Celebrate with handmade gifts! A perfect shikishi board and message card for a 100th birthday.
We all want the seniors who use our facilities to stay healthy and live long, don’t we?
I imagine many senior and welfare facilities hold birthday parties to celebrate.
Gifts are prepared for the birthday parties, too, and I’m sure the seniors are pleased.
Birthdays are wonderful at any age, but when a senior turns 100, you really want to express your heartfelt gratitude.
So this time, we’re introducing handmade message boards (shikishi) for seniors celebrating their 100th birthday.
We’ve also gathered ideas you can apply to the shikishi and recommended birthday message cards.
Please use this article to create and give a lovely shikishi.
Celebrate by hand! Appropriate shikishi boards and message cards for a 100th birthday (1–10)
Colored paper for a name poem
A name poem, which hides the person’s name within the text, is a gift many people appreciate.
It’s the idea of presenting a message on a decorative board, with each sentence starting from the letters of the person’s name.
If you weave in their personality and character into the lines, it can become an even more memorable present.
It also sounds fun to come up with an original piece for an older adult celebrating a birthday.
For the creator, it’s sure to be a rewarding gift to make.
If you’re able, writing it in brush calligraphy or with playful lettering will enhance its decorative appeal.
Handmade card with a bouquet
Doesn’t receiving a bouquet lift your spirits no matter how old you are? Here’s a birthday card idea inspired by bouquets.
Prepare some colored cardstock and decorative paper.
Cut both into squares and fold them into triangles.
Cut the cardstock in half, sandwich it with the decorative paper, and fold it into thirds to form a bouquet.
You can use the leftover cardstock as a message card.
Make the petals by cutting origami or washi paper that’s been folded into triangles.
It would be lovely to design it with the recipient’s favorite flowers!
Hand-drawn illustration card
How about sending a handwritten message card that conveys warmth and kindness to an older adult? On a single sheet of construction paper, draw illustrations using colorful pens.
If you think about a rough layout in advance, the process will go smoothly.
Draw things like a birthday cake, a gift box, and candles.
In the center of the paper—or another prominent spot—write a message expressing your gratitude or congratulations.
It’s also a great idea to design the card using the recipient’s favorite colors and items.
Try making a handmade birthday card that lets your creativity shine.
Three-dimensional! A shikishi decorated with seasonal flowers
Decorative shikishi boards featuring the birthday person’s birth-month flower or their favorite flowers would likely be appreciated as room decor.
They’re easy to make: first, leave space for the flowers on the shikishi board and write your message.
Then attach flowers made from tissue paper.
If making the flowers is difficult, you can glue on artificial flowers from a 100-yen shop with a hot glue gun.
You can also buy a glue gun at a 100-yen shop.
To hang the board on the wall, attach a string to the center of the back—and it’s done.
The finished piece looks very luxurious and makes a lovely decoration.
Simple designs drawn with a dot pen
You can create lovely message boards with just pens.
Try drawing garlands, candles, and more on the board using a dot pen that makes it easy to draw dots.
Even designs that might seem difficult if you think, “Isn’t this hard without drawing skills?” can be done by just keeping a few tips and tricks in mind.
Seniors will likely be delighted to receive a birthday message board illustrated with colorful pens.
Even with the same design, changing the pen colors or reducing the number of colors will change the overall style.
It’s easy to do, so why not enjoy making it while trying some variations?
Simple and cute group message board design
Some seniors might be delighted to receive a colored card filled with birthday messages from many people.
If a few people—such as staff at a senior care facility or family members—are writing messages together on the card, making it in a “group message” style is also recommended.
You can write the messages directly on the card, but try arranging it using items you can find even at 100-yen shops.
With a dot pen and a black ballpoint pen, draw a circle and dots in the center of the card, or try creating a bouquet out of dots.
You’ll be able to make a heartfelt group-message card.
Simple birthday cake illustration
For birthdays, many people also prepare a birthday cake.
Older adults may also enjoy cake with their families on their birthdays.
A colored card featuring a birthday cake might help lift the spirits of the older person celebrating, too.
If you’re good at drawing, you might be able to sketch a cake with ease.
If you don’t usually draw, try sketching while looking at images online or in books.
Alternatively, you could make use of a printout of a cake illustration.