Today at my craft group for seniors with dementia we made cherry blossom prints. I found this craft at Alphamom by Rachel Meeks http://alphamom.com/family-fun/holidays/cherry-blossom-art-from-a-recycled-soda-bottle/. This activity was excellent for the seniors because it was simple but looked sophisticated. All of the participants loved it. One of the ladies is an artist and she painted a beautiful, detailed tree to stamp her blossoms onto. Another woman painted lines between her stamped blossoms and created intricate patterns. A third woman was just thrilled that she could hold the soda bottle in two hands and dip it into the paint on the plastic plate and then print on her paper. We developed a rhythm of going back and forth from paint to paper and it was a very pleasant experience. No matter what their ability level, all of the participants thoroughly enjoyed this craft. I just love seeing these folks engaged in the moment and enjoying themselves.
I wish that I had brought my camera so that I could show you their work. Since I can't show photos of the crafters in my blog I don't take pictures. I think in the future I'll try to take some photos without showing faces.
Thank you, Rachel, for this great idea!