Our Annual Festival Boxes are PACKED with activities and info to help you celebrate this years most important Chinese Festivals. Not sure where to start? The info below should help!
Chinese New Year
The items for Chinese New Year are:
- Red Envelopes – see Our Guide
- DIY Paper Cutting Decorations
- Hanging felt decoration with the character for blessing
- 2 bilingual books on the stories behind the festivals
- Cultural card with information on How China Celebrates.
If you’d like to add some traditional foods to your celebrations, here’s a great list with an explanation of their symbolism.
Be sure to follow our Facebook page for regular Chinese New Year updates and info throughout Jan/Feb!
Tomb Sweeping Festival
This is the less well-celebrated of the 4 festivals, so there are fewer items. But included in Tomb-Sweeping Festival items are:
- A decorative boxed miniature kite (which we’ve been told MAY actually fly if it’s windy enough!). Chinese families often go out to fly highly decorative kites during this festival.
- Examples of paper emblems burnt for deceased relatives. Chinese believe that this is a time to respectfully honour deceased relatives. Tombs are physically cleaned and weeded and paper emblems send to provide those who’ve died with all they may need in their afterlife – traditionally clothes and money but more recently items such as tablets and smart phones!
- Bilingual book on the story behind the festival
Dragon Boat Festival
The festival with over 2000 years of history commemorates the death of the poet Qu Yuan and, like most Chinese festivals, centres around a family meal together. Making Zongzi [glutinous rice dumplings] are a central part of this festival and most of the key ingredients can be found at most Asian stores. Here’s a great recipe if you’re interested in attempting them yourselves!
- Felt decorations
- ‘Zongzi’ [rice parcels wrapped in leaves] sewing kit activity – see the video
- Bilingual book on the story behind the festival
Mid-Autumn Festival
The story of Chang E and Hou Yi is one of the most famous folklores in China. Mid-Autumn enjoys a meal which is central to celebrations (here’s that list of traditional dishes again!) and round items that represent both the moon and unity. The round mooncakes, round decorations and round bookmark reiterate this idea of family ‘togetherness’ or ‘wholeness’.
- Hanging lantern decorations
- Ornate bookmark
- Hardback, bilingual book on the story behind the festival
- Mooncake mold. These wooden molds will last for years if properly cared for. Here’s a helpful guide. This mold also works well with sugar cookies if you don’t have access to the ingredients needed to make traditional mooncakes!. Be sure to grease the mold thoroughly first. Mooncakes are usually roughly knocked out of the mold by knocking it firmly on a table. This mooncake has the symbol for 副 fu meaning blessing or prosperity.