My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Jitters!

you see... it goes something like:

first sip… "oh, good morning"

second sip.. "Hmmm… I love coffee"

fifth sip… " awesome, coffee loves me back!"

and by the second last sip…

I am confidently saying things like: “Yes, this sounds like the exact right shade of green to me”

... now that's morning coffee-grade jitters!

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Tutorials
Adding folded grass "jitters" to a Sunflower
31 July 2019
Adding folded grass "jitters" to a Sunflower

Adding tension to a design with a grass frame and collar.
Sunflower Disk Floret
13 August 2014
Sunflower Disk Floret

Gently pull the petals ( Ray floret) from the seeded part of the sunflower
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.
Removing Oasis Floral Adhesive glue spills
30 August 2011
Removing Oasis Floral Adhesive glue spills

The finish of every design should be flawless. Make sure there are no bits of glue visible in your design by carefully removing all traces of spills.
Leaning Sunflowers to stay just so
27 July 2016
Leaning Sunflowers to stay just so

The trick to any freestanding design is to get your first three stems standing stable and secure in the water. Once you have that you can build the design around it.
Scattered grass armature
30 April 2014
Scattered grass armature

An grass armature that looks scattered but is actually very secure
Rock Rest for a heavy Protea Flower Head
31 January 2018
Rock Rest for a heavy Protea Flower Head

Create a contrasting base to lift the heavy flower-head to design in
Syringe with tube
3 January 2011
Syringe with tube

Easy way to fill test tubes and easiest way to remove water from a vase
Reflexed petal Tulip… with a surprise Orchid flower buddy
23 April 2025
Reflexed petal Tulip… with a surprise Orchid flower buddy

Gently pop the petals of a mature tulip back to open up the flower... to add another flower, of course!
Slip-slit tapped in stems to keep vines upright in a muted autumn display
25 September 2024
Slip-slit tapped in stems to keep vines upright in a muted autumn display

A tiny adjustment in a stem wedged into a vase mechanic to give you even more control over the placement of design details.
Palm twirl with a hidden double knot grid support that hold even heavier flowers in place
11 September 2024
Palm twirl with a hidden double knot grid support that hold even heavier flowers in place

Knot horizontal palm fronts in place to create a support for heavy flowers.
Suspended, suspended buds in a zig zag grass thread
31 August 2022
Suspended, suspended buds in a zig zag grass thread

Suspend flowers in tight bud to slip over a folded and threaded grass grid
Light as a kite wire spiked sunflower heart
14 July 2021
Light as a kite wire spiked sunflower heart

Using the disk floret of a sunflower to support your floral details.
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.
Sunflower heart autumn display
21 October 2020
Sunflower heart autumn display

Pick away the ray floret so that the disk floret of a sunflower can be used as a flat surface to display your design on.
Related Designs
A leg to stand on
13 August 2014
A leg to stand on

Create a upright design by supporting the flowering stems
Floral Carpet
5 April 2011
Floral Carpet

Durbanville Flower Club: Nature's Treasures, A Floral Art Exhibition at D'Ville Shopping Center Durbanville, Western Cape, South Africa
Too Hot!
27 July 2016
Too Hot!

Leaning floral stems to stand on their own in a shallow container
Twig-a-tude
3 July 2012
Twig-a-tude

Stack and wire twigs to create a twig mushroom with attitude for summer
It takes more than one person to invent a trumpet!
8 May 2019
It takes more than one person to invent a trumpet!

Filling a trumpet flower cup... with more flowers!
If
30 August 2017
If

Place a water tube at an angle in lumber so that the Zantedeschia float just above the base to show off the delicate grass snippets scattered up the stem
Scattered
30 April 2014
Scattered

Scatter some dried grass to make a floral armature
In Summer!
23 May 2018
In Summer!

A contemporary cascade of rosary vine and dried petals.
Rock, don't Roll
31 January 2018
Rock, don't Roll

Balance the heavy Protea flower head to lean against a rock.
A Buzzin’
23 April 2025
A Buzzin’

Just like a buzzing bee... give a mature Tulip a Phalaenopsis orchid buddy to keep it company.
Toning down the summer up into the earliest autumn
25 September 2024
Toning down the summer up into the earliest autumn

Using summery floral details in a way that it gives you all the autumn feelings... when autumn details are not yet out.
More! More!! More!!!
11 September 2024
More! More!! More!!!

Adding more to an autumn design... but leaving everything out that you don't need.
Bud… bud… bud… they were feeling so… very blue
31 August 2022
Bud… bud… bud… they were feeling so… very blue

When life hands you dyed flowers you make... well creatively speaking it turned out to be not such a bad thing after all!
Light as a Kite
14 July 2021
Light as a Kite

Spike a wire frame into a disk floret for a light summer design.
From here in out
17 February 2021
From here in out

An all natural, zero waste design using only plant material.
When it gets chilly
21 October 2020
When it gets chilly

Use the heart of a sunflower as a platform to place your autumn floral details on.
Favourite Flowers
Helianthus anuus
Helianthus anuus

Nature's Treasures, A Floral Art Exhibition at D'Ville Shopping Center Durbanville Floral Carpet with the members of the Durbanville Flower Club. For the mid section I used roses,...
Phalaenopsis
Phalaenopsis

Phalaenopsis orchid detail from my Harnessing the Wind design