Chinese New Year Red Packets Are Works of Art

A photo essay of my collection

One of my favourite things to do at the beginning of each year is to check when Chinese New Year is, as the date changes annually based on the lunar calendar. This year, it is on February 10th, which means it is just around the corner. The celebrations last for fifteen days, concluding with a festival called Chap Goh Mei.

A well known symbol of Chinese New Year is the red packet, known as hong bao (or ang pau in Malaysia). It is filled with money, and given by married individuals to children and unmarried adults. In some countries, red packets are only given to children. But in Malaysia, as long as you are not married, you will receive one. For example, my uncle, despite being in his 50s, still gets an ang pau from my mother.

Of course, enduring sarcastic remarks from the elders is common during Chinese New Year if you’re not married. Without fail, each year when they hand you an ang pau, they’d say, “I hope that next year, I don’t have to give you an ang pau anymore. So you better get married soon.”

But then again, it’s free money, so who cares? You just have to develop a thicker skin.

Besides that, I also love the designs on ang pau packets. Some of them are really special. Every year, as Chinese New Year approaches, retail stores distribute their specially designed ang pau packets (without money, sadly) to customers for free.

Some of my friends have a huge collection of ang pau packets over the years. I don’t actually collect them, but I found a few when I was spring cleaning my study the other day. I also received many this year from retail outlets. So, I figured that it might be fun to take pictures of the ones I like and share them with you. I’ll also provide a brief description for each one.

This set is stunning! It comes in two parts, and when you put them together, it forms a picture of a dragon. Since this year is the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese zodiac, I’m really happy with the design.

Chinese New Year is also known as the Spring Festival. Here, we’ve got a gorgeous cherry blossom tree and 3 golden dragons. Similar to red, gold is considered as an auspicious colour. The number 3 is also considered auspicious as it sounds similar to “life”. Therefore, it is not surprising to find three golden dragons in the design.

Here is yet another dragon. I also really like the clouds that are shaped like traditional Chinese fans.

It is a tradition for us Chinese Malaysians to head back to our hometowns during Chinese New Year. Many of us work in the city but are originally from small towns. My late grandfather used to live in a house just like one of those houses in the pictures.

The design features Chinese New Year elements in a village like lion dance, firecrackers, fireworks and even a yee sang tossing ritual in the top left red ang pau design.

Yee sang is a salad with raw fish and plum sauce. Before eating, it is usually tossed by everyone at the dining table, using chopsticks while auspicious phrases are spoken. I like the crunchy bits of yee sang.

On Chinese New Year’s Eve, we usually gather with our extended family for dinner which is called tuan nian fan in Chinese. It means the reunion dinner. There are a variety of foods chosen for their auspicious sounds to symbolise good luck and prosperity for the new year. These include steamed fish, spring rolls, abalones, sea cucumber, and pork belly.

I got this cool set from my usual supermarket. On the left, there is a dragon for the Dragon Year, and on the right, a scene of the supermarket. I love the picture of the delivery guy in green. During the pandemic, I used to order groceries online. Even now, I still use the service for heavy items.

The ang pau packet in the middle features a family decorating their house with lanterns and kids playing with firecrackers. Firecrackers are mostly banned in Malaysia, but I heard there are two approved brands last year.

One of my favourite things to do during Chinese New Year is to watch a lion dance performance, where two dancers wear a costume and mimic a lion’s movements. The lion dance really brings that festive vibe to Chinese New Year.

This lovely set features the God of Prosperity, gold coins, and gold ingots. The standard greeting “Gong Xi Fa Cai” actually means “wishing you an abundance of wealth.”

In the middle design, there is a couple using hand gestures to wish a “Happy Chinese New Year”. This is the common way to say “Gong Xi Fa Cai” which is by placing a palm over a fist. In Chinese culture, greetings usually don’t involve hugging or shaking hands.

Here are a few more designs that I like, including a cute Pokémon one.

I hope you enjoyed my collection of ang pau packets. Which design do you like best? Let me know in the comments.

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