The Christmas Table: Christmas recipes and tutorials A celebration of all things Christmas! | Page 83

Roll out your flower paste
over the smaller vein on the
celboard. As Poinsettia leaves
are relatively thin, if you can
roll out thinner than 1mm it
is advantageous (just keep in
mind we will also be veining
the leaves). See below for an
example of how thick the leaves
should be.

Once the paste has been rolled
out, pick up the paste and flip
over so the vein is upright.

Using the poinsettia cutter
#1, cut out one of the leaves,
ensuring the vein is centered in
the leaf.

Insert the wire into the ridge on
the back of the leaf about 2cm.
When inserting the wire, ensure
you put it straight in, don’t
“twiddle” or twist it, as this may
create more space around the
wire and you could end up with
loose leaves once dry. Once the
wire is inserted, it should look
like the picture below.

Pinch the bottom of the leaf onto
the wire. You need to do this
twice, once perpendicular to the
leaf, and once in the same line as
the leaf so that the end result in
flat against the leaf.

 ip the end of the 26 gauge wire
D
into the tylose glue about 1cm,
and wipe the excess glue off the
wire using the back of your hand.
You want to ensure the wire has
just been moistened, you do not
want it to be wet with glue.

83 | Poinsettia

Place the wired leaf on the veiner,
as shown below.