How to make an Ang Pow fish lantern

The identical sound of the words 'fish' (yú) 鱼 and the word 余 (yú), meaning 'extra', 'surplus' have made fish an important symbol during Chinese New Year whether during dinner or for decorations.

“年年有余”- 'May you have surplus and remainders year after year' is a common blessing expressed during the Chinese New Year's celebration. ‘余’means surplus, remainder, extra or leftovers hence this saying is wish that one will always have slightly more than what he or she requires and will not experience shortage in financial matters, but also in other aspects, such as health, friendship, etc. Since Chinese holidays are fill with motifs which carry symbolic meaning, the phonetic identity between '余' and '鱼' (fish), has made the latter a symbol of prosperity and wealth as well. There are plenty of idioms involving 'fish' in the Chinese language, often portraying fish as natural, carefree and resilient creatures. There is also a well known connection between fish and the Yin-Yang symbol and when the Chinese Lunar New Year is approaching, fish become a very important symbol for the Chinese.

Have too many angpow packets given to you from banks or shopping centres etc? I know I did... So since it was the Chinese New Year and I did not have that much to do, I thought I put them in good use, even though perhaps, it is a bit late....for Chinese New Year decorations.. I mean.....

To make this fish lantern, you will need about 16 angpows ... but some people might like to give the fish a pouty lip so if you do, you will need 18 angpows. 

First of all, seal the angpows or at least make sure they are closed. Then fold the all 16 angpows slightly into half at the top and bottom for to mark the centre. And then fold the edges in to reach the centre.

After you have done so, you can staple it together like in the above picture.

Staple it so that it resembles the above......to form the fish's body. You need to make two sets of this....

Then staple the two pieces together... as shown in the above picture.

Fold 4 ang pows into halves.  Take 2 ang pows and stapler them as shown above  to form the fish's tail  . Do the same for the rest of the ang pows. Stapler one tail onto the body of the fish first, then stapler the second one. 

Then you can staple the 'tail' to the fish. Now your angpow fish lantern has a tail!!!

Fold 2 ang pows into halves. Arrange the angpows just like the picture shown above and stapler them together to make fins for your fish. Then staple it to the fish....

Ta daaa.... your fish lantern is ready..... Just put double sided tape on it and stick it to the wall like I did or put a string in and hang it up!!! If you like, you can use another two angpow packets for to make a kissy mouth for the fish....but for me, I had only 18 angpow packets and I did not quite like the idea of my fish with a kissy mouth... LOL

Gong Xi Fa Cai!!!  Happy trying it out...

Cheers
Miera Nadhirah
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/mieranadhirah
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/mieranadhirah
Facabook: http://www.facebook.com/mieranadhirah
Migme: http://mig.me/u/mieranadhirahdotcom