My Creative Workbook

Christine de Beer - effortless floral craftsman

How do squirrels Cache a tree?

How do squirrels Cache a tree floral art design

You see, tree squirrels don’t hibernate over winter.

Acorn, rosary vine, willow, flax and an oncidium orchid fall design

They rely on hundreds of caches of acorns

Acorn and willow armature

… that they buried earlier in the year to snack on.

Oncidium orchid

Tree squirrels are so good at hiding, making fake holes and digging and reburying their acorns as an anti-theft precaution

Acorn, rosary vine, willow, flax and an oncidium orchid autumn design

… that even they can’t always find them again.

Acorn, rosary vine, willow, flax and an oncidium orchid autumn wand design

Leaving these buried treasures to sprout and grow up to be oak trees.

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

Tutorials

22 November 2017 Acorn fork

Wire and glue a few acorns into the fork of a twig to create an Autumn armature

4 January 2011 Drinking straw "test tubes"

When you need to keep a tiny stem hydrated this is just what you need.

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.

25 October 2017 Willow Paddle

Weave willow between the fork in a twig to create a paddle like armature

11 February 2015 Willow Heart Wand

26 April 2011 Natural stem hook to hang plant material from

Side stems of branches can be used as hooks to hang floral material in a design.

18 January 2012 Butterfly hairclip claws to hold twigs in place while glue dries

Butterfly hair clips are the perfect little claws to help you hold tiny items in place while you wait for glue to dry

12 June 2012 Sticky Shooting Star

Glue gypsophila sticks, flowers and dandelion seeds into a star shape

5 November 2014 Acorn inspired Autumn leaf armature

Dry fall leaves to create a ball shape structure

28 January 2015 Well Rooted Sprouting Willow Weave

Weave a sprouting armature

25 February 2015 Balancing a Twirled Willow Armature

Twirl twigs to create a balanced nest to display the beautiful orchids on

14 January 2011 Ripping Flax

Flax can be ripped into fibres creating long and versatile strips

15 April 2015 Stretching leaves and foliage into a ringlet curl

Most leaves and foliage can be slightly manipulated to curve or curl.

Favourite Flowers

Oncidium

Dancing lady

Phormium

Flax, New Zealand flax

Ceropegia woodii

Rosary vine, Chain of Hearts, Collar of hearts and String of hearts

Salix matsudana "Tortuosa"

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

Related Designs

10 January 2018 Let some magic find you

My article and floral wand design featured in DIY Weddings Magazine

31 January 2018 Rock, don't Roll

Balance the heavy Protea flower head to lean against a rock.

7 March 2018 Twist of its own

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

23 May 2018 In Summer!

A contemporary cascade of rosary vine and dried petals.

8 May 2019 It takes more than one person to invent a trumpet!

Filling a trumpet flower cup... with more flowers!

13 January 2021 It's in there

Complete the picture by drawing a lily flower with delicate vines.

21 April 2021 All A-flutter

Adding a few fluttering petals to a design.

5 July 2023 The Wiggle Is Part Of The Plan

A easy going summer design that makes full use of the imperfections you harvest from your cut garden.

25 January 2012 Three Drops of Floral Chocolate

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

11 February 2015 Love Spell

Weave willow to create a heart shaped wand design

1 November 2011 On The Street Where You Live

A floral design snapshot of what it looks like when walking down the streets of Vancouver this week.

6 September 2011 When Autumn Fall

Autumn leaf composite flower

29 September 2011 Pick-Up Sticks

A twig and stick design with sweet dumpling pumpkins and rosary vine (Ceropegia woodii). I also made a cherry twig and skeleton leaf Stick Insect

18 January 2012 Winter’s Green

This contorted hazel twig reminded me of an ancient and wise bonsai tree. It definitely has a story of its own to tell. I wanted to capture that in my design. All it needed was...

11 June 2012 Wish Upon a Dandelion Star

A sticky shooting star made with gypsophila stems and fluffy dandelion seeds

26 February 2014 Hatching a plan

Early spring floral nest design

29 October 2014 Frightfully Pretty

Weave a single strand Spanish Moss spider web

5 November 2014 All In One

dry autumn leaves into an acorn shape

28 January 2015 In a State of Flow

weave some willow to use as an armature

4 February 2015 collywobbles!

Fold foliage butterflies

25 February 2015 Just So

Twirl a few willow twigs to create a balanced armature to display orchids