My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

Weaving Willow spheres

To build up a willow ball start weaving a wreath

To build up a ball or sphere use soft and flexible willow to weave your first wreath.

Weave another willow wreath

Weave another wreath exactly the same size.

Weave another wreath

...and another wreath, again exactly the same size.

Each willow ball will require five wreaths

You will need five wreaths for each willow ball.

Start to build up the ball shape

Slip one wreath over a second to start building up the ball shape.

Bend a hairpin out of wire to secure the willow

Bend a hairpin out of wire to secure the willow

Slip the hairpin through and around the biggest willow pieces

Slip the hairpin through and around the thickest and willow stems

Tighten the wire with your pliers

Tighten the wire with your pliers. Remember the willow will dry and shrink so make sure the wire is very tight

Continue to build up the ball shape by placing the wreaths over the first two willow wreaths

Continue to build up the ball shape by placing the rest of the wreaths over the first two willow wreaths. Secure with wire

To break up the wreath lines I now weave in long stems of thin willow

To break up the wreath lines I now weave in long stems of thin, pliable willow. Weave the willow in and out randomly twining it around and around the ball

Small willow sphere all done

Small willow sphere, all done!

I needed three willow spheres for my drop bridal design

I needed three willow spheres for my drop bridal design. To make a larger ball, simply start by making larger wreaths.

Connect the wreaths with hairpin wire

Again, connect the bigger wreaths with wire

One sphere done, one with just a few connected wreaths and one almost done

Here you can see the three steps: first connect the wreaths, build up the sphere and then break the wreath lines.

Three willow spheres done and ready to design with

I like the spheres to look a bit "organic" rather than perfect. It shows they are custom made

Hook brown wire around the biggest most secure willow twig

Connect the three tiers. Hook brown wire around the biggest most secure willow twig.

Tighten the brown wire

Twist the brown wire to tighten

Tie the wire to the second sphere

Extend the wire. Secure it to the next willow sphere

When you use wire in a design that might be handled make sure all end pieces point in and flat

When you use wire in a design that might be handled make sure all the dangerously sharp end pieces point in and lies flat.

Test to see if the willow spheres hang straight

Test to see if the willow spheres hang straight and fits comfortably

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

Tutorials

1 November 2011 Weaving a twig wreath

For my design I wanted the wreath to look wind blown so I added a few loosely woven twigs into the weave. I also wanted to emphasize the autumn colours so I added a twirling...

5 May 2011 Wire baubles

Make baubles from wire

11 February 2015 Stripping foliage from weaving stems

Remove foliage from stems to weave with

Favourite Flowers

Salix matsudana "Tortuosa"

Curly Willow, Chinese Willow, Tortured Willow, Globe Willow, Dragon's Claw, Hankow Willow

Related Designs

25 January 2012 Three Drops of Floral Chocolate

The design drips down in three tiers each celebrating life, love and connection.

11 April 2011 Veiled Sunshine:50th Anniversary of the South African Orchid Society at the Cape Town Convention Centre.

Bright and sunny cymbidium orchids and roses, lilies, lisianthus and pincushions

11 April 2011 Glass

A small pane of glass connects the top and the bottom of the design

30 July 2014 See you around

Weave a few spheres to create a simple design

30 September 2015 So

A willow sphere to display your first Autumn treasures.

2 December 2015 Stacking the odds in your favour

Cover a wire frame for a winter kissing bough.

24 February 2016 How to make an early Spring

Roll and set willow twigs into a spring

4 May 2016 Ring-a-round

Open a vine wreath to create a spiral twig armature around a glass container

3 August 2016 Practice

Weave a willow bird nest

19 October 2016 There are Octobers

Autumn wreath

11 April 2017 Well… we did it again!

Blossoms and chocolates for Easter

24 May 2017 Link

weave a few wreaths to link

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...

7 March 2018 Twist of its own

... a quick an easy design. Curl a few flax leaves to frame orchids

14 March 2018 Old, new trends

My article and willow birdcage design for wedding rings featured in DIY Weddings Magazine.

21 March 2018 Bring some Spring

Just like the weather is only hinting at spring, so is this design only hinting at being a basket

18 April 2018 Swing Vine

Weave a delicate vine swing to nestle a small vase with spring flowers in

9 January 2019 Magical Craftsmanship

My article and winter white Tulle bridal basket design featured in DIY Weddings Magazine.

18 September 2019 It’s a sugar rush!

A perfectly imperfect wild willow wreath to display the first Autumn treasures of the year.

12 May 2021 It’s up there

Whether it’s a solid foot for floating flowers, the tips of new growth or the curve of a dried twig your design needs help to stay upright.

1 December 2021 It’s the most… it’s the most... Hap-Hapiest Patina Christmas of all!

This is the second of my Christmas 2021 series of designs. This year in the form of a mini workshop… my Christmas present to you. Craft a three twig sphere snow man to proudly...

6 July 2022 Let’s play ball

Weave a spherical support to place long stemmed flowers into a bud vase.

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.

27 September 2023 this NEEDS to be at the top of my (our?) to-do list

Autumn bud vase collar made from gladiolus foliage.

6 March 2024 A Stay Open

Grow a willow birdcage... with a bit of a Spring flower support to get it started.