As tradition goes, new clothes are a must for Chinese New Year. And why not throw in a new lipstick and new moisturiser and new fancy facial essences as well?
Rather than the humdrum packaging purchasable at any given time of the year, Lunar New Year-themed beauty products are, more often than not, just firm fan favourites dressed up in red, in gold or in both. With a sprinkle of some sort of blooming flower while we’re at it. And since it is the Year of the Rabbit, which is arguably the cutest animal of the zodiac, we’re envisioning a top shelf of adorably bunnified skincare.
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Brand New Lunar Year, Brand New Beauty Launches:
Sunday Riley
One of the latest Sunday Riley offering to enter the chat is the C.E.O. Afterglow Vitamin C Cream. Tinged in a citric yellow hue, the antioxidant-rich cream delivers a luminous, plumping effect that is very much sought after. Perfect for this Chinese New Year celebrations, it works as a wonderful canvas for your makeup as it leaves a satin-skin finish.
Maison Francis Kurkdjian
As personal as it is evocative of memories that can only be unlocked through the sense of smell, Maison Francis Kurkdjian is highlighting four of the perfumery’s most decadent scents for the Lunar New Year: Baccarat Rouge 540, amber and woody; Aqua Universalis, delicately floral; and À la rose and L’Homme À la rose from the rose-tinted family.
Dyson
Exclusively released for the 2023 gifting period, this rich Topaz Orange colourway draws inspiration from cultural allusions to luck and prosperity. If you (or anyone you know) have yet to own a Dyson hair styling tool, bag this special-edition soon!
SK-II
Caution: do not eat! As tempting as it is to munch on a bottle that looks quite like an oversized White Rabbit candy, this is merely SK-II’s festive packaging for their Pitera-infused Facial Treatment Essence this Year of the Rabbit. So cute!
Penhaligon’s
It’s down, down, down the rabbit hole we go with Penhaligon’s Lunar New Year offerings, which includes a Year of the Rabbit Scent Library highlighting ten exquisite Penhaligon’s samples and a fragrance and hand cream gift set scented with The Favourite aroma.
shu uemura
The spray of fireworks, as celebratory a sight as any, inspired shu uemura’s new year collection, which sees lipsticks, lip lacquers and pressed eyeshadows cast in warm, metallic rust tones and bold chrome finishes. Also on the roster is the brand’s cleansing oil packaged in the limited-edition fireworks design, as well as the cult-favourite hard-edged brow pencil and foundation brush, also in limited-time packaging.
Laura Mercier
Two Laura Mercier fan-favourites have received a bunnified revamp this Lunar New Year, with the Translucent Loose Setting Powder now encased in red and gold and Blush Colour Infusion Ginger embossed with an adorable bunny.
Tatcha
Chances are, you’ve already tried Tatcha’s The Essence and have fallen deeply in love with the product’s double-concentrated Hadasel-3TM complex. And who can blame you? For Chinese New Year, the deeply hydrating formula comes bottled up in an outfit of red and ume blossoms to signal the incoming of spring. Exclusively at Lane Crawford.
Augustinus Bader
The signature shade of cobalt on Augustinus Bader’s award-winning Serum, powered by professor Bader’s patented TFC8®, has taken a backseat in deference to a festive Lunar New Year red this season. The FSC-certified gift box it comes in is fronted by a sweet rabbit, which, in our opinion, makes for a better CNY gift than yet another gift basket of fruit.
Sulwhasoo
Decorated with a pair of bunnies painted in the Korean folk tradition of Baeknapdo, Sulwhasoo’s beloved First Care Activating Serum is decidedly adorable and is said to deliver “a message wishing for a new year full of richness and hope through the rabbits who came to see plum blossoms blooming beautifully in the white snow”. We think that’s rather beautiful.
Jurlique
More is certainly more for Jurlique Rose Body Oil devotees, who can now enjoy the treatment in an enlarged, double-quantity volume from a bottle designed in collaboration with Brighton-based artist Tiffany Lynch, whose prints are inspired by the beauty and vibrancy of nature.
NARS
Devoid of the brand’s familiar black packaging, NARS’ festive tribute to the Lunar New Year comes in red and gold on products you already love – including the Light Reflecting Setting Powder Set and Brush Roll Set – and six shades of the brand’s brand-new Air Matte Ultra Lip Tints. It’s gearing up to be a red-hot new year.
Charlotte Tilbury
Charlotte Tilbury’s seasonal offerings, which include Charlotte’s Magic Cream®, Airbrush Flawless® Finish Powder, Airbrush Flawless Setting Spray and a Matte Revolution lipstick in a new-for-the-season Blossom Red, have all received a saccharine-sweet plum-blossom facelift this Lunar New Year.
Dr. Dennis Gross
The crowd-favourite, award-winning Alpha Beta Universal Daily Peel is getting dressed up for this festive season. Arriving in a pack of 35, the peel is infused with a concentrated dose of 5 AHAs and BHAs to eradicate dead skin, revealing perfect, illuminated skin. In just two minutes, the treatment achieves clinical results from the comfort of your boudoir.
Sekkisei
With 36 years’ worth of innovation backing this formulation, one of Japan’s best-kept skin secret is now dressed in a special Chinese New Year packaging for a limited time only. Serving you a daily dose of skin probiotics, your facial microbiome will be in for a treat! The Sekkisei Vitalizing Serum enhances skin immunity and plumpness—thanks to star ingredients like Black Yeast Probiotic.
