[For Seniors] January Craft Ideas: Boost Your Luck with New Year Decorations and Good-Luck Charms
January marks the beginning of a new year.
If you want to give your room a seasonal touch, why not try some hands-on crafts? Create and enjoy pieces unique to January—such as pine decorations symbolizing longevity, camellias that shine in winter scenery, or festive cranes for the New Year.
Using familiar materials like construction paper, tissue paper, and origami, there’s a special joy in watching seasonal works take shape.
Shape with your fingers, choose colors, and get creative with embellishments—these moments will ease your mind and bring a smile.
How about enjoying a relaxed crafting time while sharing your New Year’s resolutions?
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[For Seniors] January Craft Ideas: Boost Your Luck with New Year Decorations and Good-Luck Charms (91–100)
Cute ema made with finger stamps
This activity involves pasting a large illustration of the zodiac in the center of construction paper cut into the shape of an ema plaque, then decorating around it with paint.
By applying the paint with your fingers, you can add softness and a sense of depth.
Consider how to arrange auspicious, New Year–themed elements and decorate your ema with your own design.
Since the unique feel comes from not using a brush, if you’re uncomfortable getting paint on your fingers, try using familiar tools instead.
It’s also fun to observe how the paint looks different depending on the method you use.
First calligraphy Daruma
Why not try making a “first-drawing daruma” to bring good luck at the start of the year? The process is simple—just paint a daruma with a brush—so anyone can easily give it a try.
It’s also a great New Year’s–themed activity.
The key is to use your brush to create a daruma full of personality.
Paste your daruma onto your favorite backing paper and decorate around it with origami for a vibrant finish.
Enjoy making a first-drawing daruma that’s perfect for welcoming the new year!
Let’s write and display it: New Year’s calligraphy
If you’re looking for something to do in the New Year, I recommend kakizome, the first calligraphy of the year.
Kakizome is a custom that has been enjoyed since the Edo period, in which you write down your resolutions and goals for the year.
Not only is it fun to practice writing beautifully, but deciding on your resolutions and goals can also help you start the year with a positive mindset.
Why not give it a try while pondering which characters to write? After you finish, it would look lovely displayed on the wall.
By the way, it’s said to be especially auspicious to do kakizome on January 2.
New Year’s Crane
How about making a New Year’s crane with a fan out of origami? Just displaying it in your entryway or a room will instantly enhance the festive New Year atmosphere! It’s also perfect for a New Year’s craft activity at day service centers, so why not give it a try? The key to this origami is to crease firmly as you fold.
There are a few finer steps, but they’re just right for finger dexterity training for older adults! Opening the fan at the end makes it suddenly more dazzling.
Using double-sided origami with a plain color on one side and a pattern on the other will make it even more beautiful, so be sure to try it!
Ema plaques you can enjoy with cardboard patterns
Let’s use the distinctive hollow structure along the edges of corrugated cardboard to decorate ema plaques like stamps.
Roll the cardboard into tubes or fold it into triangles—shape it so the edges are exposed—then ink those edges and press them onto the ema base.
Because the material is soft, you can’t get perfectly precise straight or curved lines, but that imperfection adds warmth to the design.
It’s also worth noting that you can create originality through color combinations, such as which color you use for the base and which colors you use for the stamping.
rake
Kumade, the lucky decorative rakes famous at Tori-no-Ichi and Ebisu festivals, are popular good-luck charms.
Many homes and shops display them, hanging talismans for things like prosperous business and household safety on the rake that ‘gathers in good fortune.’ How about making a kumade as a craft project? Since making the rake itself with craft tape and wire is a bit tricky, staff could prepare that part in advance.
Then, use paper clay or origami to make rice bales, sea bream, gold coins, and other ornaments to attach to the rake.
It’s a craft that looks gorgeous and gives off a celebratory feel!
celebratory crane
How about decorating with a festive celebratory crane for New Year’s hospitality? The method I’m introducing this time has some complicated steps, so let’s take it slowly! The key is to make crisp, firm creases.
At the end, spread the wings and adjust the balance so it can stand securely—this will give you a beautifully finished piece.
A distinctive feature of this celebratory crane is that you can showcase the colors of the head and wings.
Using washi-style patterns or double-sided origami with different colors lets you create cranes with a variety of moods, which I highly recommend.
