Handmade Shikishi Ideas: Let’s Make Them with Seniors!
This article is for those looking for handmade craft ideas using colored paper, especially for seniors.
We’ll introduce projects that require fewer folding steps and have easy-to-understand instructions.
Some seniors may have difficulty seeing clearly or may find it hard to apply strength with their fingertips.
For those individuals, how about trying torn-paper collage or paper pasting, where you tear and glue colored paper?
Please look for ideas that are easy to get started with!
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[Handmade Shikishi Ideas] Let’s Make Them with Seniors! (21–30)
Message Card
Let’s try making a message card for Children’s Day.
We especially encourage older adults who have grandchildren to make a Children’s Day message card.
Create items that evoke Children’s Day or the Boys’ Festival using origami or construction paper, and attach them to the card.
For example, carp streamers (koinobori), iris flowers, or Kintaro are great motifs.
Besides crafting with paper, you can also write a message with a brush or draw a picture.
A heartfelt, handmade card is sure to delight the recipient.
If you like, please use this as inspiration to create a wonderful message card.
Koinobori made with Japanese-style origami
Here is a three-dimensional koi nobori (carp streamer) made from Japanese-style origami paper that you can easily find at 100-yen shops.
You first make the koi nobori’s body flat, then add slits and fold along them to turn it into a three-dimensional shape, which is the fun part.
For the koi nobori’s pole, roll copy paper around a toothpick or skewer.
Apply glue to the slit section of the body and attach the pole there.
The colorful washi patterns are very cute and will brighten the atmosphere when placed in an entryway or living room.
[Handmade Colored Paper Crafts] Let's Make Them with Seniors! (31–40)
Koinobori hanging decoration
Koinobori look magnificent as they swim grandly through the sky and are a seasonal symbol of spring and early summer.
Let’s make a hanging decoration so you can enjoy koinobori indoors, too.
Use washi-patterned origami or regular origami to create the body of the koinobori and add the eyes.
Then thread the koinobori onto a string, make the fins and tail, and you’re done.
If you make several koinobori and hang them on the same string, it’s like seeing the magoi (black carp), higoi (red carp), and more together.
Watching the gently swaying indoor koinobori hanging decoration, some older adults may feel the arrival of May.
Koinobori chopstick sleeve
To help seniors feel the seasons, some senior and nursing care facilities offer special seasonal meals, don’t they? In those moments, we’d like to introduce a carp streamer–themed chopstick sleeve that’s lovely to set quietly on the table.
Let’s fold a chopstick sleeve using origami.
If you use gold or red origami paper for the sleeve, you’ll end up with a festive design perfect for celebratory occasions.
Attach a carp streamer made from origami to the sleeve as well.
As you fold, some seniors may recall past Boys’ Day (Tango no Sekku) celebrations.
Besides carp streamers, you can also attach other seasonal decorations to the sleeve so it can be used throughout the year.
Please try arranging and customizing your own version.
Carp streamer wall decoration
Why not try making a seasonal carp streamer (koinobori) wall decoration? Using paper cups adds a nice bit of three-dimensionality.
First, cut a paper cup into four equal sections to make the koinobori body.
Wrap origami paper around the cup pieces to create the scales and glue it in place.
Add eye stickers to finish the fish.
Fold a samurai helmet (kabuto), a pinwheel, and irises (shobu) as well.
Assemble everything and glue it onto a backing sheet.
If you make a set of decorations for the whole year and swap them out, it brings a pleasant change to everyday life.
Hanging ornaments
We’d like to introduce a lovely spring hanging decoration that gently sways in the breeze.
You can make it with just origami paper and string, so it’s perfect for craft activities in senior care facilities.
Prepare both solid-colored and patterned origami paper, cut three circles of each, and fold them in half.
Glue the solid and patterned halves alternately, attach them to a string, and your temari ball is finished.
Next, fold three sheets of origami paper in half vertically, stack and glue them together, then draw a pencil outline so it forms a cherry blossom shape and cut it out.
When you open it, you’ll have a symmetrical flower.
Snip small cuts into the petals to make it look like a sakura blossom, then attach it to the string to complete the piece.
Gazing at your hanging decoration while feeling the warm spring breeze is sure to bring a peaceful moment.
Japanese-style cherry blossom wall decoration
We’d like to introduce a cherry blossom wall decoration made with origami.
Using three rectangular pieces of origami paper, you accordion-fold them to create cherry blossoms.
The accordion folds give the blossoms a three-dimensional look.
Once the blossoms are finished, attach them to a backing sheet.
Changing the color of the backing will change the mood of the decoration: black gives a chic feel, while yellow creates a calm atmosphere.
It might be nice to choose a backing color that suits the preferences of the older adults you’re making it with.
You could also have them take the finished piece home to display in their own space.