[For Seniors] Enjoy the Hot Summer to the Fullest! A Collection of Easy Craft Ideas
Summer is the season when we start to sweat more and more.
Even indoors, you may sometimes feel the heat.
However, some older adults seem to have a harder time sensing heat.
This time, we’ll introduce some simple, recommended crafts you can do indoors during the hot season, when outdoor activities tend to decrease.
By creating summer-themed pieces, you can help people feel the season, even if it’s become harder to sense it.
After making them, you can take them home or display them at a facility, which can also give a sense of accomplishment!
Crafting involves fine motor movements of the fingertips and thinking through the steps in your head, stimulating the brain and serving as brain training.
Please enjoy making them at your own pace.
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[For Seniors] Make the Most of the Hot Summer! A Collection of Easy Craft Ideas (221–230)
sunflower fan
You can’t go without a fan in the hot summer, right? Why not make a cute sunflower-shaped fan and enjoy the season? Combine yellow and brown origami to create an accordion fold and tie the center with a string.
Attach a stem-shaped handle, and you’ll have an adorable sunflower fan that opens like a folding fan! It folds up compactly, so it’s easy to carry.
You can also make it summery and lovely by drawing sunflowers on a blank fan or simply sticking on sunflower designs made from photos or origami!
Sunflower wall decoration
As a flower that evokes summer, a sunflower wall decoration—something everyone can picture—is a great recreational activity for seniors who find it hard to go outside during the usual intense heat.
Just trace a circle using a plate, then attach petals made from construction paper, and you can make striking sunflowers bloom right in the room.
It’s also recommended for seniors as it involves fine motor work, and if it doesn’t go well, you can adjust the size of the plate to create flowers in a size that’s easier for you to make.
Classic yellow is lovely, but it’s also fun to use patterned paper to craft colorful, varied sunflowers.
Colorful cicada
Cicadas start chirping all at once when summer arrives.
While many people may find them noisy, they’re also something that really makes you feel that summer has come.
How about using decorations inspired by cicadas—symbols of summer—to evoke that sense of the season? Real cicadas often have muted colors, but if you make decorative versions with colorful materials that don’t exist in nature, you can create a festive, eye-catching atmosphere.
Using prints with English lettering might also give the display a stylish feel.
Hibiscus and Sea Creatures
Here’s an idea for a wall decoration that combines hibiscus flowers with sea creatures to bring out a summery vibe.
The result is a colorful display that older adults can also enjoy as a taste of summer.
To make the hibiscus, fold origami paper to create a template, then cut along the outlined sections.
Use the edge of a pair of scissors to gently curl the petals for a three-dimensional finish.
Also, cut out your favorite sea creatures—such as whales, fish, and jellyfish—from origami paper.
Just make a single slit and glue it together to create depth—give it a try! You can also have fun customizing the sea creatures by using patterned origami paper.
windsock
One of the decorations often seen for Tanabata is the streamer.
It represents the weaving threads offered to Orihime, who appears in the Tanabata legend, and its very colorful appearance makes it a charming ornament.
You can easily make one with origami paper or construction paper and some string! For the bottom part of the streamer, simply cut the origami paper partway into strips of the same width and length, then form it into a loop—done! For the round part on top, like a kusudama, you can combine pieces of origami to create a sphere, or make small flowers from tissue paper and assemble them together—both are recommended.
Finally, put the two parts together and hang them with a string to finish!
Washi Paper Aquarium
When you think of refreshing summer imagery, water motifs are an essential element.
Let’s create an aquarium themed around creatures that live in the water.
The process is simple: arrange sand and artificial flowers in a jar, add creature-shaped pieces, pour in a special oil, and close the lid.
If you make the creatures out of washi paper, the material’s softness adds a gentle feel and a sense of depth, which is highly recommended.
Pay attention to the design and placement of each element to achieve a good balance, and create your own unique aquarium.
rotating propeller
Let’s try making a propeller that spins fast using ice cream sticks.
The ice cream sticks will, of course, serve as the propeller blades.
It’s also a good idea to paint them before you start assembling.
Insert a skewer or similar rod to act as the rotational axle through the ice cream sticks, and combine it with a plastic bottle as the base.
Thread a string between them at this stage, and design it so that pulling the string causes the propeller to spin.
Once it’s finished, consider giving it as a gift to your grandchild.