Cuisine & Culture the Chinese Family Way
Earlier this month, I wrote about different types of Chinese New Year goodies including Nian Gao! Nian Gao is always one of my favourite foods during Chinese New Year. So this year I decided to make my own. After much research from various sites, I decided to use this recipe from my friend.
Today, we are going to take a look at Chinese Funeral mourning clothing from the past, which is dangerously disappearing fast. These photos were shared with me by my uncle, which took place in 1989 during my grandfather’s funeral.
Many Chinese believe that fish attracts the chi/good energy that brings good luck, abundance and prosperity (年年有余 Nian Nian You Yu – an abundant and surplus-filled year after year)! The number 9 in feng shui principles is the most auspicious and complete number. Hence in many Chinese paintings, pictures, ponds or aquariums, you will find nine fishes in it. In feng shui, they believe that eight fishes should be red or golden and one should be black (which symbolizes strength).
Earlier this year, I made a multitude of hong bao lanterns – do check out my Chinese New Year Pinterest board for inspiration. This latest hong bao mini lantern is quite unique as you are using wooden skewers to make the frame of the lantern instead of using sticky tape or staples to construct it.
For this mini lantern, I have used small rectangle hong baos (approx. 7.5 cm by 11.5 cm). The material of this hong bao is quite stiff so I didn’t need to insert any additional card to keep the shape.
In my many Chinese New Year blog and craft posts, I’ve regularly mentioned that the Lunar New Year celebration lasts for 15 days, but have yet to explain the special significance, meanings and traditions behind each day. Finally, I have time to sit down to gather the information on the meaning of the 15 days of the Lunar New Year. Yes, the 15 days are now over and we are heading towards the end of the first month of water Rabbit 2023! Nevertheless, please do check it out!
If you can’t find it, make it yourself. This is one of my mottos in life. Many times, I have found it hard to buy accessories online to decorate my ang bao lanterns or my ang bao crafts. As these low value ang bao accessories are not worth listing individually online, many are sold in night markets, especially in Singapore Chinatown or Asian craft shops. If you live in a country as we do in the UK, we can’t even find them in any local Chinese supermarkets.
In the past, lanterns were used to provide light. They are also used for decoration, especially in the form of celebration and worship. This new year, I have made a lot of ang bao lanterns – do check out my Chinese New Year Pinterest board inspiration.
Today, I am going to show you the step-by-step instructions to make these cute ang bao mini lanterns! You can use it as an ornament for your plants or thread the mini lanterns in a roll to make a banner. There are many ways to make use of mini lanterns.
新年快乐, 祝你吉祥如意。Happy New Year and wishing you a prosperous year and may all your dreams come true. Let’s use ang baos to make a ‘Ji’/吉 word to bring good luck to your home! Ji or 吉 as a Chinese character means good luck.
“Tong Tong Chiang, Tong Tong Chiang, Tong Tong Chiang Tong Tong, Tong Tong Chiang.” Whenever this Chinese song 恭喜发财 is played on the radio, you know that we are going to celebrate Chinese New Year soon!
Going back to ancient Chinese New Year history, the nian monster would come out of its hiding place to feed on people and animals. To prevent this from happening, the villagers used firecrackers and fireworks to scare the monster away. They also believe that firecrackers and fireworks are used to drive away evil.
Today, I am showing you another craft to hide any unsightly items around the house this coming Chinese New Year. It can be used as a pot cover or a bowl. It is entirely your choice.
Last month, I made a Chinese New Year ang pow wreath for my lotus lantern and now I am back with more for more creative crafts, which I will call a Hong Bao Wall Wreath. In fact, hong bao and ang pow are the same things. Hong bao is the Mandarin pronunciation and whilst ang pow or ang bao is the dialect pronunciation.
Running out of ang pows (red envelope/red packet) to decorate your home? Try this paper cutting flower to decorate your home this coming Lunar New Year! This is a very easy craft to follow and great for younger children to do.
Wishing you all an abundant and surplus-filled year after year (年年有余 Nian Nian You Yu)! This is a commonly used expression we use to greet each other during the Chinese New year. 年 in Chinese means year and 余 (surplus) shares the same pronunciation with 鱼 (fish). Hence this ang pow fish lantern will surely bring wealth into your home! Come and try it out!
Want your home to shine like a star? Why not hang a few ang pow star lanterns around your home to impress your family and friends this coming Chinese New Year 2023! Chinese people love to decorate their homes with red lanterns during the Chinese New Year celebration as they symbolize wealth, fame and prosperity. It’s also to frighten away evil spirits.
In two more weeks, it’ll be the end of the Year of the Tiger, and we will be celebrating the beginning of the Year of the Rabbit on 22 January 2023! I would like to take this opportunity to blog more on Chinese New Year crafts and hope you all like it.
