# Oak Tree: Groom's Table Centerpiece W.I.P.



## Lord Homicide (May 11, 2012)

*EDIT: Keep in mind, my groom's table theme is Halloween-ish*

Goal*
I'm creating a centerpiece for my groom's table to hold cupcakes in lieu of a groom's cake. Of course, if all this fails, I'll go with a cake.

*Back story*
This past weekend my fiancee saw a 3' tall, tree trunk plant stand at Home Cheapo and thought it would look good as the centerpiece for my groom's table. It was $100 so I didn't buy it. Instead I searched for a dead oak tree that day to cut a gnarled limb off and make my own. I found one that looked pretty cool. I got it to the house, cut the end off square to mount it on a 2x10 so I can work with it. After debarking it, the branch itself has a neat looking texture that is a lot better looking than the bark. Below are some pictures (more in my profile) of the progress so far.

* Dimensions*
38" tall
36" wide (approx, from branchling to branchling)

I'm open for suggestions on the look of this... Moss will be added in parts.

Branch mounted









Upclose view of the texture after being stripped of bark









Threaded rod (all thread) cut and screwed into branchling.









All thread, fender washers and cap nut. The Dollar Tree nickle plated round plate cinches in between the fender washers for stability. It's pretty structurally sound when put together. Don't know why I didn't take any pictures of the plate on it.


----------



## Dark Angel 27 (Sep 11, 2008)

That looks nice and creepy! Perfect choice!


----------



## Pumpkin5 (Aug 8, 2010)

:jol: I like it, I had no idea what you were using it for when I saw it on your profile page.(ha ha...I just thought...The Halloween Tree....duh!) I love the concept...along with the moss an owl sitting in the branches might look good oh and you should get one of those "vapor misters" and have it going at the bottom....which would create a little fog at the base of the tree....but they do splash a bit of water around, but the effect would be way cool. It sort of reminds me of the tree in the Tim Burton movie that the Headless Hessian soldier was buried in/under/whatever...where the Horseman jumped into after a night of beheading and fun. I really love the bark of that tree....it is beyond creepy.


----------



## CreeepyCathy (Mar 28, 2009)

looks great! very creeepy!!


----------



## Copchick (Apr 10, 2012)

That tree has so much texture that I would be minimalistic with any decor. If anything, a little spanish moss hanging from the branches. Love that texture on the branches!


----------



## Hairazor (Mar 13, 2012)

The limb texture is gnarly cool. A bit of stragic lighting would be nice. I agree with Copchick, less is more.


----------



## debbie5 (Mar 2, 2007)

Ok..so maybe Im a Debbie Downer, but I would not chance my entire tree FULL of cupcakes falling over due to some boob bumping into it, or a branch giving way. 
But I always think of "what would be the worse case scenario & would it spoil my day?" cuz that's how I roll...I'm an over-planner. I would use the branch to decorate the table, maybe with all black and white/silver/polka dots (my favs) accents...but..the branch holding stuff up scares me. The only way I might use it is to put a few cupcakes in little web-like swing-slings in the tree, but have the majority of the cupcakes actually ON the table, spread out in bunches on various levels...

if u do use the branch, I'd make sure it was sealed with some type of matte sealer to keep dusty pieces from falling off into other foods or on the table.


----------



## Lord Homicide (May 11, 2012)

Thank you for the comments everyone.

*@Copchick*: I completely agree. I'll research some moss types and add a little.
*@Debbie*: are you telling me to paint it polka dotted?? I've blown off all debris with an air compressor and brushed it for good measure.

More progress. Instead of screwing the all thread into the branch, I drilled a 5/16" pilot hole and put a #8-32 insert nut in the branch so the threaded rod screws into that.

Please don't tell me it looks like a bird perch with feeding plates, I already know that . The plates will probably be replaced by larger platforms painted black then decked out.

An angled side view.









Top view.


----------



## Dark Angel 27 (Sep 11, 2008)

that looks awesome!


----------



## Copchick (Apr 10, 2012)

Good visual with the plates in postion.


----------



## Lord Homicide (May 11, 2012)

*Groom's Table in Action*

Groom's table in action. Pardon the blurriness of some pics... I didn't take any of these and am waiting for more to surface.

