Celebrate Summer with a DIY Seasonal Centerpiece
Bedeck your table with summery fun when you whip up a homemade centerpiece that showcases the season

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Mix it Up
Select items featuring a variety of heights, textures and hues to create visual excitement. Try standing tall flowers inside a low-slung vase, and accent with relatively small fruit such as cherries.
Add Color
Be sure to incorporate boldly colored fruits and citrus like cherries, pomegranates, apricots or plums. Then accent with complementary, but more muted elements to really make the colors pop.
Adjust the Contrast
Match plain looking flowers with colorful fruits and veggies, and vice versa. Whatever you do, avoid the temptation to make your entire centerpiece from a single color, or you’ll risk each ingredient losing its identity and blending into the mass.
Be Firm
Stay away from soft fruits such as strawberries or bananas, which tend to muddle up the water in a floating centerpiece.
Go Green
Colorful fruits and flowers are always a sure bet, but don’t forget the abundance of verdant summer herbs and fresh-plucked produce. Think fragrant mint leaves, colorful corn on the cob, regal purple eggplant or all varieties of summer squash.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cheryl Najafi
Emerging star on the lifestyle scene, Cheryl Najafi is a NY Times best-selling author, speaker, and CEO of leading lifestyle media company, CherylStyle. Founded as the culmination of Cheryl’s lifelong mission to get people to “break the rules of proper entertaining,” CherylStyle is brimming with expert tips for your next great gathering. Cheryl’s book, “You’re So Invited: Panic Less, Play More, And Get Your Party On!” hit #1 on Barnes&Noble.com, supported by a 17-city book tour featuring speaking appearances at Pottery Barn stores nationwide. To learn more, please visit http://cherylstyle.com.
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