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Potpourri Bead and Ornament Recipes
I hope you enjoy this collection of potpourri bead and potpourri ornament recipes. Most of these recipes are easy and fun to make. I love to mix the potpourri ornaments or fixin’s into potpourri blends. These are a must have for any country or primitive decorated home. If you have any potpourri bead or potpourri ornament recipes you would like to share, please email me at allisonray@gmail.com . You are welcome to use these recipes or share them with friends, but please do not post these on any message boards, website or add them to any list that is sold.
Copyright © 2005 Allison Ray. All rights reserved.
Updated July 10, 2005
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Free PoTpouRRi FiXin Recipes

Lets Get CREATIVE! The below recipes have unlimited decorating potential. For the most part, I use them to accent my homemade potpourri, but they could also be used to make magnets, decorate packages, or as ornaments for a tree. My sister likes to hang the beads off her rear view mirror in her car. Most of the recipes instruct to leave the FiXins out to dry. I have also had some success baking on low heat for 5-6 hours, I have also tried the microwave and dehydrator those results were not at promising but if you are in a hurry, give it a try.

PriMitIvE PotPoUrrI BriCKs Recipe
1 oz. pumpkin pie ground spice
1 oz. apple pie ground spice
2 tbsp. applesauce
Mixing bowl
Wooden spoon
Cookie sheet
Mix the applesauce and spices together in a bowl.
Work up a somewhat stiff, but not dry dough.
Pull off a small amount of dough; gently pat into 1 1/2 inch rectangle.
Place the brick on the cookie sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.
(Makes approximately 10 bricks).
Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Bake bricks for 1 1/2 hours, until dry and firm. Let cool.

CiNNamoN FiXinS Recipe
3/4-1 c. applesauce
1 (4.12 oz.) bottle ground cinnamon (I buy the cheap kind 2 for $1.00 at the local dollar store)
Mix applesauce and cinnamon together to form a stiff dough.
Roll out to 1/4-inch thickness.
Cut with cookie cutters. (Apple, Gingerbread Men, Hearts, Stars, etc.) Make a hole for ribbon.
Carefully place on rack to dry. Let air dry several days, turning occasionally. If you prefer they may be baked at 150 degrees for 5-6 hours.

CiNNamOn BeADs Recipe
10 tbsp. hot applesauce
5 oz. cinnamon
Mix together, if dry add more sauce. If wet, add more spice. Makes a great non-sticky dough. Sprinkle work area with spice. Take a small amount and roll into ball. Take a pin and insert through the bead. Put on rack to let dry for 6-7 days few days. Rotate the pin to keep it from sticking.

CiNNaMoN OrNaMenTs Recipe
1 c. cinnamon
1 tbsp. ground cloves
1 tbsp. nutmeg
1 c. applesauce
2 tbsp. white glue
Mix and roll like cookie dough. Add extra applesauce if necessary. Cut with cookie cutters. Lay on wax paper to air dry for 2 to 3 days. Use straw to poke a hole while wet if want to string. Makes 25 to 30 ornaments.

SalT DouGH FiXinS Recipe
***My Favorite***
4 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. salt
1 1/2 c. cold water
Primitive Cookie Cutters
Shellac or Wax
Ribbons for hangers
1. Mix flour and salt together.
2. Slowly add water while stirring with a fork until soft dough forms.
3. Turn out on lightly floured surface and knead until smooth, adding a small amount of water or flour, if needed. (This is the stage to add food color if you want your FiXins to be in different colors. I recommend gel color it makes a more colorful FiXin.)
4. Roll dough on a floured surface to desired thickness. I find the chubbier the better.
5. Cut with cookie cutters.
6. Place ornaments 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet.
7. If FiXins are going to be hung, punch “hanging holes” with a drinking straw.
8. Bake in a preheated 300-degree oven for 30 to 45 minutes. Baking time will vary with size of ornaments.
9. When completely cool, you may paint ornaments with paints or leave natural. Coat with shellac.
Note: You can make this dough and keep it stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. These are my family’s favorite to make. I like this dough because I like to make CHUNKY potpourri and this dough enables me to make CHUBBY FiXins.

