Wedding Centerpiece Tutorial

There's a contest next month on Craftster.org for the best craft tutorial. I've never made a tutorial before because I'm not the best at explaining things sometimes so bare with me on this.

I made these centerpieces last month for my brothers wedding and luckily enough I took several pictures during the processes. Here's an example of the final product:

Things you will need:

• Terra Cotta Tiles
• A whole lot of skinny twigs, Approx. 5-8 inches long
• Spray paint for the tiles (If you don't want the terra cotta natural color.)
• Hot glue gun
• Electric drill w/ masonry bit
• Fresh flowers
• Candle for center
• Assorted beads(optional)

Steps:

1. Drill holes into the tiles. I kind of just randomly went about the border of the tile and drilled in sort of a zigzag line. But You can make a straight line of wholes if you like. Its really however you prefer. Drill only about 3/4 of the way into the tile. No biggy if you go all the way through though.(But try at least not to.) Note: If you're going to paint the tiles, be sure to do this AFTER drilling the holes. Otherwise, you'll find yourself repainting them like I had to because the paint chipped off around the drilled holes.

2. Dust off the tiles and wipe down with a wet rag. Let dry.

3. Paint! Be sure to do so in a well ventilated area. If using spray paint, it's best to apply two coats as per the cans instructions. I used Krylon Brushed Metallic in Champange.

4. Use the Hot Glue Gun to glue the twigs into your drilled holes. I apologize for not having a photo of this step but this part is a two handed kinda deal. Put the glue directly into the hole then place one twig into the hole and hold it there for a about 10 to 15 seconds to let the glue set. It the twig is a little too large for the whole, carefully widdle down the bottom a bit with a knife until it fits.

5. Once all the twigs are in place, take a fresh(or fake) flower of your choice and weave the stem gently through the twigs. Obviously, if you're using fresh flowers you wouldn't want to do this step until you're actually going to use the centerpiece.

6. Once you have the centerpiece place in its desired location, place your candle in the center of the tile. I then sprinkled brown glass beads around the candle for a little extra sparkle. I didn't use anything to stick the beads to the tile so after this step, moving the centerpiece isn't much of an option unless you scoop up the beads first.

So now your centerpiece is complete! Yay!! I made about 10 of these and it took a total of about 6 hours to complete. Probably would have gone quicker if I was making them outside in 104 degree weather. Yuck. Here's a final look at the centerpiece outside at night...