This dried orange garland project made with bay leaves, and cinnamon sticks are easy to create and make a beautiful statement in your fall, holiday, and winter decor.
Have you ever made a dried fruit garland? The drying process takes some time, but overall it's pretty easy to make. My sister and I used to make these for our herbal shop with different dried fruits, and other botanicals, like dried red hot peppers. Very pretty during in the fall and for your Christmas decor.
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How to Make a Dried Orange Garland
Supplies
- Oranges
(see below how to dry your own)
- Whole Bay Leaves
- Cinnamon Sticks, 2.75 Cut, 1 lb
- Twine
How to Dry Oranges Slices
You can buy dried orange slices
I tried something similar with whole oranges and little clementines but it did not work as well. You can read more about that in this dried citrus ornament project.
The same process works for apples. You can string them too or just make a pretty bowl of potpourri.
Creating the Garland
Gather your bay leaves in a bowl. I bought a big bag of bay leaves. Many were not big enough to string on the garland so it helped to weed through them ahead of time.
Drill holes in the middle of the cinnamon sticks. You can also just wind the cinnamon sticks around the twine as you go. I did this for half of my garland then switched to drilling holes. Drilling takes more time, but the cinnamon stick stays in place better.
Next, string them all together. It is helpful if you have a large embroidery needle, but you can always use a paper clip or even a piece of wire.
I started with a cinnamon stick, then an orange slice. Then I added 8 bay leaves, another orange slice, 8 more bay leaves, a final orange slice, and repeated this combination until the end.
Of course, you can use any combination you'd like. To give you an idea, the garland above is about 4 feet long. For this, I used approximately 11 oranges, 18 cinnamon sticks (2.75 in) and 250 bay leaves.
I think in the future I might add more cinnamon sticks and some apple slices. It makes a really nice fall garland for our family room mantel.
I just might leave it up or use it on the tree as an orange Christmas decoration.
Overall, it is a little time consuming but totally worth it and I got to enjoy the smell of oranges, bay leaves, and cinnamon while I worked.
P.S. I love crafting with dried fruit and herbs. Here are a few other projects that you may also like: Dried Citrus Ornaments, Citrus Candle Rinds, and Dried Fruit Ornaments
Check out the DIY/Projects Page,
for more great project ideas.
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Deanna
I was wondering if you could save them year after year. Have you ever stored yours?
Patti Estep
Deanna, you definitely can. I made this 5 years ago and it still looks pretty good today. Here's a quick pic from my phone. I just keep it in plastic bins with other seasonal decorations in my basement.
Margie
How do you dry the red hot chilli peppers?
Patti Estep
Margie, pepper can be air dried by hanging them somewhere out of the way where it is dry and somewhat warm. They can be dried in the oven at the lowest temperature. You'll need to keep an eye on them, turning them and removing them before they turn color. You could also use a food dehydrator.
Jan Bielaczyc
Sounds like a fun craft, I can’t wait to try it out!
Patti Estep
It's one of my favorites Jan. Enjoy.
Eugenia Jaffe
Love your creativity!
Patti Estep
Thanks Eugenia!
Jennifer
Any suggestions on stringing the bay? They keep shattering when I try Thanks!
Jen
Patti Estep
Jennifer, try soaking them in a bit of warm water for a few minutes. Then dry them off and try again.
Jennifer
I wondered if that might work! Thanks so much!
Kathy Menold
Haven't made these dried oranges in years and forgot how pretty they are and how good they smell when drying. I also did apples and used both to add to a fresh evergreen garland and also as decorations on our tree. Thanks for reminding me of an easy but beautiful natural decor.
Patti Estep
Thanks for the great comment Kathy. Your garland sounds gorgeous!
Lily
I made these & love them but can’t seem to keep them hung up because they are so heavy! Any tips?
Patti Estep
Lily, they can be heavy. The only suggestions I have is to make sure you use enough nails or hooks to hang the garland.
Lisa
Where did you buy your Bay leaves? They are pricey so I’m sure buying in bulk helps. Thanks for sharing your lovely garland! 🌻🍁
Patti Estep
Lisa, I buy most of my supplies through Amazon. I'm a prime member and that gives me 2 day free shipping so I always look there first. Usually, their prices are comparable. However, another good one for herb and spices is https://www.atlanticspice.com/. Hope that helps and have fun creating your garland.
Sara Smith
Beautiful! I was just trying to think of a creative DIY garland. Will try this weekend. Thanks!
Natalia Emma
I have tried dry red hot peppers Garland! but never try Dried Orange Garland! Interesting Idea, I think I'm gonna try this one too.
Patti Estep
Hot pepper garlands are so pretty too. I hope you love the orange as much as we did.
Amna Shaheen
Thanks Patti for sharing such a wonderful information with us. Will try it definitely.
Patti Estep
Enjoy Amna!
Valenica Abbott
Beautiful! I was just trying to think of a creative DIY garland. Will try this weekend. Thanks!
Patti Estep
Thanks Valencia. I think you'll love it.
corrine
Could the oranges be done in a dehydrator? This looks so nice!
Patti Estep
Hi Corrine,
I would definitely think they could be dried in a dehydrator but have never tried it.
I think you could get good results with a little experimentation.
Good luck,
Patti