Homemade Holiday Decor Part 2

I managed to get 2 more ornament projects finished today. We are going for mostly homemade ornaments this year. I have no idea if it will all turn out the way I want it to. Today I dried orange slices in the oven and made cinnamon ornaments.

To make the orange slices you lay cut slices on a cookies sheet. (Cut them much thinner then I did) You then dry them for 4 hours on your ovens lowest setting, around 170 degrees. After 4 hours you flip them over and then check them every hour. They are finished when they are still slightly moist. This way they will retain their orange color. They will finish drying as they cool

To make the cinnamon ornaments you will need to combine 1 cup of cinnamon and 3/4 cup of store bought applesauce (homemade is to watery). The dough will be stiff. Roll it out between wax paper to about 1/4" thickness. You can then cut them into your desired shape and lay them out to dry for several days. Make sure to put a hole in them so you can hang them. I found that a straw makes a great tool for this. After they have dried you can decorate them or leave them plain.

Another tip about the cinnamon ornaments-Make sure your children know not to eat the dough, and make sure they keep their fingers away from their eyes. I had to constantly remind my daughter today.

Tomorrow I am hoping to show you the cornucopias we are working on. I thought they would be finished today, but who would have thought it would be so hard to find fake holly this time of the year. I have plans to try one more store tomorrow.

If you are interested in seeing where I have been getting some of my ideas you can go here for some inspiration of your own. I am also planning to have Madison help me string popcorn and make mini cranberry wreaths for the tree. I think I will see if my husband can make a star for the top using some sticks from the yard and then paint it gold.