My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Wrong on the right, for a right

27 July 2022
and more

"Fantasy...

is a necessary...

ingredient in living.

It is a way of looking...

... at life through the wrong end...

of a telescope...

Quote by Dr Seuss

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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 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.

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 April 2015

Stretching leaves and foliage into a ringlet curl

Most leaves and foliage can be slightly manipulated to curve or curl.

11 May 2016

Twig snippet vase armature

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

13 January 2016

Stacked Grass Pyramid Armature

Stack snippets of grass on a wire frame to make a floating pyramid armature

14 August 2019

Long lasting Lily and lily grass ball

Keep all the fresh flower material hydrated in water by weaving the stems from one side of the vase to the other.

13 June 2018

Lily grass and cane bubble for a Pitcher plant

Craft a dried cane globe for the armature of the design and then add lily grass to dry in place.

14 January 2013

Midelino Cane Coil Globe Cup

Weave a loose, round floral art armature

6 September 2011

Twig collar

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

11 August 2021

Dried twig collar in a double vase display for gravity sensitive flowers

Putting the focus on the flowers with an ever changing design.

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.

19 February 2020

Twig snippet pillar armature

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

6 February 2019

Winter White Twig Screen

Glue twigs to screen delicate flowers for a wintry design.

4 August 2021

Scattered dried grass with raindrop crystals

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

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.

31 July 2012

Cherry stem Masquerade Masque

Glue cherry stems to create a mask

28 January 2026

Stack miniature roses on to stacked grass snippets

Tea cup roses have the tiniest of stems and can easily be supported by grass snippets stacked into a armature.

14 January 2026

Adjustable nested grass Wood Wide Web shelter for tiny snow drops

Craft a grass shelter with hollow grass that can be retracted and extended to adjust the length in height where needed.

Related Designs

11 May 2016

Pour

Glue a twig vase and melt some plastic to create a tumbling design

13 January 2016

Once Upon A Time

Stack and glue a Grass Pyramid Armature

14 August 2019

For a longer lasting Summer

A creative way to keep foliage hydrated for a cool, water filled summer design.

13 June 2018

Eat up!

A woven bubble for a carnivorous plant.

10 April 2013

Unthinkably good things

Oncidium orchids hiding in a woven grass cup. This Design Tutorial is featured on The Conna Flower and Garden Club (Ireland) website. It is part of their Floral Art Lessons program that demonstrates new techniques, ideas and principles of Flower Arranging by International Designers.

6 September 2011

When Autumn Fall

Autumn leaf composite flower

11 August 2021

A bit Special... four dimensional designing

Using that little something that is unusual about your flower to make the design stand out.

17 July 2019

… and... a bit more... effort… to make it special

Instead of just placing a handful of twigs and two stems of sweet peas in a vase... why not...?

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.

6 February 2019

Tread softly on winter

A delicate winter twig armature to show off the delicate beauty of these early spring coloured tulips.

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.

27 October 2021

Ship Shape

The dry wheat stems are suspended from the outside of the container so that they remain dry and the flower stems can gently rest inside to remain hydrated.