Get ready to welcome in the imminent Year of the Rabbit! As the celebrations around the Lunar New Year commence, beauty brands have dressed some of their best sellers in striking red limited-edition finery for the occasion.
The Lunar New Year is a period where a number of countries and cultures including China, Korea, Vietnam and Singapore mark a new year based on the first new moon in the traditional lunar calendar.
The first day of the Lunar New Year in 2023 is Sunday, January 22, which is the Year of the Rabbit according to the Chinese Zodiac.
Vietnam’s celebration is called Tết, short for Tết Nguyên Đán, and while it is marked on the same day, this year the country welcomes the Year of the Cat. While the 12 Vietnamese zodiac animals largely match the Chinese signs, there is one big difference in the fourth animal, where a cat appears, rather than a rabbit.
The celebration of the new year is the perfect time to gift tokens of affection and good wishes in the form of beauty products adorned in red – a colour considered to bring good fortune and joy. Plenty of beauty brands have come to the party with reverent or playful packaging to mark the festivities. There are also nods to the rabbit, said to represent mercy, gentleness and compassion, although with the cat also in focus this year, many brands have gone with simple red designs.
These are some of the most desirable options for Lunar New Year 2023:
M.A.C. again offers a substantial collection of limited edition products to celebrate the new year. Its New Year Shine range is packaged in shimmering red and includes the refreshing Fix+ hydrating setting spray, Extra Dimension Skin Finish, four shades of Matte Lipstick,an 8-pan eyeshadow palette with matte and shimmer shades and two shades of Glow Play Blush.
If you’re needing to stock up on iconic skincare serums and moisturisers that are staples in a well-rounded skincare routine, these options offer a bit of fun. Estee Lauder’s Advanced Night Repair comes in chic chrome packaging. Shiseido’s stunning all-rounder serum Ultimune Power Infusing Concentrate and Biossance Squalane + Vitamin C Rose Oil both gain subtle rabbit-themed illustrations while Clinique’s Dramatically Different Moisturising Lotion+ is transformed with elegant red and gold.
Jurlique‘s Exclusive Edition Rose Body Oil is a luxurious choice for those less focused on makeup or facial skincare and cares for the skin on the body with rose extract and nourishing plant oils.
A quad of intensely shimmering shades perfect for a night out informs Bobbi Brown’s Luxe Eyeshadow Quad while the jar of the brand’s popular hydrating Vitamin Enriched Face Base is updated with a bold pink-red hue for its Lunar New Year collection.
Pat McGrath is no stranger to show-stopping packaging and the brand has chosen a clear, true, lucky red for the packaging on its Mattetrance Lipstick in a brick red shade as well as its Venus In Fleurs Luxe Eyeshadow Quad.
Updating your lipstick wardrobe has considerable appeal thanks to Dior’s Rouge Dior Set. The Lunar New Year Limited Edition includes five refillable Rouge Dior lipsticks, four in a velvet finish and one in a satin balm finish, in a collectable box.
