Dont's: Here are a few extra tips to keep in mind if guests will remain outdoors for the reception as well as the wedding: Beach sun can quickly wilt flowers on a hot summer day and gentle trade winds can sometimes become wild gusts that can extinguish your candles at the most inopportune moment.

Fortunately, you can avoid this with some planning. If your centerpieces use candles, ensure that they are well shielded. You can use something as simple as a glass to serve this purpose.

Pick flowers that are able to withstand direct sunlight and high heat. Antherium, ginger, bird of paradise and calla lilies are good choices. An experienced florist should be able to assist you in achieving the perfect balance between longevity and beauty.

Don't buy any flowers until you tell your florist you plan to use them on an outdoor wedding beach. Ask your florist to give you one flower so you can test it. Put it in a vase and place it near the planned location of the reception. Keep an eye on it for several hours to see how well it does in the sun and heat.

By using sand, glass, and sea shells with the best flowers, you will be able to create beautiful and expressive table decorations for your wedding. Beach centerpieces should be both fun and economical.

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