Red envelopes are exchanged during the Lunar New Year as a way to give "lucky money;" the gift symbolizes good wishes for the year ahead. Keep things auspicious by gifting even numbers like $2, $16, $20, $88, avoid any 4s, and always use fresh new bills.

We worked with our close friends and collaborators o.oo to create this set of red envelopes celebrating the Year of the Rabbit. Each set contains 2 each of 3 designs, featuring traditional Lunar New Year iconography and wishes of good fortune.

Inspired by the traditional Lunar New Year craft of Chinese papercutting, the designers hand cut each element from paper before placing them into a modern graphic pattern (like so much confetti falling on a page), then printing them with a risograph machine in their studio in Taipei.

The icons all have symbolic meanings relating to good luck:

Red: a lucky color in Chinese culture and also wards off evil spirits
Rabbit: the zodiac animal of the coming year
Coins and gold ingots: lucky money
Lanterns: for Lantern Festival, celebrated on the last day of the two week Lunar New Year Period
Fireworks: scare away evil spirits
Upside down ‘Spring’ Character: it means "spring has arrived"

And each envelope is adorned with a lucky saying, pertaining especially to the Year of the Rabbit:

金兔報喜: Golden Rabbit Brings Good Tidings
兔然暴富: In The Year of Rabbit Sudden Riches
兔來運轉: May Rabbit Bring a Lucky Break

How It's Made

Risograph printing can be thought of as cross between screen printing and a xerox machine, or digital screen printing. It’s known for the bright and vivid quality of the color, the textured hand of the inks, and its simple printing technology. Though it was originally created as a simple and economic printing method, it has created a culture of experimentation and improvisation among designers. It’s as useful for printing pizza menus as experimental red envelopes.

o.oo are excellent risograph printers and have mastered the art. They even wrote a book about it: No Magic in Riso, which is distributed all over the world.

Design and print by o.oo
Made exclusively for Yun Hai

About o.oo

Taipei-based design studio O.OO is Pip and Forty, two designers dedicated to create designs that are more experimental with the use of Risograph printing technology. The Risograph printing technology has become one of their significant characteristics. In addition to graphic design and Risograph printing, O.OO will create new works and projects from time to time to influence and inspire the design circle in the near future. odotoo.com