Tool bag

My own bag is tiny and filled with things that I either make to suit my design style or treasure. I am a disciplined packer. There is simply no space for rusty old or unused stuff. I even carry items in portion sizes and pack and repack some compartments depending on the project.
I travel extremely light!

The real value of a great tool bag is not measured in money. The worth lies in whether it suits the individual designer. Invest time and energy in developing your own tool bag and pack only equipment that works for you and represents what you stand for, as a designer.

Inside my tool bag:

Headphones

My knife is sharp, tough, rust proof, well balanced and a comfortable weight.
It's build to work hard and cut like a dream and is by far my favourite tool in my bag! I use it to cut flowers, whittle woody stems, pry things open with, remove bark, cut Oasis and even cut candle wax. In other words: Just perfect for Floral Art!
and if you look carefully you will see it's got my name on it...

For examples see Bark covered Wreath, Large wax snowflakes and my Wind Spinner, Rainbow Oasis rocks!.

Thumb guard
Every sharp knife needs a thick thumb guard!

Floral Accessories

I use the skewers as glue applicators. It can also help to remove floral adhesive.
Bamboo skewers are also great spacers.

Tutorial: Removing Oasis Floral Adhesive glue spills
Tutorial: Stain wooden skewers with natural dye

I mostly cut flower material with my knife but this is just gorgeous. And it’s sensational to cut with! Great for delicate work.

For examples of where I use my Japanese Scissors look at my Tutorials:Cut spiked flower stems and foliage into short sections and Tie an Iris leaf tassel

Drinking straws

Fit a long thin plastic pipe over the nozzle of a syringe to create a flexible watering hose that can be used to fill or top up water tubes in even the most awkward spaces. It is also small and lightweight.

Tutorial: Syringe with tube I also have a picture of how to make a 2 litre version
Tutorial: Fast way to fill a lot of test tubes in awkward places

Design Apron

It's great to have a knife that folds and is protected. I use it to cut leather, foam and precision work.

Super absorbent towel

Brooms are always in demand when it comes to clean up time after a long day of designing. I carry this tiny dust pan and brush with me so that I don't have to wait in line and can clean up in no time.

Measuring tape

The file blunts edges, the tweezers holds tiny objects into place, the little scissors clip away tiny imperfections and the nail clipper strips wire faster than anything else. The pushers is ideal for helping a leaf into a weave or into a tight spot without piercing or bruising

Nail file Tutorial:Up-cycle the plastic inside of a roll of Florist tape to create a comfortable wrist Corsage bracelet
Finger nail cuticle pusher Tutorial:Looping the lily grass shape
Girly hair butterfly clips

And then I have these bright pink glittery clips for temporary use so that I don't forget to remove a clip by mistake.

See an example of a design where I used the clips to hold equisetum in place to create a dome One Singular Sensation

Tutorial: Butterfly hairclip claws to hold twigs in place while glue dries

Medical kit

This hand cream was formulated for Norwegian fisherman so it is designed to moisturize hands that are constantly in and out of water. And it really moisturizes hands without feeling greasy. It also has no fragrance and is neutral on all flowers

Green Velcro plant ties

Great water source when you require a flexible “vase” for plant material in a design such as in a small gap in a log. Just ½ fill the bag with water; add the stem and zip closed around the stem. The bag will then fit any shape. Of course it also keep stuff dry and tiny items packed away neatly in your tool bag.
If you want to keep any left over Oasis floral foam for later use it is best not to let it dry out because it will not hydrate again so zip it up in a reusable bag to keep it moist.

Flower food

This is an ongoing frustration for me. I am bad at having scissors for each project so I end up cutting thin wire, paper, plastic, and putty with the same scissors and then complain wildly when it’s too blunt to neatly snip my delicate ribbon.

Pliers are a must in every tool bag. Wrap both the tips of your pliers with the smallest size plasters- pad side in, to cushion the impact on soft wires. Plasters are also the first item needed for a medical kit so I keep a few extra in my bag.

Heavy duty garden shears

Cable ties

I keep my pins stuck in foam. This way it won't get stuck in me when I rummage through my bag to find something nor would it spill out of a box at the worst possible moment.

I use pins to keep things in place but it is also great for weaving.
See my Tutorial to make a Messy wire lace
Tutorial: Drying Mushrooms for Floral Art

If you pull out the pins slightly you can use the pin heads as a drying rack to place beads or tiny flowers on to keep them save while glue dries.
Tutorial: Foam pin holder drying rack

Marker and masking tape

I prefer using test tubes as a water source for my fresh flowers and plant material. I carry a few of the small green tubes in my bag permanently. The glass tubes I add when I need them.

Tutorial: Placing orchids in test tubes
Tutorial:Test tubes
Tutorial: Test tube on a stick

Sea horses

I use ornamental wire, bale wire and engineering wire. I keep a length of brown and a length of green bind wire in my bag. Then I add other wire as I need them.

