Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman
Keep your fresh plant material hydrated... and your dried plant material from falling into the water with a dried vine armature
- 3 October 2023
- click to send Christine a smile
This design needs a bit of preparation work. But once you have that it is super quick to craft. I have a tip for you this week about creating a design pantry that makes designing easier for you when inspiration hits in our weekly email. If you are not yet receiving your Wednesday morning design notification email from me you can sign up below this post. I always add a bit of a "good to know!" tip about each week's design so that you are ready to look at the design from a fresh perspective. These emails are also a great way for us to keep in touch. Simply reply to the email if you have a comment or question... or say hi.
Set a dried sweet pea vine over a container.
Fill the container with water to below the vine.
It is important to make sure the vine is not in water as the dried material starts to rot quickly when wet causing your fresh floral material to spoil quicker.
Inspect the vine to find sturdy tendrils that can support your flower stems.
A hook or a loop is perfect.
Make sure the tendril is also secure so that it can carry a bit of weight.
If you are unsure or find that your tendrils are not quite where you want them... you can add a tendril by gluing it in- like I did. This not only keeps the flowers in place but also adds to the stability of the vine.
Design note: simply soak the container in a bit of water to remove the glue.
Slip the flower stem through the tendril hook and rest the stem securely on the bottom of the container to keep it from tipping.
I adore these Bletilla striata (also known as hyacinth orchid or Chinese ground orchid) they grow on both my balconies. And the white one that I showed you over summer in partial shade and this purple one in morning sun. They last so well as cut flowers. Absolute favourite!
Add in a few blades of green grass...
You can see how I curl the grass on page 289 of my book. For more information about my book:
The Effortless Floral Craftsman
Add in a few dried grasses and keep them in place by hooking it through the vine tendrils as well.
... but make sure the dried grasses are above the waterline on both ends to keep it dry and lasting for as long as possible.
And finish the design with a few dew drop crystals. I add my dew drop crystals with a pin so that I have more control over the placement and limit damage on the delicate petals.
See the Tutorial below for more detailed instructions.
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Tutorials
A perfect way to use a Lathyrus vine after all it flowered
It's sometimes difficult to place a tiny crystal or bead exactly where you want it.
Glued Baby's Breath Wreath, folded in half to create a moon shaped armature
For this design I wanted my wreath to be light and airy so that it just whips around the solid pumpkin like a breeze.
Craft a slightly off center wreath from dried vines and grasses for Phalaenopsis orchids.
Weave a wreath around a cardboard circle to create an almost lace effect... perfect to capture those first signs of Spring!
Let tendrils do what they naturally do to help keep your flowers in place.
Easy to weave design that can hold your prettiest autumn design treasures.
Threading leaves to craft a long garland armature for an autumn display
Reshape a vine wreath into smaller wreaths to combine as a pumpkin
Related Designs
Keep you fresh plant material hydrated in water... and your dried plant material suspended to keep it from falling into the water.
Give a loosely woven wreath legs to stand on to hover lightly around a pumpkin
That incredible moment when you realize that one good idea for your design really is enough...
A visual breather from all the bright and festive designs to come when designing for Autumn.
