Something new for our 2024 decorations

Well, it's that time of year!  Time to work on our annual, hand made Christmas decorations.

This is something I've been trying to do every year for quite some time, missing only a few years due to personal circumstances.

This year has been a bit different, in that my challenges are more physical in nature.  Osteoarthritis has set into all the joints of my fingers, making finer motor control more painful.  I'm losing my grip strength, and drop things far more often.

I can still do big stuff, though.  Manual labour, which is something I enjoy doing, is still an option for me.  Mostly, that involves gardening, but also all sorts of other outdoor chores and activities.  Most recently, my big project has been building an isolation shelter for our more feral yard cats that we will have to trap to get spayed.  They will need two weeks of monitoring as they recover.  Using what scrap pieces of lumber and salvaged material we could find around the property, with a few items that needed to be purchased, we now have a two level cat shelter on wheels that we will be able to use to isolate any cats from the colony we are caring for.  It even has a heat lamp, food bowl and heated water bowl set up in it, and the cats are already using in and getting used to it.

The down side of all this is that my hands have become very rough.  I don't crochet much anymore, as most yarns get snagged on my fingers and pull off the hook, or fray.  Some yarns are okay, but few yarns I'd like to use for most of the projects I'd like to be working on.

All of these factors had to be considered as I decided on this year's Christmas decorations.

In the end, it was a Pinterest suggestion that lead me to a new craft I decided to try this year.  Making Singlade balls.

 

This project has a lot of similarities to the temari I've made in the past.

Of course, I use the materials I have on hand, so for this project, I cheated a little.

I had a 6 pack of Styrofoam balls handy, so those are the core of the balls I am making this year.  I had some white yarn left over from another project, and that's what I used to wrap around the foam core, then secure the strands, the same way I wrapped sewing thread around the core of a temari project.

Here, you can see how things are going so far.  Once the cores were wrapped, I found some cotton yarn that I used to divide the balls into 8 sections.  This is also similar to temari, without the need to be so precise.

From there, the sections just needed to be filled using buttonhole stitch (also called blanket stitch).

With these intended for Christmas decorations, I like to include sparkling or reflective elements. I was able to include both.  I had some red yarn with a silver metallic strand in it, plus a bag full of leftover bits of reflective yarn.  

I've finished stitching up two balls so far.  I started one in red and green, but didn't have enough this green yarn to do both halves, so the other half was done in blue.  

I still haven't decided on how I will attach hangers yet.  I also have some miniature Christmas decorations I might use to jazz them up a bit.  For now, I'm just focusing on stitching them up.

This yarn is a lot bulkier than what is used in the video tutorial, so these do work up fairly quickly.  Working with a needle and thread has proven to be easier on my hands, and the yarn doesn't have as much opportunity to snag, compared to crochet.  

I do miss crocheting, though!

I'm happy with how these are turning out so far.  In the future, I can see making some of these using actual scrap bits, like in the video, but with something like a bell and maybe a bit of catnip, inside.  They would make great cat toys!

So that is what we are doing for our Christmas decorations this year! 

How about you?  Are you doing any special crafting for the season?

 

Our 2022 Christmas ornaments: more berlingot made

 Well, the entire household got hit with colds, and I wasn't able to continue working on the ornaments until yesterday.  (You can see my earlier posts here and here.)

I made up for it a bit, but getting six berlingot (also called Dragon Boats) done last night.

I made two starting with 4 inch squares, and four starting with 3 inch squares.  Three of the smaller ones were made using a lighter carboard from gift boxes, which works better for the smaller size.  I wouldn't want to use it for the larger sizes, though, as the cardboard would easily get squeezed inwards while the strands are being wrapped tightly around the forms.  With a 4 inch square, each fold is about 2 inches long, while the 3 inch square results in 1 1/2 inch long folds.

The cats got at my materials and even wrecked the red and gold test berlingot I made, so I made another one using two strands of gold with one strand of red, all metallic yarn.  I was able to rescue the tassel, at least, and attached that to the inside, along with the hanger and starting strands of thread, when assembling the shape.

The white and gold one is wrapped with crochet cotton thread.  I was able to add beads to the points on that one, but didn't really have anything that matched the others, so the points just have dabs of fabric embellishment glue on them.  I'm happy with how they turned out.

Here are some better pictures of the first ornament I successfully made.

