My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Ship Shape

27 October 2021
and more

“Not all

treasure is

silver

and gold,

mate”

Quote by Captain Jack Sparrow

Hope ghost ship season is all smooth sailing, flower buddies

Have a fun and flower filled Halloween

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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

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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

27 October 2021

Hovering golden wheat Ghost Ship armature

Using dry and fresh floral material in one design without the dry becoming soggy and the fresh drying out.

24 July 2012

Blow away hot glue strands

When you glue a structure with hot glue there are always a few stray strands of glue stuck all over the design. Blow it away with a hairdryer.

4 August 2021

Scattered dried grass with raindrop crystals

Craft a light and airy grass halo to suspend tiny drop crystals around gorgeous roses.

23 September 2020

All dried Autumn hemisphere design that will outlast even the falling leaves outside

Preserve some floral material to design with when it is but not quite Autumn outside.

19 February 2020

Twig snippet pillar armature

A great do-in-advance and reusable design solution for a winter, early spring floral display.

6 September 2011

Twig collar

Create a light and transparent collar-base for the large composite flower to nestle into.

11 May 2016

Twig snippet vase armature

Glue twig snippets to closely follow the shape of a glass vase

24 July 2012

Stacked Twig Roundabout

This is a great way to use all those bits of twigs and sticks in your design room to make a floral armature

6 February 2019

Winter White Twig Screen

Glue twigs to screen delicate flowers for a wintry design.

14 October 2020

On the edge grid for a decorative twig and reed armature

Place the floral details strategically on the edge of sturdier parts of the armature to keep the reed grid from collapsing under the weight of the floral details.

17 July 2019

Twig Dome Armature

Crafted from a hand full of twigs to give you a large design... even though you add only two stems of sweet peas.

8 June 2016

Popsicle Stick Square Armature

Glue Popsicle sticks to create a double layered, upright armature

10 June 2026

Snap (don’t break) then support the snap with a snap (squeezed open) to craft a straight grass shimmer line

Turn your dragon into a floral design mechanic by gently squeezing the sides of the floret, to open the hinged, lip-like petals and pinch the grass before releasing it to snap shut again.

5 November 2025

Barely there twig layer support to allow all the autumn colours to shine and glow

Snip Autumn bits from your garden to arrange in and around a glass container for a modern loose, layered display.

3 September 2025

A wreath bridge to hint at the transition between the wildness of late summer and the autumn haze to come

Arrange a selection of freshly cut cosmos flowers to hint at the autumn to come.

16 October 2024

Protect your “mercury” glass vases with a reusable lining when using wire as a mechanic

How to protect glass vases from scratching when using wire as a mechanic

31 May 2023

No Mow May Scattered Grass and Erigeron Meadow design

Tape a grid to create a barely there scattered grass display for a cooling summer display.

18 January 2023

Snowy twig band armature for a ever changing winter display

A well made snow covered twig band armature will last all winter so that you can display even the most delicate winter treasures.

27 July 2022

Dendrobium orchid and grass snippet cone around a glass container

Craft a grass armature to suspend the orchids in deep water from around the outside of your container.

1 June 2022

A wild "found it this way" thorn and overgrown tulip design with a ribbon tangle instead of a bow.

Glue an overgrown thorn armature to a container to display fully opened tulips

Related Designs

4 August 2021

Counting Raindrops

Grass crisscross that makes you want to lean in closer to count the late summer raindrops around these gorgeous roses.

23 September 2020

Getting a head start on all that Fall-ing

Floral styling using mostly dried material that will last the entire Autumn.

19 February 2020

The Upside of being Inside

A creative design that has some height to it without blocking the view. This can easily be scaled up or down to match the environment you want to display it in.