ScenTed RocKs Recipe
Place rocks in a bowl or dish to scent a room. A nice alternative to potpourri!
1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 cup salt
1/4 teaspoon essential oil (your favorite scent)
2/3 cups boiling water
Food coloring, if desired
In bowl, mix dry ingredients well. Add essential oil, and boiling water to dry ingredients. (Scent will be strong, but will fade slightly when dry.)
For colored stones, blend in food coloring, one drop at a time until desired shade is reached. Blend ingredients, and form balls into different shape and sizes to look like

PoTpouRRi SceNTed Beads or FiXins Recipes
3 Tbsp. Finely powdered potpourri or other fragrant plant material.
2 Tbsp. White bread flour
1 Tbsp powder orrisroot
15 drops essential oil
3 ½ to 4 Tbsp. Water
Mix ingredients and either roll into ball and insert pin for beads or roll out between wax paper and cut with cookie cutters for Ornaments.
Store beads in a glass jar wit a tight –fitting lid away from high humidity, until you are ready to use them.

GINGERBREAD MEN Ornament Recipes
(Makes 6 ornaments)
1/2c Applesauce
1/2c Cinnamon
2T Household glue
Mix all ingredients together and roll on wax paper to 1/4-inch thickness. Using a cookie cutter, cut out the shapes of the intended ornaments. Poke a small hole in the top of the ornament using the end of a straw, knife, chopstick, small dowel, pencil, or similar object. Allow ornaments to air dry for 1-3 days. When ornaments are ready to be decorated they will be completely dry and very hard.

SLOW BAKE GINGERBREAD ORNAMENTS Recipes
(Makes 15 ornaments)
16oz. Applesauce
1c Cinnamon
2T Allspice
Preheat oven to 150-degrees.
Combine all ingredients, mixing well. Roll dough on wax paper. Cut out ornaments with appropriately shaped cookie cutters. Poke a hole in the top of each ornament using a straw, knife, chopstick, pencil, or similar object.
Bake in 150-degree oven for 90 minutes. Turn ornaments over. Bake for an additional 90-minutes. Allow ornaments to cool and continue drying for 1-3 hours after baking.

HEAVY DUTY GINGERBREAD ORNAMENTS Recipes
(Makes 30 ornaments)
1c Sugar
6T Shortening
2t Baking soda
2t Cloves, ground
2t Ginger
2t Cinnamon
7c Flour
1-1/2c Water
Preheat oven to 325-degrees.
Mix shortening and 1 cup of sugar together in a large bowl. Add baking soda, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, flour, and 1-1/2 cups of water. When mixed completely, refrigerate for 4-6 hours.
Roll gingerbread out to 1/4-inch thickness on lightly floured surface or on wax paper. Poke a hole in the top of each ornament using a straw, knife, chopstick, pencil, or similar object.
Put cutouts on cookie sheet and bake 20-minutes in 325-degree oven. After 20-minutes, turn oven off, leaving cookies inside oven to continue the drying process. After 1-hour, move cookies to a rack and allow to sit untouched for 1-3 days or until completely dry and hard.
When cookies are dry, spray with clear acrylic paint or brush with clear varnish and allow cookie coating to dry completely.

You can use any shaped cookie cutter to mix with the potpourri that you are making or roll them into tubes and shape into little cinnamon buns. Michaels and Hobby Lobby have some adorable cookie cutters in all different sizes.

