Stove Top Potpourri – A Homemade Christmas Gift Idea
Give the gift of cozy to friends & family this holiday season with homemade Christmas stove top potpourri filled with fruits & spices.
Tis the season for…Christmas shopping and Christmas gifts! With Thanksgiving behind us, we are in full on Christmas mode and that includes lots of shopping and gifting. I try to get the bulk of my Christmas shopping done well in advance of December, but this year is proving to be a challenge. I am not sure why I am procrastinating; could be I don’t have the time or that my creative mind is constantly preoccupied with Eleanor Rose Home (I believe the latter to be most true!). Christmas shopping can be a stressful time for almost everyone. There is so much pressure to find the perfect gift or to spend more money than your budget allows. I hope this blog post will give you the freedom to (just maybe) take some of the stress off of buying a few presents for those on your list, and possibly making your own gifts this year!
One of the things I enjoy most about the holidays is creating homemade gifts for Christmas. Almost every year, I come up with a gift that I think my friends and family would love and make it myself. Homemade gifts come from the heart and can mean so much to the ones you are gifting. It’s a great way to save money during the holidays, and everyone will cherish the gift knowing it was made from your heart.
Some of my favorite homemade gifts I have gifted in the past are cinnamon baked ornaments, homemade candles in mason jars, homemade vanilla extract (this was one of the easiest and most loved homemade gifts), and baked Christmas cookies. This year, I decided to gift homemade stove top potpourri. This would be the perfect hostess gift, or a great gift for a teacher, bus driver, hairdresser, coworker, etc. Stovetop potpourri was something I discovered this fall, and I could not believe the incredible smells that filled our kitchen! I remember my husband walking into the house one day saying, “What is that amazing smell!” So, when I was thinking of what I wanted to make for gifts this Christmas, I knew my family and friends would love this potpourri as much as I do.
The recipe I am sharing with you can be changed up a million different ways based on what you like and what smells you enjoy. Some great additions or substitutions to your potpourri could be dried rosemary, dried cranberries, pinecones, or dried lemons. The ingredients I selected are some of my favorites scents and evoke the feeling of Christmas for me. Let’s make some stove top potpourri!
What You Will Need:
5-6 Dried oranges
4-5 Dried apples
Pine stems
Scissors
Hot glue gun & hot glue sticks
How to Make Jars of Stove Top Potpourri
1. Gather all of your ingredients that you are going to be adding to your jar for the potpourri (I did not measure out the ingredients, I eyeballed everything and had enough for 10 jars). Lay all of your ingredients out on a counter or in bowls so that you can easily grab each item and place into the jar. (Click here for instructions on how to dry your oranges and apples. Your fruit should be completely dried out, otherwise the fruit will mold in your jar.)
2. Alternate your fruit and spices into the jar so that you have about an equal amount of each item. Presentation is key here, so as you are putting items in the jar, keep an eye on how the outside of the jar looks. Pack your jar filling in spaces with the smaller items.
3. Once your jars are stuffed with your potpourri ingredients, seal with the cover.
4. Take the brown Kraft paper and find a circle that you can trace onto the paper that is about 1″ bigger than the cover to your jar. You want the Kraft paper to overhang so that you can wrap the twine around it. Cut out all of your circles with scissors.
5. Heat up your hot glue gun. Place a small dab of the hot glue in the middle of the cover to the glass jar. Quickly center and press the paper circle to the glue dab on the jar top. Next, on the side of the cover, add a small dab of hot glue. Press the paper to the dab of glue. Continue about 3-4 times around the side of the cover, securing the paper.
6. Once all the Kraft paper circles are glued to the jars, cut your twine. I cut the twine about 36″ long so that I could wrap the twine about 3 times around the top of the jar.
7. About a 1/4″ from the top of the jar, wrap the twine around the brown paper/cover so that the paper is secure and the twine is tight. I went around the jar about 3 times with the twine. Once wrapped around the jar, tie a knot.
8. Add a tag with instructions on how to use the potpourri or add any other item for decoration. I did not add any tags, but did secure a dried orange slice with the twine, and then tied a simple bow.
How to Use the Jarred Stove Top Potpourri
To use the stovetop potpourri, add the entire contents of the jar to a pot and cover with water. Simmer on and off for a few days. Turn the heat off at anytime if the scent becomes Too strong or if your home smells sufficiently Christmassy. After a few hours, the smell will began to fade, turn the heat back on for a fresh infusion of scents. As the water evaporates, continue to add more, covering the potpourri. The potpourri will last about 3-4 days and should be stored in the refrigerator overnight.
Instead of running around trying to find the perfect gift this year, consider making your own. Whether it’s stove top potpourri or something else, your gift recipients will appreciate the love and effort you put into your homemade gift. Do you have a favorite homemade gift that you have gifted before that everyone loves? Let me know by leaving a comment, I would love to hear from you!
I look forward to sharing more of my home with you and inspiring you to have a well loved home! Follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and LIKEtoKNOW.it.
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