My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Fine Tune

To croon a favourite tune,

whistle a catchy ditty,

hum a memorable melody,

serenade a sweet ballad,

proudly belt out your song,

or quietly march to your own drum…

Oh! The joy of music

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Tutorials
Musical staff line armature
25 June 2014
Musical staff line armature

Drill holes into sticks to create a suspended armature
Wire baubles
5 May 2011
Wire baubles

Make baubles from wire
Drinking straw "test tubes"
4 January 2011
Drinking straw "test tubes"

When you need to keep a tiny stem hydrated this is just what you need.
Placing orchids in test tubes
25 August 2011
Placing orchids in test tubes

Cut the Phalaenopsis orchid with a bit of green stem attached. This will make them last longer.
Butterfly feeler hooks for swinging test tubes
18 January 2012
Butterfly feeler hooks for swinging test tubes

I don't always want to wire my test tubes into the design. I like to create a bit of movement by simply hooking the tubes to gently swing.
Manipulating stems: Snapping at an angle, Bending, Spiraling, Curling and Straightening
19 February 2013
Manipulating stems: Snapping at an angle, Bending, Spiraling, Curling and Straightening

Most stems, twigs and even sturdier branches can be bend into shapes. It takes practice and more than a bit of patience. The main idea is to slowly manipulate the branch without breaking it.
Stain wooden skewers with natural dye
24 August 2011
Stain wooden skewers with natural dye

Using fruit, berries, flowers, leaves and grasses to naturally stain design details for floral art relies on the same techniques as using paint or any other dye.
Staining Midelino cane Coils
13 April 2012
Staining Midelino cane Coils

White Midelino cane is easy to stain in any colour
Tendril Tangle Grid
4 May 2022
Tendril Tangle Grid

Let tendrils do what they naturally do to help keep your flowers in place.
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.
Delicate Twig Hammock Armature to keep tulips upright in a shallow container
16 January 2019
Delicate Twig Hammock Armature to keep tulips upright in a shallow container

Craft a suspended armature to create a clear winter design.
Adjusting the curve in plant material
16 May 2018
Adjusting the curve in plant material

It is possible to curve or adjust a curve in plant material
Hana-Kubari twig
26 April 2017
Hana-Kubari twig

Slip a twig over the side of a container to keep an elegant flower stem upright
Related Designs
Wonderful and Enough
4 May 2022
Wonderful and Enough

That incredible moment when you realize that one good idea for your design really is enough...
From here in out
17 February 2021
From here in out

An all natural, zero waste design using only plant material.
Every. Single. Week.
16 January 2019
Every. Single. Week.

Stand tulips upright in a shallow container with a suspended twig armature.
It goes like this...
16 May 2018
It goes like this...

Gently curve plant material.
About a line
10 May 2017
About a line

Skewer and line up leaves to create an armature
In no time at all
26 April 2017
In no time at all

Hana-Kubari twig armature
That Will Be
20 April 2016
That Will Be

Freestanding willow twig armature design
Favourite Flowers
Phalaenopsis
Phalaenopsis

Phalaenopsis orchid detail from my Harnessing the Wind design
Ceropegia woodii
Ceropegia woodii

Pompon Chrysanthemum pom-poms and strands of Rosary vine for my floral lariat necklace in the Canadian Florist Magazine