Lunar New Year begins on February 17! According to the Chinese calendar, this is the year of the Horse — specifically, the Fire Horse. As Vogue reports, “The first Fire Horse for 60 years (the length of the Zodiac cycle), it may feel like a restless, dynamic time—with the possibility for conflict. The current Zodiac year (which runs January 29, 2025 to February 16, 2026) is the Year of the Wood Snake, which represents the shedding of old stories and habits, recalibrating what works for you and honoring internal intelligence. With the arrival of the Year of the Fire Horse, that clarity demands an external home with decisive, consistent action.”
If you’re not familiar with Lunar New Year — also often referred to as Chinese New Year, although the Lunar New Year is also celebrated in Vietnam, Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and, of course, in any country with large Asian communities — the helpfully-named website Chinese New Year.net has a good explainer, as does the National Museum of Asian Art. As I’ve noted previously, my immediate family doesn’t celebrate Lunar New Year, but I’ve always lived in cities with large Asian populations and am familiar with the holiday from friends, extended family, and simply living in the world, and I’d love to hear how you and your friends and family celebrate! (If you are local to the San Gabriel Valley, the Huntington has a great slate of Lunar New Year activities. I haven’t attended these recently, but their Mid-Autumn Moon Celebration is wonderful, and the Chinese garden is beautiful, so I feel confident that they will not punt on their Lunar New Year’s festivities.)
With the caveat that not everything needs to be merchandised, as I’ve noted previously, I really think a lot of retailers are sleeping on Lunar New Year. (For example, the time I featured a Lunar New Year cape for cats, it was a HUGE seller! That one is no longer available, but if you need one, there are more options for pet outfits for Lunar New Year than a person might think.) This year, Michael Kors released an entire collection of Year of the Horse-themed bags, which are selling FAST. This one is great but it’s already sold out, as have all the red bags in the collection. Lanvin has also jumped on this, making Year of the Horse-themed flats using a design by artist Lv Wenting and a really beautiful Year of the Horse silk scarf. Williams Sonoma always has a beautiful Lunar New Year collection, and that holds true again this year. (I love this lazy susan.) So does See’s Candies! And, as always, the Lunar New Year Barbie is beautiful. Here are some other items that might catch your fancy:
As a PS, if you’re buying from Etsy, double-check the shipping time; if the item is coming from China, it may take a while to make its way to you. Wishing everyone good health, good luck, and good fortune in the new year!
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