My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Leaf Swirls

Cut into the leaf from the tip.

Follow the shape of the leaf, spiralling in

Continue to cut the leaf smaller, follow the shape but do not cut through the edge.

Long continues leaf swirl ready to design with

Design note:

Gently wrap the leaf swirl around the wreath

Hook the inside (the bit you cut last, in the middle of the leaf) spiral around a twig and start to wrap

Keep adding leave swirls...

Overlap the swirls to secure the previous strand

Loosely wrap the swirls to leave space to nestle the fresh flowers in

Place the orchids in small test tubes and nestle them between the leaf swirls. The swirls dry beautifully

or set aside the leaf swirls to shrink and dry...

Before adding the flowers

See Tutorial below for more information on how to make tiny test tubes from drinking straws

Sign up for my weekly newsletter

Every week I add a new design with related tutorials. Be sure to subscribe to receive an email notification with design inspiration.

Sign Up Now
Tutorials
Drinking straw "test tubes"
4 January 2011
Drinking straw "test tubes"

When you need to keep a tiny stem hydrated this is just what you need.
Weaving a twig wreath
1 November 2011
Weaving a twig wreath

For my design I wanted the wreath to look wind blown so I added a few loosely woven twigs into the weave. I also wanted to emphasize the autumn colours so I added a twirling copper wire into the weave
Four wreath harvest basket that looks like it grew that way… because now some of it still is!
23 October 2024
Four wreath harvest basket that looks like it grew that way… because now some of it still is!

Harvest some cuttings to root in a wild and overgrown floral design.
Wire wrap for a shallow container to keep a twig arch armature neatly in place
15 September 2021
Wire wrap for a shallow container to keep a twig arch armature neatly in place

Wrap a wire around both ends of a shallow container to keep the twigs in place.
Floral wreath ring stem armature for a cute pumpkin patch in a stem vase design
7 October 2020
Floral wreath ring stem armature for a cute pumpkin patch in a stem vase design

Use a wreath to keep flower and a heavy little ghost pumpkin in place in a small vase.
Pierce and stack fall leaves to rest on the edge of a container
1 November 2017
Pierce and stack fall leaves to rest on the edge of a container

Use one leaf to keep the next in place
Display wreath that hover around a big shiny pumpkin
4 October 2017
Display wreath that hover around a big shiny pumpkin

For this design I wanted my wreath to be light and airy so that it just whips around the solid pumpkin like a breeze.
Use the stem of an Autumn leaf to wrap, pin and secure it in a roll
21 October 2015
Use the stem of an Autumn leaf to wrap, pin and secure it in a roll

A glue-less way of manipulating leaves
Related Designs
The last Vine Wreath
20 January 2011
The last Vine Wreath

Every designer knows how to stretch their supplies. We use and re-use our dried plant material until our fellow designers feel like hiding it from us. I formed such an attachment to my vine wreaths. This post features four designs using the same wreaths.
Haerfest
23 October 2024
Haerfest

Rooting clematis cuttings in a harvest wreath basket
Blowing this way and that
15 September 2021
Blowing this way and that

Craft an arch armature to display those early autumn treasures.
Let’s circle around to this one
7 October 2020
Let’s circle around to this one

Create a floral circlet to rest the little pumpkin on... but above the water line.
A Round
1 November 2017
A Round

Create a delicate design that rests lightly on the edge of a container
Whipped up in the autumn breeze
4 October 2017
Whipped up in the autumn breeze

Give a loosely woven wreath legs to stand on to hover lightly around a pumpkin
This is the Fragrance of November
6 November 2013
This is the Fragrance of November

Weave a wreath to thread a dome for an Autumn leaf design