The table linen was silver with a lace spider web overlay. My sister did an amazing job transforming the cheap walmart garland into a partial Haunt Mansion Holiday style wreath. She found a battery operated Christmas ornament light strand to weave into it. Pro pics to follow when I get them.

The pumpkins did not light up like I wanted them to. I melted all the battery pack contacts when I tried soldering the LED wires to them. That sucked

The tree was southern engineered on the spot (I'll brag on myself about that) and varies from the fastening design. The cupcakes were the biggest let down because they did not put the peanut butter cream filling in them.........

I put pumpkins on the platter cap nuts to conceal them. I was shocked that the oak branch held up like it did. There was a branch that wobbled a little bit when I was locking everything down to the 3' plywood round.


----------



## Zurgh (Dec 21, 2009)

That turned out badass! Great work, LH!


----------



## Frighteners Entertainment (Jan 24, 2006)

really cool!


----------



## scarrycher (May 30, 2012)

very nice job, and super cool that your new wify went along with the theme!! congrats!!!


----------



## Pumpkin5 (Aug 8, 2010)

:jol:Gosh LordH, I have to say it...you really out did yourself ...Hell, truth be told you out did a LOT of people. That looks unbelievably cool and I love, love, LOVE the Jack Cupcakes. Nice work, my friend!
(I still can't get over how great the book turned out, it looks like it fell right out of a Burton movie...)
P.S. Also your candles really are a mood setter and the little pumpkins are glowing so good!


----------



## Hairazor (Mar 13, 2012)

Hot dang!! How many people would find that branch and conjure up this finished work of art? LOVE it!!


----------



## Lord Homicide (May 11, 2012)

Thank y'all for the praise! I was honestly shocked when it was all said and done..... Thanks to everyone who helped directly or indirectly. A special thanks to a friend that helped me with the book and had a lot of patience! A finally another huge thank you to my sister who brought it all together with the wreath encompassing the miniature set.



scarrycher said:


> very nice job, and super cool that your new wify went along with the theme!! congrats!!!


LOL no kidding, she's pretty cool! She was the one who coined the pun "Nightmare AFTER Christmas..."



Pumpkin5 said:


> :jol:Gosh LordH, I have to say it...you really out did yourself ...Hell, truth be told you out did a LOT of people. That looks unbelievably cool and I love, love, LOVE the Jack Cupcakes. Nice work, my friend!
> (I still can't get over how great the book turned out, it looks like it fell right out of a Burton movie...)
> P.S. Also your candles really are a mood setter and the little pumpkins are glowing so good!


Thank you J, that's rad! The pumpkins did not end up glowing because I melted the battery holder contacts when I soldered them together. My sister's quick wit led her to get battery op'd christmas ornament LED lights to weave in the wreath thing.



Hairazor said:


> Hot dang!! How many people would find that branch and conjure up this finished work of art? LOVE it!!


Crazy huh??? The tree idea was originally supposed to be the skeleton tree from the movie but couldn't find the right looking branch at the time.


----------



## Pumpkin5 (Aug 8, 2010)

:jol:Kudos to your sister's quick thinking LordH! I couldn't even tell it wasn't the pumpkins glowing...it really is lovely in a very _Burtonish_ way.


----------



## RoxyBlue (Oct 6, 2008)

Your display looks absolutely beautiful and professionally done.


----------



## the bloody chef (Dec 14, 2012)

Crazy huh??? The tree idea was originally supposed to be the skeleton tree from the movie but couldn't find the right looking branch at the time.[/QUOTE]

That's awesome! I wish I had seen this when I was a caterer...it would be a great addition to numerous buffet tables and can be decorated a million ways! I hope you saved it! Maybe you can start a business marketing them to caterers! Great job!


----------



## Lunatic (Oct 3, 2006)

Bravo LH! 
Well executed and beautiful concept.
Congratulations to the bride and groom!


----------



## halstaff (Nov 18, 2009)

Wow! That came out great. I'm sure it added a lot to your special day.


----------



## Copchick (Apr 10, 2012)

Lord H, that really came out absolutely stunning! I love that tree, and your sister did a great job with the wreath encompassing it all. There's so much to look at, so much detail. The book is nice too. You brought it all together and it turned out great!


