Beyond the Food Gift #8: Holiday Potpourri

By Amy Medling, founder of PCOS Diva

I’m carrying on my PCOS Diva holiday tradition of making a homemade gift that is not sugar-laden and tempting.

For years, I made homemade candy and decadent food gifts, but since I started living a healthy PCOS Diva lifestyle, I had to shift my gift-giving to non-food gifts that wouldn’t tempt me, because I always ended up eating the broken pieces.

I can’t believe it’s the 8th year of sharing my Beyond the Food gift ideas on PCOS Diva. This year, I am giving my friends and family a beautifully scented stovetop holiday potpourri to provide a holiday fragrance at home without the toxic chemicals found in so many scented candles.

I let my potpourri sit for a few days on the stove before throwing it out. By the second day, it may not look as nice, but it smells just as Christmasy!

The potpourri is simple to make and inexpensive. I decided to make 12 ct in 8-ounce jars for gift giving with the ingredients below and still had a little leftover for me!  Happy giving!

How to make Homemade Stovetop Potpourri

Ingredients: to make 12 – 8 ounce jars

I decided to purchase everything I needed on Amazon. Here is what I ordered:
12 ct 8-ounce wide-mouth Mason jars
8-ounce bag of whole cloves
8-ounce bag of whole allspice berries
Dried apple slices (I bought a 3-ounce package, but also had some on hand)
Dried orange slices
1lb cinnamon sticks
I added dried cranberries, You could also add dried rosemary sprigs

Labels

I have been using Evermine for my gift labels and tags for years. I love how the “Merry Berries” square labels design looked against the craft paper jar topper. I mounted these on a square piece of craft color cardstock. I used these as a gift label and to instruct gift receivers to add water and simmer.

I ordered one sheet (24ct.) of the small square label (1.9″ x 1.9″). I also ordered one sheet (24ct.) of the “Merry Berries” 1.75 round scallop for the top of the jar with a gift message.

*Note- I am not an affiliate of any of these companies, just a fan.

Preparation

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and divide evenly between your mason jars.

For more non-food gift ideas, see my posts from years past below:

2013 Bath Salts

2014 Lavender Linen Spray

2015 Homemade Vanilla

2016 Mulling Spices (pair with a bottle of red wine)

2017 Kitchen Spray 

2018 Chai Tea Mix

2019 Elderberry Syrup

Amy Medling, the best-selling author of Healing PCOS and certified health coach, specializes in working with women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), who are frustrated and have lost all hope when the only solution their doctors offer is to lose weight, take a pill, and live with their symptoms. In response, Amy founded PCOS Diva and developed a proven protocol of supplements, diet, and lifestyle programs that offer women tools to help them gain control of their PCOS and regain their fertility, femininity, health, and happiness.