Ever since I had the idea of sharing this craft / recipe with you guys I have been overly excited! Just ask my husband! I am sure he would confirm. One of the reasons is, if you have ever been online to order a fruit arrangement you know how crazy expensive they are! Cra-zy expensive! I think I figured out why…
This project takes a little bit of time, especially if you have little hands wanting to help! All together this probably took me about 2 – 2 ½ hours. Not too bad. But the great part is that to buy a bouquet like this online would have easily cost over $50 plus shipping! I made mine for around $15! Worth it! Right?!
Let’s jump right in so you can get started on your project! This is my first attempt at making a fruit bouquet and I will include in this tutorial all things that I plan on changing next time. Hopefully this will help make your first time more successful and a smoother process then mine was!
Things you will be needing:
An assortment of your favorite fruit (strawberries, apples, pineapple, cantelope, honey dew, grapes)
Skewer sticks
Foam base
Container or vase
Chocolate for dipping
Cookies and candy bars for dipping
Cellophane Tissue Paper
Decorative knife
Cookie cutter – medium size of your choice of shape
You have to make your foam base fit into the container that you are using for the base. I suggest using a simple round or square container. The basket shape I used was a little tricky when it came to shaving down the foam to fit. This is where I had to spend a little time.
Next, I cut small squares out of the cellophane paper, scrunched it up to create a flower bud like shape (yeah, see picture for better detail), then used hot glue to attach to the foam. A little time consuming. Let me know if you find a different way to cover up the foam!
First thing I did fruit wise was dip my strawberries and apple slices in chocolate and candy. I messed up a little bit here. I used mini semisweet chocolate chips and melted with a little milk. I think next time I am going to use melting chocolates. My chocolate didn’t harden very well and ended up with a little bit of a grainy consistency. (I’m pretty sure I didn’t over heat it) Once everything is dipped I placed them in the fridge to help speed up the drying process. You want to let all of the chocolate cool completely before you start to assemble the bouquet.
Helpful tip! Before dipping any of your apples I found it super helpful to stick the fruit on the skewer first. Don’t worry about the length of the stick because you can cut that later. With the fruit on the stick first, it is a lot easier to dip with out making a huge mess and this technique also gives you an easy way to let the chocolate dry without making a flat spot.
While the chocolate fruit were drying I started cutting up my other fruit, starting with the cantaloupe and melon. All I simply did for these melons was cut them in small wedges, then cut those in half. You don’t want to make the wedges too thin because after you slice up the melons you can go back through and give them some character by using your decorative knife and do a slim trim around one or two edges. (I tried dressing up all edges, it didn’t look very good)
The pineapple is where your cookie cutters come in handy. A sturdy metal cookie cutter works best. Start by removing all the skin and the top from the fruit. Now make horizontal slices through the pineapple. Each piece should be about ¼ to ½ an inch thick. Now go back through your pineapple slices and use your cookie cutter to cut out cute shapes. Make sure to keep the core centered in your cutout.
You’re now ready to start putting together your arrangement. I found it easiest to estimate about how long I wanted the sticks to be, varying in length, and cut before sticking on the fruit. Make sure to measure on the long side because you can always cut more off but you can’t make it longer.
Once the sticks are cut, you can add your fruit and start arranging. (This was my favorite part!) Some things I learned about arranging the fruit… One, start working your way from the lower levels and from the center working your way out. Two, if you do decide to use dipped fruit, following advice from step one, but start by placing the dipped fruit first. Having to snuggle in some chocolate covered fruit is a lot harder to do when there are other pieces in your way. Three, I will place the fruit closer together and do tiered levels rather than trying to make it look so random.
Well, that’s it! Not super complicated. Hopefully you can use the tips I learned from this first go around. I am excited to try this out again using my own tips I gained from this learning experience today. If you decide to try this out I would LOVE to see how it looks! Tag me @penniesintopearls on Facebook and Instagram!
Your arrangement is the perfect gift or centerpiece for the next party! No one will know that you didn’t spend a ton of money on this adorable piece! (Unless you want to tell everyone that you are amazing and YOU made this! Impressive!) Have fun!
Sharing ideas over at:
Roopini
February 2, 2015 at 1:50 pmIt looks great and delicious. Makes a perfect gift for anybody.
Thank you for sharing 🙂
Roopini
Let’s Make It Lovely
Brittany Cooper
February 4, 2015 at 7:48 amThanks Roopini for stopping by! They really are a great gift! When you walk in with one everyone stops to talk about it!
Mimi
February 2, 2015 at 3:29 pmHi Brittany. You are one smart cookie. This looks impossibly good! Thanks for sharing at my Five Star Frugal Linkup. Mimi…xxx
Brittany Cooper
February 4, 2015 at 7:47 amThanks Mimi! I do love a great party! This was a fun project for sure!
Gloria
February 3, 2015 at 2:08 amCool
Brittany Cooper
February 4, 2015 at 7:45 amThanks Gloria!
Lee
February 4, 2015 at 5:43 pmvery cute! thanks for linking up on Wellness Wednesday
Brittany Cooper
February 5, 2015 at 3:28 pmThanks for stopping by Lee and for the great party!