[For Seniors] Let’s Make New Year Decorations by Hand! A Collection of Easy Ideas Using Everyday Materials
How about a craft activity where you hand-make decorations to brighten up the New Year? We’ll share ideas for easy-to-try ornaments using familiar materials—auspicious motifs like senryō (coralberry), the pine-bamboo-plum trio, Mount Fuji, and sea bream.
You can crumple lots of tissue paper, accordion-fold origami, or press clay onto cardboard—great fine-motor exercises, too.
If everyone divides up the tasks and works together, the conversation will flow and smiles will abound.
Once the decorations are finished and hung on the wall, they’ll fill the space with a festive New Year’s atmosphere.
Enjoy a fun crafting time while sending your wishes into the coming year!
- For Seniors: Auspicious Handmade Zodiac Ornament Craft Ideas
- [For Seniors] Recommended Wall Decorations and Crafts for January
- [For Seniors] January Craft Ideas: Boost Your Luck with New Year Decorations and Good-Luck Charms
- [For Seniors] Try Making Your Own Kadomatsu! A roundup of ideas using origami, felt, and yarn
- Lucky Daruma: Craft ideas for decorating January wall displays for seniors
- [For Seniors] January Craft Ideas for Day Service Activities
- [For Seniors] Decorate your January wall with rabbits! Packed with ideas like snowball fights, New Year’s festivities, and rice cake pounding
- Recommended winter wall decorations for seniors: heartwarming ideas
- [For Seniors] Brighten Up Your New Year’s Party: A Collection of Handmade Decoration Ideas
- [For Seniors] Perfect for winter events! Easy craft ideas
- For seniors: Decorate the December wall with a tree. Easy ideas using origami and yarn.
- [For Seniors] Easy Origami Recommended for Winter
- For seniors: Snowman crafts to brighten January wall displays—fun ideas using origami, paper plates, and papercutting.
[For Seniors] Let's Make New Year's Decorations by Hand! A roundup of easy ideas using everyday materials (61–70)
Plum blossoms on a folding fan
Here’s how to make a festive decoration featuring a vibrant fan adorned with plum blossoms, perfect for the New Year.
For the origami fan, start by folding the paper in half to create a guide, open it, then fold toward the crease, and fold in half again—continuing to make fine creases for an accordion fold.
Fold along the creases in alternating directions to form two accordion-folded pieces, stack them together, and bind them about 4 cm up from the bottom with gold wire.
Trim the corners at both the top and bottom to round them off—the extra touch really elevates the look.
Add mizuhiki cords and plum blossoms in your own style.
Try using two colors of origami, and choose hues that feel right for the New Year.
Battledore decoration made with 100-yen shop items
Hagoita decorations are fun to make with care and attention, aren’t they? How about making them together with older adults using origami and paper? Decorating with colorful cranes and flowers will brighten up the room.
If you’re unsure how to fold something, it’s a good idea to search on video sites.
The finished pieces can be used not only as New Year’s decorations but also in daily rehabilitation.
They’re sure to spark seniors’ creativity and bring smiles.
Handwork that uses the fingertips also supports both physical and mental health.
Let’s make lovely seasonal hagoita decorations together!
New Year’s decoration chopstick rest
As a table-coordination item to welcome the New Year on a pleasant note, we recommend lucky chopstick rests made from origami! Origami is also effective for finger rehabilitation for seniors, so why not give it a try? You can make one chopstick rest from a single sheet of origami paper.
This design combines a fan and a crane: first create the fan portion, then fold the crane.
Because the chopstick rest itself is small, the folds become finer as you go, which may feel a bit challenging.
The final design places the crane at the center of the fan, so it can be used not only as a chopstick rest but also as a decorative accent for New Year’s festivities.
Daruma doll, rising-sun fan, and adonis flowers (fukujusō)
How about a wall decoration packed with lucky symbols: a daruma for prosperous business, a fan that spreads good fortune, and Adonis flowers (Fukujusō) whose floral language signifies happiness? First, make the daruma by combining two sheets of accordion-folded paper to form the body, then layer a single sheet of accordion-folded white paper for the face.
Add the eyes, mustache, and the pattern on the belly to finish.
Make the Japanese-flag fan the same way, using accordion folds.
For the Adonis flowers, cut yellow paper into flower shapes and combine it with finely slitted yellow and green paper.
Once you’ve made plenty of each part, arrange them thoughtfully and decorate the wall!
A crane floating inside a cylinder
Let’s make a stylish and mysterious decoration that looks like a crane—an emblem of longevity—floating in the air! All you need is a single sheet of origami paper, scissors, and glue.
First, fold the paper to create a cross-shaped crease in the center.
After folding it into a square, fold the center into a triangle, make a large cut with the scissors, and then unfold the paper.
Using the square that appears in the middle, fold a crane.
Once the crane is finished, shape the entire origami into a cylindrical form as if spreading the crane’s wings, and glue the edges together to finish.
Display it on a table or anywhere you like!
shimenawa tassel
Shimenawa, known as a lucky charm displayed on household altars and at entrances during the New Year, can be crafted into a refined tassel by combining origami and paper cord.
First, prepare origami folded in an accordion style.
Next, fold origami pieces that will become petal parts and arrange them on a backing sheet to create a three-dimensional flower.
Then, wrap the paper cord to form the shimenawa: secure the top firmly and carefully fan out the bottom.
Attach the crafted parts to the finished shimenawa, and it’s complete! Give this New Year’s decoration a try—it’s a great project that encourages creative ideas among older adults.
Temari hanging ornaments
Do you know Japan’s three major hanging ornaments? There are various theories, but the famous ones are Sagemon from Yanagawa in Fukuoka Prefecture, Hina no Tsurushi Kazari from Inatori in Shizuoka Prefecture, and Kasafuku from Sakata in Yamagata Prefecture.
Though what’s hung differs, all of them are decorations praying for children’s healthy growth and the prosperity of descendants.
How about trying your hand at decorating with these auspicious temari hanging ornaments? Temari can be made three-dimensionally or folded from chiyogami—either way is great! If you’re enjoying this at a senior facility, it’s nice to have a variety of temari.
Also be sure to use accents, such as decorations featuring the character for “fortune” (福) or illustrations of Otafuku.