[For Seniors] Simple and Fun: Craft Ideas You Can Make with Everyday Items
What we introduce here are easy craft ideas for older adults.
They’re all easy to incorporate into recreational activities at senior facilities such as day service centers.
Using familiar, everyday materials, these crafts are simple to make, making it easy for seniors to give them a try.
We hope you’ll use craft-making to help stimulate both mind and body.
Since it involves using the hands, it also serves as brain training and can help prevent dementia.
Be sure to read this article and use it as a reference for craft activities.
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[For Seniors] Simple and Fun: Craft Ideas You Can Make with Everyday Items (161–170)
A scarf on a plate stand
You can knit using a rod-style stand for holding plates upright.
Wrap the yarn around the rods on the plate stand in order.
Place the yarn over the wrapped yarn, then hook the lower yarn over it.
By repeating this, you can make a scarf.
There’s a similar method in finger knitting, so some older adults may have made one with their fingers before.
Plate stands and yarn are available at 100-yen shops, so it’s easy to get started.
Since you use your fingers a lot, it may also have brain-training benefits.
Easy fluffy mittens
Let’s make simple gloves using yarn.
Many yarn crafts involve knitting needles or crochet hooks, right? Some older adults may feel, “I’m not good at knitting.” Knitting often includes complicated methods.
However, here’s a way to make knitted gloves using just cardboard and wooden sticks like ice cream sticks.
Place your hand on the cardboard and draw an outline about one size larger.
After cutting out the outline, make slits at 1-centimeter intervals along the cut edge.
Wrap yarn around all the slits in the cardboard, then attach yarn to a wooden stick and start weaving.
The key is to pack the woven sections tightly together.
Once you’ve finished weaving, tie off the end of the yarn, remove it from the cardboard, and you’re done.
This easy method for making hand-knit gloves seems like something older adults can enjoy as well.
One-Stitch Coaster
Here’s a coaster you can make with just one line of stitching.
Prepare five pieces of your favorite fabric and cut them into circles.
Fold four of them in half, use the remaining one as the base, and layer the four folded pieces on top so that each overlaps and the edges are visible.
Once the balance looks right, sew all the way around the edge in a single loop.
Trim any excess fabric, turn the piece right side out, and your coaster is complete.
Planning and carrying out the steps while picturing the finished result engages your brain’s executive functions, which may help prevent cognitive decline.
Why not make some for your home or as gifts?
minibasket
Here’s how to make a basket using a milk carton.
You will need one milk carton, two kinds of wrapping paper, lace, and adhesive.
Make sure the milk carton is completely dry, and use the three sides with fewer creases.
Attach wrapping paper to both sides, draw guide lines for assembly, and make the necessary cuts.
Fold from the inside in order, shaping the basket while securing it with adhesive.
Once the basket shape is formed, glue the lace around the edge to finish.
Changing the wrapping paper gives it a different look, so you can enjoy experimenting with styles.
Give it a try!
Mimosa corsage
Introducing a mimosa corsage made from felt.
Cut yellow felt into long, narrow strips and wrap them around wire.
Trim any excess so they form a rounded shape.
Make several of these.
Next, create leaves from green felt.
Adding small cuts will give them a three-dimensional look.
Bundle flower stamens (flower pips) randomly and wrap them with wire.
Use this as the base, and, while adjusting the positions, wrap the mimosa and leaves onto it with floral tape.
Attach a corsage pin along the stem, then wrap a ribbon from the bottom upward.
The key is to secure it with glue as you go so it doesn’t come undone.
Finish with a bow under the flowers.
If you adjust the size, it can be made for children as well—perfect for events like your grandchild’s school entrance ceremony.
Sakura hanging ornaments
We’d like to introduce a hanging cherry blossom decoration that will fill your room with the feeling of spring.
First, cut felt into a long, thin strip, make small slits, roll it up, and create the flower center (stamens).
Next, cut felt into a circle and make five evenly spaced cuts toward the center.
Round off the corners and trim the tips of the petals.
Add color with pastels or chalk, then glue the flower center to the middle.
While folding the petals, attach them around the center.
Your flower is complete.
Make six of these.
Cut another felt circle and glue the flowers you made along the circle.
It’s nice to place the best-shaped one in the center.
Sandwich the string and a flower between pieces of felt and glue them together to finish your hanging decoration.
The overall look can change dramatically depending on the flower colors and how you cut the petals, so have fun finding your own unique combination.
Give it a try!
No-sew cherry blossom corsage
Introducing a cherry blossom corsage that’s perfect for ceremonies like entrance ceremonies.
Although it looks glamorous, you can make it without using a needle and thread.
What you’ll need: pink and light green felt, flower stamens, wire, brown floral tape, a corsage pin, and ribbon.
For the flower, cut the felt into a circle and make five slits to divide it into equal parts.
Round the corners and cut the tips into a jagged shape.
Wrap the stamens onto the wire, thread the felt on, and secure it with glue.
Use the light green felt to make the calyx, then wrap and secure everything with tape along the wire.
Make several of the same flower and bundle them together with tape.
Attach a corsage pin to the stem, secure it again with tape, and finish by wrapping a ribbon.
There are no complicated steps, so you can proceed with confidence.
Give it a try as a bit of finger exercise, too.