Recommended Origami for Seniors: Fun December Theme
As December arrives, the wind turns colder and it becomes a season with more indoor recreation.
Let’s try origami, which is great brain training you can enjoy in a warm room.
The process of dexterously using your fingertips to fold paper, and creating while picturing the finished piece, is said to provide beneficial stimulation to the brain.
Origami is also a familiar craft for many older adults, making it easy to get started.
Some may even recall memories of folding paper in childhood or doing origami with their children.
This time, we’re introducing origami with a December theme.
Please use it to help you create wonderful pieces.
- [For Seniors] Easy Origami Recommended for Winter
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- For seniors: Decorate the December wall with a tree. Easy ideas using origami and yarn.
- [For Seniors] Recommended Origami for January
- [For Seniors] Perfect Finger Exercises! Seasonal Flower Origami
- For seniors: Introducing handmade decoration ideas to welcome a wonderful Christmas
- [For Seniors] Brighten Up December Walls! Christmas Decoration Ideas
- [For Seniors] Recommended Wall Decorations for December: Ideas Collection
- [For Seniors] Fun Crafts Recommended for December
- [For Seniors] Recommended in December! Safe and Fun Indoor Recreation
- [For Seniors] Recommended September Origami to Feel the Autumn Season
- [For Seniors] Lovely Christmas Crafts: Easy Ideas Using Recycled Materials and 100-Yen Shop Supplies
- [Elderly Care Facility] Fun-filled recreational activities for a Christmas party: crafts, rhythmic exercises, games, and even a snack-time activity
[For Seniors] Recommended December-Themed Fun Origami (1–10)
Simple Santa Claus
This is a cute Santa Claus you can make with a single sheet of origami paper.
First, with the white side facing up, fold it into a triangle vertically and horizontally, then unfold.
Fold the top corner toward the center, then fold the tip upward.
Next, fold the bottom corner up toward the top crease, and fold it halfway back down.
Turn it over, fold back the top right and top left corners by about 1 cm, then fold the top right and top left down toward the center.
Adjust and fold the right and left sides once more, and your Santa Claus is complete.
The final adjustment step involves a bit of fine work, but carefully folding together makes for good exercise for your hands and fingers!
Christmas tree folded with origami
Let’s make a Christmas tree with origami, which also serves as finger exercises! Once you understand the steps, origami is easy to use and is recommended for seniors.
Combining many sheets can get complicated, but it’s much easier if you can complete it with just one sheet! Not only the standard green—if you fold with different colors, your walls will look lively too! It’s also a great idea to use various paper sizes.
If you decorate the finished Christmas tree by drawing pictures or adding stickers, you’ll create a sparkling Christmas scene!
Advent calendar
Are you familiar with Advent calendars? Advent refers to the four weeks leading up to Christmas.
To help everyone enjoy Christmas, let’s make a calendar and get ready! You can easily make one with origami.
First, fold 24 triangular pieces and arrange them in the shape of a tree.
Using green will make it look like a fir tree, which is recommended.
After writing the numbers, put a small treat inside each one—and it’s complete! You’ll have something to look forward to as you count down to Christmas.
[For Seniors] Recommended December-Themed Fun Origami (11–20)
A small Santa Claus from the shoulders up
A small Santa Claus from the shoulders up that you can easily make just by folding origami.
Since no scissors or cutters are used, it’s safe and approachable for older adults as well.
Place your preferred color of origami on the base and fold a triangular Santa.
You can bend the tip of the hat or add facial expressions to Santa’s face with a pen or stickers.
Carefully and accurately folding the paper also helps build concentration.
Decorate the wall with lots of Santas and enjoy the unique Christmas atmosphere!
reindeer
How about making an origami reindeer, Santa Claus’s cute sidekick? Origami you can do while chatting with others also helps promote communication.
First, fold the paper in half into a square and a triangle to make crease lines.
Unfold it, then fold the top and bottom corners toward the center, and be sure to fold the left and right corners in so they overlap.
Flip the now-rectangular paper once, and fold the corners toward the center.
Fold back slightly to adjust the shape, and fold back the white parts too—you’ll start to see a cute reindeer appear.
Finally, make the antlers, draw the eyes with a pen, and don’t forget to add a bright red nose!
Poinsettia wall decoration
Poinsettias have the flower meanings of “Holy Night,” “Blessing,” and “Wishing for Good Fortune.” Because their shape resembles a star, they’re the perfect flower for Christmas.
This time, we’ll introduce a poinsettia decoration with this kind of charm! You can easily make it with origami.
First, fold the paper diagonally and cut it into the shape of a leaf.
Make two of these and paste them together slightly offset.
If you add lines to the leaves, you can create a rough, textured look.
Using red and yellow makes it look bright and festive, and is recommended.
stick candy
Stick candies shaped like canes are a Christmas classic—used not only as treats to eat but also as decorations.
This content shows how to make those colorful stick candies using origami.
The method involves tightly rolling the origami, alternating between colored and white sections.
The way you roll is the most important point: keeping each stripe the same width leads to a beautiful result.
Finally, bend it to look like a stick and add some dimensionality, and it’s complete.
