[For Seniors] Easy Craft Ideas to Make at Day Service in July

Strip with mesh

[Craft Idea] Tanzaku with Net – a strip of paper ~Tanabata~ (July) (Tanabata tanzaku) (Senior recreation) (Easy craft) (Craft activity) (Early childhood education) (Daycare/Hospital) (Psychiatric OT)

Tanabata, one of the major events in July.

In senior care homes and welfare facilities, many hold Tanabata events or decorate the interiors, don’t they? Tanabata is also a day when people attach wish slips to bamboo.

Let’s add a creative touch to those tanzaku by making slits that form a mesh pattern.

There is originally a net-shaped decoration for Tanabata, and as the name suggests, it carries the wish for an abundant catch of fish.

Fold down the top of the tanzaku paper, then make many cuts.

When you unfold it, you’ll have a mesh-like pattern.

If you like, you can also make Hikoboshi and Orihime and place them alongside the mesh of the tanzaku.

As they make these, some older adults may recall past Tanabata memories.

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Nakajima Junko

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pinwheel

[Craft Origami You Can Play With] How to Make a Well-Spinning Pinwheel with Audio Commentary ☆ Origami Windmill Tutorial

On hot summer days, there are things that make you feel cool, aren’t there? The sound of wind chimes, sprinkling water, and tokoroten jelly are just a few.

A pinwheel might be one of those cool-feeling items too, don’t you think? A pinwheel that spins in a light summer breeze or with a gentle puff of air—watching it whirl around somehow makes you feel cooler and more at ease.

Cut slits in four places on a piece of origami paper and fold the corners toward the center.

The key is to bring the corners to the center without making creases—more like folding them over gently.

Fix the pinwheel with a toothpick and attach it to a straw to finish.

It’s the kind of craft that might even bring back memories for older adults of playing with pinwheels when they were young.

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Nakajima Junko

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lantern

Simple Origami “Lantern” Folding Method ~How to Make Summer Festival Origami~ [Easy-to-Understand Voice Guide] | Origami Japanese Lantern

In summer, festivals are held, and some senior care facilities host summer festivals as well.

Many older adults enjoy spending time with games and recreational activities featured at these events.

Here is an introduction to making paper lanterns with origami so seniors can feel the fun of summer festivals.

You can make one with a single sheet of origami paper, and the steps aren’t too complicated, so it’s an easy project to try.

Why not make them with papers in various colors? Arrange and display a rainbow of lanterns.

Lanterns that evoke summer festivals can help older adults feel the cheerful atmosphere of the season.

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Nakajima Junko

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Tanabata wall decoration-making

[Craft Idea] Tanabata Star Festival Decorations (July) (Wall Decorations) (Activities for Older Adults, Occupational Therapy, Daycare, Childcare) (Eggplant, Cucumber, Watermelon, Stars, Lanterns, Shell Decorations, Paper Chains, Streamers, Bamboo Leaves, Tanzaku Wish Strips)

In July, as summer gradually comes into full swing, Tanabata is a major event—a celebration with a strong, romantic image of gazing up at the sky.

How about decorating your interior with a starry-sky theme inspired by Tanabata to heighten the festive mood even more? The Milky Way plays a particularly important role in the holiday’s story.

Center your decor around this Milky Way made from origami, and adorn the surrounding space with various motifs.

It’s fun that the choice of colors and motifs lets the creator’s personality shine through.

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kappamaki

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Morning glory curtain

Kimie Gangi Summer Wall Display: “Morning Glory Curtain” – Super Easy! Origami Morning Glories #morningglory #asagao #JulyWallDisplay #AugustWallDisplay #SeniorRecreation #origami

Would you like to recreate a morning glory curtain that decorates a summer veranda using origami? The more you make, the more gorgeous the wall display will become, so try creating it to match the size of your space and walls, and the mood of your room.

You make the morning glory flowers by folding origami paper, rounding the edges with scissors, and then opening it up.

Make the leaves and vines by cutting construction paper, too.

The base is made by gluing together strips cut from construction paper.

Arrange the vines, leaves, and morning glory flowers on this base.

If you let some parts extend slightly beyond the edges when you glue them, it will look more realistic.

It would also be lovely to create a large piece together with seniors at a day service center.

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miyabi

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It spins so well! A morning-glory top.

[Origami] Morning glory becomes a spinning top?! Let’s make a morning glory arrangement: the “spinning top”! How to make an origami top (Morning glory arrangement).

This is a craft where you attach an axle to a morning glory shape made from origami so you can spin it and play.

When it’s not spinning, it has an angular form with a star pattern in the center, giving the impression that it could be seen as a morning glory, but the fun part is that when you rotate it, it clearly looks like one.

You combine five origami-made parts to create the morning glory shape, and by inserting each piece firmly, it becomes sturdy.

After that, just fix the parts in place, attach the axle, and it’s complete.

It ends up slightly concave toward the center, which also makes it easier to spin.

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kappamaki

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Origami Hanging Ornament: “Goldfish Swaying in the Breeze”

Origami hanging decoration “Goldfish Swaying in the Wind” = Goldfish swaying in the wind. The gently swaying goldfish look lovely and refreshing.

When we think of summer in Japan, Tanabata and summer festivals are essential events, and goldfish are a motif that evokes those summertime occasions.

Let’s make a hanging decoration that sways gently in the breeze, inspired by the way goldfish swim through water.

By arranging the goldfish within a circle, it also conveys the image of a fishbowl.

If you incorporate a strong red to vividly decorate the goldfish, and craft the surrounding areas mainly with refreshing colors like blue, the goldfish will stand out even more.

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kappamaki

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