For our small tree, I don't plan to make more in this size, but I might go as large as using a 5 inch square for the base, which should result in berlingot that are 2 1/2 inches along each fold.  I'll have to find more cardboard that's slightly heavier than the gift box cardboard I used for the smaller ones, though, so I might just make some more from 4 inch squares, first.  

Oh!  I did finally find some of the double sided tape that I was looking for.  It was being sold with the plastic film for winterizing windows.  The double sided tape my daughter lent me is in a plastic holder, like Scotch Tape comes in, and the same width.  The window tape is a bit narrower, and in a roll with a coated paper backing.  I find it easier to be able to cut the strips to the lengths I want, place them, then remove the backing later.  The tape is also lighter and more flexible, making it better for the smaller sized ornaments. 

I do wish I had more materials suitable for decorating the points, but otherwise, I'm quite happy with how these are turning out!

Our 2022 Christmas ornaments progress

I was able to get a few supplies for our Christmas decorations, but not everything I wanted.  So I will just have to improvise, since I'm not willing to drive to the city to maybe, maybe not, find what I want there!

Since I was planning to make larger ornaments for the tree, I had hope to find some nice Christmas yarn but, alas, there was none to be had in town.  Not even in embroidery thread or craft cord!  Bizarre.

I did have plenty to choose from at home, though.

I have a small amount of gold crochet thread with a metallic strand for some sparkle.  I also have most of a package of sparkly Lion Brand Bon Bons that I had to rescue from the cats a while ago.

I have other colours in the dollar store version, too.

Plus, some more crochet thread.  The variegated one is left over from some some crochet covered Christmas ornaments I'd experimented with a while back, and there is still lots left.

Once I gathered up my materials, including pins and beads and other odds and ends I've got, I used a cereal box my daughters sacrificed for me to cut out some 3" x 9" strips, in the same manner I'd done before.  Unfortunately, I somehow screwed up with the measurements on one of them and it went to waste. 

One of the things I was looking for but had a hard time finding was plain double sided tape.  You'd think that would be easy to find, but I kept finding double sided foam mounting tape, or glue dots, and so on.  All things that are way too thick for what I had in mind.  I did finally find some double sized adhesive in the dollar store, that I could use to adhere the tabs in the cardboard to make the shape, but...

... it turned out to be glue dots.

I double checked.  There was nothing in the package that described them as glue dots.  Only "double sided adhesive."

Sigh.

Thankfully, I'd picked up some glue sticks as well, just in case, and used that on the tabs to put the form together.  Oddly, the glue sticks took longer to dry, and it had to be held together for much longer, before I could set it aside to finish drying.

So for the next one, I decided to try something different.  I'd found this video...

It uses a more more compact way to make the shape's form.

Also, I like the idea of tucking a secret message inside the berlingot for the person it is meant to be given to.

I decided to give this method a try.

I started with a 4" square, then marked off the rest.  When gathering my materials, I found my scoring tool, so I used that instead of a pen to mark the folds, then cut out the one unmarked corner.

As with the other method, all the folds are creased in the same direction.

Then I used ordinary tape to put it together.

Since I had the glue dots anyhow, I decided to use a couple at the more flattened points that I would be wrapping around, which also would hold in place my starting threads.  The adhesive is quite malleable, so I was able to sort of wrap it around the point to cover all sides.

I chose a gold metallic to go with a plain red for this one.

When it was done, I was left with a problem.

A few of them, actually.

When it was time to sew in the thread ends, the glue dot made it very difficult.  I had to really fight to get the needle under the strands, and ended up having to scrape adhesive off my needle, afterwards.

I had made a tassel for the bottom, but I have no way to attach it.  I don't have needles long enough to go through, but even if I did, the glue dot adhesive ended up over the point, and I simply couldn't get a needle through it.  It stuck to the needle to much.

At which point, my daughter brought up the "basket of berlingot" idea again!

I set that aside to think about it later.  I still had the larger form I'd made, using the 3" x 9" strip of cardboard.  Because of the size, I decided to use the purple and green crochet thread.

I was curious to see if a pattern would emerge, as happens with crochet, but not really.  I kinda like it, but it's not very Christmassy.  If I can figure out how to add a hanger and decorations at the points, that could easily be changed, though.

For the next one, I decided to start with a square again - I like this version, since it isn't as reliant on having an exact 1:3 ratio that the rectangle does.  My daughter also came to my rescue.  When I told her I couldn't find plain double sided tape, she told me she had some and offered it to me!

It was much appreciated!

