My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Palm leaf Hopper-flies (grasshoppers and butterflies)

A new video to update: How to fold a grasshopper

Palm Butterfly example 2

Gerbera and Palm Butterfly

How to:

Palm leaf

Split the leaf

Remove a leaf from a palm.

Using a pin split the leaf in three, separating the hard center vein from the leaf at both sides. Leave the last 2cm intact at the side that was connected to the palm.

Carefully run your nail along the vein to soften it so that it’s more pliable. Fold the vein back on itself and tuck under the leaf where it’s still connected. It might be easier for you to use a tiny bit of putty or Oasis fix to keep the vein in place while you practice doing this and later you will find it’s easy to hold in place while you weave the body.

Butterfly fold 1

Start weaving the body

Fold one side under and then over the vein. Pull tight. Do the same with the other side and pull tight.

Continue weaving the body two or three more times depending on the length of your palm leaf.

Butterfly Body

Butterfly Body

Create feelers (Antenna) by tucking the two sides of the leaf into the vein loop and pulling the vein snug. Separate the side strips and carefully run your nail through the length of each to curl as you would ribbon.

Butterfly Feelers

Tie and curl the Butterfly Feelers

Butterfly back

Top of the Butterfly

Finish off the body by weaving the long center vein around itself and cut short. Cut the tail end if required.

Hop or Fly

Fly or Hop?

You can now add leaves for wings or cut the left-over vein in 2 for legs to tuck into the body.

Grasshopper

Grasshoppers

Butterflies

Two Palm leaf Butterflies in my "1" Design- Floral Trends Design Group Opening Demonstration: 2010

Palm Butterfly example

Protea Composite flower with two Palm Butterflies

Firefly

With tiny blue LED light bulbs to make Fireflies for "A New Age" Child Midnight Meander

I had a string of lights made up for my design because I needed special blue LED lights. Clear LED lights can only be seen from the front and opaque LED lights can be seen from the side. But Christmas fairy lights would also work, as long as the lights don’t get warm.

A Kaleidoscope of butterflies

A Kaleidoscope of possibilities...

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

Favourite Flowers

Phormium

Flax, New Zealand flax

Related Designs

5 January 2011 Protea Composite

To create this huge Protea I took apart nine Protea flower heads and glued the tepals and bracts back on to a polystyrene ball to create a large Protea composite flower that is...

23 March 2011 Mud Pies for my flower friends on my birthday

Mud Pie Baskets, Serviettes in themed Serviette Rings and Booklets

6 April 2011 Butterfly Net

Create a Butterfly Net to suit your design "personality"

4 April 2011 "A New Age" Child's Midnight Meander (Avatar)

A New Age Child's Midnight Meander

21 March 2012 A Floral Fable: Mood Design

This is a detailed look at my first Floral Fable demonstration design

5 June 2012 Flower Girl’s Butterfly Net and Ring Bearer Bug Box

Two fairy tale design details that will capture the imagination of even the youngest members of your wedding party. A tiny bug box to carry your rings in for the ring bearer and...

26 March 2014 You are not done

Retail florists and wholesalers are already designing, ordering and preparing their product range for prom. This is my article that I wrote for the Prom Design Issue of Canadian...

4 February 2015 collywobbles!

Fold foliage butterflies

10 June 2015 Gotcha!

Hana Kubari lily stems

20 January 2016 A lots of stuff and things

Sticks and twigs create a resting spot for palm and rose butterflies

21 June 2017 Playing Favourites

A quick and easy Kenzan design

25 October 2017 When the pretty eyeballs you back!

Barely there skeleton blossoms with Eucalyptus eyes for my Halloween design... Oh! and a Willow Paddle, which probably should have been the main Tutorial... but... well...

31 October 2017 Mr Twig-or-cheat

An extra Almost-a-Design for Halloween this year

28 November 2018 Crafting

The second design I did for my book launch demonstration looking at aspects that influences my effortless style of designing.

21 November 2018 The effortless floral craftsman, a floral crafter's guide to crafting with nature Book Launch Demonstration

My book launch demonstration was hosted by my flower-buddies from the Capilano Flower Arranging Club. We looked at what influences our own effortless style... that "thing" that...

3 April 2019 Blossoming like a Caterpillar

Crafting caterpillars from blossoms

1 July 2020 Oh yes, The Hornet of Tranquility

A minimal... but then with a tiny bug detail... design that is perfect for warm summer designing.

14 April 2021 a Yay! You

A tiny Spring detail to add to a cute little floral design.

26 October 2022 Arachnis Phobicus

A fun woven spider for Halloween decorating

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.

14 June 2023 Because I am beautiful!

It deserves a bowl all of it's own... right? I am (of course!) talking about these spectacular little sweet peas called King Tut. Not much else is needed. But add a cute little...

26 June 2024 It’s leaps of faith, grasshoppers

A sunny rock to make your design... not rock