[For Senior Daycare Centers] Ideas for Summer Take-Home Crafts

Summer greetings with a uchiwa (hand fan)

It’s not too late! Sending midsummer greetings with a hand fan!

Here’s an idea for a “summer greeting fan” made with a unique technique using a plastic bag.

Turn a plastic bag inside out and inflate it, then apply paint or ink to its surface and press it onto a plain hand fan.

The wrinkles of the bag become patterns as they are, creating unexpected and beautiful designs.

You can freely express motifs like fireworks or flowers, and if you add a message to the finished fan, you’ll have a warm summer greeting.

The process is simple yet lets your sensibility shine, making for an enjoyable creative time.

It’s a gentle summer letter that sends both coolness and heart.

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Summer greetings with shaved ice

Let’s have fun and try writing a summer greeting with shaved ice. @riritube

Shaved ice topped with strawberry or melon syrup is especially delicious on a hot day, isn’t it? Some senior care facilities may also serve shaved ice as a snack.

So let’s try making a summer greeting card featuring shaved ice, one of the treats we crave in summer.

In addition to drawing shaved ice on a postcard, you can also create it using items like kitchen sponges or bubble wrap used for packing.

With a bit of creativity, you can make summer greeting cards adorned with all kinds of shaved ice designs.

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Summer greeting card with sunflowers

Kids can do it easily too! There's still time to write your summer greeting card! [Summer Card]

We’re pleased to share an idea for a handmade card that captures the brightness of summer: a “Sunflower Summer Greeting.” Draw the sunflower’s outline with a brush pen, then use paints to color the petals and center—this hand-drawn touch adds a special warmth.

The slight bleeding and roughness become part of the charm, creating a soft, gentle impression.

Add a line wishing the recipient good health to make it a heartfelt piece.

Sunflowers are summer blooms that brighten anyone’s mood.

It’s a summer greeting that delivers joy: the pleasure of drawing and the happiness of sending, all in one card that truly reaches the heart.

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Ironed pressed flowers – Morning Glory

Morning Glory Project: How to Make Ironed Pressed Flowers

We’d like to introduce a summer craft that even seniors can enjoy: Morning Glory Iron-Pressed Flowers, which preserve the beauty of morning glories just as they are in the morning.

Wrap picked morning glory petals and leaves in kitchen paper, then press a low-temperature iron over them to quickly create vibrant pressed flowers.

Because their natural colors remain, the results are both brilliant and delicate.

The finished pressed flowers can be used for bookmarks, cards, wall decorations, and more.

Handling the flowers gently during the process pleasantly stimulates concentration and fingertip sensitivity.

It’s a charming craft that lets you preserve summer memories exactly as they are.

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Morning-glory craft with kitchen paper

Summer vacation craft 🌻 [Kitchen paper morning glory craft] #SummerVacationCraft #crafts #diyflower

We’d like to introduce a handmade activity for seniors that captures a summery vibe: “Kitchen Paper Morning Glory Craft.” Cut kitchen paper into circles, twist them, and soak them in water to soften and make them easier to work with.

When you add ink to the paper, it gently bleeds to create a beautiful gradient.

If you apply ink first and then dip it in water, you can enjoy the way the colors spread.

Soak pieces in green ink to make textured leaves as well.

Glue the morning glory flowers, leaves, and vines onto construction paper to complete a cool, vibrant piece.

Morning glories came to Japan from China and have long been cherished as a symbol of summer.

This craft is fun to make and perfect for creating summer memories.

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Watermelons and mosquito coils

Easy-to-draw summer greeting (2): Watermelon and mosquito coil

Speaking of summer foods, watermelon also comes to mind, right? How about adding a watermelon illustration to your summer greeting card? You can also draw other items you often see in summer, like mosquito coils.

Watercolors are fine to use, but here’s a neat idea.

Before painting with watercolors, sketch your underdrawing with a candle.

A “resist” technique means drawing or coating the areas you don’t want to paint with wax.

The wax repels moisture, so those parts won’t take on color.

For a watermelon, apply wax to the seeds; for a mosquito coil, to the spiral.

It will give you a clean finish.

Give it a try using this as a reference!

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Summer greetings with tomatoes

Let's try drawing a summer greeting with tomatoes, the summer vegetable! ❣️

How about a summer greeting card featuring an illustration of tomatoes? Tomatoes are one of the quintessential summer vegetables.

Biting into a well-chilled, bright red, juicy tomato fills your mouth with delicious flavor.

Many older adults may have grown tomatoes themselves or often enjoyed them in the summer.

Lycopene and vitamin C found in tomatoes are said to help protect against UV rays.

And since tomatoes are mostly water, they’re also great for rehydrating a body depleted by the summer heat.

An illustration of tomatoes is perfect for a midsummer greeting that shows you care about someone’s well-being in the heat.

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