[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 a Handmade Kadomatsu! A Collection of Ideas Using Origami, Felt, and Yarn (21–30)
New Year’s pine decoration postcard
Let me introduce a New Year–appropriate postcard design featuring kadomatsu.
Using watercolor paints and stamps on a postcard, let’s create an illustration that includes a kadomatsu.
By the way, there are various types of watercolors.
Depending on how much water you use and other factors, they can be transparent, opaque, or semi-transparent.
Try choosing based on your style and preferences.
Older adults can also enjoy the seasonal feeling by drawing a kadomatsu.
You can send the postcard as a New Year’s greeting card, or display it on the wall—both are recommended.
Mini kadomatsu in a mug
Introducing a mini kadomatsu you can make using a mug—perfect for decorating small spaces.
First, prepare a block of floral foam and cut it to fit the size of your mug.
Once shaped, set it inside the mug.
Trim any parts that stick out to neaten the shape.
Next, cut the stalk portion of the kadomatsu and paint it in your preferred color.
Finally, decorate with flowers and other accents to finish.
By changing the colors and flowers, you can create a modern or even Scandinavian look.
Try making one to suit your room!
Kadomatsu
Let’s try making a New Year’s decoration, a kadomatsu, using colored paper.
You’ll need items like colored paper, chiyogami (patterned paper), and pipe cleaners.
Make bamboo by rolling two different colors of paper into a tube and sticking them together, then use that as the centerpiece and create festive decorations with gold paper and pipe cleaners.
Just having this instantly boosts the New Year’s atmosphere.
Made with 100-yen store materials
Creative activities nourish the heart, and making handcrafted kadomatsu is a wonderful way to welcome the New Year.
Using materials you can find at 100-yen shops and working together, the time spent creating enriches older adults’ ingenuity and sensitivity.
This activity also helps maintain fine motor skills by keeping the hands moving in an enjoyable way.
The kadomatsu you make yourselves will become a charming decoration that brightens the room, along with a sense of accomplishment when it’s finished.
And each time you see it, it will spark conversations and memories born through the project, bringing more heartwarming moments.
Cute mini kadomatsu
These are small and super-cute mini kadomatsu.
They’re made using everyday materials like toilet paper rolls and plastic bottle caps as the base—that’s part of the charm! They’re especially recommended for older adults who enjoy or are good at detailed handiwork, and they’re great for finger dexterity training, too.
For the bamboo sections, wrap a straw with plain copy paper, then wrap it again with green tissue paper, and cut the ends diagonally.
Arrange the bamboo and paper flowers on a base made from a toilet paper roll, and you’re done! You can customize the decorations however you like for a beautiful finish.
Polar Bear’s Kadomatsu
This is an origami kadomatsu decorated with a cute polar bear.
Since origami can be done while seated and uses the fingertips, which helps stimulate the brain, is that why it’s used in many eldercare facilities? Let’s try making a kadomatsu out of origami—perfect as a year-end and New Year craft.
When you think of a kadomatsu, you picture three bamboo stalks, and you can actually make all three from a single sheet of origami paper.
Some parts are a bit intricate, but please try folding it together with older adults.
If you also make the decorations for the kadomatsu and the polar bear out of origami, the finished piece should give seniors a real sense of accomplishment.
You can also swap the polar bear for the zodiac animal of the year for a lovely result.
Chikuwa kadomatsu
We’d like to introduce a kadomatsu made with chikuwa that’s perfect for a January cooking activity.
It involves actions like cutting ingredients and decorating.
These are good exercises for the fingers, and they also stimulate the brain, which is said to help prevent dementia.
Plus, it can spark conversations with others, promoting communication.
With a kadomatsu-themed recipe, older adults can feel the season and enjoy lively conversation.
Try washing and boiling the green beans used for the bamboo part together with older adults, supporting them as needed.