My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Stripping bark from willow sticks

8 June 2016
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Cut a line down the length of the willow stick with a very sharp knife. make sure to only cut the bark and not damage the wood..

Lift the bark with a cuticle pusher

Gently loosen the bark from the wood

Peel the bark from the wood.

Leaving the beautiful wood exposed

As an alternative cut away sections of bark and only strip those places to expose the wood

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Tutorials

11 February 2015

Stripping foliage from weaving stems

Remove foliage from stems to weave with

22 May 2012

Bite and snap a sturdy twig

Break the sturdy twig on the scribe line.

30 April 2025

Whittle a stumpy stopper to peg precious tiny floral details in place

An easy way to create a design using only a few bits of plant material that can be maintained... effortlessly.

19 April 2023

Willow and Vine tiny stem Gathering Basket

Tiny stems are often also delicate stems... place your cut flowers directly in a small glass of water. A perfect fit for this basket.

5 October 2022

A fluffy faded leaf "tail" to display delicate autumn treasures

Threading leaves to craft a long garland armature for an autumn display

25 November 2020

Contactless gift exchange wreath perfect to double as Santa’s Gift Bag for your front door

Craft a small pouch into a half-and-half wreath so that you can leave... and receive tiny gifts and cards in true Christmas 2020 style .

14 October 2020

On the edge grid for a decorative twig and reed armature

Place the floral details strategically on the edge of sturdier parts of the armature to keep the reed grid from collapsing under the weight of the floral details.

25 September 2019

Beaded wire Leaf

This week I show you the Tutorial for the wire leaf shown in my book on page 14 ... this time in copper.

25 September 2019

Spin a tiny glue bead around a thin stem to secure it at an angle in a design

This is a trick for attaching fine details at exactly the right angle.

2 January 2019

Eucalyptus tinsel garland

Wire seeded Eucalyptus into a long tinsel garland.

28 November 2018

Crafting a stripped bark and sisal armature

Make a free standing armature with three water tubes for fresh flowers.

15 June 2016

Weave green strips of willow bark into a nest

Strip bark from willow to eave and set into a shape

8 June 2016

Popsicle Stick Square Armature

Glue Popsicle sticks to create a double layered, upright armature

Related Designs

22 May 2012

Lean

Place short twigs, leaning to one side to create a flower frog

3 July 2012

Twig-a-tude

Stack and wire twigs to create a twig mushroom with attitude for summer

30 April 2025

Of should and must

Display tiny design details in a budvase by crafting a stopper-frog.

19 April 2023

Short Cut

A tiny carry basket to gather the shortest stems from your cutting garden... with a place for water and your cutters.

5 October 2022

Tail End Of The Season

A display armature for a delicate autumn display.

25 November 2020

Have yourself a Merry Cellulose Fibre Christmas: Santa’s gift bag wreath

...ok not really that fancy- it’s made from paper pulp. A cardboard box gift bag wreath… really. In the spirit of 2020- I am inspired by the endless stream of cardboard boxes being delivered.

14 October 2020

Stick it out… the creative spirit version

Soft minimal Fall armature making it easy to replace the flowers as the season progress.

25 September 2019

It’s one and a half to two times... but to the side

Soft minimal... this is exactly the kind of design I place in our apartment. Use a few fall treasures picked up on a walk and add a copper leaf to up the effort and love you add into your designs.