Also known as the Spring Festival, Lunar New Year celebrates the coming of spring. It’s customary to brighten your home with symbolic flowers, plants, and fruits, such as peonies, pussy willows, kumquats, and oranges, which represent fertility and abundance for the new year.
In past years, Lego released limited-edition Lunar New Year–themed sets (such as the Spring Lantern Festival 80107 build from 2021), which were hard to come by in the United States.
To our delight, the options and availability have since expanded. Though not specific to Lunar New Year, Lego flowers offer a fun alternative to live blooms. They come in varieties such as an orchid and cherry blossoms, both of which represent spring and good luck. Plus, they don’t wilt.
My family opted for the Lunar New Year–themed Lego Money Tree 40648. This 336-piece set forms a small, potted tree, festooned with 20 tiny tangerines. For even more fortune, the tree also holds 10 coins and 14 red envelopes. Note that in Chinese culture, the number four is considered unlucky, while the numbers six and eight are the luckiest. You may want to affix eight coins, 18 tangerines, and 12 envelopes, or another multiple instead.
Red is a lucky color—it brings prosperity and wards off evil spirits—and red envelopes (like the Lego ones in the tree) are traditionally handed out to children with a gift of money inside.
My then-7-year-old son built the Money Tree for the first time the year before last. It’s meant for ages 9 and up, so he needed some help; attaching the tangerines and leaves, for instance, takes dexterity that may be challenging for small hands. With the assistance of his older sister the second time, it took only about half an hour to assemble. I see the Money Tree as something he can rebuild more quickly and independently each year so that we can display it on our mantel (though, not going to lie: we left it up all year). We’ve also made and gifted the tree to family and friends.