For this next one, I changed things up.

The outer square for this one was 6", and the final result turned out to be very close in size to the 3" x 9" rectangle version.

I also made a hanger first, and taped it in place, on the inside, along with the starting strands of the yarn I chose.  For this one, I went with three metallic colours, purple, blue and grey/silver.

Then the form was taped together with double sided tape, which served to help hold the strands in place while being wrapped.

Here is the final result.

When the wrapping was done, I was able to poke holes in the remaining points with a needle, then use a head pin and embellishment glue to add pearl beads.

Then I had to hang it in the tree (currently undecorated while the cats get used to it being there), so that the glue could dry without anything accidentally touching it.  It will dry clear.  I would have used silver head pins instead of gold, if I'd had any. 🤔

Which makes my third attempt today my first completed ornament!

For the next ones, I think I will stick to using squares to make the forms, instead of rectangles.  It will be easier to have a variety of sizes.  This finished one is definitely the largest I want to make for our tree.  Any bigger would be just too much for it.  Plus, smaller ones will need less yarn or thread to cover it, so those supplies will last longer, too.

I now also know that if I want to add a hanger to the top, or something like tassels to other points, those need to be added and affixed to the inside, before the form is folded and taped into place.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get back at it and more more of these, tomorrow. 

😊

Our Christmas decorations, for 2022 - first thread berlingot experiments

 I spent some time considering what I wanted to do for this year's hand made Christmas decorations.  Last year, I had a blast making these scenes inside of upcycled aluminum cans.  The year before, we did wood burning and painting on wood slices.  After taking a break from making our annual Christmas decorations for a few years, it felt good to get back at it!

This year, I stumbled on a link to make "temari" ornaments - except it was not temari at all.  That is something I have made before, and we have whole bunch of temari Christmas ornaments we still use.  I found another link that called these "berlingot", which is a type of brightly coloured candy of a similar shape.  So that's what I will call them.  

After doing some experimenting, this is what I've decided to make for this year's ornaments.  After the first one I made, I ended up combining instructions from both sites and today, I made two more.

Here, you can see the first one I made, using two colours.  The cardboard I used is from empty facial tissue boxes, which limited the size I could make.  For the first berlingot, I used a 2 inch by 6 inch piece, then taped the shape together.  For my next one, I added the folding tabs, instead.  I definitely recommend using the version using tabs!  As for the size, as long as the basic rectangle is a ratio of three times longer than it is wide, it will work.  The links I found used 3"x9" and 4"x12".  If I'd had large enough cardboard, I would have gone with the 3"x9".  Anything bigger would be too large for our tree, though I think the larger sizes would also be easier to work with.

The lines were all scored with a pen, so the creases would be nice and crisp.  All the folds are done in the same direction.

This is what it looks like, after the creases are folded.  I then applied a very thin layer of glue to the tabs, using the tip of a bamboo skewer and some ordinary white glue.

This is what it looks like when it's folded together.  Once I was sure the tabs wouldn't pull apart, I set it aside to finish drying while I made another one.  By the time that one was ready to be set aside, the first one was ready to work with.

With my first berlingot, I used two strands of pink for the wrapping.  For this one, I decided to try three strands.  I have a package of mini yarn from a dollar store, and I chose pale purple, pink and black.

Doing the wraps is actually very easy, but getting them started is probably the most confusing part.  I don't know if these next photos will help, or make it even more confusing!

The folded shape has three "sharp" points, and two slightly flattened ones.  The wrapping begins at one of the flattened ones.  The thread ends would be attached where you see the 1 in the above photo.

The threads would then run to one of the "sharper" points.  In this photo, from the 1 to the 2.  From there, it wraps around the point and follows along the other side of the fold, back towards the starting point.  In the first photo, you can see where the thread would run from 3 to 4.  The thread will be crossing the starting ends in the process.  The thread then wraps around the point with the number 4, then continues on to the point with the number 5, in the above photo.

Wraps 5 follows along to the point marked 6.  After wrapping around that point, the thread follows the crease back to mark 1.  After that, you just keep wrapping.

Clear as mud, right? 😄

Trust me.  It's a lot harder to describe it, than to do it.  Once you get started, it's really obvious, and it can't wrapped any other way and still stay in place.

Here, after deciding what order I wanted the colours to be in, I used a bit of glue to fix the starting threads in place.  If I'd had some, I would have used double sided tape.  That would have made things much easier, and less messy!  Plus, I wouldn't have had to wait for glue to dry before I could go on.

