Make Your Own Citrus Garland
I always look forward to the weekend after Thanksgiving, it is a time to reflect on the last year, daydream about the year to come, and kick off watching all my favorite holiday movies. I am definitely feeling more festive this year and am excited to start some new traditions as I enter into a new chapter after two years of cancer treatments. Do you have any favorite holiday traditions?
I bought a large bag of mandarins the other week and could not eat them quick enough. Instead of tossing them out, I decided to make a dried citrus garland to decorate the house with. It added some welcome freshness to my dated holiday decorations! If you also have some extra citrus that is at risk of going bad, I would invite you to carve out some time of your own and make this beautiful garland in five simple steps.
Step 1 — Slice the Citrus
Slice the citrus into 1/4” thick slices. I cut up both lemons and mandarins — depending on the fruits, this can add different colors to your garland.
Step 2 — Dehydrate Your Slices
Preheat the oven to 200ºF and place the citrus slices on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake the slices for 2 hours, flip the slices over, and then bake for another 2 hours. The slices should feel hard with no liquid remaining, I placed my slices on a wire rack and let them dry out for an additional 2 days on the kitchen counter before I began stringing them up.
Step 3 — String the Garland
For my garland, I used a natural kitchen twine with copper thread to add some sparkle and a steel yarn needle to help poke a hole through the center of the slices. I spaced the slices 6” apart and after every third slice I added a star anise in. I love that it broke up the garland visually and provided a wonderful holiday scent as well.
This is where you can get creative — there are many ways that you can string your slices. You can use a colored thread, yarn, or ribbon and add other elements like beads, dried herbs, or cinnamon sticks. It is a great way to look around your spice cabinet or craft room and see what could be reimagined!
Step 5 — Hang your Garland
Hang it anywhere that will bring you and your space some festive joy. I wrapped mine around my Christmas tree.
Now, make a cup of hot cocoa, put on your favorite holiday music, and admire your results.
If you make your own garland, please send along a photo or tag @craftingthroughcancer, I’d love to see what you create! After the holidays, you can store your garland in an airtight container until next year or depending on what you used to accessorize the garland with, you can throw it in the compost bin and make a new one next year.