Children naturally gravitate toward creative activities like arts and crafts. As we age, many of us lose that. We become too busy to set some time aside for fun. Every moment has to be productive, and many of us don’t see crafting as a productive activity.
The truth is that crafting has benefits for people of every age, especially older adults. And just because someone might be getting on in years doesn’t mean they can’t experience the joy of crafting — there are many senior crafts ideas.
Why would someone want to spend their retirement years crafting? Here are a few advantages of picking up a craft:
Now that you know that craft activities for seniors are a beneficial way to pass the time, you might be wondering where to start, especially if you’re new to crafting. There’s a whole world of fun crafts for seniors that you can explore. The crafts listed below are the tip of the iceberg. Use them for inspiration, see which crafts you enjoy, and take it from there.
Gardening may not be the first thing that springs to mind when you think of craft activities for seniors. And it’s true — we often view gardening as more of a hobby than a craft. However, there are many ways to get creative and crafty with gardening. One of these is creating a fairy garden.
A fairy garden is a miniature garden designed to host fairies. Whether you believe in the fair folk or not, this is a fun activity, and you can keep it as simple or elaborate as you want. A bonus is that you can place fairy gardens in containers, allowing you to develop your green thumb even if you don’t have a garden.
To start a fairy garden, you need the following:
The last part is where the fun truly begins. Once you’ve filled your container with potting soil, you can create a miniature fairy village. Add some plants, ceramic or clay items like mushrooms and benches, and even some fairies to occupy your fairy garden! If you have grandchildren, you can get them involved, as this is an excellent family-friendly activity.
One of the oldest forms of crafting, fiber arts such as knitting, crocheting, embroidery and more have been around for ages and aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. If you don’t want to craft just for the sake of crafting but would like to make something useful, this is the perfect DIY craft to take up as an older adult.
The tools you need to practice this craft will vary depending on the type of craft you do. Knitting and crocheting will require yarn, needles or hooks, depending on what you’re making. Quilting, sewing, and embroidery will need material, needles and thread.
Learning to make fiber art can undoubtedly have a learning curve, so be patient with yourself, and don’t be afraid to buy books or watch tutorials to help you get the hang of things. Alternatively, if you know someone who’s already mastered the skill, ask them to teach you. While some older adults may find fine needlework challenging due to weakened eyesight, bigger fiber art projects like knitting and crocheting are ideal options because they can help those with osteoarthritis unwind.
Nearly any list containing simple crafts for seniors will mention pressing flowers, but many people need help figuring out what to do with the flowers once they’ve pressed them.
Throwing them away feels like a shame, but it’s also not practical to have dozens of pressed flowers lying about your living space. Enter pressed flower bookmarks, a combination of two crafts. The first craft is pressing the flowers, and the second is turning those pressed flowers into bookmarks.
Best of all, you need things you likely already have access to, like:
There are a few ways to approach pressing flowers, but most people stick with the tried and true method of pressing them in a book. To do so, simply pick the flowers you’d like to press and place them between thin paper, like newspaper or parchment paper. Then, place the flowers and paper between the pages of a heavy book, weighing it down with additional books if needed. Wait until the flowers are no longer damp before removing them. Your flowers may take a few days up to a few weeks to fully dry.
You can then gently glue the flowers onto a piece of cardstock to create a bookmark. To prevent damage, laminate the bookmark for extra longevity. Pressed flower bookmarks also make unique gifts.
Anyone can paint, no matter their skill level. If you think a lack of artistic ability keeps you from exploring this art form, painting by numbers is an excellent alternative.
As the name suggests, a paint-by-numbers project involves a canvas with a pre-printed image alongside some paints. The images have different sections with different numbers, each corresponding to a paint color. Most paint-by-numbers kits have everything you need already included, so you don’t need to get additional supplies. You get the fun of painting without the pressure of creating a masterpiece alone.
Scrapbooks are just that — books filled with scraps. We all have loads of bits and ends that we can’t bear to get rid of because of sentimental value. Ticket stubs, family photos, a letter from a loved one — the list goes on. And while having those items around can be nice, what’s even better is putting them all into a scrapbook.
You get to flex those creative muscles by creating collages and pages filled with your favorite memories, and you get to store all your memories in one place. All you need to start is a scrapbook because you already have things to fill it with! Keep scraps of anything that sparks your creativity — a piece of wrapping paper, a sticker that’s been lying in a drawer or a button that fell off your cardigan. Scraps are a treasure when it comes to scrapbooking.
Another reason scrapbooking can be a valuable craft for older adults is that it helps them with their memories. Dementia is on the rise, with the World Health Organization (WHO) stating that there are close to 10 million new cases each year. Scrapbooking can help jog patients’ memories.
If you’re an older adult looking for a place to connect with others who share your love of easy arts and crafts for seniors, consider making Elm Terrace your new home. Contact us to learn more, or schedule a free lunch and tour to see what our continuing care retirement community can offer you.
