The holidays are a time that my more traditional side really shows. I want to surround myself with an excess of candles, light a real wood fire, and listen to Bing Crosby all while drinking some Gentlemen Jack.

Our Christmas tree is a genuine article and when it comes to decorating it, only warm white lights will do. I like to decorate with history in mind, so that the magic of Christmases past infuses everything with which I deck my halls.

Swaths of garland, seasonal fruits and flowers, the fresh tree.

You know what I’m talking about— decorations that look like they were pulled straight out of Colonial Williamsburg. There’s nothing terribly flashy except for some brass candlesticks and the occasional shimmering accent and it all melts into your home like it grew from the spirit of the house itself.

I think that you can agree that the tree itself is the exclamation point of Christmas decorating. I have very few ornaments that I adorn the tree with; there’s the gold-dipped leaf from the time I visited Kenny on a firefighting job in Idaho and then there’s my favorite “Polar Express” bell. When it came time for Kenny and I to finally set up our very first tree together four years ago I hardly had a collection to pull from. So instead of buying a set of glass baubles and whatever was in fashion that year I looked outside, took a cue from an age old decorating trick, and gathered oranges.

Fast forward to this year and I’m all set to do this again. Our citrus trees are exploding with color and even though I am providing the Christmas morning mimosas, there are still plenty of fruits left dangling on the branches for some yuletide crafting. Enter, the dried orange ornament that harkens back to our first holiday in our home and not mention a little thing called the Victorian period.

Keep scrollin' to learn how to make these humble, and historic, tree trimmings.

DRIED ORANGE CHRISTMAS ORNAMENTS

Create these traditional holiday decorations using my easy "no flip" method because who wants to be a slave to the stove when you can be sipping spirits!

Bake time 8 hours

Materials

2 wire cooling racks on top of 2 baking sheets
5-6 oranges (makes approximately 30)
paper towels or clean tea towels
knife
cutting board
ribbon

Directions

Preheat oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit.
Slice oranges 1/4” thick. Make sure that the stem nub is an “endpoint” to guarantee the star pattern when you cut into the orange.
Discard ends and any unevenly cut slices (toss these into some champagne for a zesty sip while your working...I fed mine to some happy little piglets and chickens).
Blot orange slices on towel and arrange in rows on top of the wire drying racks making sure none of the slices are overlapping.
Place in the oven for 8 hours opening the oven door for a few seconds every hour or so to allow excess moisture to escape. Note: If you are using the wire cooling racks there is no need to flip the orange.
Make mimosas with extra orange juice and watch holiday movies while you wait.
Once oranges have browned in the center and are mostly dehydrated (they will still feel a tad gummy) remove them from the oven and allow them to sit overnight uncovered.
Cut ribbon to 10-20 inch lengths (I like a variation in both color and length on my tree).
Pierce a hole in the fruit or use any natural holes created in the drying process to thread through your ribbons.
Tie ribbons in either bows or knots and hang!

Quarter inch slices make a nice stable ornament without taking days to dry out.

How GORGEOUS is that texture?

I used my favorite plant dyed silk ribbon from Hudson Valley-based company Silk and Willow.

Tip

Assemble a crate of oranges, gorgeous ribbon, an instruction card and champagne or Prosecco (after all, I am Italian) for a festive Thanksgiving hostess gift. After all her guests are gone she can dive right into the holiday spirit!

A couple fun facts

Christmas trees were not prominent decorations until the time of Queen Victoria because they originally reference pagan tradition.
Fruit decorated garlands and wreaths are another Victorian fad and would not have actually been used back in the 18th century.

Crafting a Traditional Holiday