Chinese New Year marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring according to the lunar calendar. Most of us follow the Gregorian calendar counting Earth's full trip around the sun while the Chinese calendar adds a lunar cycle. Aside from this difference there are a lot of wonderfully quirky things you should and shouldn’t do for CNY.

First. Don’t wear black. But, isn’t the little black dress perfect for all occasions? No, it’s not. Don’t wear black during CNY. In Chinese culture wearing black looks you’re dressing for a funeral or you’re depressed. Which leads me to this lovely tradition of only wearing new clothing. Don’t have to tell me twice. Wearing new clothing symbolizes a fresh new start. In fact, you must wear new pajamas on the Eve of the CNY. Fresh silk pajamas anyone?   

Second, there are these little red envelopes, yasuiqian, that people pass out during CNY. It’s money. Take it. It’s customary for elders or married couples to give their younger siblings money, especially if they are not married. Forgot your red packets? No problem, WeChat made virtual mobile payments to redistribute wealth and luck. Over a billion exchanges of virtual yasuiqian were used to suppress evil spirits in the 2017 CNY.  

Third, red is very important in Chinese culture representing joy, truth, success and most of all, luck. It is believed to scare away evil spirits and protect from bad luck. Red is the national color, the color of traditional bridal dresses and China’s most popular color. Mightychic’s Chinese New Year Collection features lots of red for luck, yellows for the lunar cycle, fine jewelry, brightly colored designer dresses with heels to match. Happy Chinese New Year!