[For Seniors] Enjoy at Day Service: A Roundup of May Craft Ideas
May is a lovely season of fresh green leaves, isn’t it?
Here are some easy craft ideas perfect for day-service activities in May.
May is full of events like Children’s Day and Mother’s Day.We’ve gathered craft ideas that tie in with those occasions.
Many of the projects introduced here can be taken home and displayed, so you can enjoy looking at them at home.
They also make great gifts for your grandchildren.
Some can even be used for a garden tea party or a stroll, so be sure to give them a try.
- [For Seniors] Enjoy May: A Collection of Seasonal Craft and Wall Decoration Ideas
- [For Seniors] May-Themed Wall Decoration Ideas Full of Seasonal Flair
- [For Seniors] Easy Koinobori Crafting: A Collection of Fun Ideas Using Various Materials
- For Seniors: Simple and Lovely Crafts – A Collection of Take-Home Project Ideas for Day Service
- [For Seniors] Recommended Events for May: A Roundup of Ideas That Get Everyone Engaged
- [For Seniors] May Calendar Craft: Motifs that color May, such as Children's Day (Tango no Sekku), Mother's Day, and seasonal flowers
- [For Seniors] Recommended for day services! Simple and cute small craft ideas
- [For Seniors] Introducing May-themed Origami!
- [For Seniors] Brimming with June’s seasonal charm: A roundup of fun craft ideas
- [For Seniors] Introducing Fun Crafts Made with Plastic Bottle Caps
- [For Seniors] A Collection of Craft Ideas Using Paper Cups
- [For Seniors] Handmade gifts they’ll love: a roundup of simple ideas
- [For Seniors] Enjoy May! Recommended Recreational Activities and Games
For Seniors: Enjoyable Daycare Activities. May Craft Ideas Roundup (11–20)
A bouquet of carnations made from tissue paperNEW!
The red and white flowers look gorgeous and are perfect for a Mother’s Day decoration.
First, stack 4–5 sheets each of red and white tissue paper, fold them in an accordion, and secure the center tightly with a twist tie.
Round the edges to shape the petals, then fan out each sheet to create a soft, three-dimensional carnation.
Next, use green construction paper to make leaves and stems, attach them to the flowers, and stabilize the arrangement.
Gather the flowers and leaves and tie them with a twist tie or ribbon, then layer lace paper around them to finish with a more festive, authentic bouquet.
Adjust the spread and angle of the petals, and alternate red and white to improve the overall balance.
This method is also recommended beyond Mother’s Day: by changing the flower type and colors, you can adapt it for seasonal decorations.
3D tulip wreath
Let’s make a three-dimensional tulip with origami.
There are many ways to make origami tulips, right? We’ll cut out tulip shapes, then assemble them by gluing the pieces together.
Use thick paper or construction paper to create a wreath.
Attach tulips with leaves and stems to the wreath.
If you let seniors place the tulips where they like, they’ll enjoy the crafting process even more.
They’re sure to be happy with the cute tulip creation.
They can also take it home and display it.
kabuto decoration
Here’s a helmet decoration you can make with just four folds.
It’s an origami kabuto (samurai helmet) that comes together with only a few steps.
The process is simple, so it may be easy for older adults to try as well.
Using washi-patterned origami paper enhances the kabuto’s look and is highly recommended.
If you attach the kabuto to a backing made from construction paper, you can create a more refined, high-quality decoration.
The finished piece would likely delight grandchildren of older adults as a gift, too.
By the way, do you know what the horn-like parts of the kabuto are called? They’re apparently called “kuwagata.” Try making this while chatting about fun trivia like that with the seniors.
Two-color felt koi-nobori
Let’s make a carp streamer with felt that gives a warm, cozy feel.
Once you’ve prepared felt in different colors for the body, cut both pieces into a “V” shape with a 5 cm width.
After cutting, apply glue to both ends and stick them together, then make two slits along the crease so they’re the same width.
Stack the two pieces so that the slitted sections form a lattice pattern, and use the initially glued area to create the face and tail fin.
For the eyes, use eye stickers, and wrap a thinly cut strip of white felt around the mouth.
Kashiwa-mochi made of clayNEW!
Kashiwa (oak) is said to be an auspicious tree that brings good fortune.
Kashiwa-mochi, wrapped in oak leaves, is an essential food for Boys’ Festival on May 5.
How about making kashiwa-mochi out of clay? Roll white clay into an oval, like a croquette.
Roll the green clay into a ball, then use a ruler to roll it out into a long, thin rope and flatten it.
Keeping a leaf shape in mind, add ruffled edges all the way around.
Etch leaf veins with a toothpick, then combine it with the white clay to finish.
For your May craft project, try incorporating kashiwa-mochi making as a wish for boys to grow up healthy and strong.
A three-dimensional koi-nobori you can place and displayNEW!
Let’s make a koi-nobori carp streamer from origami that you can place as a decoration.
Take a 7.5 cm square sheet of origami paper, fold about 1 cm along one side, then fold the two adjacent sides so their corners meet at a slight angle to form the koi-nobori.
Using round stickers for the eyes makes it quick and easy.
Make two of these.
For the streamer, use a 7.5 cm square of white origami paper.
Fold about 1.5 cm along one side and secure it with tape, then attach red, yellow, and green origami strips measuring 1.5 cm by 7.5 cm.
Attach pipe cleaners to both the koi-nobori and the streamer, and fasten them to a straw fixed to a base to finish.
Enjoy crafting koi-nobori that gracefully “swim” in the refreshing May weather.
[For Seniors] Enjoy at Day Service: Summary of May Craft Ideas (21–30)
Carnation in a single-stem bouquet styleNEW!
This is a craft project for making a single-stem bouquet-style carnation out of colored paper.
You can get all the materials at a 100-yen shop, and you can also use colored copier paper.
First, divide a 15×15 cm sheet of colored paper into four, draw circles with a compass, and cut them into petal shapes.
Open them up, add random crease lines, and draw the flower centers with a pen to create the flowers.
Next, for the bouquet wrap prepare a 10×10 cm piece of paper, and for the handle a 5×15 cm piece; wrap them around a straw or a round chopstick and shape them.
Finally, tie on a ribbon about 1.6 cm wide and around 38 cm long to decorate, and your vibrant carnation bouquet is complete.