How to Make Hanging Flower Globes as Wedding or Party Decorations

Deciding on decorations is often a very tedious part of planning a wedding, a bridal shower, or for parties for any event. Tables, doorways, and even walls are most often the focus of such decoration. But here is an idea for embellishing the empty spaces above with a beautiful hanging globe of silk flowers that is easy to make, even for the non-crafty types! These floral globes are both elegant and unique, and can also be given to your guests as one of a kind party favors.

The items you will need to make a floral globe can be purchased at any craft store, or at most of the "super-stores." Those items are:

A Styrofoam ball; the size is your choice.

A length or roll of satin or other fancy ribbon long enough to wrap around the Styrofoam ball and suspend the ball several feet from the ceiling.

About one silk flower per square inch of the Styrofoam ball. If you are using a small type of flower you may want to use two flowers per square inch. The bigger the size of ball you choose the bigger the flower you should use.

A box of straight pins.

A pair of strong kitchen shears or wire cutters.

First, take the ribbon and pin one end anywhere on the Styrofoam ball. Then wrap the ribbon one time around the ball, securing it every inch or so with a straight pin, until you reach the end you pinned at the start. Leave the leftover ribbon hanging from the ball. (Hint: If you are super crafty you may rather use a hot glue gun to secure the ribbon to the Styrofoam ball.)

Next, using the kitchen shears or wire cutters, trim the stems from your silk flowers about an inch below the actual flower. If you are using a very large Styrofoam ball make your stems longer.

Then, take your silk flowers and push the stems into the Styrofoam until the flower rests against the ball and only little or no stem is showing. A good way to start is by following the edge of the ribbon around the ball. This way the petals of your flowers conceal the ribbon. You can also insert the greenery from the silk flowers in the same way, or, if you prefer, leave some of the greenery attached to the flower when cutting off stems.

Once you have added all your flowers, it's time to hang your floral globe. They look beautiful tied around tree limbs and patio beams for outdoor decorating. For indoor events, they can be suspended from the ceiling, hung from doorways and in windows. Just fashion a simple bow at the top and use gold or silver thumbtacks to anchor the ribbon to its location. They also look stunning hung in groups.

Other ideas for decorating with floral globes includes hanging small ones all around the Christmas tree. Or try using fall colors and suspend half a dozen from your dining room chandelier at Thanksgiving. For Independence Day, stick some small flags in among the flowers. A floral globe can be incorporated into any special occasion or holiday as an elegant decorating option.