Handmade omikuji ideas: DIY crafts you can make and play with
Many people visit shrines to pray and draw omikuji during major events like New Year’s and entrance exams, don’t they?
It can be a bit worrying if you get a bad fortune, but the excitement of not knowing what you’ll get is fun, isn’t it?
This article introduces ideas for making your own omikuji.
With origami or recycled materials, you might be surprised at how easy they are to make.
Since most designs are simple, they’re great for crafts with children.
Give it a try as a little New Year’s entertainment!
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Handmade omikuji ideas: DIY crafts you can make and play with (11–20)
Omikuji Roulette
This is a roulette-style omikuji made from a milk carton.
Cut 5 cm off the top of the carton, press the top into a cross shape to form the internal paddles for the roulette, and staple them in place.
Next, make slits in the main body part and fold them inward.
Make a coin slot and a hole for a bamboo skewer on the side, then set the roulette paddles you just made inside so they move in sync with the skewer.
Finally, make the external roulette dial out of cardboard, attach it, and you’re done! The mechanism spins the roulette when you insert a coin, so you can tell your fortune every time you save money, which makes it extra fun.
Omikuji Gacha
It’s a milk carton fortune-telling gacha that’s irresistible for the excitement when you turn the handle.
Open up a milk carton and cut off the spout, then cut out the handle, window, and the part that will be the capsule exit.
Attach a clear file sheet or plastic board to the inside of the window.
Add an internal mechanism so the capsules come out smoothly, reassemble the milk carton, and insert a toilet paper roll to serve as the handle—your gacha is complete! After that, just load it with capsules containing fortunes.
Finally, decorate the outside freely with paper and pens.
A Happy New Year Omikuji-chan in a plastic bottle
By turning the omikuji box into a doll, it might heighten the excitement of drawing a fortune.
It’s a simple project that uses a plastic bottle as the base and adds decorations like a face and clothing.
As long as you create the minimal structure—placing fortune-telling chopsticks with fortunes written on them inside the bottle and attaching a lid that lets you pull out just one stick—you can enjoy designing the rest freely.
You could draw your own clothing designs on plain origami paper, or use Japanese-patterned origami to create a kimono-like feel, which is highly recommended.
Since you shake the box to draw the omikuji, it’s also important to glue everything on firmly so it doesn’t fall apart.
Potato Fortune
Hit the jackpot if you pull a ketchup-coated one! This potato fortune-draw is perfect for deciding turn order in games.
The “potatoes” are made from, believe it or not, puzzle mats.
Cut a puzzle mat into suitable sizes, wrap them with double-sided fabric tape, and stick on felt.
For a few winning pieces, add red felt to the tip or color them with a pen.
Arrange the potatoes in a container deep enough to fully hide the ketchup part, and you’re done.
They look super cute, so when not in use, it’s also a great idea to display them in the kids’ room!
micro:bit fortune lottery
Some of you might draw an omikuji (fortune slip) at New Year’s for good luck.
The classic style is to visit a shrine for your first prayer of the year and draw an omikuji there to divine your luck for the year—but how about making a slightly unusual omikuji of your own? This one uses a servo motor, almost like an electronics project.
Since it runs with programming, you’ll end up with a unique omikuji unlike anything you’ll find elsewhere.
Prepare a micro:bit, a motor, batteries, and wiring, then do the programming.
Write “Great Blessing,” “Middle Blessing,” “Small Blessing,” etc.
on construction paper, make an arrow, and connect everything—and you’re done.
It’s a fun omikuji that’s also great for a school science project, so why not give it a try?
