After the long, long year we’ve endured, we’re ready for 2021! If you’re looking to kick off the new year with an extra dose of good luck, adding some (or all!) of these colors to your celebration might help. We’re not promising anything, but it’s totally worth a shot to incorporate these colors in your celebration.
Interestingly, there’s a lot of conjecture about the psychology of color but little agreement on how colors affect and influence people. That’s because research shows that personal preference and experiences can determine what colors we like and how we feel about or react to them. Scientists say most color theory is based primarily on hunches and anecdotal evidence, although certain cultures do traditionally consider specific hues symbolic (say, white for brides or black for mourning in some Western cultures).
Whether not you believe in the power of colors, including these shades in your celebration can’t hurt, right? Here are the colors you should include for good luck whether you’re lounging on the sofa watching New Year’s movies with your dog, playing some fun New Year’s Eve games, or enjoying New Year’s cocktails on a Zoom call with far-away family and friends.
1 Red: Overall Good Luck
One of the oldest traditional events still celebrated today is Chinese New Year, believed to have originated more than 3,000 years ago. At first, it was a spring planting festival but later became associated with the lunar new year. Originally, people would make loud noises and decorate their homes with red decor to scare off a hungry beast that was rumored to threaten villages every New Year. Today, red continues to be associated with good luck in the Chinese culture. Make sure to have some red nearby as you ring in the year.
2 Blue: Serenity
The color of the ocean and the sky, blue is often considered a peaceful hue. It’s been connected to serenity in art and religious traditions for centuries. In fact, blue was one of the most desirable and expensive pigments used by Renaissance painters. The color, made from the mineral lapis lazuli, had been mined since the 6th century and was worth more than five times its weight in gold! Bring a sense of serenity to your home by celebrating with the color blue for a peaceful new year.
3 White: A Clean Start
White has long been associated with innocence in many cultures, religious traditions, and works of art. Renaissance manuscripts refer to the color as a symbol of purity, so it’s often thought of as a color that’s unsullied, fresh, and clean. And don’t we all need a fresh, clean start in the new year?
4 Purple: Prosperity
Purple is associated with wealth and was once worn only by royalty in Europe and Asia. That’s because in ancient Phoenicia, a long-lasting, vibrant purple dye was made from a rare sea snail. It took as many as 250,000 of these snails to create one ounce of dye, so only the ultra-wealthy, such as royalty, could wear it. While we don’t suggest making dye from sea snails, incorporating purple into your celebration could bring hope for a prosperous new year.
5 Silver: Opportunities
Silver is one of the world’s ancient precious metals, with silver plates found dating all the way back to approximately 2500 B.C. Folklore also links silver to protection from evil (think, a silver bullet for mythical creatures such as pesky werewolves!). In addition, it’s been used for millennia for its antimicrobial properties, with evidence that it was utilized therapeutically all the way back to 4000 B.C.! Surround yourself with this shiny hue to celebrate all the precious opportunities this new year will bring!
6 Green: Happiness
In many cultures, green is associated with the natural world. And who doesn’t need more green space? Many studies have linked spending time in nature to better physical and mental health including an increase in positive emotions such as happiness and a decrease in anxiety and stress. That being said, green is a color you need to bring indoors for a happier new year—and to make your house feel homier every day.
7 Yellow: Hope
The color of optimism and hope, this sunny hue is upbeat like a bright spring day after a long, dark winter. It’s a color that’s been loved and used in art for centuries—even dating back to prehistoric cave paintings 17,000 years ago! Add yellow to your celebration to start your year with a sense of hope.
