My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Tutorials

30 August 2011 Removing Oasis Floral Adhesive glue spills

The finish of every design should be flawless. Make sure there are no bits of glue visible in your design by carefully removing all traces of spills.

30 August 2011 Suspending and positioning a Phalaenopsis orchid under water

Flowers naturally float and you will need some kind of sinker to keep them suspended under water.

30 August 2011 Curving Calla Lilies

Follow the flower's natural curve but you can also curve only sections to create an elegant crescent or a curve at the tip of the stem

25 August 2011 Placing orchids in test tubes

Cut the Phalaenopsis orchid with a bit of green stem attached. This will make them last longer.

24 August 2011 Stain wooden skewers with natural dye

Using fruit, berries, flowers, leaves and grasses to naturally stain design details for floral art relies on the same techniques as using paint or any other dye.

24 August 2011 Oasis Receptacle

I rarely use Oasis as a water source. But I love to use it as a sculptural medium to carve re-usable shapes for my floral art

16 August 2011 Cut spiked flower stems and foliage into short sections

Orchids grow in long flower spikes. It is great to use the entire stem but sometimes you need shorter section. There is a trick to cutting the stems without leaving a visible...

16 August 2011 Fast way to fill a lot of test tubes in awkward places

I do not believe in arranging flowers without a water source of some kind. I want my flowers to remain as beautiful for as long as possible and I often get quite creative to...

16 August 2011 Twig cocoon

Cherry twig frame for my cocoon design

10 August 2011 Free standing basket

I tied the strong inside veins of the 5 Aspidistra leaves (that I used to make the garland with) to make my basket armature.

10 August 2011 Foliage Pleat Garland

Folding a garland from strips of a Aspidistra leaf

10 August 2011 Alliums "breath freshener"

Lessen the smell of Garlic and Onion related flowers