Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman
Standing flowering stems in shallow puddles
- 13 August 2014
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Start by making the truss. This will ensure that the three flowering stems stand free in the shallow water
See the Tutorial below for more details on why I choose three stems.
Give the sunflower stems a fresh cut. Usually we cut flower stems at an angle to increase the surface for the stem to take up water but this design is going to stand freely on the stems in water so I cut it flat.
Cut bamboo skewers smaller at a very sharp angle
Press the sharp skewer into the cut-off from the flower stem
Measure the skewer against the stem. Press the skewer deeper if needed so that it will go into the flower stem but not exit on the other side
Prepare all the truss pieces.
Make sure the skewers are straight and fit tightly
Start connecting the three sunflower stems with a truss piece. Firmly press the skewer into the flower stem
Press the other side skewer into the next flower stem
Make the connection as need as possible.
Add another truss piece, a little higher
Two of the three flower stems are now connected. Stand the sunflowers upright to make sure it is balanced
Connect the third stem with the first with another truss piece
Add another truss piece to connect the third flower stem with the second. Ideally there should be at least two truss pieces connecting the flowering stem with the stem next to it.
Stand the sunflower stems in a shallow container filled with water
Add a few floral details such as passion fruit tendrils an vine and fresh berries
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Tutorials
Latch a few bamboo pieces together to create a scaffold for the flowers to hang from
When in doubt, always give your armature three legs. Two legs are simply not enough and four legs will wobble if it is even slightly off balance.
Favourite Flowers
Granadilla, passionflower, passion vines
Sunflower
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