How to Make Stovetop Potpourri (DIY Christmas Gift)
Homemade potpourri is so easy to do and makes your house smell amazing! Stovetop potpourri kits are the perfect DIY Christmas gift. With printable gift tags!
I’ve got the perfect DIY holiday gift– stovetop potpourri gift jars! An inexpensive gift option that’s perfect for almost everyone and easy to make in bulk.
You only need a handful of ingredients for these, and they are very customizable to whatever scents you like most. This specific recipe has dried orange peels, whole cloves, star anise, cinnamon sticks, and bay leaves, but the possibilities are endless.
Dried cranberries, pine, rosemary, other herbs, dried lemon, lime, or other citrus are all great additions or substitutions for your potpourri blend. This one is so lovely to gift for Christmas!
See below for tips and more details, or scroll down to the full how-to at the bottom.
Everything You Need to Make These Potpourri Jars:
Christmas Stovetop Potpourri Ingredients and Substitution Notes
Last year, one of my good friends dropped off a jar of homemade potpourri, a jar filled with herbs, whole spices, and citrus, with instructions to dump into a pot and simmer on the stove for fragrance.
Wow! Did my home smell amazing. It was a thoughtful gift, and I knew I wanted to make a bunch of jars to give out this year.
You’ll need whole bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, star anise and dried orange slices. You can purchase dried orange slices, or my simple DIY recipe below. You can also sub in dried apple slices, lemon slices, grapefruit, or lime slices.
Other optional additions include fresh cranberries, sprigs of fresh rosemary, cracked fresh nutmeg, or dried flowers.
Because you’ll be storing this in jars, you need the fruit to be dehydrated so it doesn’t mold.
How to make dried orange slices
For the dried orange slices, you’ll need four large oranges but you can use any variety of citrus for this. Give them a good wash and dry, then cut into 1/4-1/8 inch slices. You want them to be as uniform as possible for even drying; you can speed up the drying a little by patting them with paper towels.
Place a wire rack over a large baking sheet and add the orange slices on top. If you don’t have a wire rack, you can line baking sheets (affiliate) with parchment paper and cook the orange slices directly onto the sheets.
Place in a 175-degree oven and bake for roughly 4-6 hours until dried, flipping the oranges halfway through.
If your oven doesn’t have a lower setting, preheat the oven to 300 degrees, turn on the stove light, and turn off the the oven, then place the prepared orange pan in the oven overnight until dried.
The orange slices are done when they are dry to the touch. Don’t overcook or they will turn brown. Cool completely before using, as they will crisp up as they cool. Store in an airtight container, like these jars, at room temperature for up to one month.
Customizable Printable Gift Tag
This potpourri recipe is great for gifting.
Simply add the instructions below for turning this mason jar of goodies into a simmer pot of perfume: Add the contents of the jar and 4 cups water to a saucepan and simmer over low heat. Add more water as needed.
Or, you can print this customizable gift card for this Christmas potpourri. You’ll need a free Canva account to print. You can also adjust the gift card to add any additional details you’d like.
I love these for teacher gifts alongside a coffee shop gift card or a batch of infused olive oils.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Long Does Homemade Potpourri Last?
This homemade dry potpourri will smell good for three months.
How Many Days Can You Use Stovetop Potpourri?
Simply pour the ingredients into a pan, add water to cover, and simmer. When the water begins to evaporate, you can add more. This stove-top holiday potpourri will last 3 to 5 days.
If you try this homemade stovetop potpourri, let me know! Leave a comment, rate it, and tag your Instagram photos with #delishknowledge . I absolutely love seeing your creations. Happy cooking!
How to Make Stovetop Potpourri (Perfect DIY Christmas Gift)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 20-24 dried orange slices*
- 24 star anise
- 1/3 cup whole cloves
- 8 bay leaves
- 12 cinnamon sticks
- 4 pint mason jars
Instructions
- Divide the ingredients among the 4 mason jars. Store with lid on top.
- To enjoy, place contents of the jar in a medium saucepan along with 4 cups of water. Simmer over low heat, adding more water as needed.