Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman
Use a glue stick to position a Kenzan… just so… so that you can place the blackest of flowers to be framed by gaps of light
- 8 May 2024
- click to send Christine a smile
Have you noticed that when you place a Kenzan in a tall-ish small container it almost always ends up lop sided? This makes it really difficult to place your flowers exactly how you want it. It can even cause the flowers to tip. And using floral adhesive is a sure way to get the Kenzan stuck in the container.
Here is what I do to overcome that...
Press a glue stick into the teeth of your Kenzan...
So that you can pick up the heavy Kenzan by the glue stick handle...
Lower the Kenzan into the display container...
So that it fits snug and secure...
And remove the glue stick leaving the Kenzan in position.
Top up the display container with water to cover the Kenzan.
Book readers turn to page 146 where I show you how to support your flowers.
I finally have some good news on the whole book price issue. It is currently on sale at Amazon for minus 26%. I still would love the price to be even lower so the work continues.
Amazon.ca
Slip a Calla lily through a leaf fenestration of a Monstera...
And skewer both into the teeth of the Kenzan.
Add in a few rosary vines to drape over the flowers.
For a bonus tip about keeping these vines secure in the Kenzan see our notification email this week. Every Wednesday morning (Vancouver time) the moment the design is ready for you to view I send out an email with a bit of insider information that will make the design lesson even more valuable for you. You can simply click on the link to see the new Design or read the tip... and then have a look at the Tutorial. Or both. This is also a great way for us to connect. Reply to the email if you have questions or a comment or to say hi. I would love to hear from you. The sign up is below this post.
Make sure to anchor the vine firmly so that it can be pulled up the stems and you can carefully drape it to cascade down the design.
And as usual I finished my design with a few dew drop crystals to add some sparkle and highlight the curve that I want you to notice.
See the Tutorial below for more detailed instructions on how I add the dew drop crystals.
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Tutorials
It's sometimes difficult to place a tiny crystal or bead exactly where you want it.
Glue short sections of rosary vine into the natural gaps in the Monstera deliciosa leaf
Capture a bit of winter magic by placing delicate flower buds in the middle of two large leaves.
Curl and pin a few leaves into a tube to create an armature for those "left over" freesiabuds.
Take all the usual ingredients for a budvase design- a flower, a leafy green something and roll it into something unusual to display.
Create a tiny visual tunnel to focus attention.
Create a shallow puddle in a larger container to keep your flowers in place.
Stack foliage to create a rose spiral in a container.
A small bundle of Spring floral treasures framed with lush monstera foliage.
Fold and glue a Monstera deliciosa (delicious monster) leaf
Favourite Flowers
Rosary vine, Chain of Hearts, Collar of hearts and String of hearts
Related Designs
A bark armature standing on pointe for some gorgeous blue King Tut sweet peas
Criss-cross corset style connect the gaps in a Monstera deliciosa leaf
Dutch floral designer Pim van den Akker, from Flower Factor invited me to participate in a FloraHolland initiative promoting the versatility of Freesias entitled ...
Freestyle Freesia design video for Flower Factor
... a something to look forward to design that makes you lean in closer to see what might still be.
A tiny budvase design that rearranges basic ingredients, such as a single leaf and an orchid to create a new design concept.
I would definitely describe my own personal style as minimalist classic... but with an edgy twist.
An enclosed design that invites the onlooker to lean in closer to explore the pretty orchid.
Position foliage to create a smaller, shallow pond for your floral details to shelter in.
Support a small bundle of spring florals to stand upright in water with two Monstera leaves.
