[For Seniors] Try Making Your Own Kadomatsu! A roundup of ideas using origami, felt, and yarn
As you prepare to welcome the New Year, why not try making a handmade kadomatsu? In this article, we introduce ideas for kadomatsu you can create using various materials such as origami, construction paper, yarn, and felt.
The time spent crafting seasonal decorations while working with your fingers provides stimulating benefits for the brain and naturally encourages conversation with those around you.
There are also unique creations, like edible kadomatsu and mini kadomatsu that can be displayed in a photo frame.
With clever use of items from 100-yen shops, it’s easy to give it a try.
Feel the joy of welcoming the New Year with your own handmade kadomatsu.
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[For Seniors] Try Making Your Own Kadomatsu! A Collection of Craft Ideas Using Origami, Felt, and Yarn (11–20)
Made with a ball of yarn
This is a no-sew kadomatsu arranged with cozy yarn balls.
Its charm lies in a New Year’s Japanese-style arrangement combining felt and yarn balls, sure to bring a warm, relaxed feeling to your celebration! To make the yarn balls, crumple aluminum foil into a sphere and wrap it with yarn.
For the bamboo sections, the key is to wrap felt around items like straws.
Then decorate the yarn balls with felt plum blossoms and leaves, plus cord or pompoms to resemble mizuhiki, and you’re done.
Customize the decorations to your liking and enjoy the crafting process!
Made from an empty snack box
How about making a kadomatsu using an empty cylindrical snack box? You can customize the decorations however you like, so create your own kadomatsu and welcome the New Year! First, cut the empty snack box to a suitable length, wrap double-sided tape around it, and then wind jute twine over it to make the base—this is the key step.
For the bamboo section, wrap copy paper or similar around a thick straw, then wrap green tissue paper over it and cut the tip at an angle.
Once you’ve made these two parts, all that’s left is to add decorations you like! Using decorations and materials from 100-yen shops is a great option too.
three-dimensional wall decoration
Three-dimensional kadomatsu decorations can be placed at the entrance and elsewhere, adding a festive atmosphere.
For the base, secure it firmly by filling it with materials like Styrofoam or clay.
Choosing a bright background color is recommended, as it brings out the New Year’s liveliness.
For the bamboo sections, using straws and rolling origami around them makes it easier to create evenly shaped bamboo and gives the piece a unified balance—also recommended.
Dividing the work by parts and time may help you enjoy the process of making the kadomatsu.
A small palm-sized kadomatsu
Let’s make a cute, miniature kadomatsu using felt and scrap materials.
You can find felt, double-sided tape, and other supplies at 100-yen shops, so preparation is easy.
Cut white and green felt into rectangles and roll them around a paper straw, just like rolling a sushi roll.
After rolling, remove the straw and cut the rolled felt diagonally to create the bamboo sections of the kadomatsu.
Mark about 3 centimeters down from both ends of a toilet paper tube, then cut the tube across the middle.
You’ll get two bases from one tube.
Wrap the bases with chirimen fabric, decorate them with the felt bamboo and plum blossoms, and you’re done.
This adorable kadomatsu craft is sure to spark lively conversation among older adults during the activity.
white kadomatsu
Let me introduce white kadomatsu that are also recommended as indoor decor.
Traditional kadomatsu often use bamboo and colorful ornaments, giving them a lively feel.
But if you go with a white-based kadomatsu, it becomes a lovely piece with an elegant impression.
Take a store-bought kadomatsu you prepared in advance and paint it with white paint.
Then arrange it using white design paper and pastel-toned artificial flowers.
If you make good use of items from 100-yen shops, you can create it easily and conveniently.
Older adults may also find the fresh, different atmosphere of a white kadomatsu refreshing.
Kadomatsu drawn using only paper
Kadomatsu made with torn-paper collage have a very warm feel thanks to the shapes and colors that come from the torn edges, making them perfect for the New Year.
If, at the sketch stage, you draw the outlines a little larger to make it easier to paste the torn pieces, and prepare a box to hold the torn papers, you can avoid losing pieces and the work should go smoothly.
Once it’s finished, displaying it in a frame or sending it as a gift will likely be appreciated.
Create your own original kadomatsu decoration perfect for the New Year and welcome a wonderful start to the year!
[For Seniors] Try Making a Handmade Kadomatsu! A Collection of Ideas Using Origami, Felt, and Yarn (21–30)
Made with a toilet paper roll core
These are uniquely charming New Year’s kadomatsu made by reusing toilet paper rolls.
One of the appeals is how easy they are to make with familiar materials, so they’re perfect for a January craft activity at a day service center! For the bamboo, wrap construction paper around the roll and cut the top at a slant.
Make three identical pieces and glue them together.
For the pine, take construction paper snipped finely into fringe and wrap it around a bamboo skewer.
To finish, wrap a rectangle of construction paper covered with Japanese-pattern origami around the bamboo, insert the pine pieces, and you’re done! Celebrate the New Year in style with your handmade kadomatsu.