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Home » Lovely Ideas » How to Make Dried Citrus Christmas Ornaments

How to Make Dried Citrus Christmas Ornaments

Published: Dec 5, 2018 · Modified: Mar 1, 2021 by Genevieve Morrison · This post may contain affiliate links

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These dried orange slices with star anise make the prettiest, natural and fragrant DIY Christmas ornaments for your tree! They’re so simple to make and look like glowing, stained-glass windows!

All you need is 5 oranges, star anise, a needle and thread and a few hours of your time.

A dried orange slice with star anise in the center hanging on a Christmas tree.

This year, I wanted my Christmas tree to be entirely decorated with natural ornaments. No plastic, no tinsel, just guilt-free, elegant, all-natural prettiness (except for the lights, of course).

I used roses and lavender bunches, baby’s breath “snow” and these pretty little oranges, and it turned out to be the most colorful Christmas tree I’ve ever seen!

A colorful Christmas tree decorated with flowers and dry orange ornaments.

What You’ll Need:

  • 5 oranges
  • Star anise (enough for all your slices)
  • A sharp knife
  • A needle and brown (or dark) thread

How to Make Dried Citrus Christmas Ornaments – Step by Step

1. Slice your oranges with a sharp knife about a half-centimeter to a centimeter thick. The thinner they are, the more transparent they’ll be, but make sure not to cut them too thinly. They’ll warp and curl if they’re thinner than a half-centimeter.

2. Place them on a baking pan on top of a grate so the heat can circulate around them, and place them in the oven. Bake them at 200 F. degrees (93 C.) for 4-6 hours.

3. Once dry, let them sit for about a half-hour to cool. Place star anise in the center of the oranges and use a brown or dark thread to attach them. You only need about 2 stitches to secure them. Don’t worry if they’re not completely dry. They’ll continue to dry on your tree for the next few days.

4. I find it’s best to thread through the orange, leaving a bit long so you can easily tie the thread in a knot once it’s secure. Simply sew through the top of each orange to create a string to hang it with, and place it on your tree.

A collage of 4 numbered images showing how to dry orange slices for Christmas ornaments.

Common Questions

1. How do you dry the oranges?

You’ll simply pop them in the oven at 200 F. (93 C.) for about 4-6 hours. It all depends on the thickness of your oranges, so after 4 hours, see if they’re still a bit wet.

You’ll know they’re done when they’re only slightly bendable. If they’re not completely dry, don’t worry, they’ll continue to dry over the next few days on your tree.

The best time to make them into ornaments is actually a day or 2 after drying in the oven because the centers might still be a bit wet after they come out. Giving them a day or 2 to further dry out on a countertop really makes sure they’re nice and completely dry, but depending on how thinly you sliced your oranges, they might be ready to go right out of the oven.

2. What kind of oranges should I use?


You can use just about any kind of orange – Valencia, blood orange, tangerine, clementine… you can even use other citrus-like limes, lemons or grapefruits! The main thing you’ll want to look for is the thickness of skin.
You don’t want to use citrus that has very thick skin, so go for the thinner skinned varieties.

3. Will they go bad?

Nope! Once they’re dry, they’re dry and won’t mold. However, like all organic material, they’ll age and may not look as pretty next Christmas, so don’t bother packing them up with the rest of the ornaments. Make more next year!

2 dry orange slices on a white marble table next to a needle and thread.
A dried orange slice with star anise in the center hanging on a Christmas tree.

Enjoy your gorgeous, little citrus ornaments and Merry Christmas!

For more inspiration, follow me on INSTAGRAM @shekeepsalovelyhome, on PINTEREST and FACEBOOK! And if you ever make any of my tasty drinks or treats, take a picture and tag me. I want to see!

Here Are a Few More Christmas Crafts and Cocktails!

  • How to Make Natural Cotton Christmas Garland
  • How to Make DIY Christmas Tree Decorations
  • The Godiva Chocolate Candy Cane Cocktail
  • How to Make Homemade Flower Ornaments
  • A RumChata Coconut Snowflake Cocktail

For more inspiration, subscribe to my newsletter, follow me on Instagram, on Pinterest, tiktok and Facebook! And if you ever make any of my tasty drinks or treats, take a picture and tag me. I want to see!

