My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Even More

You see…

What I wish

Is that after

I show you how I did it,

That you

enjoy

the design

Even more

ps: what a lovely surprise! I liked the back of this orchid even more. I will include a 360 video in the Tutorial for you... and also tell you where I found the turntable in this week's email. The link is below this post if you want for both the sign up and the Tutorial.

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Tutorials
Snowy Magnolia forest floor armature
25 January 2023
Snowy Magnolia forest floor armature

An armature to display a lovely surprise orchid that developed on the long spike just after the other flowers started to fade.
Sisal Disk
19 June 2013
Sisal Disk

Create a inflexible circle armature to hang flowers from
Stacked Grass Pyramid Armature
13 January 2016
Stacked Grass Pyramid Armature

Stack snippets of grass on a wire frame to make a floating pyramid armature
Using a pin to place tiny dew drop crystals
8 July 2015
Using a pin to place tiny dew drop crystals

It's sometimes difficult to place a tiny crystal or bead exactly where you want it.
Adding snow to twigs
28 December 2016
Adding snow to twigs

Glue artificial snow to twigs
Muted Side Up Autumn Leaf Pod
18 October 2017
Muted Side Up Autumn Leaf Pod

Turn the leaf so that the muted underside faces outward to create a more understated Autumn colour scheme .
Autumn Leaf Rosette
11 November 2012
Autumn Leaf Rosette

Great way to use all the autumn leaves you collect on walks during the season. Slowly build up the leaf rosette and let the leaves dry before adding a few more.
Sink a carnation composite flower flat top platform into a vase
24 February 2021
Sink a carnation composite flower flat top platform into a vase

The trick of this Tutorial is to create a flat top platform to display Spring blossom twigs- the way it would look on moss in a forest.
Autumn leaf Composite Flower
6 September 2011
Autumn leaf Composite Flower

Glue a round Autumn leaf Composite Flower.
Quarter fold and Thread an Autumn leaf tube armature
9 October 2019
Quarter fold and Thread an Autumn leaf tube armature

This armature is actually made of four times as many leaves as what it looks like to create a hinge to fan the entire leaf-tube open yet keep it's shape.
Controlled breaking a thin reed to create a grass spiral armature
17 February 2021
Controlled breaking a thin reed to create a grass spiral armature

Carefully break... but don't snap a reed to create a curved base for a fanned out grass armature.
Grass snippet globe with T-connections for a (shaded) second layer
27 April 2022
Grass snippet globe with T-connections for a (shaded) second layer

Craft two snippet half moons to connect... and... then add a second layer of grass snippets here and there to shade the flowers.
Bark pod for growing a Pearl Oyster mushroom mini farm
19 August 2015
Bark pod for growing a Pearl Oyster mushroom mini farm

Glue bark to a Papier Maché and wire frame to create a pod shaped armature
Potted bark pod for a flowering plant
11 January 2017
Potted bark pod for a flowering plant

Cover a Styrofoam shape with bark to create a bowl for a potted design
Roof-tile pumpkin from dried physalis pods
9 November 2022
Roof-tile pumpkin from dried physalis pods

Carefully stack dried physalis berry husks to craft a long lasting pumpkin that you can refresh with fresh flowers and vines.
Flatten a Spring for a disk grid
5 March 2025
Flatten a Spring for a disk grid

Aluminum wire grid to support the stems and flowers above the water.
Design a buildable corsage that can be taken apart and added back together again to give you more styling options without damaging your design.
6 November 2024
Design a buildable corsage that can be taken apart and added back together again to give you more styling options without damaging your design.

