Hello, and welcome back to Jenna Gets Creative! Saturday January 25th is Chinese New Year,
and this year will be the year of the Rat on the Chinese Zodiac. To celebrate, I'm creating
a simple black and white Yin Yang design stylized to look like a pair of rats. The paper is
Daler Rowney Simply Bristol, and the fineliners are Marabu Graphix.
I'm seriously considering doing a series of Zodiac Yin Yang designs. What do you think?
Should I? And if I do, do you want to see videos?
I'm gonna fill the silence while the timelapse plays by talking a bit about Chinese New Year
and Zodiac signs, but first, if you're new here, I'd love it if you would subscribe and
turn on notifications. I upload twice a week at minimum, every Tuesday and Thursday, with
bonus uploads some weeks. I'm trying to qualify for the YouTube Partner Program as soon as
possible this year, and I'll be holding an international giveaway to celebrate once I
do qualify, so subscribe and watch all the way through if you'd like to help me out and
be eligible to win the giveaway. More details to come when we're closer to that goal, but
the giveaway will include some art supplies and a small original artwork.
If you like this video, don't forget to hit like and leave a comment down below. I love
reading your comments, I appreciate the interaction on the video, and I do reply to everyone.
What's your zodiac sign, by the way? I was born in 1988, so all through my childhood
I was told I'm a dragon, and I loved that. Then when I was in high school we used to
do this matchmaker thing every February where you donated like $2 or something, filled out
a little bubble sheet quiz, and a week later some local company handed out everyone's results.
The whole point of these results sheets were that you had matches among the student body.
You'd have 10 or 20 or whatever it was matches from your own grade, another 10 from other
grades, and 2 mystery matches, one of whom was your best match and the other was your
worst. Fun side fact, my high school sweetheart was my mystery match in grade 11, which was
the year we started dating, and we were already together when we got the results so that was
cute. But getting to the point, these results sheets also had all your astrology stuff on
it, and the first year I did it I was surprised to see that it listed me as a rabbit, not
a dragon. My birthday is February 2nd (yes, Groundhog Day), and apparently Chinese New
Year in 1988 happened after February 2nd. It was actually February 17th. So all January
babies and February babies up to the 16th in 1988 were actually born in the year of
the rabbit, which is was 1987 babies are. Also fun fact, Chinese New Year in 1987 was
January 29th, which means my ex who was a year older than me but born on February 11th
in 1987 was also a rabbit. Born almost exactly a year before me, but we had the same Zodiac
sign. So yeah, technically I'm a rabbit, not a dragon.
I was a premature baby, though, by a lot, so I was SUPPOSED to be a dragon. I claim
both! Alright, let's talk about Chinese New Year
and the Zodiac signs in general. Many places around the world alternatively call Chinese
New Year the Lunar New Year, as if there's only one, but there are actually multiple
calendars and dates for Lunar New Year celebrations across Asia. In mainland China, Chinese New
Year is also known as Spring Festival. It can fall anywhere from January 21st to February
20th, and like any other holiday from a Lunar calendar, it's different every single year.
It always occurs on the date of a new moon, and this is usually the closest new moon to
the start of spring, hense the alternate name of Spring Festival for this time of year.
That's the start of spring for China, of course, which occurs on February 4th or 5th. Most
western cultures in the northern hemisphere use the vernal equinox to mark the first day
of spring, which falls between March 19th and 21st.
The reason the colour red, particularly red paper items, and fireworks are associated
with the Chinese New Year is due to the local mythology around the date. There was a beast,
the Nian, that would eat villagers on the eve of the new year, so everyone would go
into hiding. One year a man Yanhuang stayed out. He hung red papers around the village
and set off firecrackers all night. When nothing had been destroyed and no one had been eaten
come morning, this became the tradition. The famous lantern festivals associated with
Chinese New Year always take place on the 15th day of the new year, but it is believed
that these paper lanterns, which are still frequently red, were also part of this early
tradition of keeping the Nian away. Red envelopes are traditionally passed from
elders and married couples to children and unmarried younger individuals on Chinese New
Year. These are almost always filled with money of varying amounts, but never odd number
amounts, as odd number amounts are given at funerals. Since 8 is a famously lucky number
in many Asian cultures, $8 is the most commonly gifted amount in red envelopes given to children
on Chinese New Year in North America. Within China, another common amount 6, because the
word for six sounds like the word for smooth, so giving 6 is wishing them a smooth year.
4 is an uncommon amount, as it is associated with death. It is important to note that for
these traditional purposes a number is even or odd depending on the first digit, not the
last, so even though the number 30 divides evenly by 2, it is considered odd because
it starts with the digit 3. An alternative to real cash being given inside
these red envelopes is chocolate coins, and this is what I personally think of when I
think about the red envelopes. When I was a kid, it was common for classes and even
entire schools to have these envelopes made up for the students, and they always contained
chocolate coins. I think whoever organized this at my elementary school missed the odd
number memo, though, because I seem to remember they always contained a single large chocolate
coin. Yes, it's common for these red envelopes to contain a single bank note of whatever
suitable even value was chosen, but I'm in Canada. Our chocolate coins are $1 coins,
or "Loonies" as we call them. Other gifts are frequently exchanged on Chinese
New Year as well, but certain types of gifts are taboo. One such taboo item that may seem
odd to westerners is watches or clocks. These symbolize the passing of time, which implies
that time is running out, and could be seen as a slight or even threat to the recipient.