Once you get going, though, you can't really stop.  An even tension needs to be maintained, so it's not like you can just put it down for a few moments, or the whole thing would unravel.  Which means I wasn't able to take any progress photos.  So here it is, fully wrapped.

I'd added a bit of fabric glue at the last point, then waited a bit for it to dry while maintaining tension.  Once it was dry enough, I threaded all strands onto a tapestry needle, and pulled them through, running the needle under the bottom layer of threads, right against the cardboard.  After the ends were snipped, I used the needle to move the threads back into place, making sure the cut ends were covered by the wraps.

This is what the "bottom" of the berlingot looks like.  When first starting the wraps, it seems like the back is left open, but all sides get fully covered in layers of threads by the time it's done.

Here is a side view of the "top" of the berlingot.  I do like how the three different colours, wrapped as a group, looks.  It is, however, harder to keep them smooth and in place, without twisting, compared to using two colours at once.

Of course, I had to try something completely different for the next experiment.  I chose another three colours, white, peacock and navy, but this time wrapped only one strand at a time, changing colours along the way.

This is the "top" point view.  

While wrapping with only one strand is a lot easier, changing colours was a real pain!  At least when using the glue.  After finishing the rounds in one colour, the end had to be glued and tucked under the wraps to maintain tension.  With the first wraps of blue, I could leave the end uncut while I did the navy, then once the navy was done, I could pick up the blue to finish off the next warps.

Double sided tape.  Must get double sided tape!

Here is another view of all three of them.

So... my thoughts so far.

This is a great, fun little craft.  They look great!  My daughter even suggested that, rather than making them into ornaments for the tree, they'd look great with just a whole bunch of them in a bowl.  They certainly would!  It would be cute to have a whole bunch in different sizes on display.

For our Christmas tree, though, more will be done with them.  They will get hangers, of course.  For the points, I want to add things like beads or maybe even little tassels.  One thing that can be done that we will NOT be doing, is adding a small bell or a couple of beds inside the cardboard before sealing the edges.  We have too many cats, and it's hard enough keeping them out of the tree as it is.  😉  However, adding some kind of noise maker inside them would be a fun thing to do.

Now, I just need to find myself some more cardboard.  Cereal boxes would be great for the 3"x9" ones I want to make, but we rarely eat boxed cereal!  I might also experiment with different materials.  With larger sizes, I might use thicker or textured yarn, instead of thread or a fine weight yarn like these minis.

This is going to be fun!

New Toy

The weather has been getting cooler, and I've accomplished the goals I set for myself, in cleaning and clearing out the yard.  We even had a couple of nice, warm days that allowed me to do some of what I was leaving for next year - at this point, any more clearing and cleaning outside is just gravy!  Over the summer, we have been able to clean up, clear out and prune the maple grove, the trees behind the "spare" house in the yard, the north perimeter and east fence line of the spruce grove, and I've even managed to get some progress on the south fence line along the spruce grove.  All of which involved clearing out shocking amounts of junk.  On top of that, I've been working on building up a smallish garden next to the house that had been mostly a flower garden, but my other also used for things like onions, mint and chives.  It has a couple of ornamental apple trees in it, rhubarb, a lilac, a couple of white rose bushes, some honeysuckle, and even some asparagus, in there.  Unfortunately, much of it was overtaken by invasive flowers and vines, so I've covered it over with cardboard, then built up layers of leaves, straw, and more leaves.  If all goes to plan, I will put a small retaining wall at one end, and build it up to be level, too.  Being so close to the house, it will make a good location for a kitchen garden.

In the middle of all this, I've actually managed to do some crafting!  I was able to do a hat and two scarves for a dear friend, in crochet.  I'm currently working on a Tunisian stitch cat blanket.

I was even able to do a local market!  It was a last minute thing I signed up for, and the first market held in this neighbouring town.  We got our first snowfall that day, yet it was a fantastic success.  My best market, ever!  I even had some costumers telling me about other popular local markets in our region that they recommended I sell at.  They tell me no one else has an inventory like mine.

It was not something I was expecting to get into after the move, but I will give it a go, when the markets start up again next year.

Which means, I need to build up  new inventory!

So I expect to be doing a lot more crochet over the winter, as well as trying out some new crafts.

Allow me to show you my new toy.

