My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Turns Out

29 July 2026
and more

… when your creative spark sends you this great design idea and sneakily whispers

“don’t worry this one is going to be easy peasy”

experience tells you to plan for

sooooo much extra design time

because

somehow

easy peasy

always

turns out to be tricky and picky,

hardly ever quite as breezy.

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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

29 July 2026

Gladiolus Foliage Collar for support

Weave a collar from gladiolus foliage for an all natural flower frog.

20 August 2025

Roll gladiolus leaves into tubes to craft a raft for a toad lily stem

Pin leaf rolls with sharp thorns to craft a natural raft to display tiny stems of unusual flowers cut from your garden.

11 April 2018

Pick up any bits of plant material floating in the water

Use a wet brush to lift any tiny bits of plant material floating on and in the water to keep your container clear.

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.

15 January 2025

Palm and hazel fan together to support perfect to pick Helleborus stems

Winter treasures in a small vase for an uplifting fresh flower display.

24 August 2022

Balloon out grass to craft a framed armature

Carefully bubble out a tied bunch of grass to make a cavity to display gorgeous flowers.

22 April 2026

Roll a leaf blade shade shelter for a crystal puddle… frog

Create a delicate but glamorous shelter Spring design to show off delicate shade loving flowers.

27 June 2018

Foliage tube armature for long stemmed freesia buds

Curl and pin a few leaves into a tube to create an armature for those "left over" freesiabuds.

27 February 2019

Weave a floral trap

Keep your flowers in place with an all natural woven trap.

10 October 2018

Single blade wrap armature

Fold a single blade of grass or slender leaf around a small container to stand your flower in position

8 August 2018

Wrap around grass loop and knot armature

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

25 January 2012

Weaving Willow spheres

I build up the spheres by weaving willow wreaths and then use those to shape the ball

3 February 2016

Connect the dot grass Armature

Connect the ends of grass snippets to create a spherical grass armature

10 July 2019

Letting grass kick against the side of the vase to create a neat and minimal line

Plant material float about in water. To keep it in place it is best to wedge it slightly to touch the sides of the container.

26 February 2020

Weave a grass Platform for an opening Tulip bud

Tulips continue to grow as they open. This means you not only have to be mindful of their proportions as they are now... but also as they will be once open.

10 June 2020

Overgrown vine tangle to suspend flowers in a clear vase

A zero waste and sustainable floral design solution to keep your flowers exactly where you want them without using floral foam.

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.

17 March 2021

Cone shaped leafy puddle for a short stemmed flower

Take all the usual ingredients for a budvase design- a flower, a leafy green something and roll it into something unusual to display.

24 March 2021

A Spring Sprout Wreath Flower Frog

Craft an everything is still growing spring design to celebrate... what we love!

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.

23 March 2022

A Double vase, Sticky tape, Reflexed AND Woven Nestled Grass and Tulip Whirl

so many techniques rolled into one rather pretty tulip nest. Perfect to celebrate new beginnings: Spring and my book birthday... and my online workshop!

6 July 2022

Weave a grass sphere to keep the long flower stems neatly in place on a bud vase

Both pretty and pretty effective. Keep the flowers exactly where you want them by weaving a stopper for your bud vase.

20 July 2022

Breezy lily grass ripple

A radiating design that has the freedom of movement to add a bit of a cooling effect on the warmer days of summer.

23 July 2024

Pinching vines in place with almost alike but perfectly unique double vases and twig peg

The tiniest twig peg keep the vines from spilling out of the minimal double vase display.

28 August 2024

A summer treat inspired tweak to a leaf-roll technique to display the last cut flowers (or left-overs) picked from your warm weather garden

Give a summer look to a leaf roll by lifting the middle slightly out like an ice cream.

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.

Related Designs

20 August 2025

And that’s when inspiration toad us to hop to it

Banana shaped rolled foliage Toad lily lookout

15 January 2025

What’s that word for it again?

A fun way to fan out palm leaves to display some winter pickings

2 June 2021

Like an open book

Position foliage to create a smaller, shallow pond for your floral details to shelter in.

22 April 2026

Shade-Seeking Style Choices Confirmed by “Sources” who know all about shade seeking style choices

Loop and weigh down a leaf to support delicate flower stems in a warmer weather design.

22 May 2019

Putting your own spin on it

I would definitely describe my own personal style as minimalist classic... but with an edgy twist.

27 June 2018

Look deep

Curl foliage to use as a natural armature for delicate buds.

27 February 2019

It’s a trap!

Weave a trap to keep your floral details suspended in a square container.

10 July 2019

These are my favourite summer things:

A submerged design... perfect for summertime designing... and enjoying!

24 August 2022

Hot air balloon

A grass bubble to frame two of the most beautiful calla lilies.

30 July 2014

See you around

Weave a few spheres to create a simple design

10 October 2018

From A... for Acer to Z… for Zantedeschia

This week we look at the design featured in the Flower Guide Chapter at the very end of my book

26 February 2020

To top it all off

This is a great "space-keeper" design. The tulip will continue to grow into the vase height as they open... but until then the grass platform part of the design diverts your attention to fix any issues you might experience with the proportions right now.