How to make this simple Chinese Auspicious Knot 吉祥结 in only 3 minutes!

When you look at some Chinese New Year Ornaments that were for sale, do you notice as I do, besides using simple tassels, there were also those very pretty Chinese knots on the Chinese New Year Lanterns.

If you are getting bored with using simple tassels to make your Chinese New Year Lantern, here is a very simple to make Chinese Knot called the "Auspicious Knot" or "吉祥结" (Ji Xiang Jie) that you can make for yourself.

I have done the above this one myself in only 3 minutes! Just by following the steps in the video below that I have found on YouTube, it's really simple.


What you need:

1. A thick coloured string of 1 metre long
2. Just follow the steps in the above video
3. If you want to make cuter, smaller knot, you might want to teach your kid to do it. They have smaller hands! Probably can give your kid the coloured string at about 90cm long.

Here are more Auspicious knots that I've made.

These Auspicious Chinese Knots make pretty nice ornaments. You can make them as gifts to friends and relatives during Chinese New Year, or during other auspicious occasions like birthday, as a simple gift to your classmates.

Below is another picture of my Chinese Auspicious Knot that I have just made and the Red Tassel that I usually use for making my Chinese New Year Lantern.

Summarized Links to the "How-to make" different Ang Bao Lanterns

I have seived out and do a summary of some Ang Bao Lantern making videos that I have in my blog

How to make Ang Bao "Rotating Carousel"  红包走马灯

How to make Ang Bao "The Lucky 8" 发财“八”

How to make Ang Bao "Flower Ball" 红包绣球

How to make a Flower Ball using only 12 red packets

How to make a Ang Bao Flower Corolla 

Golden Flower Corolla 

How to make a simple Chinese New Year Lantern with 12 Ang Pows

How to make a simple Ang Bao Fan 红包扇子

How to make a lamp-shaped CNY lantern with 24 red packets

How to make a Diamond Ang Pow 红包钻石

How to make an Ang Bao Spaceship

How to make a fish with one red packet

How to make an 8-petal flower with bump chenille stems

How to make a simple Chinese Auspicious Knot 吉祥结

STRAWBERRY LANTERN

In my previous post, I have shown you a picture of different colour packets. Now I felt so blessed to have different coloured packets in Singapore.

Well, I was trying to make a heart-shaped CNY lantern but somehow, I was quite disheartened when it end up out of shaped. Somehow, I see it look like a strawberry fruit. So I made use of the green packets to make leaves. And now I have got a Strawberry Lantern!

The moral I learnt from the process is: "Don't be disheartened. Be creative and positive, you will get a surprise!"

I wish you would also enjoy the lantern making process with my blog.

Do share with me if you have other good ideas to make use of the different colour packets to make Chinese New Year decorations.

USES OF "ANG POW" AMONG DIFFERENT RACES IN SINGAPORE

Among the Chinese in Singapore, there is this culture that red packet, which inside contain money, is given during auspicious occasions such as Chinese New Year, weddings, baby first month and even birthdays.
As most of us would have known, RED symbolises auspicious and celebrations for the Chinese.

Probably taking the cue from the Chinese, nowadays, the Malays also place money in colourful envelopes, usually green packets, and give to the children when they go visiting during Hari Raya Puasa. I used to hear from a malay friend who told me that in the past, the adult would simply give money notes or coins to the kids without the envelope. Why is it usually GREEN packets, perhaps is because of this Hari Raya festive delights called "Ketupat" (rice cake wrapped with green leaves), a popular food among the Malay Muslims.

These days, when the Chinese visit our Malay friend's wedding, would also place money in green packets to give to our Malay friend to express our well wishes.

In a multi-racial country like ours, I think giving money in colourful packets is very convenient as we don't have to crack our brains to consider what might be the best gifts to our friends of different races, because our friends could buy whatever they like with the money. Different colours have their symbolism in different cultural.

I'm also surprised to find in a shop, yellow packets for our Indian friends. And we can see from the printed picture on the yellow packets, for wedding occasions. YELLOW is considered auspicious and sacred for Indians. As for the picture of the elephant god "Ganesha", it should be popular among the Indian Hindus when they celebrate Deepavali festive.