My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Twig snippet pillar armature

Use a box as a template for your design size

Use a box or a Styrofoam shape as a template for your design size. Cut a large bunch of twigs into snippets to create a cage around the shape. You will need to glue two shapes to combine to create the design.

See the Tutorial below for detailed instructions on a really easy way to snap twigs without struggling to make the cut.

Follow the shape closely

The idea is to follow the shape closely. Build it up by gluing twigs to other twigs at, at least three points to make sure it is strong enough to keep the shape and carry weight once the flowers are added.

Design Note: Glue the twigs to other twigs. Make sure not to get any glue on the shape so that you can lift away the shape easily without damaging the armature.

Glue more twigs to the one half of the shape and let it open up towards the other side

Glue more twigs to the one half of the shape and let it open up towards the other side. This is purely decorative. I wanted my pillar to have a visual gap in the middle.

Start to glue twigs to the bottom edge of the shape

Start to glue twigs to the bottom edge of the shape...

Design note: I am using these twigs to glue only 3 sides of each shape. Towards the end of the Tutorial I will glue in snow covered twigs to design the front of the shape.

Once the shape is filled in with twigs move on to the sides

Once the shape is filled in with twigs move on to the sides...

Again add less twigs as you glue them to the top part of the shape

Again add less twigs as you glue them to the top part of the shape.

Remove the twigs from the shape and set aside

Remove the twigs from the shape and set aside so that you can start on the other half.

Again pack the twigs around the shape

Pack and glue the twigs around the shape...

Following the edges carefully

Following the edges carefully...

So that the shape is a neat box once you remove the twigs

So that the shape is a neat box once you remove the twigs.

Lift the shape away

Lift the shape away...

To combine the two sides

To combine the two sides.

Glue in twigs that reaches over the gap

Glue in twigs that reaches over the gap... but only on the sides.

Make sure each twig is connected at three places to another twig

Make sure each twig is connected at three places to another twig to create a really strong armature.

Newsletter subscribers: I have a bonus tip for you this week about choosing the position of these twigs. It's one of those... "oh that makes a huge difference!" tips that disappears when you do it right but really distracts when you get it wrong. Make sure to subscribe if you are not yet receiving your weekly email.

Place twigs on the display container to create a platform for the pillar to stand on

Place twigs on the display container to create a platform for the pillar to stand on.

Again... remember to glue the twigs to the twigs and not to the container so that you can move it if need be.

Fit the pillar armature on the four twigs so that it stands upright on its own

Now that you have a solid platform it is easy to fit the pillar armature on the four twigs so that it stands upright on its own.

Slowly lower the twig pillar onto the four twigs and glue it where it naturally connects.

Glue in a few twigs to conceal the platform so that it forms a unit with the pillar

Glue in a few twigs to conceal the platform so that it forms a unit with the pillar.

Now the fun starts... it is time to put your stamp on your design. These are the tiny little details that matters the most. Book readers... this is your moment to shine. How do you show off your effortless style?

For my design I added more delicate branches to the front

For my design I added more delicate branches to the front of my design... made even more delicate with a light dusting of snow.

See the Tutorial section below for more detailed instructions on how I add snow to the twigs.

Glue in the snow covered twigs to the front opening of the pillar shape

Glue in the snow covered twigs to the front opening of the pillar shape.

Place the larger snow covered twigs to look like blossom branches

Place the first few larger snow covered twigs to look like blossom branches leaving some gaps for you to add the orchids. You can again add twigs over the orchids to complete the design.

Book readers: Turn to page 276 where I mention how to really observe nature for a design example. This will help you see where to place these twigs.

Glue in water tubes to keep the orchids hydrated

Glue in water tubes to keep the orchids hydrated. I make these from drinking straws. See the Tutorial below for detailed instructions on how to make your own.

Finish the design by adding the flowers

Finish the design by adding the flowers.

Make sure you position flowers to sit to the front, some way to the back and some floating in the middle of the pillar to make full use of the dimension you create by boxing in the twigs like this. Glue a few snow covered twigs to shape around and over the orchids and add a few crystals (if it suits your design taste)

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

Tutorials

22 May 2012 Bite and snap a sturdy twig

Break the sturdy twig on the scribe line.

