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[For Seniors] Liven Up Setsubun Crafts! Handmade Ideas Using a Variety of Materials
As Setsubun approaches, memories of childhood filled with bean-throwing and ogre masks come flooding back.
If you enjoy crafts together with older adults, nostalgic stories will blossom and smiles will naturally appear.
Using familiar materials like paper plates, origami paper, and Yakult containers, why not handcraft Setsubun-themed items such as ogre masks, ehomaki, and bean-throwing cups? With a little creativity, the ways to enjoy it are endless.
Spending time savoring the seasonal tradition while working with your hands will warm everyone’s hearts.
[For Seniors] Get Excited with Setsubun Crafts! Handmade Ideas Using Various Materials (1–10)
Oni made with Yakult containers
https://www.tiktok.com/@yuyuka507/video/7189961029919476993Here’s a craft idea for making an ogre (oni) using a lactic acid bacteria drink container as the base.
Wrap the entire container with yarn to represent the oni’s skin color—such as red or blue—and add yellow-and-black striped pants.
Place yarn hair on top of the container and glue on horns made from felt.
Use rhinestone stickers and thread to create the face, and give it a spiked club to hold to finish it off.
The oni looks cute on its own, but if you prepare a base decorated with beans and display two figures—a red oni and a blue oni—on it, it will look even nicer.
If you have the time, be sure to make the base as well.
Oni made easily with felt
Why not try making a cute oni (demon) mascot with felt? Use a toilet paper roll cut to a length of 6.5 cm as the base, representing the pants on the lower half and the face on the upper half.
For the pants, first cover the entire lower half with yellow felt, then twist and glue three band-shaped felt pieces—yellow and brown strips that you’ve cut and joined—around it.
For the face, attach red felt and glue yarn along the top edge to make the hair, then add pearl stickers for the eyes and cheeks.
Finally, attach felt triangles as horns, and it’s complete!
Setsubun kendama
https://www.tiktok.com/@chooobo2/video/7455272118519860488Here’s an idea for a Setsubun kendama featuring a charming demon eating an ehomaki.
In this craft, a construction paper demon face is attached to the rim of a paper cup, with the cup acting as the mouth.
It captures the look of a demon going “Aah!” with its mouth wide open—very cute.
For the ball part, cut a toilet paper roll into a shorter piece, stuff it with crumpled newspaper, and decorate the outside with construction paper to look like an ehomaki sushi roll.
Connect the paper cup and the ehomaki with string, and you’re done! Try your best to feed the ehomaki to the little demon.
Otafuku Decorations: Setsubun Crafts
Here’s an idea for making an Otafuku (Okame) face using origami.
Use origami paper to create the hair, cheeks, and a floral hair ornament, then glue them onto a backing sheet.
Finish by drawing the eyes and mouth with a pen.
The key point of this idea is to lightly sketch each part on the origami first and then tear the shapes by hand instead of cutting them with scissors.
This gives the piece a warm, handcrafted feel.
For the floral hair ornament, use origami with traditional Japanese patterns to make it look festive.
You can also write a seasonal phrase like “God of Good Fortune” on the backing to match Setsubun.
Handmade felt demon bean box
Here’s how to make a soft bean box out of felt.
This one has an ogre face on the side of the box, so it works great as a decorative piece too.
The key when making it is to fold the felt in half to make it double-layered, which gives the box strength.
When shaping it into a box, the corners will also be thicker, making it easier to glue.
Once the box is done, all that’s left is to attach the facial parts and horns cut from felt.
Scary face, cute face, funny face… Express whatever expression you like.
Making Ehomaki and Oni Figurines
When it comes to Setsubun, we think of ehomaki and oni (ogres).
Ehomaki are eaten to pray for good fortune, and oni are driven away as a form of warding off evil.
In this craft idea, an ehomaki is made by lining a toilet paper roll with black origami paper and filling it with “rice” and “ingredients” made from tissue paper.
The oni is made by cutting a toilet paper roll into rings, shaping them into squares, covering them with red felt, adding yarn hair, and gluing on horns made from chopsticks sharpened with a pencil sharpener.
Arrange the ehomaki and the oni on a base along with a box of beans, and you’ll have a lovely Setsubun decoration.
Handmade Setsubun wreath with yarn
Here’s an idea for making a wreath using yarn balls.
First, crumple tissues into balls and wrap yarn around them.
These will become oni (demon) faces, and you’ll connect the faces to form the wreath, so make as many as needed for your desired size.
Create the oni faces and horns by cutting pieces from felt and gluing them on.
You can make all the balls into oni faces, or mix in designs inspired by their iconic pants patterns and beans.
Finally, add plum blossoms made from felt to finish it off.
Bean-Throwing Cup
Let’s make an easy bean cup using a paper cup.
First, firmly press and flatten the rim of the cup, then cut off the edge with scissors.
Overlap the drinking rim to create a lid, add the beans, and then slide the previously cut rim under the lid to use it as a handle.
Finally, decorate the outside like an oni (ogre) and you’re done! Feel free to make it cute using yarn, felt, or construction paper.
Since the handle is only tucked under the lid, it will come off when you open the lid.
If it’s a hassle to tuck it in each time, try cutting the edge in half and gluing it on.
Den-den Drum of the Red Ogre and the Blue Ogre
Here’s an idea for making an ogre-themed den-den daiko (hand drum).
This one is mini-sized, so it’s quick to make and cute enough to display like a fork pick.
First, cut two small egg shapes out of cardboard.
Draw an ogre on the cardboard, place a string between the two pieces, and glue them together.
Attach a small ball of crumpled aluminum foil to each end of the string, then insert a twig (like a toothpick or small stick) as the handle to finish.
Since plain aluminum foil can come off when the drum is played, be sure to use double-sided tape to firmly bond the foil to the string before you crumple it.
5 Devilishly Good Crafts
This idea showcases five crafts: an ogre hat made from a paper bowl, ogre photo props made with paper plates, an ogre hat made from construction paper and PE tape, a sparkly pipe-cleaner ogre party hat made with construction paper, and an ogre mask made from a paper bag.
Each project has simple steps, so as long as the parts are prepared, older adults can enjoy working on them too.
They also make great decorations, adding a festive Setsubun atmosphere just by being displayed.