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A dried orange slice with star anise in the center hanging on a Christmas tree.
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5 from 4 votes

How to Make Dried Citrus Christmas Ornaments

These dried orange slices with star anise make the prettiest, natural and fragrant DIY Christmas ornaments for your tree! They’re so simple to make and look like glowing, stained-glass windows!
Prep Time10 mins
Assembly5 hrs
Assembly Time20 mins
Total Time5 hrs 30 mins
Pieces: 25 ornaments
Author: Genevieve Morrison
Cost: $15

Equipment

  • sharp knife
  • baking pan with grate
  • a needle and brown (or dark) thread

Ingredients

  • 5 oranges – thinly sliced
  • 25 star anise

Instructions

  • Slice your 5 oranges with a sharp knife about a half-centimeter to a centimeter thick. The thinner they are, the more transparent they’ll be, but make sure not to cut them too thinly. They’ll warp and curl if they’re thinner than a half-centimeter.
  • Place them on a baking pan on top of a grate so the heat can circulate around them, and place them in the oven. Bake them at 200 F. degrees (93 C.) for 4-6 hours.
  • Once dry, let them sit for about a half hour to cool. Place star anise in the center of the oranges and use a brown or dark thread to attach them. You only need about 2 stitches to secure them. Don't worry if they're not completely dry. They'll continue to dry on your tree for the next few days.
  • I find it’s best to thread through the orange, leaving a bit long so you can easily tie the thread in a knot once it’s secure. Simply sew through the top of each orange to create a string to hang it with, and place it on your tree.
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Krugman Pam

    December 28, 2022 at 2:45 pm

    I used hot glue to anchor the star anise on to the orange slice and it worked wonderfully. I also used blood oranges – also now called raspberry oranges because of the red and orange coloring the slices resembled to me like beautiful cathedral windows with or without the star anise. Also, just a tip here – star anise in your typical grocery store was $12 for a small jar. I purchased a whole bag in bulk at a natural grocery store for just a few dollars. Thank you for this lovely article. This is the first year I’ve made these and I gave some as gifts to a few friends that were so impressed and charmed by them.

    Reply
    • Genevieve Morrison

      December 28, 2022 at 3:01 pm

      Awesome! Thank you for your input! Glad you enjoyed the article. I wish I could find raspberry oranges. That must look so pretty! And I know what you mean about the price of star anise. It’s steep – at the end of the season, I remove them from the oranges and just use them the following year, but that was a great idea to do a little more digging for a better price. It really ranges depending on where you look for them, for sure.

      Reply
  2. Lauren Poor

    December 11, 2019 at 1:54 am

    I’m in love with this tree!! Did you make the dried flowers or buy them? Please give details if you made them. Also, does the baby’s breath not go bad after being on the tree for a couple weeks?

    Reply
    • Genevieve Morrison

      December 11, 2019 at 2:24 am

      Thank you very much, Lauren! I bought the flowers and dried them myself. There was a sale of roses so I bought about 6 dozen. The baby’s breath looks prettiest when it’s fresh on the tree, but it actually dries quite nicely. It just shrinks a bit, but it still stays white for at least 3 months. If you want to see how I made the flower ornaments, take a look at this post, and thank you again! https://www.shekeepsalovelyhome.com/homemade-flower-ornaments/

      Reply
  3. Shari Green

    December 10, 2019 at 1:44 am

    I have to agree not much fragrance to them when they are done is there any thing that can be added to them other than anise star or can we put cinnamon on them for added smell or anything of Christmas smell?

    Reply
    • Genevieve Morrison

      December 10, 2019 at 4:59 pm

      I’ve seen people attach cinnamon sticks, and that looks really pretty. You can also get a little fancy and add some dry lavender or other floral accents. Another thing to try would be to pierce the orange rind with a few cloves before you put the oranges in the oven! That would really give them a Christmas smell 🙂

      Reply
    • Sharon

      October 15, 2021 at 3:40 pm

      Do you know how these would fair outside? I am thinking about turning this into a garland to hang outside. Maybe weave into some traditional pine garland or string together with pine cones. I have a new orange front door and trying to figure out to not clash and have a more modern look. Have you shellacked these before? Thoughts on weather proofing. TY.

      Reply
      • Genevieve Morrison

        October 15, 2021 at 4:35 pm

        That sounds nice. I suppose it depends how exposed they are to the elements. Are they on a wreath that needs to withstand the rain? Is there a porch protecting it from precipitation? I haven’t placed them in water after they’ve dried and I haven’t shellacked them, so I’m not exactly sure how they’d hold up if they were directly rained on or snowed on. But if they’re only meant to last for a season, I think they would be perfectly fine if they’re on a front door wreath that’s under an awning.

        Reply
  4. Christine Semanson

    December 09, 2019 at 1:53 pm

    I’ve put my tree in the kitchen this year, and this would be a great decoration to add. Are you tying the star anis on with the string and knotting it on the back?

    Reply
    • Genevieve Morrison

      December 09, 2019 at 8:49 pm

      Yup! I basically use a needle and thread to sew through, then I hold the star anise to the orange slice, then I sew across it, pulled the thread tight, and tie the thread in the back 🙂

      Reply
  5. Cindy

    December 07, 2019 at 6:55 am

    Once they are dry, is there much fragrance from the oranges?

    Reply
    • Genevieve Morrison

      December 07, 2019 at 6:31 pm

      Not really. They’ll have a very faint smell, but will smell more like star anise if you’re adding it to the ornaments.

      Reply

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