The girls and I went into the city today, and I was finally able to swing by a Lee Valley store.  There was a small, battery operated engraving pen I had seen in their online catalog that I wanted to get.  At only $20, I figured it would be an inexpensive way to try out a new craft.

After talking to the saleswoman, however, I ended up getting this, instead.  It was only $10 more.  I was thinking I didn't want something with a cord, but the battery operated one slows down as the batteries die.  I can see that becoming annoying fast!

This one has adjustable speeds.  It is small enough to handle easily, and the tips are interchangeable.  It only comes with one, but I looked at complete kit of engraving tips, too.  A bit beyond my budget, right now.  I will see how things go with this, first.  If it works out, getting more tips will be worth the investment.

For now, what I am looking to do is engrave into wood.  Some of the trees I've been cleaning up and pruning included apple and lilac. Lilac, I've discovered, is a surprisingly hard wood, and it has purple in it!  I also have maple, elm and poplar to choose from.

Right now, I have some apple that was pruned last summer, before we moved out here.  I've cut a few disks to do some experimenting on.  Depending on the size of the wood, I plan to make everything from earrings and pendants, to coasters and trivets.  Along with the engraving, I also want to do some wood burning.

The engraver is something I also want to try on some of the beach rocks I've collected.

But not until after I've had some practise on wood, first!!

2015 Christmas How-to: Terra Cotta Essential Oil Diffusing Ornaments

After way too long of a hiatus, I was able to do our annual Christmas ornament this year.

The usual prerequisites I try to meet on these; fast, easy and inexpensive, but without looking like it! LOL

This year, I was inspired by some essential oil diffuser pendants I'd seen on Pinterest.  The premise is basic.  Make an object from a clay that will absorb the oil, then slowly release the scent over time.  After a few days, more oil can be added.  This is one of those crafts that can be kept simple, or more elaborate, with only a few minor changes.

Materials needed:

Terra Cotta air dry clay
cookie cutters
stamps or textural items.
essential oil

Tools:

rolling pin
skewer or straw
vinyl sheet
craft knife
craft brush
course and fine grit sand paper

The main thing, of course, is the air dry clay.  After doing a bit of research, I chose to use terra cotta clay, as it seems to have some of the best properties to act as a diffuser.

This is one of those areas where you get what you paid for!  I tested out a dollar store brand of air dry clay someone had donated to our church's Bible school art supplies, and it was just horrid stuff.  You defininely don't want to skimp on quality here!  Take the time to knead the clay before starting, and keep some water and a damp cloth handy.

For the cookie cutters, you can go with seasonal shapes, but I chose to go with basic shapes.  As long as the cutter leaves a surface large enough to fit your stamps, if that's what you want to use.

For decorating the surface, I chose seasonal stamps, however you can use anything that will give a texture to the surface.  For example, a crocheted doily, leaves, sprigs, or even some of those textured rollers you can get in the cake decorating supplies.

Start by covering your surface with a sheet of vinyl - it'll make moving things around a lot easier, later on - then rolling to about 1/4 inch thick, and roughly rectangular.

Smooth the surface with a damp cloth or paper towel, if you wish.

If you wish to use an all-over texture for your ornaments, this would be the time to add them.  Place your leaves, twigs, doilies, or whatever you are using on your clay and gently press.

The clay is rolled out fairly thick because the shapes I chose are quite large; the largest of the sets I bought.

Choose your shapes and start cutting out the clay.

If you've used an all-over texture on your clay, position your cutters selectively to get the texture where you want it on the shape.  Otherwise, just fit in as many as you can.

Remove the excess clay and put it into an air tight container or cover with a damp cloth to keep it from drying out while you work.

Choose your stamps to add texture, if you haven't already.

I wanted my squares to be oriented as diamonds, so I placed the stamps at a 45 degree angle.

Take care when pressing the stamps in to keep them even.  You want a nice, deep impression without accidentally including the outline of the rubber stamp.











For the round shape, I tried using a button to add texture.  In the end, I was unhappy with it and re-used the clay in my next batch of ornaments.












Because of the larger size of these ornaments, I used a straw to cut out holes for the hangers.  The skewer still came in handy to push the little plugs of clay out of the straw.

For smaller ornaments or pendants, I'd use the skewer or even a large needle for a smaller hole.








This next part was a first for me.  I had aquired a food dehydrator recently, and decided to try it out to dry the ornaments.

