Washing laundry over the holiday can also mean washing good luck down the drain with the wash water. For similar reasons, many cultures believe washing your hair on New Year's is also bad luck, so you may want to skip washing anything on the holiday to be safe.
This means washing or cutting it off is seen as washing your fortune away and dramatically reduces chances of prosperity in the year ahead.
This is an odd one. According to folklore, if you wash clothes on New Years Day, youll be washing for the dead or washing a loved one away -- meaning someone in your household will die in the coming year. Get your laundry washed, dried, folded and put away by New Years Eve.
DON'T wash or cut your hair
If you wash your hair, it means that you're washing your own fortune away for the coming 364 days. To make things more interesting, some even avoid washing clothes on the first and second day, because these two days are celebrated as the birthday of the Water God.
“On the first two days of the New Year, we do not wash our hair as it will wash away the good luck. In the first 15 days, we can wash our hair once with pomelo leaves, then washing hair becomes normal again. We just have to avoid days 1,2,7, and 15,” Debbie explains.
You could be washing your luck away…at least according to a Korean superstition that says you shouldn't bathe or shower on New Year's day.
Do Not Wear Black. Never wear clothes in black during the Chinese New year because it is typically worn during funerals. The color has been associated with death. It is considered to be unlucky.
No personal grooming or housekeeping allowed. Do not wash your hair, cut your nails, use the scissors or sweep the floor on the first day of Chinese New Year.
No washing or cutting your hair
It is believed that if you wash your hair on New Year's day, you'd also be washing away all your luck. It's somewhat similar to if you cut your hair, you'd be cutting your life shorter!
Start as you mean to go on, and all that. But don't grab your bucket and bleach today – because superstition says it's bad luck to do chores on January 1. It's also the perfect excuse if your New Year's Eve hangover has stapled you to the sofa.
It's said that you shouldn't eat winged fowl (read: birds like turkey or chicken), bottom feeders (like shrimp or catfish), or any seafood that swims backward or side to side (like lobster or crab).
Oranges, kumquats, tangerines and pomelos are common Chinese New Year food gifts because they're believed to bring good luck and happiness. The Chinese words for orange and tangerine closely resemble the words for luck and wealth. The gold color also symbolizes prosperity.
It's a time to worship ancestors, exorcise evil spirits and pray for good harvest. Today it's celebrated also by Chinese communities outside the country. Lion dance, dragon dance, temple fairs, flower market shopping and so on are just a few of these rich and colourful activities.
Red is a popular color in Chinese culture, symbolizing luck, joy, and happiness.
9: In Chinese, nine is pronounced jiu, which also means “long lasting.” As the highest single digit, it represents the maximum level of mortal happiness, longevity, and good luck. A perfect ten is reserved for the gods.
Both white and black are unlucky colors for Chinese New Year.
“Head-to-toe pink — pink dress, pink bag, pink pumps — is obviously a no-no,” he stressed. Also, do not match your lip colour with the colour of your outfit. “It makes you look too coordinated and a bit comical,” he said. Instead, if you are wearing a shocking pink or fuchsia dress, keep it simple with a nude lip.
People dress in the vibrant color for the Lunar New Year because they'd like to bring good luck with them into the changing seasons. Two colors within Chinese culture, however, should be avoided: black and white, which are traditionally colors worn in times of mourning.
Foods like pork, greens, citrus and pomegranate are seasonal during the new year in the northern hemisphere, influencing the bounty of the holiday table. These traditional New Year's Eve and New Year's Day foods are believed to bring health, wealth and happiness in the coming year.
Along with black-eyed peas, some cultures believe that grapes, noodles, pork, or pomegranates can be considered lucky when eaten on New Year's.