DECOR Create a stunning centerpiece for autumn

Subtlety makes a bigger statement with fall arrangements.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- It's autumn, that sometimes misty, often bright, usually mellow, rarely boring time of year when people start getting the urge to entertain.
Dare we ask: Is your centerpiece ready?
And, will it be the usual? An assembly of orange pumpkin or gourds, brightly dyed red and yellow leaves and bold gold chrysanthemums.
Or will it be different? Something ahead of the usual, yet still a salute to the season.
For advice, we sought David Wynn, co-owner of Elizabeth House Flowers in Charlotte for 16 years, a designer for 28 years, and someone widely admired for his talent with flowers and foliage. This is someone who can put purple onions and orchids together in memorable fashion.
For autumn, he brings other ideas to the table that emphasize the season's subtle tones and shades of mauve and pink, while giving spark with dashes of fall's signature colors, red and orange. Yes, orange.
Quiet statement
A major error people often make with a seasonal arrangement, he says, is they let it scream and shout rather than speak softly.
"You want some subtlety, and something that is not trite. It just doesn't always have to scream 'the season."'
Leafless stems of curly willow quietly say autumn, just as stems opening their leaf or flower buds say spring. Quietly.
A green artichoke, its leaves still tightly folded, says summer. A mature artichoke, the darker leaves unfolding and possessing soft markings of mauve, says autumn. Quietly.
Red chrysanthemums say Christmas. Loudly.
Red roses say Valentine's Day. Very loudly.
"Every season," says Wynn, "has its own clich & eacute;s, but I think you can avoid that -- by recognizing them and giving some thought to it.
"For Christmas, everybody seems to buy balsam and pine. Those are great, but there are also junipers, cedars, magnolias, all kinds of beautiful things."
But combinations of darker and lighter foliage, needle-leaf and broad-leaf evergreens offer a more interesting look gained from the contrasts in texture and varying shades of green.
With autumn, Wynn points, out, "Nature shows the season changing in subtle ways."
A floral designer looks for these subtleties: a rosy margin on green leaves no longer shiny green but darkening, leaves with mellow bronzing or striations of soft purple or burgundy. All say the season, in calm, subtle ways.
Wynn's company is well-known for its use of garden flowers and foliage from the landscape as well as florist flowers in its distinctive designs. While many flowerbeds are winding down for season, Wynn noted that people should look in their gardens for such choice things as hydrangeas, berries and even roses that are well worth incorporating into a design. Cut flowers from shops can supplement garden flowers.
Fruits, including ones from the store or farmer's market, and ones from the garden make important contributions to color, texture and overall impact, Wynn explains. Most fruits possess a seasonal aura, and some often bring just the right color you need for an arrangement. These include artichokes, which possess interesting form and texture, and pomegranates, whose subtle colors suit autumn, make highly useful choices. So do the blue-black berries and burnished green leaves of Japanese ligustrum, a common evergreen.
Orange
And then there is the matter of orange, one of autumn's signature colors.
"Orange gets a bad rap," says Wynn, because it's often seen as too bright and bold. But it's effective in floral designs, particularly when used as an accent piece: yellow roses with margins tinged in orange. Orange surprises people, particularly when they see how well it goes with pink. Both colors can spark up an autumn arrangement, while avoiding any hint of clich & eacute;.
Then, he says, "Orange becomes like a nice piece of jewelry to an outfit. It gives life to the arrangement. But the dyed orange leaves -- it's pretty jarring."
Wynn offered this process for making a centerpiece:
UStep 1: He uses waterproof tape to anchor deluxe floral foam capable of supporting heavy materials into a bowl. Then he sets the width and height of the arrangement with leafless branches and branches with pomegranates. Next he sets in the artichokes, ensuring they are set at slightly different heights and a little off center. The hydrangeas will follow.
UStep 2: Wynn adds more pomegranates as the centerpiece takes shape with a combination of smooth and rough textures.
UStep 3: He uses calla lilies in groups of three blooms for best impact. Now, he adds the more fragile lilies to the top and sides.
UStep 4: He finishes the centerpiece by adding stems of seeded eucalyptus to make a full but uncluttered look.