My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Fold over a tropical leaf cocoon

Place a Monstera deliciosa (delicious monster) leaf on a flat working surface

The delicious monster leaves are Fenestrate (fenestrata) which means they have windows or holes in the more mature plant leaves with lobes that can easily be manipulated. Fold the first lobes inward and secure with glue

Fold the next set of lobes over and secure

Move up the leaf matching lobes and gluing it together

Roll the leaf tip and secure with a drop of glue

Tuck all the tips into the leaf

Cut the stem at an anglewith a sharp knife and set it in water

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Tutorials
Rolling leaf tubes
23 March 2013
Rolling leaf tubes

Roll foliage to create tubes
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
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.
Creating a perfectly flat leafy surface... with a few gaps to fit some flowers
3 July 2024
Creating a perfectly flat leafy surface... with a few gaps to fit some flowers

Shady leaf fenestration raft for easy summer designing
Use a glue stick to position a Kenzan… just so… so that you can place the blackest of flowers to be framed by gaps of light
8 May 2024
Use a glue stick to position a Kenzan… just so… so that you can place the blackest of flowers to be framed by gaps of light

Play up contrasts to allow near black flowers to shine.
Slot together Monstera Twin Leaves to create a design gap
24 April 2024
Slot together Monstera Twin Leaves to create a design gap

A small bundle of Spring floral treasures framed with lush monstera foliage.
Craft a padded wooden Dowel to position a leaf cone into the sharp teeth of a Kenzan
10 May 2023
Craft a padded wooden Dowel to position a leaf cone into the sharp teeth of a Kenzan

Prevent a leaf from ripping or bruising when positioning it in your design.
Grasshopper Blossom branches
15 March 2023
Grasshopper Blossom branches

Just for fun add a few pollinators to your Spring blossom design
Unfurl winter’s potential in a snow filled monstera leaf shelter
11 January 2023
Unfurl winter’s potential in a snow filled monstera leaf shelter

Capture a bit of winter magic by placing delicate flower buds in the middle of two large leaves.
How to position the tiniest Spring stems using the hole in the side of a beaker wall vase
20 April 2022
How to position the tiniest Spring stems using the hole in the side of a beaker wall vase

The tiny stems tend to flop about making it difficult to place your design... just so. This is such a great solution!
Two leaf lining your container to shelter your orchids
2 June 2021
Two leaf lining your container to shelter your orchids

Create a shallow puddle in a larger container to keep your flowers in place.
Stacking stems to show off flowers from all angles
26 May 2021
Stacking stems to show off flowers from all angles

Roses so pretty you want to admire them front, side and back.
Rolled leaf shelter for a lean-in-closer tiny bud vase design
6 January 2021
Rolled leaf shelter for a lean-in-closer tiny bud vase design

Create a tiny visual tunnel to focus attention.
Vein Veil For Freesias
22 August 2018
Vein Veil For Freesias

Cut a slight veil to frame your flowers with
Foliage tube armature for long stemmed freesia buds
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.
Criss-cross Monstera lace-up
16 August 2017
Criss-cross Monstera lace-up

Glue short sections of rosary vine into the natural gaps in the Monstera deliciosa leaf
Water tube bridge
16 August 2017
Water tube bridge

Glue two thin sticks across a gap to support a water tube
Folded leaf nest
5 October 2016
Folded leaf nest

Leaf armature made of rolled mini Monstera leaves
Stacked Grass Pyramid Armature
13 January 2016
Stacked Grass Pyramid Armature

Stack snippets of grass on a wire frame to make a floating pyramid armature
Related Designs
Soft Serve Swirl
28 August 2024
Soft Serve Swirl

A nod to a summer filled with flowers... and the quite possibly the last of the season flowers still there to be picked.
Oh! my word
3 July 2024
Oh! my word

A perfectly flat leaf to support tiny floral details in the summer heat.
I mean… did you!?!
8 May 2024
I mean… did you!?!

Playing with shapes to frame the light in a dramatic floral design.
You Just Like You
24 April 2024
You Just Like You

Support a small bundle of spring florals to stand upright in water with two Monstera leaves.
By the cone full
10 May 2023
By the cone full

A small design to display those last Spring snippets from your garden...
Hop… Lots!
15 March 2023
Hop… Lots!

Beautiful blossoms don’t NEED much to make it into a lovely design. But the start of Spring might just inspire you to add a bit much… just because it makes you happy.
Maybe Still Maybe
11 January 2023
Maybe Still Maybe

... a something to look forward to design that makes you lean in closer to see what might still be.
Oh this? Yes! it is new
20 April 2022
Oh this? Yes! it is new

New growth... too cute to resist!
Like an open book
2 June 2021
Like an open book

Position foliage to create a smaller, shallow pond for your floral details to shelter in.
From all sides
26 May 2021
From all sides

An all on one side design to admire roses from all sides.
I tip my (flower) cap!
6 January 2021
I tip my (flower) cap!

An enclosed design that invites the onlooker to lean in closer to explore the pretty orchid.
FreestyleFreesia
22 August 2018
FreestyleFreesia

Dutch floral designer Pim van den Akker, from Flower Factor invited me to participate in a FloraHolland initiative promoting the versatility of Freesias entitled #FreestyleFreesia Here is the extended version of my video.
Look deep
27 June 2018
Look deep

Curl foliage to use as a natural armature for delicate buds.
Making Ends Meet
16 August 2017
Making Ends Meet

Criss-cross corset style connect the gaps in a Monstera deliciosa leaf
I found it this way: Leaf nest design
5 October 2016
I found it this way: Leaf nest design

This was the third design I did in my "I found it this way" floral art demonstration
collywobbles!
4 February 2015
collywobbles!

Fold foliage butterflies