Days are getting shorter, cold is settling in, streetlights are decked with festive lights and Mariah Carey is once again singing her legendary (if not catchy) hit: "All I Want For Christmas Is You"... No doubt, Christmas is just around the corner! Get out the baubles, make way for the garlands! This year, why not take the opportunity to create natural decorations from orange peel? Not only very on-trend, economical and eco-friendly, they can be made as a family, to the delight of young and old alike, and they will gently scent the home.
Discover our tutorial to easily make an orange-peel garland as a family, for a natural, fragrant decoration.
1- What do you need?
- Oranges or citrus trees (clementines, grapefruits, mandarins...) ;
- Cookie cutters or pencil ;
- Scissors ;
- Toothpick ;
- Natural string or linen or jute twine or raffia ;
- Facultative: natural decorations such as pine cones, cinnamon for its delicious spicy scent, star anise, berries from Hips, Cotoneaster or holly.
2- How to make an orange-peel garland?
1- Peel orange, taking care to obtain large pieces of peel.
2- Using small cookie cutters or a pencil, draw nice shapes — stars, Christmas trees, snowmen, hearts and many more in the Christmas theme. Then cut shapes out of the orange peel with scissors.
3- Make a small hole at top of decoration with a toothpick so the string can pass through.
4- Lay orange peel shapes flat on absorbent paper or a clean tea towel to absorb moisture. Leave to dry for a few days. If decorations start to curl, press a weight on top for a few hours to flatten them.
5- Make a loop at one end of the string so it can be hung.
6- Then make a first knot a few centimetres from that end, then pass the string through the hole in your decoration. The orange bark should thus butt against this knot.
7- Tie a second knot just after the decoration to keep it in place.
8- Repeat the operation with the following decorations.
As a simple decoration or as garlands hung in windows, orange peels bring colour and cheer in these festive days04
3- Tips and advice
- Peels from juiced oranges can also be used to create lovely decorations while sipping a glass of fresh orange juice. Be sure to remove pulp well before starting your creation.
- Hang garland from windows, Christmas tree, shelf or wall.
- For attractive decorations, add small berries in reddish-orange tones, common in the garden at this time of year: Cotoneaster berries or hips, ornamental apples. Take care that young children do not put them in their mouths.
- Add a bohemian touch with a few dried flowers gathered in summer or autumn: Gypsophila, Lunaria, Statices, Hydrangea flowers, and even the fluffy catkins of ornamental grasses.
- Orange barks can also be combined with pine cones or cinnamon for its delicious spicy scent.
To go further
- Find our range of citrus trees and orange trees.
- Discover our tutorials to make a natural Christmas wreath or a wreath with hips.
- Also discover our tutorial to create an outdoor ice decoration.
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