12 Holiday Crafts for Seniors

By Anna Hazard

Here is a sampling of some of our favorite holiday crafts suitable for seniors, ranging in crafting complexity, time investment, and in the supplies required to reproduce them.
 
Most instructions can be adjusted to better suit the level of hand dexterity of your elderly loved ones, their artistic flare, any advance preparation required, and for the materials that may already be available around the house.
 
Many of these completed items can also double as seasonal gifts & accessories or can be used as more general decor appropriate for the winter.
 
See if any of these arts & crafts tickle your senior's fancy.

Christmas Bow Wreath

• This fun & simple-to-make wreath only requires glue, a basic ring base (such as a styrofoam wreath form), and inexpensive Christmas bows. Lots and lots of bows.
• If this seems like it might tickle your senior love one's artistic fancy, check out the more detailed instructions at Design Improvised
  

DIY Christmas Cards

• Go back to the basics (or not so basic depending upon your decoration choices) with these variety of DIY holiday cards. Supplies range from cardboard stock or construction paper, scissors, glue, stickers, glitter, and rhinestones.
• Check out the variety of card styles available to make (including some 3D) at Style at Home
  

Cookie Cutter Ornaments

• If you're done with your holiday baking, any extra christmas cookie cutters can easily be rejiggered into ornaments by your seniors with just a bit of glue, ribbon, scissors, and colorful paper stock.
  
• Follow the step-by-step instructions at All You

Holiday Rice Bag Heating Pad

• A nifty holiday hobby and a useful item that can be kept around the house to help ward off those wintry aches and chills , all rolled up in this one craft. Use a holiday towel as the base for the heating pad for a bit of seasonal flare or a more basic colored one if you'd like a more general heating pad for around-the-year use. A sewing machine would give the strongest hold, but handsewing or strong fabric glue can be subbed in instead.
• More detailed instructions available at Life in the 100 Acre Woods
  

Snowglobes

• Celebrate the holiday season with your elderly loved one by crafting one of these varieties of snowglobes. Choices range from the simplistic to the complex, with or without the use of water, using a wide variety of supplies from jars, plates, soda bottles, to empty christmas ornaments depending upon the exact style of snowglobe chosen.
• Look over the vast array of snowglobe styles at BIG DIY
  

Sock Snowman

• These cute sewing-free sock based snowmen are fun to create and make great winter decorations. The snowman base only requires socks, rice or other filler material such as beans, rubberbands, and twine or string. Add in extra buttons, pompoms, felt, and googley eyes for a bit of decorative flare.
• Check out more detailed step-by-step instructions at Imagitek, Ciao Mama, or Then She Made

Pill Bottle Snowman

• These various styles of snowmen can be made using an old, empty medicine bottle as its base. Depending upon the exact version of the snowman your senior loved one would like to make, supplies could include colored pipe cleaners, pompoms, cotton balls, construction paper, googley eyes, beads, paint, buttons, and string.
  
• Check out the Simple Pipe Cleaner Snowman and Cottonball Snowman at All Free Crafts or the Painted Snowman at Crafting a Green World

Pinecone Angel

• Pinecones should be in plentiful supply at this time of year, either through scavenging during a nature walk or by being picked up on the cheap from a nearby craft & supply store. With a bit of ingenuity and some glue, paint, ribbon, leaves (either real & dried or artificial), and acorns or wooden balls for the head, have your seniors turn them into an angel for the season.
  
• See some various styles of angels that can be created at Elder One Stop and All Free Crafts

Reindeer Toilet Paper Roll

• Create these cute reindeer decorations from empty toilet rolls (or empty paper towel rolls that have been cut in half) and such basic supplies as glue, paper, scissors, and markers. A craft template can be printed out for your seniors to use or have them create the reindeer's head and legs from scratch based on their own imaginations.
  
• Check out more detailed instructions as well as the printing template at DLTK

Cork Reindeer Ornaments

• Try these adorable reindeer ornaments made from cork (either discards from past bottles or bought fresh from craft stores) along with a sprinkling of other craft items such as pipe cleaners or jute, googley eyes, pompoms, and glue. Note that corks may have to be cut in half in advance for those with hand dexterity or strength issues.
• Check out more detailed instructions at Remodelando le Casa and The Homeless Finch
  

Candy Cane Mouse

• Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring except maybe this mouse. Your senior loved ones can either draw out the body of this mouse or use an already provided template to trace a pattern into felt or other sturdy fabric.
• See the full instructions at Martha Stewart
  

Hershey's Kiss Mouse

• If candy canes aren't to your taste, try these Hershey's chocolate based mice instead. They only require 2 Hershey's Kisses, glue, paper or felt for the ears, googley eyes, a red bead or pompom for the nose, and thread if you'd like to use it as a hanging ornament around the house. Remember to keep an eye out for any candy snatchers, however!
• Check out more detailed instructs at Elder One Stop, $100 a Month, or About Family Crafts