4 DIY-ideas with spices for your Christmas table

Stars are a must at Christmas time, and these stars made from cinnamon sticks are quick and easy to make yourself. For each star, you need five cinnamon sticks (of the same length and thickness), a hot glue gun and ribbon to hang them up. And this is how it works: Place the cinnamon sticks on top of each other in the order shown in the pictures, and glue each one together with a drop of hot glue. Finally, attach the ribbon if you want to hang the stars.

Instead of liquid room fragrances, you can create an individual Christmas fragrance to suit your personal taste. Provided with a small handwritten instruction for use, e.g. on the front or the jar lid, the potpourri makes a lovely Advent gift. The following ingredients are suitable for the Christmas potpourri: oranges, cranberries, cinnamon sticks, star anise, cardamom pods, cloves and fir greenery. Pour the ingredients from the jar into a small pan, add a little water and heat briefly. A wonderful aroma of your favourite spices will then be released, permeating the entire home and warmly welcoming guests.

So-called Himmeli are particularly ornate and very popular in Scandinavia. They are a must in every Christmas living room and are traditionally made of brass. However, the cinnamon stick version of the Himmeli is also a real eye-catcher.
You will need: Cinnamon sticks, fine gold wire and ribbon for hanging. First cut the cinnamon sticks to the same length (approx. 6 cm) using a small saw. In the next step, thread three sticks in a row onto a long piece of wire until a triangle is formed and knot.

Thread more (12 in total) cinnamon sticks onto the same wire to create a total of five triangles. For more stability, repeat threading the wire once or twice.

Tip: If the piece of wire is too short, simply take a new piece, twist the ends together and continue working as normal.
Now thread the wire through the outer cinnamon sticks so that the shape stretches upwards and becomes three-dimensional. Twist the ends of the wire together and check again that all the elements are well-connected. The shapes can be used individually as Christmas tree decorations or – strung together on yarn – as an original garland.

This is how Christmas smells! Fill the bottom of a wide glass vase with spices and place a white block candle in the centre. Then fill the sides one by one and in layers with more spices, such as cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. Red cranberries or dried orange slices provide a nice contrast. When the spices are warmed by the candles, they release their wonderful, Christmassy fragrance.