My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Linked This Way

28 July 2021
and more

“Any

arbitrary turning

along the way

And

I would be elsewhere;

I would be different.”

― Frances Mayes, Under the Tuscan Sun

Sign up for my weekly newsletter

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

Gather what you'll need

This section contains affiliate links. If you choose to explore any of these tools, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Dew-Drop Crystals

I created the Tutorial for how I add these crystals to my floral designs 11 years ago! Since then I have tried, tested and searched for the perfect crystals that would go from studio‑table picture perfect to show‑day‑dependable and I always come back to these. They remain the absolute best. They’re inexpensive yet have a refined, high‑quality crystal brilliance; they don’t tarnish and their adhesive backing stays reliably tacky even after they were exposed to water.

Tutorials

28 July 2021

Craft a wreath chain to link a few bud vases together

All you need is a few twigs to craft this design- it's a perfect floral meditation activity.

1 November 2011

Weaving a twig wreath

For my design I wanted the wreath to look wind blown so I added a few loosely woven twigs into the weave. I also wanted to emphasize the autumn colours so I added a twirling copper wire into the weave

23 June 2021

Submerged vine wreath armature to beat the summer heat

Water... lots of water- that is the answer to designing flower arrangements that survive the summer heat.

11 September 2019

Weave a small wreath in the side twig of a willow branch to keep a flower in place in your design

This is both a decorative and functional design solution. But most importantly, I think, there is absolutely zero waste.

11 February 2015

Stripping foliage from weaving stems

Remove foliage from stems to weave with

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 in a similar way.

24 May 2017

Chain link wreath weaving

Weave a few small wreaths to connect

18 April 2018

Clematis Vine Swing

Weave a delicate nest for a small spring design.

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!

5 September 2018

Wisteria Wreath Vine

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

4 May 2016

Loosened Wreath Armature

Snip a dried twig wreath to undo the spirals to hang around a glass container

16 September 2020

Peg a wreath to the edge of a container

Another version of a design idea I showed you last month... A vine wreath armature to balance a dramatic single stem anthurium. Only this time I take it a bit further.

24 June 2020

Building up a wreath panel

Connect six wreaths to build up a hanging panel to display your flowers on.

27 September 2017

Tendril vine Wreath Pumpkin

Reshape a vine wreath into smaller wreaths to combine as a pumpkin

18 March 2026

Sprouting sphere armature to show off curvy burgundy arum lilies

Weaving wreaths to wedge into a container to create a ball shaped armature.

26 February 2025

Thread your wreaths in a row to show off your "it could (almost) be mistaken for Spring sprouts"

Late winter flowering irises in a wreath armature

Related Designs

23 June 2021

Over Easy

A cooling design to celebrate the summer solstice.

11 September 2019

Transition into Fall

A sustainable, absolutely no waste floral design using willow to suspend your flower head in your arrangement.

8 July 2015

How To Catch A Dream

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

24 May 2017

Link

weave a few wreaths to link

18 April 2018

Swing Vine

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

11 March 2020

On-Spring-dium

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

5 September 2018

Wreath Vine Season!

Weave tiny wreaths on the stems of Wisteria vines

4 May 2016

Ring-a-round

Open a vine wreath to create a spiral twig armature around a glass container

16 September 2020

The circle of making new things:

A wreath armature design for early Autumn... this takes the split armature Tutorial I showed you last month a little bit further.

24 June 2020

End Up

Connect small wreaths to create a pretty summer armature to arrange your flowers on.

10 April 2011

Feeling Funky

I wove vine wreaths to form a pyramid, one just slightly larger than the next. In the natural cavities between the wreaths I placed the roses and lisianthus in plastic covered Oasis

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 attachment to my vine wreaths. This post features four designs using the same wreaths.