Easy assemble… and disassemble design details using a Wristix™ corsage magnet from BoutStix™
Ivy and tendril blooms
4 September 2024
Ivy and tendril blooms

Wrap ivy leaves around a passionflower vine tendril to craft a flower
Dried Bougainvillaea and pink Pepper berry Disk
4 September 2024
Dried Bougainvillaea and pink Pepper berry Disk

Pink just before autumn, autumn design to celebrate the richness in colour.
Use Firethorn spears for a Vine and Orchid twist support
17 July 2024
Use Firethorn spears for a Vine and Orchid twist support

Sharp thorns can be used to keep your floral details in place
Threaded rosette foliage frog… with a kick
15 May 2024
Threaded rosette foliage frog… with a kick

Threaded Heuchera (Coral Bells) rosette with curved stems to kick against the sides of your container to keep it suspended above water.
Get a head start with a long lasting shallow vine basket and succulent table top Spring display
21 February 2024
Get a head start with a long lasting shallow vine basket and succulent table top Spring display

Long, long, long lasting display that will even root in place with a few adjustments.
Related Designs
Forest Floor
19 November 2014
Forest Floor

Glue a autumn leaf rosette armature
This Moment
19 June 2013
This Moment

Create an armature design outside the vase
All things Autumn (by which I mean all things chocolate): Another perspective
23 November 2016
All things Autumn (by which I mean all things chocolate): Another perspective

This was the third design I did in my "All things Autumn (by which I mean all things chocolate)" floral art demonstration
Creativity will come
10 September 2014
Creativity will come

My Twig Bridal Basket design and Tutorial featured in the Extraordinary Wedding Flowers issue of the New Zealand Floral Design Magazine
Once Upon A Time
13 January 2016
Once Upon A Time

Stack and glue a Grass Pyramid Armature
On the inside
18 October 2017
On the inside

For a softer autumn leaf pod turn the leaves so that the bright side faces in when making the pod.
Leaves by Hundreds came
11 November 2012
Leaves by Hundreds came

A rosette of fall leaves to celebrate the beauty of autumn
Picked up some proper Pruning
24 February 2021
Picked up some proper Pruning

An early Spring design with a twist on using an old favourite: composite flowers.
When Autumn Fall
6 September 2011
When Autumn Fall

Autumn leaf composite flower
With a thankful twist in the middle
9 October 2019
With a thankful twist in the middle

Fold and thread an autumn leaf armature for a thankful Thanksgiving design
From here in out
17 February 2021
From here in out

An all natural, zero waste design using only plant material.
Shine Shade
27 April 2022
Shine Shade

Glue snippets of grass into a double layer sphere to create a sheltered floral globe.
Growth Medium
19 August 2015
Growth Medium

Design a bark and moss pod for a mushroom mini farm
As special as an almost never find
11 January 2017
As special as an almost never find

Sometimes you find such a beautiful plant that you just can't bring yourself to cut it. This design explores using the entire plant, pot and all, in a design
All Pumpkind Out
9 November 2022
All Pumpkind Out

A physalis husk pumpkin to celebrate the last bright rays of Autumn.
Around about Springtime
5 March 2025
Around about Springtime

Spiral cyclamen foliage around to create a composite flower to showcase the petal-like anthurium flowers.
Some Handmade Meaning
6 November 2024
Some Handmade Meaning

I am a huge (HUGE!) fan of the original BoutStix magnets and I love the newest wrist corsage magnets as well. And not just for making corsages. I use them for everything. It is a staple in my design bag and it is ideal for putting up Seasonal decorations. They open up so many creative design possibilities and now with the addition of a strap and Velcro… the possibilities are endless!
A shade around there, probably… maybe
4 September 2024
A shade around there, probably… maybe

A dried flower and foliage... flower... disk to help me pretend it is autumn
Refresh-ing
17 July 2024
Refresh-ing

A tall vase for a short orchid stem summer design
Well, well, well, if it isn’t the design solution I have been procrasti-crafting on
15 May 2024
Well, well, well, if it isn’t the design solution I have been procrasti-crafting on

Beautiful Bletilla striata (Chinese Ground Orchid) deserves it's own elaborate frilly skirt display.
I'll Go First
21 February 2024
I'll Go First

My Spring/Easter design and the introduction article about my floral journey written by the editor, Nina Tucknott in the latest issue of Flora Magazine.
Favourite Flowers
Phalaenopsis
Phalaenopsis

Phalaenopsis orchid detail from my Harnessing the Wind design