Happy Wednesday! I’m at the table, embracing the January Blues!
My Monday Morning Blooms arrangement with hydrangeas and tulips migrated to this blue and white ginger jar as a centerpiece for the table.
I’m also embracing Classic Blue, Pantone Color of the Year. The Pantone Color Institute forecasts global color trends, and chose Classic Blue for 2020:
A timeless and enduring blue hue, PANTONE 19-4052 Classic Blue is elegant in its simplicity. Suggestive of the sky at dusk, the reassuring qualities of the thought-provoking Classic Blue highlight our desire for a dependable and stable foundation on which to build as we cross the threshold into a new era.
A blue paisley tablecloth provides a foundation for Ralph Lauren Mandarin Blue dinnerware, a nod to Chinese New Year.
Blue and white ceramic chopsticks sit atop sauce bowls. . .
And ceramic painted blue and white napkin rings, marry a pair of patterned paisley napkins.
Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year, (also known as Spring Festival), falls in the period from January 21 to February 20, beginning with the first new moon of the year. It is celebrated around the world, but the main festivities are in China as well as other Asian countries, including Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Korea.
According to tradition, each year of the Chinese calendar is associated with one of the twelve zodiac signs: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog, or pig. You can read more about the attributes and the animals of the Chinese Zodiac, here.
2020 is the Year of the Rat, which begins on January 25th.
Chinese New Year festivities start the day before the New Year and traditionally last 15 days, ending with the Lantern Festival. Family members return home, with businesses going on holiday and students getting extended time off.
The Year of the Rat is the first zodiac sign in the Chinese zodiac cycle. According to the Chinese zodiac story, the Jade Emperor held a competition to decide the order of zodiac animals and the quick-witted rat asked the diligent ox to take him on a ride to cross the river. He jumped down before the ox crossed the finish line, so the rat won the race and became the first of the zodiac animals.
The Chinese New Year is full of dragon dances, fireworks, feasts, gift-giving, and lantern festivals. Red is the Chinese national color and represents happiness, beauty, success and good fortune.
Red envelopes containing money are also given out to children by their families to wish them longevity and a happy New Year. Because eight is a lucky number, eight is represented in different ways, including dishes that include eight ingredients or menus that include eight dishes.
Here are some good luck foods and recipes for celebrating Chinese New Year to enjoy. Click on the links for the complete recipe.
Long Life Noodle Soup and tour a Chinese garden
Blood Orange-Shrimp Stir-Fry
Colorful, flavorful and healthy, with “good luck” oranges
Shrimp Potstickers with Soy-Ginger Dipping Sauce
Delicious dumplings that are easier to make than you might guess!
Table Details:
Ralph Lauren Mandarin Blue Dinnerware / T.J. Maxx, several years ago
Blue & White Ginger Jar and Napkin Rings / Pier 1
Blue and white chopsticks / World Market
White Chargers / HomeGoods, several years ago
Blue Placemats / Bunny Williams, Ballard Designs
Napkins and Tablecloth / T.J. Maxx, several years ago
Flatware / Wallace Gold Accent Corsica
Blue Goblets / Pfaltzgraff All Purpose Glasses
Thank you for your visit, sharing with:
Metamorphosis Monday
Gung Hay Fat Choy ~ Happy New Year! Love all of the blues~
Beautiful!
Beautiful – you are very talented ❤️
Mary, I love your table with all the gorgeous blues. Your MMB’s flowers transitioned perfectly to your tablescape.💙💙💙
Lovin’ the paisley tablecloth Mary! Happy (Early) Chinese New Year:@)
Isn’t that just the prettiest blue!! Versatile! I just had a similar tablescape using my “Blue Willow.” franki
Beautiful! How do stay so positive and creative?
Beautiful! Tablescape. Love the food…makes me want to try some of those recipes.
Thank you for all the information on the Chinese New Year, Mary. I love how you embraced the color of the year in your beautiful tablescape. Your centerpiece looks perfect on your paisley and surrounded by gorgeous dishes. 💙
That was delightful, informative and mouthwatering, great kick start to my day 😁
Blue is my favorite color and you have represented it beautifully
I learned so much from this beautiful blue post, thank you Mary! 💙
I loved all the Chinese New Year info Mary, thank you! You have totally embraced the color of the year, the plates are gorgeous and I love the napkin rings too…so many pretties and your centerpiece is just perfect! We recently found some delicious frozen Orange Chicken, the brand is InnovAsian, it’s really good!
Jenna
This gives me such inspiration! Blue is my favorite color. I’ve never cooked Asian cuisine but your recipes tempt me.
Happy New Year!
Mary, The beautiful blue tablescape is so inviting. I especially like the sauce bowls. It’s the perfect blue tone. You always incorporate interesting details which makes your posts such an enjoyable read! Have a great day! Clara ❤️
Gorgeous -all of it!
Absolutely love the chopsticks and homage to the Lunar New Year! I could eat dumplings for days!
Well, then, Happy Chinese New Year ! Beautiful blue, love how the reflection of your pretty blue goblets cast the perfect shadow on your pretty tablecloth. Love the color of blue at dusk. We had homemade sweet and sour chicken last week and it turned out well. I guess I was a bit early, ha. Love me some good Chinese food! Enjoy! Thanks Mary. P.s. getting out all the ingredients now for Peter Rabbit’s Carrot and Zucchini Muffins, errands in town yesterday and got back to late, but today is the day! YUM!
Beautiful table. I have long loved blue and white textiles & dishes and remember having that Ralph Lauren pattern in sheets that were buttery soft yet crisp & cool 100% cotton percale. The best to sleep on! I even made window treatments in that pattern. Love!
Beautiful Table! 💙
And those recipes look delightful!
Love your lunar new year table! Having it in blue makes it just about perfect!
So beautiful. Love the table settings and recipes for Chinese New Year. Especially enjoyed the addition of the fortune cookie fortune!! Thank you for brightening up my afternoon Jane!!
Meant to write ‘Mary’ (sorry!). Please change for me, thank you!!