Let's make New Year’s decorations by hand! A collection of ideas you can create with everyday materials.
As the New Year approaches, are you thinking about brightening up your space with handmade New Year’s decorations? Store-bought pieces are lovely, but decorations you craft yourself carry a special warmth and sense of attachment.
In this article, we’ll share easy, DIY New Year’s decoration ideas you can try using familiar materials.
From yarn and felt to origami paper, you can create a wide variety of projects with items that are easy to find.
Try making them with your children, or finish them with your own favorite designs for decorations full of originality.
How about preparing for the New Year with heartfelt, handmade items?
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Let's make New Year decorations by hand! A collection of ideas using familiar materials (1–10)
Tissue paper floral shimenawa wreath
A shimenawa wreath that makes the most of the tissue paper’s soft look and feel, giving a sense of splendor and warmth.
Because thinness is a key feature of tissue paper, layer and glue several sheets together for the rope, then roll them around a core such as a piece of tissue to form a cord.
Prepare two of these rolled cords, twist each one, and braid them together to create the shimenawa base.
After that, decorate it with motifs like flowers and fans.
The wide range of possible arrangements—such as the color of the base rope and the balance of the decorations—is another highlight.
origami kagami mochi
This is an origami kagami mochi that’s perfect for New Year’s decorations! Large kagami mochi can take up space, but with origami you can easily display it in a small area.
Fold white origami paper into a square to create a guide, then cut and make several pieces.
Glue the parts together and open them up to form the three-dimensional mochi.
Next, make different sizes, and create both the mochi and the mikan (orange) in the same way.
You can display them as they are, or place a red sheet on a stand and add sakaki leaves made from green paper.
The way of decorating varies by region, so feel free to arrange it to your liking and have fun with it.
Crocheted shimenawa decoration
Charmed by its cute look! Here’s a crochet shimenawa decoration idea.
In this project, you twist yarn to form the shimenawa rope, crochet decorative flowers and leaves, and attach them.
Since it’s made of yarn, the finished decoration has a warm, cozy feel.
It’s also great that you can get all the materials at a 100-yen shop.
By the way, making an amigurumi to display as a set is also recommended.
Just imagine creating a shimenawa featuring your favorite character or animal—it’s exciting, isn’t it?
Let's handcraft New Year decorations! A collection of ideas using everyday materials (11–20)
shimenawa tassel
Shimenawa decorations are perhaps the most iconic New Year’s ornaments.
How about arranging that shimenawa style to make a shimenawa tassel using paper cord? It looks very intricate and difficult, but the method is quite simple: bundle eight paper cords of the same length with masking tape, make three of these bundles, then twist and intertwine them.
Although describing it as twisting each bundle to the right while twisting it together with the other bundles to the left may sound tricky, it’s easy once you try—so it’s a great craft to make with your child.
Sparkly New Year decorations
When it comes to New Year’s decorations, many people imagine something lavish and glittering.
This craft focuses on that sparkling New Year’s atmosphere, using resin to give the motifs a translucent look.
We’ll use plum blossom–shaped wood chips that evoke the New Year, and combine them with tinted resin to create a luxurious, transparent finish.
Then simply place the finished motifs into a clear handle and secure them to complete the piece.
Be sure to express your originality through the motifs you choose and how you arrange them.
Mizuhiki wreath
Mizuhiki, which you’ll almost always see at celebratory occasions, has become quite common as an accessory in recent years.
Mizuhiki is made by tying cords crafted from red and white washi paper, and it’s considered highly auspicious.
Let’s turn that mizuhiki into a wreath you can hang on a wall or by the entrance and display it for the New Year! This time, we’re introducing a mizuhiki wreath with a plum blossom motif.
Red and white mizuhiki form a circle, with a plum blossom in bloom at the top.
Gold mizuhiki is used for the center of the blossom.
Just a touch of gold mixed in with the red and white instantly makes the whole piece look much more festive.
The steps might be a bit intricate, but if you follow the instructions and tie the mizuhiki as directed, you’ll finish it nicely—so give it a try!
Yarn ball kadomatsu arrangement
This is a cute mascot made by attaching a felt kadomatsu to a yarn ball base.
First, compress aluminum foil into a sphere and wrap it tightly with yarn so that no foil shows.
Once the yarn ball is formed, attach a round piece of felt to the bottom so it can stand, and then add the kadomatsu parts to the top.
It’s important to craft each of the pine, bamboo, and plum components with attention to color gradation, and finish vividly with decorative cords or ribbons.
It’s also recommended to adjust the depth of the felt colors used for the parts to match the yarn ball’s color, which creates a cohesive look.