Legumes, including beans, peas and lentils,听have a storied association with 91传媒 history. In the 鈥淓ncyclopedia of 91传媒 Food,鈥� historian and food writer Gil Marks notes that 鈥渢he longstanding significance of beans to Sephardim may be seen from their Spanish name, judia.鈥� He even adds that 鈥減urportedly, the favorite food of the Baal Shem Tov, Israel ben Eliezer, founder of the Chasidism, was black bean soup.鈥� In appreciation of their history in 91传媒 food, I decided to create a floral arrangement featuring a legume-filled vase.

By using a vase-in-vase technique, we鈥檙e able to fill the space between the two vases with legumes of different colors, creating a lovely foundation to add flowers. They actually look like pebbles. I layered split peas, white northern beans and pink beans (that鈥檚 actually what they鈥檙e called), but you can also use any legumes that strike your fancy. These vases are perfect for fall because of the legume鈥檚 natural colors, which lend a rustic, homey feel to your d茅cor.听

What You’ll Need:
Large vase
Small vase or drinking glass
Legumes
Flowers

1. To create the vase-in-vase arrangement, gather two vases 鈥� one of a large diameter and one of a smaller diameter. A short drinking glass can work as the smaller vase. Fill the small vase half way with water.

2. Place the small vase inside the larger one. The rim of the smaller vase should not extend too far above the larger one.听

3. In the gap between the vases, place your first layer of legumes. My bottom layer was green split peas.听

4. Continue adding layers of legumes until they reach the rim of the vases. It鈥檚 perfectly fine to only use one element instead of several. It just depends on what you have on hand. Then place cut flowers in the inner vase to complete the arrangement.

Jonathan Fong is the author of 鈥淔lowers That Wow鈥� and 鈥淧arties That Wow,鈥� and host of 鈥淪tyle With a Smile鈥� on YouTube. You can see more of his do-it-yourself projects at jonathanfongstyle.com.