My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

I mean… really!?!

Twig

I mean… really floral art design by Christine de Beer

season

Suspend flowers under water in a natural way

really

Oncidium orchid in a floral design

should

How to arrange short stemmed orchids in a floral design

be

Miltoniopsis orchid in a flower arrangement

more

Sustainable and waste free floral arranging solutions

of

How to suspend a flower stem upside down in water

A Thing,

Keeping short stem orchids hydrated in floral displays

right?

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

Tutorials

24 January 2024 Suspend delicate stemmed orchids in a Willow Infinity Weave Flower Frog

Create a little grid that fits the stems exactly to position them above and below water in a large container.

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...

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.

22 May 2012 Filling a vase with water without disturbing the design details

Break the water flow when you fill a vase with details in that can move with the stream of water

11 February 2015 Stripping foliage from weaving stems

Remove foliage from stems to weave with

25 October 2017 Willow Paddle

Weave willow between the fork in a twig to create a paddle like armature

16 March 2016 Willow Parasol

Weave willow stems into a decorative parasol

26 August 2015 Sun baked Sweetpea vine wreath

A perfect way to use a Lathyrus vine after all it flowered

16 October 2019 Not quite a wreath, not quite a basket armature

Easy to weave design that can hold your prettiest autumn design treasures.

11 March 2020 Impossibly delicate Dancing Lady orchid wreath

Weave a wreath around a cardboard circle to create an almost lace effect... perfect to capture those first signs of Spring!

9 January 2019 Winter white Tulle bridal basket

Craft a delicate bridal basket from twigs and tulle.

27 November 2012 Winter Woodland Chandelier

Wrap vines and twigs around a wire frame to create a decorative woodland chandelier

5 September 2018 Wisteria Wreath Vine

Weave tiny vine wreaths on the leave stems of a stripped Wisteria vine

18 April 2018 Clematis Vine Swing

Weave a delicate nest for a small spring design.

14 March 2018 Willow birdcage

Weave a willow birdcage to use as a wedding ring box

24 May 2017 Chain link wreath weaving

Weave a few small wreaths to connect

3 August 2016 Hanging Willow Nest

Bend and weave a nest shape from fresh willow stems

8 July 2015 Overgrown Willow web inspired by a traditional Dream-catcher

I wanted my willow armature to hint of a web-like dreamcatcher that grows in the wild rather than being a precise replica of the traditional craft technique. But I did weave it...

30 April 2015 Willow twig Corsage Platform

To create a layered look for a corsage tie a foundation of twigs with fresh willow stems

7 September 2022 Willow disk frog

Dried willow shaped to create a disk to keep your floral details in place in a vase with water.

Favourite Flowers

Salix matsudana "Tortuosa"

Curly Willow, Chinese Willow, Tortured Willow, Globe Willow, Dragon's Claw, Hankow Willow

Oncidium

Dancing lady

Related Designs

3 April 2024 springy, Spring, spring

Gorgeous Aquilegia vulgaris spring flower... with it's own springy thing!

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.

20 January 2011 The last Vine Wreath

Every designer knows how to stretch their supplies. We use and re-use our dried plant material until our fellow designers feel like hiding it from us. I formed such an...

25 October 2017 When the pretty eyeballs you back!

Barely there skeleton blossoms with Eucalyptus eyes for my Halloween design... Oh! and a Willow Paddle, which probably should have been the main Tutorial... but... well...

16 March 2016 Creative Expectations

My article and a floral parasol design featured in DIY Weddings Magazine

26 August 2015 Bent

Weave a wreath from sweetpea stems and tendrils

16 October 2019 Center Peace

A visual breather from all the bright and festive designs to come when designing for Autumn.

11 March 2020 On-Spring-dium

A almost impossibly delicate oncidium (dancing lady) orchid wreath.

9 January 2019 Magical Craftsmanship

My article and winter white Tulle bridal basket design featured in DIY Weddings Magazine.

12 December 2018 Availability of plant material shows in your design style

The last design I did for my book launch demonstration looking at aspects that influences my effortless style of designing... this week: often when we see a design element...

5 September 2018 Wreath Vine Season!

Weave tiny wreaths on the stems of Wisteria vines

18 April 2018 Swing Vine

Weave a delicate vine swing to nestle a small vase with spring flowers in

14 March 2018 Old, new trends

My article and willow birdcage design for wedding rings featured in DIY Weddings Magazine.

24 May 2017 Link

weave a few wreaths to link

3 August 2016 Practice

Weave a willow bird nest

8 July 2015 How To Catch A Dream

Take inspiration from a traditional Dream-catcher design to create a floral armature

6 May 2015 Tape and Wrap

Design Two from my Inspiration Video: Use the same floral ingredients, willow twigs, Lichen, Spanish Moss, Kalanchoe and Gypsophila to make three distinctly different contemporary...

30 April 2015 Layer

Design One from my Inspiration Video: Use the same floral ingredients, willow twigs, Lichen, Spanish Moss, Kalanchoe and Gypsophila to make three distinctly different contemporary...

13 April 2011 Harnessing the Wind

7 September 2022 Of the shades to come

This design requires a bit of prep-time so it is perfect to make while waiting for the first autumn leaf to appear…