![[For Seniors] Making a March Calendar: Introducing Spring-Themed Motifs and Arrangements](https://i.ytimg.com/vi_webp/qKaAzmJvj5g/maxresdefault.webp)
[For Seniors] Making a March Calendar: Introducing Spring-Themed Motifs and Arrangements
In March, when you can feel the arrival of spring, why not enjoy making calendars together with older adults? Calendars featuring March-specific motifs like dandelions, tulips, and Hina dolls not only provide pleasant fingertip stimulation through the crafting process, but also bring special joy when the finished pieces are displayed in a room.
Here, we introduce ideas that can be colorfully finished using familiar materials such as origami paper, construction paper, and yarn.
Please spend a warm, enjoyable time together, with lively conversations sparked by seasonal topics.
[For Seniors] Making a March Calendar: Introducing Spring-Themed Motifs and Arrangements (1–10)
Cherry blossoms and Mount Fuji
March is the season when it gradually gets warmer, and you can often feel spring approaching.
Here’s a calendar that’s perfect for this time of year: a design featuring cherry blossoms and Mt.
Fuji.
Use construction paper as the backing, paste on the March calendar, and arrange the illustrations of Mt.
Fuji and cherry blossoms wherever you like.
Add tree branches made from brown construction paper and cherry blossoms made from tissue paper.
The fluffy texture of the tissue paper makes for a lovely calendar.
You can also create your own butterflies or bush warblers if you like.
Finish it in whatever style you prefer!
Watercolor Dandelion
When you hear “watercolor,” you might picture something difficult or a lot of preparation.
But using watercolor brush pens makes it easy to give it a try.
Here, we’ll show you a simple way to paint a dandelion, so even if you’re not confident in drawing, you can enjoy it.
With a yellow brush pen, draw several short lines.
Switch to green, then under the yellow lines, draw an oval and a stem to suggest a plump calyx.
Sketch in some rough veins, then add the leaves.
It helps to imagine arrowheads or hearts for the leaf tips.
Even small mistakes can give your illustration character.
Use a lovely watercolor to brighten up your March calendar!
Easter egg
Easter comes on the Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox, so it usually falls from late March through April.
As more events are held in Japan, it has become well known as a spring celebration.
So how about sticking a cute bunny Easter egg on your calendar? Amazingly, you can make both an egg and a bunny shape from a single sheet of origami paper! Start by using the long, narrow crease you make down the center as an axis, and at the end, fold that section up to form the bunny’s ears.
Finish by drawing the bunny’s face and patterns on the egg!
Cherry blossoms in watercolor
Cherry blossoms, an essential part of spring in Japan, are a perfect motif for a March calendar.
Here we introduce an easy way to paint cherry blossoms that even beginners can handle.
Start by adding five small pink dots in the center of the flower.
Then, using a brush dipped only in water, spread each dot outward into the shape of petals.
The key is to make the center darker.
Add branches and new buds, and draw lines and pollen on the petals for detail.
It’s amazing how a little extra effort can produce such realistic cherry blossoms.
Why not brighten your March calendar with watercolor cherry blossoms that will warm your heart every time you see them?
The Hina Doll and the Imperial Consort
https://www.tiktok.com/@mhe.red/video/7477495519779015944How about a Hinamatsuri calendar that’s sure to make you smile every time you see it? This is a delightful idea you can easily try, since it can be made with construction paper and origami.
First, create the base by attaching a March calendar to construction paper in your favorite color.
Then, fold origami dolls of the Empress and Emperor, and glue them onto the base along with pink, white, and light green origami to evoke the look of hishi-mochi.
If you also make and decorate with traditional lanterns and plum blossoms, you’ll have a calendar that brightens up any room just by displaying it.
tissue paper dandelion
https://www.instagram.com/reels/DGSTcqpSRDl/By using tissue paper for the dandelion’s flower, you can create a soft impression and add a three-dimensional effect.
Make it and display it in your room to invite the spring breeze—everyone is sure to feel brighter.
First, paste a calendar on the lower half of the base construction paper.
Then design the top with dandelions and butterflies.
Make the dandelion leaves from construction paper and the butterflies from origami paper.
If you craft the butterflies in three dimensions as well, you can depict a scene of butterflies gracefully dancing over a spring meadow.
Three-dimensional Hina dolls made with paper cores
https://www.tiktok.com/@risan2511/video/7069013190461361409This is a Hinamatsuri calendar you can make with familiar materials.
Incorporating Hinamatsuri—a holiday well-known to many older adults—into a craft project can spark fond memories and create a wonderful opportunity for communication with those around them.
Paste a March calendar onto colored construction paper and decorate it with cherry blossoms cut from origami paper.
Create the main characters—the empress (Ohinasama) and the emperor (Odairisama)—by attaching washi-patterned chiyogami and origami parts to toilet paper rolls.
Adding tissue paper at their feet gives a festive touch.
It’s an idea that will likely lift your spirits every time you look at the calendar.