Bring on the oranges, pineapples, and all the red and gold as we usher in the Year of the Wood Snake for 2025! Fit for the occasion, scale up your luck and happiness this Chinese New Year by decorating your home to celebrate in style.
Make hisstory with a prosperous year ahead, and welcome the ong and huat with these Chinese New Year-themed decorations to get into the festive mood.
Chinese New Year Decorations For Your Home
1. Red lanterns
In the old days, people would hang red lanterns and play fireworks outside their homes to ward off evil spirits. That hasn’t changed much over the centuries – no house is complete without a red lantern during Chinese New Year!
If you don’t have much outdoor space for a lantern or two, you can hang them at your entrance or living room for the ultimate CNY vibes. Smaller-sized ones will do the trick too, and you can get garland lights shaped like lanterns.
2. Chinese couplets
Also known as chūn lián, Chinese couplets are traditional decorations featuring Chinese New Year greetings or positive phrases on long strips of red or gold paper.
The greetings are wishes for happiness, longevity, and wealth, and can be pasted anywhere at home, like walls and doorframes.
3. Paper or glass cuttings
Intricate and beautiful cuttings with Chinese New Year themes are widely available in various shapes, sizes, and designs. They are red and feature auspicious motifs like fish, gold, peony flowers, and Chinese characters with good meanings.
Depending on the material, you can stick them on your walls, main doors, windows, sliding doors, mirrors, or as the centrepiece of your home for a truly festive atmosphere.
4. Auspicious flowers and plants
Signifying a new year, a fresh start, and positivity, flowers such as peonies, peach and plum blossoms, orchids, and flamingo lilies make great additions to your home.
If you prefer something stronger and more longevity, consider sturdier plants like lucky bamboo, tangerine trees, and jade plants. Not only are they relaxing to the eyes, but they also represent positive growth and prosperity.
5. Chinese knots
Chinese knots represent unity and eternity, and not just that, they’re fantastic hanging decorations to adorn your home. From simple to intricate knots, each shape has a symbolic meaning, like good luck, double happiness, wealth, a long and happy life, and more.
To increase the ong, you can weave gold coins or green jade (real or fake) into the knots and deepen its meaning. Plus, they’re versatile and can be reused every year!
6. Angpows
Angpows aren’t just for keeping and giving money. Upcycle empty angpow packets into low-cost Chinese New Year decorations and the process of putting them together makes for a heartwarming family bonding experience.
Some angpow upcycling ideas include folding it into the shape of lotus flowers, fish, lanterns, fans, or paper cranes that symbolise a wealth of meanings. Whether your origami skills are a hit or miss, this activity is rated fun for the whole family.
Spring Clean Before The Spring Festival
Before you prepare to receive those valuable angpows and feast on all those cookies, don’t forget to declutter and spring clean your home! Instead of throwing items away, sell your preloved items on Mudah.my so they, too, can find a new home for the new year.