Let’s celebrate Chinese New Year with ancient Chinese blue-and-white porcelain (青 qīng 花 huā 瓷 cí) art crafts. This beautiful activity can be used with students in elementary, middle school, and high school.

1. Design the Vase:

You can find free vase template printables online and then download and print them out. The samples above used the Chinese New Year Art Project: Chinese Ming Dynasty Vase Art Template from Glitter Meets Glue - Art Projects and Crafts. I liked that it provides 6 different vase shapes and a lot of drawing ideas for kids to choose from. A blue pen or marker is recommended for the students to use for drawing to represent the blue glaze on a traditional blue-and-white porcelain vase from ancient China.

2. Blow Ink to Make Tree Branches:

Put a few blobs of ink on the center of the paper. We recommend using calligraphy ink to give the branches an ancient Chinese painting look. Then, give each student a plastic straw and show them how to spray the ink in different directions to create branches by blowing gently. Remind students that the straw does not need to touch the ink for them to blow. Once students have finished creating branches, they can glue the vase onto the bottom part of the paper.

3. Use Q-Tips for Plum Blossom

Pour small amounts of different colored paints (red, yellow, orange, green) onto a paper plate. Give students Q-tips and demonstrate how to hold it like a paintbrush. Students will gently dip one end into the paint and then carefully dot around the branches to make flowers. Encourage them to change the angle of the Q-tip end and explore different shapes.

4. Add Chinese New Year Blessings

The final touch is to add Chinese New Year auspicious words or phrases to the art pieces. Provide students with markers, calligraphy pens, or traditional brush and ink. Depending on your students’ proficiency in Chinese, you can print out our free Lunar New Year printables on red cardstock paper and have students color in the words, or they can write the blessings themselves. Encourage them to use their imagination and creativity to make their crafts special with the Chinese New Year vibe!