My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

High-Strung

High-Strung flower arrangement by Christine de Beer

Hang around

How to knot a hammock

Unwind,

Easy way to knot a hammock from grass

Relax

Ripped grass to make a hammock

De-stress

Bush craft making a hammock

Loosen up

Sustainable crafts with nature making a hammock

Chill out

Floral arts and crafts using natural material

Come on… let’s dilly dally … just for a bit

Every week I add a new design with related tutorials. Be sure to subscribe to receive an email notification with design inspiration.

Tutorials

21 July 2021 Knot a delicate hammock from ripped foliage

Light and airy addition to a floral design to celebrate summer

14 January 2011 Ripping Flax

Flax can be ripped into fibres creating long and versatile strips

29 August 2018 Coil slip on sandals

Braid ripped flax and coil it into shaped slip on sandals.

22 July 2020 Adding flowers to those pretty hand coiled flip flops I made for my book

Step up the flip-flop design by decorating it with some long lasting succulent flowers. It might look delicate... but these flowers are robust and long lasting.

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.

25 April 2012 A plait, a braid or a French knot grass collar

"Plaid" and "braid" are synonyms, and where you are from will most likely dictate whether you use plait (British) or braid (American or Celtic). Some people also refer to...

23 August 2017 Twirl a ripped Phormium pumpkin pod

Rip the New Zealand flax to create a delicate fiber armature

6 November 2012 Ripped Grass Frame

Create a sheltered or veiled design by framing the outer edge of your armature (in this case thick cardboard) with long strands of grass

27 March 2013 Bird's Nest Lattice

Cherry stems and ripped flax makes a perfect natural lattice to suspend floral material from

30 April 2014 Scattered grass armature

An grass armature that looks scattered but is actually very secure

4 June 2014 Weaving a ring basket

Create a wire frame and weave ripped foliage around it

25 May 2016 Sliced Grassy Cabbage

Slicing a cabbage to create an armature for a vegetable design.

8 August 2018 Wrap around grass loop and knot armature

Connect strips of ripped grass to create a knotted armature for short stemmed flowers

7 November 2018 Ripped Flax Mittens

Knot delicate floral mittens from flax.

31 December 2012 Knot a Cordyline Catcher

Create a rigid grid to place over a glass vase to keep flower material in place

15 April 2015 Stretching leaves and foliage into a ringlet curl

Most leaves and foliage can be slightly manipulated to curve or curl.

Favourite Flowers

Lilium

Lily

Related Designs

15 June 2022 Take a swing at it

A cooling design for early summer days with swinging ripped grass and more than enough water for thirsty hydrangeas.

13 July 2022 Blue…

The tiniest flower adds some much needed coolness to a summer floral design.

21 June 2023 Floral Hurricane

My Floral Hurricane design entry for the BC Floral Art Society mini show competition

31 July 2024 Have a floral adventure, really

Creating a larger sustainable floral design by clustering the floral details into bunches.

29 August 2018 It’s not that it is inexpensive… it’s priceless!

Yes, this Coil slip on sandals design is in my book: the effortless floral craftsman, a floral crafter’s guide to crafting with nature ... it is also the first design from the...

22 July 2020 Step It Up

Dress up a pair of hand coiled flip-flops with succulents.

13 September 2017 Around again

Tape a grid at the edge of a container

19 October 2011 In an Oriental Manner

I wanted my parasol design to be thoroughly me, and thoroughly contemporary yet respectful of the guiding rules and methods shared by the different schools of Ikebana.

23 August 2017 Almost is still not quite

Weave just a hint of the Autumn to come

18 September 2012 Tying the knot and loosening those curls

Romantic rose centerpiece with just a bit of an edge featured in the DIY Wedding Magazine

10 September 2012 Tying the knot

Gypsophilla design with Celtic love knots featured in the DIY Wedding Magazine

6 November 2012 Mr. Stalk, the Seriously Terrifying Scarecrow, on his Day Off

An easy going design of ripped grass and calla lilies. But look a bit closer. See if you can find Mr. Stalk relaxing somewhere between the blades of grass.

27 March 2013 In one basket

Weave a nest for an Easter design

30 April 2014 Scattered

Scatter some dried grass to make a floral armature

4 June 2014 All white, just not quite

My article and woven ring basket design featured in the summer issue of DIY Weddings Magazine

25 May 2016 Half the Fun

Cut a cabbage to create a design platform

8 August 2018 On the net

Knot a net to rest short stem orchids on.

7 November 2018 Grab your party mittens, flower buds… it’s Book Launch Day!

Celebrating my book launch by knotting floral mittens using the design Tutorial from my book and the template from the free gift template booklet.

31 December 2012 A Pocket full of Starlight

Knot a grid to place over a glass bubble vase to keep plant material in place