Let's talk centerpieces for holiday entertaining -- ones children can help make? Ones made of fruit and vegetables?

This year, I've been noticing more miniature fall fruit. Crabapples, small macouns, seckel pears, or peri (sp?) pears are some I saw at the Greenmarket. They would be so pretty simply sprinkled with disco dust (edible glitter), maybe along with some mandarin oranges, champagne grapes or other little guys. By candlelight they would look so pretty! Gonna have to work on this with my little cousins ;)

Our daughter was in charge of decorating the table. (I thought I posted it before but the server w down...so forgive me if there is a similar repost). When she was very little, we cut open grocery paper bags and she drew "placemats" for everyone. They were a darling juxtaposition to my irish linen tablecloths, china and silver! As she grew older, they became more elaborate with decorative scissored edgings, glitter and water colors. They also ended up becoming the "seating place cards" because she would want Granny to have this design, uncle Rick another...when she took it upon herself to have her younger cousins to help...we knew we had a family tradition!

When we were pretty young, my brother and I helped our mother make a felt turkey head which was then attached to a pineapple body (with the top of the pineapple as the tail...I know how it may sound, but it was cute...at least to us!). That head was then brought out every year and stuck on a pineapple as the centerpiece. I think we surrounded him with clementines, cranberries, etc., when we remembered. The closest pattern I can find online is this one:
http://craftzone.tripod.com/centerpiece.html

"Mr. Turkey" is still with us!

Love that idea Ms.T!!

I like clementines in a glass container with pomegranates, apples, gourds scrattered around it and some votive candles placed in the mix. But honestly, every time I have done a centerpiece it ends up being moved so I have room to place all the food I am serving, Flowers are also beautiful espcially when mixed with autumnal fruits, leaves and branches.