How to Make a Christingle

You will need:

• 1 orange
• 1 small candle, such as a birthday cake candle
• enough red ribbon to go round an orange, with a small overlap or a little more for a bow
• 4 cocktail sticks
• a few sweets or some dried fruit, such as raisins or sultanas
• a small piece of foil measuring about 4cm by 4cm
• a pencil to make a hole in the orange

What you do:

1. Carefully push the pencil into the top of the orange to make a small hole.
2. Put about 3 sweets or pieces of dried fruit onto each cocktail stick.
3. Push the cocktail sticks into the orange in four different directions slightly above the fattest part of the orange, pointing slightly upwards.
4. Take the foil and gently wrap it around the bottom of the candle. Firmly wedge the candle into the hole you made in the orange, then mould the foil into a shallow cup shape to catch any candle wax drips.
5. Tie the ribbon round the orange and fasten it with a bow, or overlap the two ends and secure them with a pin.
6. If you want to light the candle, make sure a grown-up is there to help you.

Read about the meaning of the Christingle.