Homemade Cinnamon Ornaments
These easy 2-ingredient homemade cinnamon ornaments are a fun holiday project ,especially with kids. Use them year after year on your Christmas tree or gift them to others. As an added bonus, they will make your house smell amazing!
Decorating a real tree is one of my family’s favorite holiday traditions! And I love all of our kitschy sentimental and homemade tree decorations. I first made a batch of homemade cinnamon ornaments over 10 years ago, and we still hang them on our tree year after year.
They’re made with just 2 basic ingredients— cinnamon and applesauce (though I also like to add cloves for more holiday aroma). You roll the “dough” out, cut into shapes, and then dry in a warm oven or at room temperature. Add a string or ribbon, and that’s it!
“I make these as a kid over 40 years ago and they still have their smell and in one piece!!! I love putting them up every year. Store stacked together, wrapped in paper towel and in a small box… making them for a Christmas craft fair this year! Wish me luck!⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐” —from Tiana
Table of Contents
- Ingredients & supplies you'll need
- How to make homemade cinnamon ornaments
- Storage instructions
- Get the tutorial
Note: Even though these ingredients are all edible, these are not edible ornaments! They harden similar to clay and are not meant to be eaten. This is the only “recipe” on my website that you cannot eat, and I know it’s a little unusual for me to be sharing an inedible craft. But I hope you enjoy this tutorial! Me and my family sure did.
Ingredients & supplies you’ll need
These handmade ornaments require just 2 ingredients, with an optional 3rd:
- Applesauce— I use unsweetened, just the cheapest brand at my grocery store.
- Ground cinnamon— You’ll need a cup or more, so look for a larger bulk container.
- Ground cloves— Optional, but I love the extra boost of holiday aroma.
You’ll also need: rolling pin, cookie cutters, baking sheet pans, parchment paper, toothpick or skewer, and decorative string or ribbon.
How to make homemade cinnamon ornaments
- Make the cinnamon dough. Combine applesauce and cinnamon. You’re looking for a slightly sticky dough that holds its shape, so add more cinnamon or applesauce if needed until you have the right texture. The amount of cinnamon you’ll need will depend a little on the applesauce you use, as some are softer than others.
- Roll out & cut into shapes. Dust your counter with cinnamon, place the dough over it, and sprinkle it with cinnamon too. Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough to about 1/4-inch thick. Cut into whatever shapes you like, using cookie cutters or a sharp knife. Don’t forget to make a hole for the ribbon or string to hang it from!
- Bake or let dry at room temperature. These ornaments can either be baked in a warm 200°F oven for a few hours, or you can leave them out on your counter top to dry over several days.
- Tie a ribbon or string for hanging. Once the ornaments are dried and hardened, use whatever ribbon or string you like and tie it through the hole you made.
- Hang on your tree! Or gift these to others. They’d also be great tied onto holiday gifts as part of a gift tag.
Storage instructions
These homemade cinnamon ornaments will last for years if stored properly with care. They can break if you’re not careful! I keep mine in an ornament box padded with tissue paper.
The ornaments lose a little of their aromatic potency over time, but look the same year after year!
Get the tutorial
Homemade Cinnamon Ornaments
Ingredients
- 1 cup applesauce
- 1-1 ¼ cup 130 grams ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon ground cloves optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the applesauce, 1 cup cinnamon, and cloves (if using). You want the dough to be able to form a ball without being too sticky. Add additional applesauce or cinnamon if needed. You can also mix the dough by hand.
- Sprinkle a clean surface with cinnamon (like you would with flour while rolling out cookies). Place the dough on the surface and sprinkle with more cinnamon. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough to ¼ inch thick, sprinkling with more cinnamon to keep from sticking.
- Cut out into desired shapes and place on the prepared sheet pan so that they aren't touching. Use a skewer to poke a hole into each ornament (to attach string). Bake in the preheated oven for 1 ½ – 2 hours or until rock hard.
- Loop a decorative string through the ornament and hang on your tree.
I don’t want to sound ignorant but what are cloves? I have heard of garlic cloves, but not just cloves by itself. Where in the store do we get them?
Cloves are a spice commonly used in fall and holiday baking. You can find ground and whole cloves in the baking aisle next to the cinnamon and similar spices.
Where do i get, or what is the Applesauce?
Thanx!
I just used generic applesauce from the grocery store.
What is the best way to store these?
Can you roll out the dough and keep until the next day? Would love to make these at school with my kids but need to make the dough at home.
Yes you can make the dough ahead and wrap it in plastic wrap. Keep it cool over night.
Just be careful when making a lot of these put on a mask or damp dishtowel over your nose and mouth if you have asthma, etc. I made 200 big heart ones with my pampered chef mold (which also calls for glue in the recipe so you can keep it much longer) and gave myself pneumonia from breathing in the cinnamon. I love them though
Such well done ornaments! You brought a modern look to a long-lived craft, too.
I made these this weekend and also decorated them. Just blogged about it: https://lifestooshorttoskipdessert.blogspot.com/2012/12/potpourri-baked-cinnamon-christmas.html
Thanks for posting. My roomie and I enjoyed this project very much!
Love the decorated ornaments, they look great! Thanks for sharing the link.
Totally loving this idea! I definitely want to try!
Love these! I made these 6 years ago when Hubs and I were very first married and that’s all we had to put on the tree 🙂 They still smell wonderful, we’ve only broken a few, and they are just so cute! I used some glue and super fine glitter to put dots on some of them and they are really cute too with a little sparkle! Looking forward to your cookie class this weekend too !
These are stunning! I definitely want to try making my own!
What a cute idea! And such a cute Christmas tradition. Ours used to be heading to Home Depot, hubs in his green Xmas vest, to choose the best tree. Now we just break open the box and BOOM, she’s up! No smell, but no mess.
I remember doing these as a kid and always loved the smell of them. I am adding them to my to-do list this year!
How long does the scent last? Are they reusable year after year?
I still put the ones I made here on my tree. 4 years later and they still smell great! Not as potent for sure, but the smell does last a long time.
Adorable! The ornaments and little John. I love that twine you tied with the ornaments as well!
With all that cinnamon they’ll have a wonderful aroma that will last throughout the holidays. Great idea. Would be a cool project for children too.
What a fun project! Although they aren’t edible, I love that they are made with edible ingredients. I’m going to have to try this.