Chinese New Year: Welcoming the Year of the Dragon

It's time to start preparations for Chinese New Year. And by that, I mean crafts! On February 10, we say goodbye to the Year of the Rabbit and enter the Year of the Dragon. I've designed a fun dragon project that features the gorgeous Folk Art Treasure Gold. Affiliate link here and below. 

Happy Year of the Dragon!

Materials:

• cardstock (red, white)
• Folk Art Treasure Gold
• scissors
• black Sharpie
• tacky glue

Steps: 

Orient your paper so it is horizontal. Using Treasure Gold, paint a head just left of the center of the paper. Dragons aren't real, so you can't get it wrong! Add a long neck and horns. 

While the paint is drying, cut out features for your dragon. Again, dragons aren't real, so there is no right or wrong. I used red cardstock to cut out a pair of bushy eyebrows and spikes for the dragon's head and neck. I cut a pair of eyes and a mouth from white cardstock, then used the Sharpie to color in the black parts. 

When the paint is completely dry, use the Sharpie to outline the dragon. Add a nose and scales. 

Glue the cardstock features to the paper, add any extra details (like the whiskers), and then write your message on the right. 

If you're seeing this after 2024, you can still make this project. While you wouldn't see the other zodiac animals in every year's celebration, dragons are special. Just change the message to Happy New Year! 

Chinese New Year Ribbon Dragon Craft

January is a busy month in the world of kids' crafts. In January, lots of people search for crafts about Arctic animals (as if penguins and polar bears somehow don't exist if it isn't winter in the US). They're also looking for MLK Day ideas, Groundhog Day puppets and treats, 100th day of school crafts, and everything having to do with Valentine's Day. Mardi Gras searches rise dramatically, as do projects featuring Presidents Washington and Lincoln. And then there's Chinese New Year. Technically, it's Lunar New Year, as many other Asian cultures celebrate it. 

Something unique to Chinese New Year is that the crafts people want follow a 12-year cycle. This year, people want Ox crafts. Last year's Rat crafts won't be popular again until 2032, an eternity (and literally a lifetime) for a child. This time next year, the Ox crafts will hold no appeal as everyone makes Tiger crafts. No other holiday is like that. Can you imagine if everyone decorated for Halloween with only witches one year, then threw them all out (or stored them for 12 years) and decorated only with mummies the following year?!

Fortunately, there are some perennial Chinese New Year decorations that make excellent crafts. Red lanterns, firecrackers, plum blossoms, and fish are great choices. And then there are dragons. Dragons are unique among the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac in that they are the only mythical creature. As a symbol of power and luck, they are an important part of every New Year's celebration. I had so much fun designing this dragon, made with wired ribbon! Affiliate links below. 

Chinese New Year Ribbon Dragon Craft

Materials:

• cardstock (red, gold, white, black)
• microtip scissors
• Twisteezwire (red)
• craft glue
• wired ribbon (red and gold)

Steps:

Cut red cardstock to make the dragon's head, two horns, four feet, and a tongue. Cut gold cardstock to make the hair, eyebrows, nose, beard, and tail. Cut two lengths of Twisteezwire to make the mustache. (The photograph below shows most of the red and gold pieces, but is missing the tongue, eyebrows, and nose.) 

Cut eyes and teeth from white cardstock. Then cut pupils, nostrils, and a mouth from black cardstock. 

Glue all the face pieces together, then set it aside. 

Bend the wired ribbon into gentle waves to form the dragon's body. Glue the tail to one end and the feet to either side of the ribbon where it touches the table. 

Make a sharp fold to make the dragon's neck, then the glue the face to the folded portion. When the glue is dry, you can arrange your dragon however you'd like. 

Obviously, you can change out the colors, features, and proportions of the dragon to make it more or less traditional. Enjoy!

Construction Paper Dragon

One of my friends commented about the disappointing lack of dragons among my collection of Mythical Creature crafts. So I made one: 

Construction Paper Dragon

Materials:

• construction paper
• scissors
• glue
• pens
• googly eyes

Steps:

Fold a piece of construction paper, then sketch a dragon with the belly along the folded line. Cut out the dragon, being sure not to cut along the fold.

Unfold, then refold the paper the opposite direction so that any pencil marks are hidden.

Fold down the wings so that they are on opposite sides of the dragon's body. 

Put a thin layer of glue on the inside of the dragon, covering every part except the wings. Press it together. 

Use pens to decorate your dragon. Use stripes, dots, or other patterns.

Draw nostrils, then add googly eyes. 

There's so much room for creativity with this project. Elongate the tail. Twist the horns. Shrink the wings. Use a rainbow color scheme. The sky's the limit!