Dragon and lion dances are also common traditions during the Chinese New Year season, and this
is another thing I remember fondly from child hood. We always had performers with traditional
Chinese dragons or lions come and dance at our schools, and if you asked little kid Jenna,
that was the best assembly of the season every year running. Most years it was a lion dance.
The Chinese Zodiac is a cyclical system that assigns an animal to each year, and with it
certain attributes associated with that animal. This is not to be confused with the western
Zodiac which ties months to constellations. The Rat is the first of the 12 elements in
the Chinese zodiac, which means we're at the beginning of a fresh cycle this year. The
system does get more complicated, though. This year is the year of the rat, so that's
the year sign. There are also animals for each month, known as a person's inner animal,
for the day, called true animal, and for the hour, called secret animal. The inner animals
assigned by month roughly line up with the western zodiacs, starting with the Tiger,
which corresponds closely to Aquarius. It's not an exact match-up though, so although
I'm an Aquarius I am not a tiger; I'm an ox. True animals, assigned by the day, get more
interesting. Since there are 12 animals and only 7 days of the week, some days have multiple
animal options, and some animals are even repeated. For example, individuals born on
a Monday are always a true goat, but individuals born on a Tuesday may be a true dragon, or
a true pig. I was born on a Tuesday, so I guess this is where I well and truly get to
claim my dragon status. Secret animals, assigned based on the hour
you were born, start at 11pm or 23:00 with the rat and cycle through in 2-hour intervals.
I was born at 2:30 in the afternoon, or 14:30, which makes me secretly a goat.
An interesting note about the English words used for the animals of the Chinese zodiac
is that English has more words for distinct animals than the languages of China, so some
Zodiac animals have been associated too narrowly with the English meanings of the words. Rat
in English refers to a specific small rodent with naked tails, but in China it can also
mean a mouse. The word used for the goat can also refer to a sheep or ram. Pig can also
refer to a boar. Ox can also mean a cow, but I've seen notes that it definitely doesn't
ever mean water buffalo. Rooster can also mean chicken.
In the Chinese Zodiac, rats are associated most strongly with the element of water, the
yang side of yin yang, and the winter season. Their lucky flowers are lilies, and their
lucky colours are gold, blue, and green. They are most highly compatible with other rats,
dragons, and monkeys, and are least compatible with horses.
The second zodiac is the Ox, my mother's year. They are yin, their lucky flowers are tulips,
evergreens, peach blossoms, and roses, and their lucky colours are blue, red, and purple.
They are most compatible with oxen, snakes, and roosters, and least compatible with goats.
Third is the tiger, which are yin. Their lucky flowers are the cineraria, and their lucky
colours are grey, white, blue, purple, and orange. They are most compatible with tigers,
horses, and dogs, and least compatible with monkeys.
Fourth is the rabbit, my year by the lunar calendar, which are also yin. Our lucky flowers
are plantain lily, nerve plant, and snap dragon, and our lucky colours are black, pink, purple,
blue, and red. Oddly enough red is my favourite colour, but I'm allergic to lilies. I do like
snap dragons. We are most compatible with rabbits, goats, and pigs, and least compatible
with roosters. I find that hilarious, because my daughter is a rooster.
Fifth is the dragon, my predicted birth year and my true animal, and we are yang. This
explains so much, I'm both yin and yang. That's should mean balance, but I don't think I've
figured out how to balance it! Our lucky flowers are not listed in Wikipedia, probably because
dragons are mythical creatures and don't care about plants, and our lucky colour (yes just
one) is yellow. We are most compatible with dragons, monkeys, and rats, and least compatible
with dogs. My sister is a monkey, so that's cool.
Sixth is the snake, my brother Eric's year, and they are yin. Their lucky flowers are
orchids and cacti, and their lucky colours are red, yellow and black. Not green, surprisingly.
They are most compatible with snakes, roosters, and oxen, and are least compatible with pigs.
Seventh is the horse, which are yang. Their lucky flowers are sunflower and jasmine, and
their lucky colours are gold, yellow, red, and blue. They are most compatible with horses,
dogs, and tigers, and least compatible with rats.
Eighth is the goat, which are yin. Their lucky flowers are carnation and primrose, and their
lucky colours are green, red and purple. They are most compatible with goats, pigs, and
rabbits, and least compatible with rats. Ninth is the monkey, my sister's year, and
they are yang. Their lucky flowers are also not listed on Wikipedia, but their lucky colours
are white and blue. They are most compatible with monkeys, rats, and dragons, and least
compatible with tigers. Tenth is the rooster, my daughter's year and
also my late brother Kevin's year, and they are yin. Their lucky flowers are gladiolas,
impatiens, celosias, and their lucky colours are gold, brown and yellow. They are most
compatible with roosters, oxen, and snakes, and least compatible with dogs. Adorably,
my husband's year is the snake, and Dorothy is SUCH a Daddy's girl.
Eleventh is the dog, which are yang. Their lucky flowers are roses, orchids, oncidiums,
and cymbidiums, and their lucky colours are green, red, and purple. They are most compatible
with dogs, tigers, and horses, and least compatible with roosters.
Finally, twelfth is the pig, which are yin. Their lucky flowers are lilies, and their
lucky colour is yellow. They are most compatible with pigs, rabbits and goats, and least compatible
with monkeys. So what was my full set again? Rabbit, ox,
tiger, goat. I'm mostly yin, and apparently my favourite colour should have been purple.
What about you?