Orange Slice Garland

We made our own orange slice garland this year and it was really so easy! This is not an in depth tutorial but I will explain what we did, if you would like to try it. I also took so many photos that they needed a place to live, so here we are!
 I used 8 oranges and made four strands of 6' garland. You may also use clementines, tangerines, whatever you want. I sliced the oranges pretty thin, about 1/4 - 1/8", blotted with paper towels, and placed on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper in a single layer.  We baked the slices at 250 degrees for 3 hours. I flipped them once and removed oranges as they browned a little. Then, we let them sit on baking racks for 3 days. Yes, for 3 whole days, the orange slices just sat out on the counter. I don't know if this is necessary everywhere, but the flesh may tear when you stitch the slices if there is still moisture and it was still humid in Orlando during November.
We strung the oranges about 6" apart on twine, using a yarn needle. I am fine with the slices sliding around a little so we only used one stitch through each slice. Just insert the threaded yarn needle near the rind, and again through the other side of the slice. The boys were able to stitch the oranges themselves. Tess needed some help but was also the most enthusiastic helper. 
Our garland is not perfect, but it looks festive and we decorated the whole house for Thanksgiving. These pretty little orange slices may even stick around through Christmas. Right now, I have them alongside some evergreen garland on the stairs and it looks cute. I might pull some off and attach to gifts when I start to wrap all of our packages! 
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​What you need: 
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-Oranges, tangerines, or clementines, slice to 1/4-1/8"
-Baking racks
-Papertowels to blot citrus
-Cookie sheets
-Parchment paper 
-Yarn needle (I found this on Amazon.com)
-Twine (also on Amazon.com)

​​Let me know if you make your own citrus garland,
I'd love to see how it turns out and how you use it!