Simmering Potpourri makes a great homemade Christmas gift or hostess gift to give to family and friends.The best part about this gift is it’s easy to make.

Do you need a last minute gift for someone this week? Or maybe you need a few hostess gifts to bring to Christmas celebrations and parties over the next two weeks?

Your friends and family will love this gift idea of simmering potpourri and your house will smell amazing as you dry the fruit and your house will smell like Christmas as you use the simmering potpourri in your home over the next few days. Yes…make sure you keep a jar for your home!

How to Make Homemade Simmering Potpourri

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Ingredients

Glass Canning Jars
Ribbon or Raffia and Gift Tags – make sure you include directions on how to use the simmering potpourri.
Dried Fruit
Dried Cranberries – I used a prepackaged brand from the grocery store.
Cinnamon Sticks
Whole Cloves
Star Anise
Pine Branch Clippings – take a walk outside and gather a few pine twigs!

How to Dry Fruit

Drying fruit is very easy. Citrus fruits like oranges and lemons are perfect for this homemade simmering potpourri because they retain their shape and color when they dry. Oranges and lemons also look so pretty when they are completely dried.

They make great ornaments if you have a Christmas tree in your kitchen. I also like placing them in a bowl on the kitchen counter.

If you can’t make them on your own, you can always purchase them at craft stores or even online at Amazon.

Cut the fruit into thin slices.
Place the fruit on baking trays lined with parchment paper or you can put them on a rack on top of a baking tray.
Place the trays in the oven set to 200 degrees and bake for about two hours turning the fruit halfway through.
Once the fruit is dry, lay the fruit flat on a surface overnight.
You want to make sure the fruit is completely dry before you package them into the jars for the potpourri.

How to Make Simmering Potpourri Gift Jars

Add the ingredients in the mason jars in this order:

Place the pine branches first in the jar.
Then add the cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, star anise, dried cranberries and the dried lemons and oranges.
Add the mason jar lid and ring.
Tie pretty ribbon or raffia around the jar.

How to Use Homemade Simmering Potpourri

Place the ingredients of the jar in a small saucepan.
Fill the saucepan with water and place on the stove with a small flame underneath.
Make sure you check the water level frequently while it is on the stove.

Please Note: It’s very important that you make sure the water does not evaporate completely while you are using the potpourri.

Simmering Potpourri makes a GREAT Christmas Gift Idea!

MORE CHRISTMAS MASON JAR GIFT IDEAS:

Simmering Potpourri - A Great Christmas Gift Idea

Simmering Potpourri makes a great homemade Christmas gift or hostess gift to give to family and friends.The best part about this gift is it's easy to make.

Materials

• Glass Canning Jars
• Ribbon or Raffia
• Dried Fruit
• Dried Cranberries – I used a prepackaged brand from the grocery store.
• Cinnamon Sticks
• Whole Cloves
• Star Anise
• Pine Branches

Instructions

To Dry the Fruit

Cut the fruit into thin slices.
Place the fruit on baking trays lined with parchment paper or you can put them on a rack on top of a baking tray.
Place the trays in the oven set to 200 degrees and bake for about two hours turning the fruit halfway through.
Once the fruit is dry, lay the fruit flat on a surface overnight.
You want to make sure the fruit is completely dry before you package them into the jars for the potpourri.

To Assemble the Jars

Place the pine branches first in the jar.
Then add the cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, star anise, dried cranberries and the dried lemons and oranges.
Add the mason jar lid and ring.
Tie pretty ribbon or raffia around the jar.

To Use Simmering Potpourri

Place the ingredients of the jar in a small saucepan.
Fill the saucepan with water and place on the stove with a small flame underneath.
Make sure you check the water level frequently while it is on the stove.
It’s very important that you make sure the water does not evaporate completely while you are simmering.