----------



## MommaMoose (May 15, 2010)

Had to show my friends that are getting married in Dec. He absolutely loved it! She wasn't to crazy about the skellys hanging from the tree but she to loved it. Then they asked me if I could do something just like it. I laughed and told them that I was not as talented as you are. Truly amazing! My hat is off to you sir.


----------



## Death's Door (Mar 22, 2006)

Hey LordH - that is an amazing display!!!! Everything on that table compliments each other. Your sister is very talented and so are you. Beautifully done!!!


----------



## Lord Homicide (May 11, 2012)

Thank you again everyone!

Two pics from the photographers... don't know why they didn't get more.....

My favorite pic and also the one that makes me cringe... I can just imagine the pumpkins lit up like JOLs........ damn soldering iron!!









I wish I could have made the bookmarker a little more interesting.


----------



## Hairazor (Mar 13, 2012)

Those little pumpkins are a total delight on their own even without lights. No one would even know they should be lit unless you told them. As far as the bookmark, sometimes less is more! I think the swirly grayish stuff scattered around the pumpkins was a great touch!


----------



## scareme (Aug 29, 2006)

Wow! This is just so awesome. What were some of the comments from your guests? And I spent a while trying to figure out what kind of tree that came from, until I read your post about it being Oak. I would have never guessed that. I was thinking more crepe myrtle. You and your sister did a great job. Thanks for sharing with us.


----------



## Lord Homicide (May 11, 2012)

Hairazor said:


> Those little pumpkins are a total delight on their own even without lights. No one would even know they should be lit unless you told them. As far as the bookmark, sometimes less is more! I think the swirly grayish stuff scattered around the pumpkins was a great touch!


Swirly grayish stuff = spanish moss



scareme said:


> Wow! This is just so awesome. What were some of the comments from your guests? And I spent a while trying to figure out what kind of tree that came from, until I read your post about it being Oak. I would have never guessed that. I was thinking more crepe myrtle. You and your sister did a great job. Thanks for sharing with us.


Most guests wanted to know what it was all about. I basically told them it's a pun on the movie title "The Nightmare AFTER Christmas" and had to explain the movie a little bit. LOL. Crepe myrtle is good looking but would have been a little flimsy I think. I had originally planned on using Manzanita or sagebrush but couldn't find the right branching at the trunk.

The trick with making the whole shebang work is standing the branch up how you want it to sit on the table then cut the bottom square. Once that is done, the other trick is finding limbs that you can cut square also with enough meat under the cut to drill a hole and place the insert nut (#8-32 I used). The real pain in the ass is getting the insert nuts installed perpendicular to the table so the platters sit level.


----------



## GhoulishCop (Sep 25, 2009)

Lord Homicide,

Terrific job. My wife's a wedding coordinator and I've been called on a time or two to help create center and set pieces for her clients, but this is a really fantastic piece. And not like there's not any pressure to get everything just right, right?! I mean it's only someone's wedding. Really excellent work!

Rich


----------



## Hairazor (Mar 13, 2012)

Spanish Moss, of course, Senior Moment!!


----------



## graveyardmaster (May 14, 2012)

amazing display lordh....congrats to the bride and the groom!!!


----------



## Cat_Bones (Jun 1, 2012)

That's so cool what an awesome wedding display!! sux that they messed up your cupcakes if you were closer to me i could've supplied you with some awesome peanut butter cupcakes


----------



## beadyeyedbrat (Oct 7, 2008)

LOVE this!


----------



## Ramonadona (Nov 4, 2011)

Thank you so much for sharing this! Very beautifully done!


----------



## dudeamis (Oct 16, 2011)

very cool creation, but as a future (Aug 23rd) groom, what's a groom's table?


----------



## Haunted Bayou (Feb 16, 2007)

Just saw this thread. Belated congrats to you.

I love the cupcake stand. I saved the pic for future reference.


----------



## deadSusan (Jun 26, 2013)

Absolutely beautiful! And thanks for sharing. You have given me another idea for our office Halloween potluck!


----------



## ~Hexxis~ (Jul 31, 2013)

Very cool wedding theme! Love everything about this. one of my all time favy Halloween/ x-mas movies. well done. : )


----------