28 December 2016 Adding snow to twigs

Glue artificial snow to twigs

24 July 2012 Blow away hot glue strands

When you glue a structure with hot glue there are always a few stray strands of glue stuck all over the design. Blow it away with a hairdryer.

8 January 2014 Twig Tumbler

Wire and glue a stack of sticks into a cylindrical or tube shape

21 May 2014 Square Twig Cube

Glue twigs together to create a cube armature

25 March 2015 Jiyek Braiding a Pussy Willow Twig Blind

A design inspired by traditional Jiyek braiding techniques

24 June 2015 Twig Cell phone Charging Station Centrepiece

Create an arched design to hide the electrical outlet for a cell phone charging station

29 July 2015 Disk Twig Armature

Glue a few wigs to follow the shape of a glass bowl to create a disk armature

9 December 2015 Scalable twig and Phalaenopsis orchid winterscape panel

This design can easily scale up or down by using larger or smaller pieces of wood to create a larger wall panel or make a few of these panels to stack as tiles to create a more...

8 July 2015 Using a pin to place tiny dew drop crystals

It's sometimes difficult to place a tiny crystal or bead exactly where you want it.

6 September 2017 Contained rose twig stack

Glue the twigs in a container to easily follow the round shape

6 February 2019 Winter White Twig Screen

Glue twigs to screen delicate flowers for a wintry design.

17 July 2019 Twig Dome Armature

Crafted from a hand full of twigs to give you a large design... even though you add only two stems of sweet peas.

Favourite Flowers

Phalaenopsis

Phalaenopsis, Moth orchid

Related Designs

19 February 2020 The Upside of being Inside

A creative design that has some height to it without blocking the view. This can easily be scaled up or down to match the environment you want to display it in.

6 May 2020 Forever… incomplete

Craft a pretty armature that can be used again and again.

23 September 2020 Getting a head start on all that Fall-ing

Floral styling using mostly dried material that will last the entire Autumn.

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.

3 March 2021 Spring Tray-ning

A Spring basket design for catching falling blossom petals.

28 April 2021 Here comes the sun...

A minimal design celebrating the new growth on twigs

11 August 2021 A bit Special... four dimensional designing

Using that little something that is unusual about your flower to make the design stand out.

8 September 2021 A good September Soaking

Exploring two soaking techniques for a subtle early autumn design

27 October 2021 Ship Shape

The dry wheat stems are suspended from the outside of the container so that they remain dry and the flower stems can gently rest inside to remain hydrated.

9 March 2022 …. Aaaaaand tick!

Ever wonder how I decide what I share with you? A fun design ticking all the boxes.

16 March 2022 Poised to Spring

An "it's only 10 days to Spring" design to display some blossom buds.

1 June 2022 Found it!

A very secure thorn branch armature to hold overgrown Tulips in place

27 July 2022 Wrong on the right, for a right

A glued snipped to create a cooling cone for dangling orchids

28 December 2022 Giving a nod

A scattering of winter decorating for wherever you might need it.

8 February 2023 Snow… drops

A late winter design for minimal floral styling.

8 January 2014 It's stick season!

Snap and stack an glue a few twigs to create a lace like armature

21 May 2014 Square

Glue a stick cube to fit a cube vase

25 March 2015 Pulling some Strings

Braid a twig blind armature

24 June 2015 Staying connected

My article and a floral cell phone re-charge station design featured in DIY Weddings Magazine

29 July 2015 Beautiful Things

Glue a few twigs into a disk armature

9 December 2015 On a Grand Scale

My article and a floral panel design featured in DIY Weddings Magazine

6 September 2017 One of those difficult questions

Glue a bunch of twigs inside a container to create a round stack

6 February 2019 Tread softly on winter

A delicate winter twig armature to show off the delicate beauty of these early spring coloured tulips.

17 July 2019 … and... a bit more... effort… to make it special

Instead of just placing a handful of twigs and two stems of sweet peas in a vase... why not...?