Although my parents live only 7 minutes away, they don't often come for dinner. So when they do, it is reason for celebration, and a good excuse to cut something from my garden to create a centerpiece. This was the one we enjoyed this weekend :
Here's a closeup:
The purple berries in the center are from my Callicarpa (beauty berry) bush. They are accompanied by bright red rose hips from my wild rose bush, and the purple leaves from a purple Cotinus (smoke bush). It seemed to be the only bush which didn't drop its leaves as I tried to cut a branch. The leaves placed around the arrangement are from my Liquidambar (sweet gum) tree. The little rings around the candleholders are not from the garden, they are a wood and silk set I received from my neighbor Helen a few years ago. They matched the fall colours well.