How to Make a Danish Orange with Cloves Decoration
In Denmark, it’s tradition to hang oranges
studded with cloves and tied with red silk ribbons in the windows of every room
during the Christmas season. It smells wonderful and looks so warm and
inviting.
This is an excellent craft to do with your
kids. The emphasis is very decidedly not on perfection and it is one way of
incorporating hygge into your holiday preparations. Take your time, enjoy some
hot chocolate and cookies with Christmas carols and songs playing in the
background. This will be something your kids will remember as they grow up and likely
do with their kids.
What
you need:
As many oranges as you’d like to make. Choose
navel oranges with thick skin
Whole cloves
Red silk ribbon. Available on Amazon or in
craft stores
Scissors
How
to make the orange
1. Cut a piece of ribbon long enough to go
around the orange twice, with enough left over to hang over a curtain rod or on
a nail.
2. Place the midpoint of the ribbon on the
navel and wrap it around the orange, meeting at the other end, crossing and
looping back to the navel. Tie a double knot tightly. If your kids are younger,
you may want to do this for them, using their finger to hold the first knot in
place. As they get older, teach them how to do it themselves.
3. Place cloves in different patterns in
each of the four fields created by the ribbon. Start by placing a clove in each
of the corners at the top and bottom to hold the ribbon in place. After that,
you can do what you want — use as many or as few cloves as you like, although I
recommend a fair bit. It makes for a stronger scent. If your children complain
about it hurting their fingers, tell them the story about how sometimes, a little
bit of pain can create something beautiful.
4. If you have curtain rods, lead the two
ends of ribbon on either side of the curtain rod and tie a knot and a bow at
the top. This does involve standing on a step stool, so please be careful. If
you don’t have curtain rods (or don’t like standing on step stools), tie the
two ends in a double knot and add a bow, then hang it anywhere there’s room. A
nail, a hook, a lamp, or a sturdy plant.
Comments
Dawn