[Christmas & New Year] Craft Ideas for Day Services in December
December is a month when you can feel the Christmas atmosphere, including through decorations at day-service centers.
Christmas, New Year’s, and other major events come one after another.
In Japan, December is written as “Shiwasu,” reflecting how bustling this time of year can be.
Older adults may also be sensing the arrival of December.
So this time, we’re introducing craft ideas for day-service centers that are perfect for December.
We’ve assembled a wide variety of projects—decorations to brighten up Christmas, pieces that boost the festive mood, and New Year’s items, too!
They’re great to make and display in your own room, and would surely delight family members as gifts.
Enjoy a wonderful December with heartfelt, handmade items!
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[Christmas & New Year] Craft Ideas for Day Service in December (81–90)
Santa Claus ornaments to decorate your walls or tree
This is a soft-looking Santa Claus ornament made using a paper roll as the base.
Wrap tissue paper around the paper roll and shape the tip into a triangle to create the foundation for Santa Claus.
Then just attach parts like the beard and face to complete it—the softness of the tissue paper conveys Santa’s gentle feel.
You can add originality in many ways, such as the shape of the hat or the expression you give him.
It works well as a standing mascot decoration, and it’s also recommended to attach a string and hang it up.
Wall-mounted Christmas tree
This is a charming wall-mounted Christmas tree made from three-dimensional tree shapes.
First, make the trees.
Use a compass to draw circles on green construction paper and cut them out.
Cut each circle in half, overlap the edges slightly, and glue them to form cones.
Next, make the star.
Fold yellow or gold origami paper into triangles and combine them to create a star shape.
Stick the trees onto the wall, place a star at the top, and attach any decorations you like with glue or double-sided tape—that’s it.
It’s lovely how many small trees come together to form one big tree.
Koeda Christmas Tree
Let’s make a cute Christmas tree with a cozy, homey feel using small twigs.
You can use twigs picked up during outings or walks, or ones sold at 100-yen shops—either is fine! For the base, we recommend using a thin wooden board called a wood slice, also available at 100-yen shops.
Stand the twigs upright on the base in the shape of a tree and attach them with glue.
Once the tree shape is formed, add small ornaments to decorate, and it’s complete.
Choose the twigs and base according to the size of the tree you want to make.
Christmas cake made of origami
This is a Christmas cake made of origami that works great in a variety of situations—gift boxes, candy holders, or small-item containers! Because this craft involves making many cake parts from origami, it’s perfect for dividing up the work among a group.
If you’re looking for winter craft activity ideas, why not give this a try? The cake base is an octagonal box assembled from combined parts.
On top, you add origami decorations like Santas, trees, and strawberries.
You can display it as is, or hide a present inside the box for a fun surprise that’s sure to be a hit.
Christmas tree wall decoration made with origami
Let’s decorate your walls with a must-have Christmas item—a tree—to build excitement for the season.
The key is to layer pieces cut from three sheets of origami paper to clearly convey the tree’s three-dimensional feel.
Fold the origami into a triangular screen shape, trim the edges, and attach the pieces while keeping the stepped layers in mind.
Adding wooden pieces and ornaments helps make it unmistakably a Christmas tree.
You can use a single tree as a decorative accent, or line several up to create a large tree—there are many ways to use this idea.
3D poinsettia with origami
Introducing a three-dimensional origami poinsettia to get you in the Christmas spirit! It’s perfect for holiday decorations and as a tree ornament.
The key to this origami is to proceed while making crisp, precise creases.
Because it’s shaped in 3D, some of the intricate steps and fine folds may be challenging.
For a glamorous finish, decorate the center of the flower with a gold bead! Make plenty to arrange into a wreath, or use them as casual gifts.
[Christmas / New Year] Craft ideas for day-service programs in December (91–100)
Origami Christmas tree
This is a simple Christmas tree made with origami.
Its simplicity allows for a wide range of customization, and the key is that you can express originality through decorations.
Fold green origami paper into a pointed triangle to create the base, then add embellishments like rhinestones or stickers.
It’s important to have a crease down the center of the triangle—this clearly conveys the trunk of the tree and gives it a sense of dimension.
Whether you use decorations that suggest the spread of the branches or ones that evoke festive ornamentation, the personality of the tree will come through depending on which aspects you choose to emphasize.