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Make a Lucky Red Envelope for Chinese New Year

Make a Chinese New Year Monkey Card

Here you can find out how to make your own lucky red envelope or Hong Bao associated with Chinese New Year. You can find out more about the tradition of giving Hong Bao on our Family Celebrations page.

You will need:

  • red A4 paper
  • scissors
  • glue stick
  • metallic gold pen

What you do:

  1. Download our printable template for your envelope and print it onto the A4 red paper. You can use either the template with an outline shape of the Chinese character which means 'Good Fortune' or a blank envelope. Print the red envelope template
  2. Cut right round the outside of the envelope template. Cut out round the outside of the envelope template
  3. Fold your envelope along the lines shown as Fold 1 and Fold 2. Both flaps should be folded backwards away from the message. Fold the edges of your envelope
  4. Put glue along the flap marked 'glue here' and stick down the flap (Fold 2) that will be the back of the envelope. It will not go right to the edge of the fold so that it can make a neater edge.
  5. Fold the flap shown as (Fold 3) backwards and glue down on top of the two layers. Fold the top and bottom of your envelope
  6. Fold down the top flap (Fold 4) and your envelope is now finished and ready for you to decorate. You may like to colour in the Chinese character which means 'Good Fortune', with a gold metallic pen, or add blossom flowers or fish decorations which are good luck symbols.