[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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- For seniors: Decorate the December wall with a tree. Easy ideas using origami and yarn.
- Christmas crafts using paper cups
- [For Seniors] Introducing Fun Crafts Made with Plastic Bottle Caps
- Easy way to make Christmas stockings
- [For Seniors] January Craft Ideas for Day Service Activities
- Take-Home Craft Ideas for Winter: Perfect for Day Services for Seniors
- [For Seniors] Recommended for Christmas Crafts! Simple Handmade Project Ideas
[Christmas & New Year] Craft Ideas for Day Service in December (51–60)
100-yen shop snowman and reindeer
It’s an adorable mascot where a reindeer is peeking out from behind a snowman.
Attach evenly spaced strips of paper, cut into long, thin pieces, around the base of a plastic cup to form the snowman’s round shape.
Then stack two circles and add facial features and other parts to complete the snowman.
The reindeer is a simple design made by cutting and layering parts from construction paper; use the layered paper to create a three-dimensional feel.
Leaving small gaps in the snowman is also an important point—the way light passes through conveys a soft, gentle look.
New Year’s shimenawa wreath
Let’s make a festive shimenawa, an essential New Year’s decoration, using easy-to-find materials.
Crumple up some newspaper, twist it into a coil, and shape it into a circle to use as the base.
Wrap the base with crepe paper and glue it in place, then attach lucky-looking parts you’ve made separately—such as a fan and camellia flowers—to finish.
Because the steps are simple, it’s a craft that lets you come up with your own design, from the colors you choose to the decorations you include.
Cute Santa and an origami Christmas tree
Just by putting a little decoration in your room, you can instantly get into the Christmas spirit with these “cute Santa and origami Christmas trees.” The charm of this craft is that you can make it with familiar materials like colored construction paper, origami paper, and toilet paper rolls! For both crafts, the main steps involve cutting and pasting colored paper or origami.
A key point is using toilet paper for Santa’s hat and outfit’s white trim, as well as his beard! For the beard in particular, the toilet paper is torn by hand to give it a fluffy finish.
If you’re incorporating this into a day-service craft activity, it might go smoothly if you assign roles and have everyone divide up the tasks.
A cute three-dimensional Santa Claus made of construction paper
This is a Santa Claus–themed character made by combining cut construction paper.
It features Santa’s face at the center with arms and legs stretched out, and because it’s simple, the overall impression changes greatly depending on the size of each part.
A major highlight is using cotton from a bag for the beard piece; this difference in material gives the character a three-dimensional feel.
We recommend mounting the character on construction paper as a base and using it as a wall decoration.
[Christmas & New Year] Craft Ideas for Day Service in December (61–70)
Simple paper poinsettia decoration
Let’s make a poinsettia—the plant that adds a festive touch to Christmas—out of construction paper.
Paying attention to the size of each piece and layering them carefully is key to creating a three-dimensional look.
Cut the red construction paper into leaves that spread in four directions, then stack two identical pieces to form a shape that spreads in eight directions.
Next, cut green construction paper into leaves larger than the red ones, layer the red piece on top, and glue them together to complete your poinsettia.
It has a three-dimensional feel while still being paper-based, so it should work well in a variety of decorations.
holly garland
This is a small garland featuring holly leaves, an essential motif for Christmas.
Cut green construction paper into holly leaf shapes, pierce them with a needle threaded at both ends, and connect each piece to complete it.
Precisely because it’s simple, pay close attention to color choices, arrangement, and the spacing of the thread between pieces.
Since the parts are small, it’s easy to use as decoration on a tree and more.
Try layering two strands or arranging them in curves for creative display options.
Fukumamori
Why not try handmaking a Fukumamori, a charm said to bring happiness? It’s a great idea both as an accessory for seniors to wear and as a gift for someone special.
Cut slits at both ends of the center of a piece of felt, then attach a string and decorative pom-poms onto tape and sandwich them between the felt.
After sticking fabric and buttons onto the felt, decorate with triangular fabric and beads, and finish by tying the string.
Create a heartwarming gift with a Japanese or Christmas theme!
