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How to Make Sweet Potato Garland
by Debbie Hainline

Description: Easy sweet potato garland you can make to decorate your home for fall.

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Sweet potato garland is a wonderful accent to primitive or country decor. Stringed sweet potato garland is perfect for hanging on a primitive tree or as garland on a fire place or doorway. I don’t suggest putting it outside unless you don’t mind the varmit and birds eating it.

Supplies:

Sweet potatoes (you can use regular potatoes)
Instant coffee
Spices - nutmeg, ginger and cinnamon
Cotton string
Needle

First make your coffee staining mixture:

3 heaping tablespoons of instant coffee (I have found that the more expensive coffee gives a deeper stain)
1 cup of boiling water

Mix the two and let steep for a few minutes.

Stain your piece of cotton string with this mixture by dipping it in and letting it dry (I would not do a garland more than 6 feet long). Dry this completely.

Do not peel the potatoes but just cut into 1 inch cubes.

Mix equal amounts of your spices together in a pie pan.

Soak the cubes of potatoes in the coffee mixture then roll them in the spices covering thoroughly (I like to roll them all once and then roll again.)

Tightly string the cubes together because they will shrink while drying.

You can let these air dry or place in a 150 degree on a cookie sheet. Be sure to keep checking and scrunching them together as they dry to prevent gaps. (Have found they are impossible to move on the string after drying.)

These are a wonderful addition for fall decorating.

Debbie owns "Two Old Crows" and an ebay store "Two-Old-Crows" where she sells her handpainted folk art and other handcrafted items she makes along with antiques, primitives and vintage collectibles.