Cinnamon Ornaments

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Make Ornaments with the Rustic Look and Warm Scent of Christmas....for Cheap!

photo by: Robinsan

I first saw these charming ornaments when a co-worker made them to sell at a craft show.

When she told me that she made them with applesauce and cinnamon I had to try them myself.

I've since learned there are several ways to make these ornaments.

My favorite is the one that takes a few spices too,

but that's only because I like the fragrance of pumpkin pie spice and nutmeg.

You'll still get great, aromatic ornaments using just the basic ingredients.

No matter which of these recipes we use, we work on a nice big piece of parchment taped down to the table.

Basic Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments

These ornaments will be perishable so after the holidays it's best to toss this bunch.

1/2 cup Cinnamon

1/2 cup smooth applesauce

If you want more dough than this yields make sure you increase by equal parts.

Mix together the cinnamon and applesauce until they form a ball.
If the mixture is too wet add cinnamon; too dry, add applesauce, until you get a consistency like cookie dough.

Cinnamon Applesauce Ornaments with Glue

This recipe calls for a bit of white school glue. This makes the ornaments let likely to break.

1 cup Applesauce
1 cup Cinnamon
1 Tbs White Glue

Combine the ingredients. For this recipe you may want to spread some cinnamon on your surface and knead the dough to really work the glue into the dough.

This is also a good recipe to use if you want to add some sparkle with glitter or shimmer powder right in the dough.

Homemade Cinnamon Ornaments with Spice

These are the most fragrant of the lot, but can cost a little more because you add spices. If you have these spices on hand anyway then you may want to go all out and use this ornament recipe.

1 cup Cinnamon
1 cup Applesauce
1 Tbsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 Tbsp Nutmeg
1 Tbsp Ground Cloves

For this recipe combine all the dry ingredients and blend in applesauce a little at a time until the consistency of a cookie dough ball. You might not use the full cup.

Once you've chosen a recipe, combine all the ingredients into a dough ball. Kneading is the best way to do this.

Flatten the ball. Put another piece of parchment on top and roll flat. Make it about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick.

Now you can start to cut out shapes. We like using cookie cutters but you can also cut out shapes with a sharp knife. Just keep in mind that these ornaments will shrink as they dry.

If you want to hang them, use a straw to make a nice neat hole for some ribbon or gold cord.

Let them dry for a day or two turning them over several times during the drying time.

Tip: You can speed up the drying process of all of these recipes except for the one with glue, in a 150 degree oven for about 2 hours. Flip them after the first hour.

You can even just start the process in your oven then take them out to air dry completely.

Once dry you can embellish your cinnamon ornaments with ribbons, and paint.