This is where working on a piece of vinyl really helps out.  It makes it SO much easier to move the pieces onto the drying racks.  There was still a bit of flopping and shape distortion.  If that is an issue, you may wish to leave your shapes to dry for a few minutes before moving them.








On to the next batch; this time I used completely different stamps.  They were a bit more difficult to press evenly into the surface compared to the wooden stamps, but I like the designs better.

One of them didn't work out at all and the clay got re-used later.

I used an Xacto knife to cut the shapes out, completely forgetting to leave a space for the hanger hole.

I decided to keep them, anyhow.

In the next batch, I remembered to space them so I could cut out an area for the hanger hole.

A definite bonus to using the dehydrator is the ability to use layers.  Talk about saving space!  The trays are easy to move around as needed.  I was really looking forward to seeing how well this worked.

I also experimented a bit with other shapes, and this is one I ended up keeping.  I used the largest flower shape for the outside, then the smallest for the inside.  I then found a button with a texture I liked and used a skewer through the shank to apply even pressure into the clay.

Here are all of the finished shapes after an hour or two in the dehydrator.

The little heart was something I made using clay that was rolled out thinner, and I used a heart shaped stamp with an all-over texture to it, then cut the heart shape out manually.

The dehydrator fan was noisy, but not too bad.










The shapes are not completely dried through, but I decided to turn off the dehydrator at this point.
















While not as much of an issue with the smaller pieces, the larger pieces started to curl a bit from drying too quickly.  You can also see that the damp clay had started to sink into the mesh of the drying racks.

I've noticed that there are different meshes available for different types of foods to dry, including no mesh at all for fruit leathers.  I think this worked out well enough that I might invest in different drying surfaces for future use.





Here are all the shapes removed from the dehydrator and left to finish drying on a paper towel.

In the future, I think I would sitll use the dehydrator, but leaving it on for a shorter time.  At least if I'm making something that's thinner, like the little heart, or larger, like the squares and flower.  The rectangles had almost no warping at all.

After letting them all dry overnight, it was time for the finishing touches.

For sanding, I find I like these sponges.  They are available in a variety of grits, including the 60 and 220 I have here.  I really ought to have a medium grit, too, but I just don't happen to right now.

Here's a closer look at the fully dried shapes.  You can really see how much the larger pieces have warped from drying too quickly, as well as how rough the edges are.













This is after using the course grit sanding pad, and part of it has been done with fine grit.

I used course grit only to do the backs of the ornaments, while the fronts got a final touch up with fine grit.  I did want to keep a bit of the roughness, so I didn't do too much sanding  Mostly, it was to get rid of the sharper edges.








Clay dust will build up in the grit.  Most of it can be knocked out fairly well, but I found using a stiff bristled brush also helped clean the dust out.  When I was done, I washed the dust out with plain water.

Working over paper towel made clean up much easier!

Here, all of the shapes have been sanded.






For the hangers, I just used some quarter inch satin ribbon I happened to have.

For these, I chose to stop here and not ad any more to the decorations.  Some of the things I considered was using fancier ribbons, hot gluing seasonal foliage to the tops, at the base of the ribbon, or adding something to frame the edges.  I also considered adding colour.  In the end, I decided to just keep it simple for these and experiment with the others.





 Here is one experiment; adding glow in the dark glitter glue around the edges of the rectangles without hanging holes.
















 With the heart, I experimented with adding colour using metallic markers.  I was quite pleased with how well teh colour stood out.

I then added the essential oil to the shapes; I chose Rose for the scent this time.

Because of how large the pieces are, rather than putting on a drop or two and leaving it, I used the stiff bristled brush to spread the oil across the surfaces.

I then reminded myself that, if I'm going to use a brush like that, I really ought to wait until the glitter glue dried, first.

Thankfully, I was able to fix the mess. LOL





Here they all are, fully dry.

And yes, they work quite well as diffusers.  My office smelled like roses for days!

Also, that glow in the dark glitter glue works really, really well.

Our tree now has quite a lot of scented ornaments.  The cinnamon and applesauce dough ornaments have held their scent for many years, and the more recent ornaments with spices decorating them have also maintained their scent quite well.  Even the sachets with drops of essential oil in the stuffing still let off a faint scent.  Now, we have roses, as well.

And here is how some of our new ornaments look on the tree!

Now that I've made these as ornaments, I am looking to make oil diffusers as pendents.  I am also looking into trying a white home made clay recipe.

If I'm happy with how they turn out, expect to see some in my etsy shop!