I’m celebrating Lunar New Year in a way that makes me super duper happy: stickers, and sharing stickers with you! Lunar New Year is a special cultural tradition I celebrate with my family, and I’m grateful to share a little bit about it with you.
What is Lunar New Year?
Lunar New Year is a celebration of the arrival of spring and the beginning of a new year on the lunisolar calendar. It is the most important holiday in China, and it is also widely celebrated in South Korea, Vietnam, and more. Chinese New Year isn’t on the same day every year. It’s usually in late January or February. This year, it begins on February 10, 2024. The date is worked out by the lunar calendar (new moon). It lasts for 15 days.
Red Envelopes
During Chinese New Year, children receive red envelopes with money inside of them! They can spend the money on anything they like as they receive it instead of gifts. The amount of money can be any amount but never includes the number 4. The total amount shouldn’t be able to divide by four either! This is because the number four in Chinese sounds a bit like death!
Fun fact: 8 is the Chinese lucky number!
Foods Have Meaning
- Fish - increase in prosperity, having abundance in life
- Dumplings - wealth
- Whole Chicken - luck and wholeness
- Spring Rolls - welcome spring season
- Sweet Rice Balls - family togetherness
- Longevity Noodles - happiness, long life
- Shrimp - happiness
- Vegetables - spring, renewal, energy
- Fruit (particularly oranges) - good luck and fortune
Pictured below is my grandpa pouring sauce on my FAVORITE DISH, the honey walnut shrimp dish. YUM!
Other Traditions
- Before the celebration it is tradition to spring clean the home to get rid of bad luck.
- Red is the main color for this celebration — decorations, clothes, etc.
- Lion and dragon dances are very popular around this time. Lion dance is a form of traditional dance in Chinese culture and other Asian countries in which performers mimic a lion's movements in a lion costume to bring good luck and fortune.
- Fireworks will be set off at midnight!
- There is a myth that there is a beast called Nian who doesn’t like loud noises or fire. The fireworks take place to scare off Nian!
- The Lantern Festival is a one of China's most traditional celebrations and falls on the 15th day of the first lunar month. Varieties of lanterns are hung in the streets and children make their own to show off in parades or decorate the house.
Zodiac Animals
- There are 12 Chinese zodiac signs, in the following order: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig. Each sign is named after an animal, and each animal has its own unique characteristics. These are just some of many characteristics I found in my quick research!
- Rat
- 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008, 2020
- Quick-witted, resourceful, versatile, kind
- Ox
- 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009, 2021
- Diligent, dependable, strong, determined
- Tiger
- 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010, 2022
- Brave, confident, competitive, protective, charming
- Rabbit
- 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011, 2023
- Quiet, elegant, kind, responsible, charming, optimistic
- Dragon
- 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012, 2024
- Confident, courageous, powerful, intelligent
- Snake
- 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013, 2025
- Enigmatic, intelligent, wise, clever, quick thinking
- Horse
- 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014, 2026
- Animated, active, energetic, faithful, passionate
- Sheep
- 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015, 2027
- Calm, gentle, sympathetic, persistent
- Monkey
- 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016, 2028
- Sharp, smart, curiosity, adaptable
- Rooster
- 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017, 2029
- Observant, hardworking, courageous
- Dog
- 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018, 2030
- Loyal, honest, hardworking, kind, understanding
- Pig
- 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019, 2031
- Compassionate, generous, diligent, chivalrous, honest
How my family celebrates
I’m proud to be an Asian-American and have grown my appreciation for my Chinese culture more as I grew up. My family gets together and eat a big feast. My grandparents, parents, and sisters are amazing cooks (what happened to me? Where are my cooking skills?) so we know it’s always going to be a good feast. Whether we get takeout from a Chinese restaurant, or make all home-cooked dishes, it’s a festive good time. We give/receive red envelopes and just enjoy family time together at home.
My family speaks Cantonese, so we say “Gong Hey Fat Choi” which means “wishing you a prosperous year.” In mandarin, you could say “Xin Nian Kuai Le” (shin nee-an kwai lee) to mean “new year happiness.”
Pictured below: Grandparents and my younger sister hard at work cooking!!
I made Lunar New Year stickers
I guess I started my own tradition of making annual Lunar New Year stickers! I originally made them for my students because I always do a lesson on Lunar New Year and gift my students with stickers in a red envelope.
Because these are not original stickers I sell in my shop, I decided to make these designs with some Canva art, and added a little color in the background of my own to make it really pop! After all, that’s the spirit of Lunar New Year, right?
How to make them yourself with a Cricut:
- Download the sticker files (best to download on your computer, not phone!)
- Drag and drop files into Cricut Design Space
- Resize stickers on Cricut Design Space (I suggest 2-3”)
- Click “Make It”
- Print it out on sticker paper with your home printer
- Place onto Cricut cutting mat
- Select material settings “Printable Stickers”
- Place mat into Cricut machine, and click GO!
- When it’s done cutting, remove the mat. Pro Tip: Turn the mat upside down and peel the stickers off the mat downwards away from the matt to minimize stickers curling.
Don’t have a cutting machine? Here’s how you can make them by hand:
- Download the sticker files (best to download on your computer, not phone!)
- Choose the sticker designs of your choice
- Upload them onto a Word document, Google doc, or Canva doc to resize it (it’ll probably be a huge sticker if not resized when downloaded)
- Print it out on sticker paper with your home printer
- Cut it out with scissors by hand! Follow the outline border color to achieve best results.
Slit-back sticker for easy application
I like using this little gadget called Slice Safety Cutter. It can add a little slit on the back with its micro-ceramic blade and finger-friendly blade edge. If done carefully, it won’t damage the sticker!
BONUS Free Canva Lesson
Teachers, parents, and caregivers: I teach a Lunar New Year lesson to my students every year, so I wanted to share the Canva presentation I used to supplement my teaching! Check it out here.
Let me know if you make the stickers, I’d love to see how they turn out!!
Gong Hay Fat Choi (wishing you happiness and prosperity),
Christine
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