Tutorial: Wire hairpin needle for threading flowers
Tutorial: Moss Heart
Tutorial: Butterfly feeler hooks for swinging test tubes

I also make make my own decorative wires. It adds a custom made and hand crafted look to my work.
Paper covered Wire and Wired Monkey Vine a great and inexpensive tip is to Unravel wire from a copper pot scrubber see also Prevent teeth marks on soft wire when you bend it with pliers and Straightening wire and Spiral Wire Cages, Copper Wire Ring and Beaded wire

Makeup brush set

Stickier than Putty, water proof and best of all green so it disappears when used in a design. A little goes a long way and you would need about a stamp size block in your bag.

I also use the floral fix to make it easier for me to weave my Palm leaf Hopper-flies (grasshoppers and butterflies)

Latex gloves and corsage magnets

It's all in there... Packed and ready to design!

And in the design room:
Huge working surface

Wood glue. Spray adhesive and a hot glue gun (with ice water and a drip plate)

Wood glue
If I could have only 2 things to design with I would choose my knife and wood glue. With those two things you can create almost anything. As examples
Tutorial: Papier Mache
Tutorial:Paper covered Wire
Tutorial:Serviette rings
Tutorial:Mud Pie baskets
Tutorial:Bark covered Wreath
Tutorial: Just Hatched Papier Mache Easter Eggs

When wet it is easy to see where you placed the glue but it dries clear and although it bonds permanently you can soak the glue in warm water to remove.

Hot glue gun
Every glue gun should be sold in kit form- gun, bowl of ice water and a dinner plate. The ice water is for an emergency to immediately cool down a burn and the plate is to rest under your gun to catch any stray drops.
I have used the hot glue drops to create a nest Tutorial: Hot Glue nest
You can also use the hot glue strands Tutorial:Spinning a Hot Glue Spider Web or silk for a Floral Cocoon includes a Tutorial on how to remove the hot glue strands.

3M Super 77 Spray glue

OASIS Floral Foam

Heat gun

Tutorial: Melt plastic Soda Bottles into the "water" shapes

Heavy duty protective gloves and a Kenzan

Traditionally used to hold rose stems but it is also great to transport test tubes upright.

Buckets

Fresh clean water. Cold for bulb flowers and a bit warmer for all other flowers.

Pigments and Pattern Edged Scissors

Florist tape, sellotape, Double sided tape, Epoxy Glue

Epoxy glue Tutorial: Brick on a stick
Florist tape Tutorial: Paper flowers

Use the sellotape to make an invisible grid over the top of a vase to keep flowers in place.
Use the double sided tape to glue leaves to the side of a vase.

Kyogi paper

Large cane coils that are easy to paint or stain. Great to work with when you want to make sphere in no time.

Tutorial: Staining Midelino cane Coils
Design Example: Spring Has Sprung!

Birch wood sticks

Flexible and thin. Great to add movement to a design

Design example: Veiled Sunshine:50th Anniversary of the South African Orchid Society at the Cape Town Convention Centre.

Rolls of Newsprint paper

I use it to make a soft bed to drill holes on, press pins into the foam to weave wire lace, blocks of Styrofoam can be used to make hot glue spider webs, press into paint to make a stamp. perfect to create a pin board, great as spacers and when I have used it so often that it falls apart I crumble it to make a floating snow. You can also use the crumbled polystyrene as stuffing (that is water repelling and floats) for shapes.

It is not easy to find a place that can recycle Polystyrene mostly because it is almost impossible to re-make it into high quality polystyrene. But it is really easy to find uses for the sheets you receive as packaging. Don't trash it. Re-purpose it!

Tutorial: Messy wire lace
Tutorial: Birch wood coffee stir sticks fan

Catering trays

Decorative paper to wrap and make papier mache with

Tutorial: Just Hatched Papier Mache Easter Eggs
Tutorial: Papier Mache

Wired Wood Picks

I buy small pots of water based paint from hobby and model aircraft shops. The colours are unbelievably realistic and natural looking. Because it is water based I can thin the paint to make a stain.

Candles and candle wax

Great to work on to protect surfaces in your design room or on location. The plastic catches drips and plant material making it fast and easy to just gather and clean. Also use the plastic sheets to line containers.

Super Sticky Post-it Notes

Scotch-Blue Painter's Tape is great to temporarily tape something to something else and remove it without ripping into the surface.

Heavier tools

Heavy cardboard is the ideal building material. It is easier to cut than wood and faster to glue than any other medium. When I am in need of a quick structure I often up-cycle cardboard into whatever I need. It is not a permanent solution and would never be as durable as wood, but with a big enough box, a hot glue gun, some wood glue and paint you can make an instant prop for almost any occasion.

I “process” boxes into workable shapes. I find that I can never have enough disks, but strips and tray size squares are also handy.

Tutorial: Paper log stack
Tutorial: Paper Foundation for Kyogi paper wood curls
Tutorial: The Floral Hourglass Wax Foundation
Design example: Baby Stroller Gift Hamper
Design example: Vanilla
Design example: Cardboard Cup Cake Tower