Dehydrated orange slices are perfect for adding a creative touch to desserts and dishes, but they can also be used to create natural and eco-friendly decorations for the home and Christmas tree. Let's take a look at how to do this.

Some time ago, we dedicated one of our posts to creating DIY Christmas decorations with dried fruit and spices. Today, we have decided to focus specifically on oranges (and citrus fruits in general) to create refined, eco-friendly and fragrant garlands and festoons from scratch.

Let's start with the “raw material”: dehydrated oranges. You can buy them ready-made or prepare them at home in just a few steps.
There is no shortage of online guides and tutorials. We have selected a few blogs that you may find useful to avoid the most common mistakes and obtain perfect decorative dehydrated oranges.
For the procedure, you can rely on the guide published on the blog thetoastedpinenut.com, where you will find advice on choosing the most suitable oranges, preparation, setting time and one of the recommended techniques for tying them together.
Alternatively, you can follow the instructions published on Papernstichblog.com or Naomicakes.com. On the latter site, you will find a tutorial on how to make very pretty decorations with dehydrated oranges and cinnamon.

The guides mentioned above use an oven, but you can also use an air fryer to dehydrate your orange slices (at 100°C for about 60 minutes, turning the slices after the first 25-30 minutes).
The same procedure can also be used for lemons and citrons.

If this is your first time trying to create decorations with dehydrated fruit and you need inspiration, we recommend taking a look at the gallery of 42 decorations made with oranges proposed by apieceofrainbow.com.

Or take a peek at Pinterest...you'll be spoilt for choice.