Let’s Celebrate Lunar New Year
WORDS : CHYKA KEEBAUGH
PHOTOS : COMMISSION STUDIO 2019+ LISA ATKINSON
LET’S CELEBRATE THE LUNAR NEW YEAR IN STYLE WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM MY BOOK - CHYKA CELEBRATE!
The lunar new year is one of the most important festivals to those with an Asian heritage. With millions of people around the world celebrating the year of the rat, donning themselves in vibrant shades of red, passing around good luck and money via red envelopes and enjoying fireworks in style! There is no one way to celebrate Chinese New Year. Different parts of China have varying traditions, so get creative with your occasion and make it your own. Here are five of the most common Chinese New Year traditions.
New Year’s Eve dinner
The New Year’s Eve dinner is the most important dinner of the year in Chinese culture. It’s a time where the whole family comes together, bringing relatives from near and far to celebrate. This dinner is usually held at home and usually includes fish and dumplings, which signify prosperity.
Fireworks
I love fireworks! And I love that in Chinese tradition fireworks are used for driving away evil. So, as the clocks strike twelve, let that cracker go. And, if you are the first to do so, you will have a new year full of good luck.
Red packets
I love seeing the little collections of red envelopes in Asian grocery stores. They look so inviting, and I am always trying to think of ways to use them in my styling. The red packet is a red envelope with money in it. These envelopes are usually given by adults, especially married couples, and the elderly to young children when they pay a New Years visiting the New Year days. It is believed that money and sentiment will keep them healthy and give them a long life.
Cleaning
Now, this tradition feels familiar to me… although it’s more of a year-round thing. In the lead-up to Chinese New Year, people will do a complete clean of the house and homewares, which is all about removing the old and welcoming the new. I love this idea.
Decoration
Of course, after cleaning comes the decorating to welcome in the New Year. Most of the decorations are red. Some of the most popular Chinese New Year decorations are upside down fu (fun meaning fortune in Chinese, written in calligraphy on a square of red paper), spring festival couplets, lanterns, year paint, paper cutting art of auspicious symbols and door gods (painting of gods pasted onto the front door).
Need more Chinese New Year inspiration?
Celebrating the Chinese New Year outdoors is an inspired, vibrant backyard table setting, full of red lanterns, quirky touches and wish-filled fortune cookies. Want to celebrate this festival in style? Read the post & start decorating.
If you have wandered about Chinatown in your area in January, you would have noticed the abundance of mandarin and kumquat trees. These trees are often given as gifts but come into play around Chinese New Year as a ‘money tree'. Learn more about the tradition now.
Serving a delicious San Choi Bow at your Chinese New Year Dinner Party is a sure way to get the table chatting. I love having an interactive meal where each person can build their own meal adjusting their toppings to suit their tastes; it also makes for a fun, casual night.
This post was first posted in February 2020 on Chyka.com and has been re-posted as a part of the Chyka.com Summer series 2021.