I Tried the Viral DIY Pool Noodle Decor Hack, and It Couldn't Be Easier

Hosting a beautiful holiday party is work. Even though it may be time-consuming, it doesn’t have to be stressful. In fact, you can find ways to actually enjoy making your home the most welcoming, warm, and festive version of itself. My favorite way to do this is to incorporate a DIY project — something I can do with my hands — into my party’s decor.

This year, I turned to social media to find the key to the stunning star of my holiday table: a pool noodle. With this viral hack, you can consider your centerpiece sorted in the most unusual and unexpected way.

Using this pliable piece of foam, you can add fresh (or faux) florals and foliage, LED candles, and other festive accessories to create an inexpensive (mine cost about $35) and impactful design.

Below, I walk you through the how-to for this impressive centerpiece. Don’t worry — how easy it is will stay between us.

What You Need

• A pool noodle

• Floral tape or zip ties

• Scissors

• Fresh or faux flowers and greenery

• Coupe or wine glasses (plastic, if you’re prone to accidents!)

• LED candles

• Mini pumpkins (real or decorative), and other accessories

How to Make a Holiday Centerpiece out of a Pool Noodle

1. Fold your pool noodle in half, using floral tape or zip ties to secure it into a tight “U” shape.

2. Wedge the stems of short wine or coupe glasses into the gaps created by the foam structure (the noodle on either side of the glass will help it to stay up). Stick to odd numbers, sprinkling three to five glasses throughout your centerpiece.

3. Starting with your heartier greenery, prep your stems, removing any stray leaves and trimming the stem until there are about 2 inches of “free” wood at the base. You’ll want at least two to three different kinds of greenery for this centerpiece — each with a thick stem that can easily be inserted into the noodle, adding structure to your arrangement.

4. Disperse your branches of greenery around your pool noodle, taking extra care to push the stems into the foam form securely. Alternate the height and direction of your stems to achieve the most full, dynamic look possible.

I had a hard time getting some of the stems into the foam, but I found a solution that made it so easy: Start a hole in the noodle using the tip of your scissors.

5. Once you have a rather full form covered in greenery (it’s OK if a little noodle is still showing at this point), place your noodle at the center of the table where you’ll be dining. From this point on, you’ll want to move it as little as possible!

6. Prep your florals in the same manner that you did your stems of greenery, removing excess leaves and alternating between single stems and larger “bundles” of blooms. Look to mix a variety of colors, textures, and sizes for an eye-catching display.

7. Using your greenery base as support, insert your florals into the centerpiece throughout the form, aiming to balance color and size. In most cases, your blooms will not have stems hearty enough to insert fully into the noodle — that’s OK! Your base of greenery will act as a support system, keeping your flowers in place.

8. Step back to assess your centerpiece, adding extra greenery or flowers anywhere you can see a peek of pool noodle.

9. Finish by dotting your table with any extras, like mini pumpkins. Add glowing LED tealights to your small wine glasses in the centerpiece — you can see I started with real candles, but opted to stick with the LED version so I didn’t risk anything with open flames around the foliage.

When all that’s set, you’re ready to impress your guests (and yourself!).

The Result

I was so surprised by how beautiful this one turned out! The pool noodle acted as a sturdy and helpful foundation, mimicking the impact of floral foam to help everything stay securely in place (including delicate glassware!).

I already had most of the supplies I needed (most importantly, a pool noodle!), but even if you need to buy the foliage, floral tape, and LED candles, you could do it for about $40 or $45, which is much less than you’d pay for a professional centerpiece.

The whole process was so fun, and I can’t wait to try this centerpiece strategy again throughout the year — I think it would work great for Christmas, Hanukkah, or even a birthday party!

Further Reading

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