How to Make Dried Fruit Christmas Decorations

Dried fruit can be decorated to produce old-fashioned, aromatic Christmas ornaments.

In the days before mass marketing, people celebrated Christmas with greater simplicity, and gifts and ornaments were generally handmade. Making homemade Christmas decorations is a fun way to bring the modern-day family together in an old-fashioned manner. There are ample ideas to choose from when considering what you'd like to make. If you are looking for something that requires relatively little skill -- and something the whole family can participate in -- you might want to consider making some Christmas decorations from dried fruit.

Things You'll Need

• Citrus fruit of choice (oranges and limes)
• Whole cloves
• Raffia ( natural or colored)
• Ribbon (red and green)
• Knife
• Cooling racks
• Oven

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 150 degrees and slice the fruit of your choice to an 1/8-inch thickness. Lay individual slices on a cooling rack. If drying the whole fruit, use a knife to vertically score around the diameter of the fruit, about every 3/4 inch. If you intend to string the whole fruit for hanging, you might want to cut out the center piece prior to baking. Place the piece of fruit on a separate cooling rack.

2. Place the sliced fruit into the heated oven on the cooling racks for about four hours. Turn the fruit after two hours to evenly distribute the heat and aid in the drying process. The whole pieces will require a longer baking period and will be done when the white tissue of the fruit appears dry, but not crispy. After removing the fruit from the oven, allow it to cool to room temperature.

3. 

   Use traditional red and green Christmas colors for your ornaments -- or be creative and use any colors you like.

   Prepare the accessories for your ornaments by cutting the raffia and/or ribbon to your desired length. Six to 8 inches works well for a single ornament. For stringing and hanging the whole fruit, consider a longer measurement. Ready your cloves by trimming a small amount off of the stem so they don't stick too far out the back of the fruit.

4. Make a small slice for a hole on one side of the fruit for hanging. String the ribbon through, making a nice bow at the top. Place the cloves around the rind to further decorate your ornament. String the individual fruits with the longer ribbon or raffia and decorate to your desire with the cloves.

5. 

   Dried fruit ornaments can bring an outdoor Christmas tree to life while feeding some hungry birds.

   Hang your completed ornaments anywhere indoors -- or out. Birds will relish a delicious treat in the dead of winter when food is sparse.

6. 

References

• DIY Life: Orange Slices Make Fragrant and Pretty Christmas Ornaments
• Old Fashioned Living: Crafting Basics: Dried Apples and Oranges