FREE Potpourri Beads Recipes

Scented beads are great to make unusual necklaces and bracelets or use for accents when decorating your home or gifts. Be creative when stringing your beads after they are dry. During the fall I string cinnamon spice beads with hemlock cones, dried cranberries, small whole dried pomegranates, dried orange slices and star anise peaces. During the summer or spring I LOVE to string refreshing scented beads with dried Lemon, Lime, Oranges, Grapefruit slices with dried rosehips, whole bay leaves. My most favorite strand is to make with rose potpourri and alternate the dried rose beads with whole dried pink rose buds. Everyone seems to like these beads I think it’s because there is so much you can do with them. Please be sure to keep beads and essential oils away from children and pets. Also watch out when placing directly on wood or some fabrics depending on the essential oils you use they may leave a mark. Have fun!

*Scented Beads Recipe
3 Tbsp finely powdered potpourri or other fragrant plant material
2 Tbsp of white bread flower
1 Mounded Tbsp powder orrisroot
15 drops essential oil (choose a scent that will accentuate the scent of the potpourri)
3 ½ to 4 Tbsp water
1. Place 3 Tbsp of potpourri in an coffee or spice grinder. Grind until the potpourri has been reduced to a fine powder. Measure 3Tbsp of the powdered potpourri into a small mixing bowl. Add the flour and orrisroot powder and blend well.
2. Carefully drip the essential oil over the top of dry ingredients.
3. Sprinkle 1 Tbsp of water over the ingredients and stir well with stainless steel spoon. Add remaining water, 1 Tbsp at a time and continue to stir the ingredients until a pliable paste forms. If necessary, add extra drops of water or an extra sprinkle of orrisroot powder to achieve a workable consistency.
4. Coat hands with petroleum jelly. Knead the paste for about 1 minute. This action develops a substance in the flour called gluten, whose elastic qualities help prevent the paste from cracking as it dries.
5. Pinch off small pieces of paste and roll into beads.
6. Thread the beads onto wires that are long enough to span the length of a shoebox. Leave a small space empty at the end of each wire.
7. Punch holes opposite each other in the sides of the shoebox. Push the ends of the filled wire into the holes from the inside, turning the tails at each end up over the rim of this shoe box and twisting them back into the wire inside the container. You should now have a clothesline effect. Place the container in a dark, warm spot, a n rotate the beads daily. Usually takes 4-7 days to dry depending on air temperature and humidity.

Rose Petal Beads Recipe
3 C. Fresh Rose Petals
Artists Gesso (sold at craft stores)
Food Processor
Large Pins
Rose Oil
1. Place roses in food processor and process until paste forms, adding water if needed.
2. Add small amount of gesso; blend well.
3. Remove rose paste from blender, drain excess water.
4. Pinch off a small piece of dough; squeeze to remove any extra water then roll into bead. Keep in mind that the beads will shrink when dry so make them larger than the desired finished size.
5. Apply rose oil.
6. Insert pin through beads.
7. Let dry several days in warm place.
8. Rotate the pin occasionally to prevent sticking.
9. When dry, remove pins and string beads.

*I like this recipe best. It seems to have a better texture to me.

Storage
Store the beads in an airtight glass jar until you are ready to use them.

Uses
The uses for these beads are only limited by your imagination. Listed below are a few of my favorites:
· Strands across the Christmas tree
· Strands across my curtain rods
· Individual beads in wreath
· Individual beads mixed in with potpourri
· Individual beads around candle
· Individual beads in decorative bowl
· Strands across the front of gift boxes or bags
· Beads in tulle like bag in dresser drawers
· Hanging beads in closet

Variations for both recipes
Size and Shape
Experiment with different-shaped beads. Roll the paste into tubes, ovals, cubes and rectangles.
Color
Experiment with the color of the beads by adding food coloring to accent the botanicals or herbs. I prefer gel colors that the cake decorators use for frosting. You get a much better color. Pink and purple have always come out nice for me and seam to go well with the scents.
Scenting the Beads
Scented beads can be made from individual plants as well as from floral potpourris. Try the following:
Dried rose petals Dried Lemon Rind
Eucalyptus Pine
Dried Orange Rind Sage leaves
Lemon balm leaves Mint leaves
Geranium leaves Ground cinnamon
Ground cloves Ground ginger
Ground allspice Ground nutmeg