skimomma Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 Has anyone made them? If so, do they hold up year after year? Dd is thinking of making some as gifts but we are concerned they might degrade over time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirty ethel rackham Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 I've made them. We have some that are 13 years old or more. You need to make them very thick so that they are not that fragile and they take forever to dry. But I love them. I love taking them out every year and remembering the time we made them, remembering those little hands that cut out the shapes and decorated them. Those little hands are now 21, 18 and 14. The smell is heavenly. All of our ornaments smell cinnamon-y as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skimomma Posted November 18, 2014 Author Share Posted November 18, 2014 I've made them. We have some that are 13 years old or more. You need to make them very thick so that they are not that fragile and they take forever to dry. But I love them. I love taking them out every year and remembering the time we made them, remembering those little hands that cut out the shapes and decorated them. Those little hands are now 21, 18 and 14. The smell is heavenly. All of our ornaments smell cinnamon-y as well. Thanks! When you say "very thick," how thick is that? Did your kids decorate them at all or just leave them plain? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirty ethel rackham Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 Well, they shrink as they dry. I think I made one batch less than 1/4 inch, which was too fragile. So, at least 1/4 inch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bettyandbob Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 We made these when my kids were little. We have a few left. You do need them to be thick. After they dried we did decorate some of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Okra Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 We have made them, and they did not last…….But, we only made them once, and possibly we did make them thick enough (just guessing from reading the above posts). Even if they do not last, they are still fun to make! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharpie Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 Ours are pushing 5 years old and holding up well. I agree to make them thicker than 1/4 inch. Good memories & smells. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nrg Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 We made these 20 years ago and I still have most of them. We cut out thick snowflakes and used white fabric paint paint on them. They need a little sanding on the backs to bring out the aroma, but are still going strong. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThursdayNext Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 The fragrance does fade with time, but they are awesome. I wonder if my parents still have the heart and star I made them? We made gingerbread people and bears last year, and decorated with glitter glue and white puff paint. They were awesome, and so easy. Don't forget to make the holes with a straw. I also added some nutmeg and cloves, because I had some really old stuff that needed to be replaced. And if you use gingerbread people cookie cutters, make sure to label them "do not eat". And if your son puts a pen1s on the gingerbread man, give it to your in-laws. That's what I did. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenNC Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 Yes, they can hold up for years. We made them about 1/4 inch or a bit more thick, and between holidays we stored them in ziploc bags in a cookie tin so they didn't get broken. The smell lasted a really long time. Don't put them on a polished stone surface to dry! We put some on a marble lazy susan and it etched the stone permanently, so I wouldn't lay them on something like granite countertops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renthead Mommy Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 If you have a dehydrator, you can dry them in that in about a day. Agreed they need to be more than a 1/4 inch thick. Letting your applesauce drain for a couple of days will help speed up the drying as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dirty ethel rackham Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 . And if your son puts a pen1s on the gingerbread man, give it to your in-laws. That's what I did. ;) :lol: :lol: :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skimomma Posted November 18, 2014 Author Share Posted November 18, 2014 Thanks all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjzimmer1 Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 If you have a dehydrator, you can dry them in that in about a day. Agreed they need to be more than a 1/4 inch thick. Letting your applesauce drain for a couple of days will help speed up the drying as well. Applesauce? We never used applesauce in ours. Just cinnamon and elmer's glue. They have lasted well. My kids decorated them with glitter glue so they are bright and shiny year after year. Edit: Clearly I didn't read the title well said it even says applesauce there. But still I didn't know people used applesauce in these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2jjka Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 There are a couple different recipes. The one that is just applesauce and cinnamon tends to crumble and fall apart faster. But there is one that also adds some Elmer's glue. I used that recipe last time, and our ornaments are over 8 years old and holding up great. I do store them in a zip-lock baggie to keep them fresh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 I have some that are 4-5 yrs old and still smell pretty strongly of cinnamon. I used the applesauce recipe as well. I should make more with my kids this year. They make the house smell yummy when we dry them in the oven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 We make them every year and then throw them away after Christmas.. It's a tradition. I love how they make the house smell when they bake. It signals the official beginning of the season for us! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted November 18, 2014 Share Posted November 18, 2014 We make them every year and then throw them away after Christmas.. It's a tradition. I love how they make the house smell when they bake. It signals the official beginning of the season for us! This intrigues me... We don't have much need for cookies but I like the process. This could fill that niche... Interesting... *off to google recipes* Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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