It’s Lunar New Year this Wednesday (kicking off a 15-day spring festival) and, in advance of the holiday, we have put together a festive (and very pretty) list of our Top 5 luxury items that would make a great gift for someone special in your life.

With the Lunar New Year 2025 signifying the arrival of the Year of the Snake, many brands have incorporated the reptile motif into their limited edition gift items, be it in packaging or on the item itself. In many cases, the brands collaborated with renowned artists to reflect the design in this creative way.

In all products, the unifying factor, however, is the presence of deep red: a colour widely associated with Lunar New Year, due to its representation of energy, vitality, celebration and good luck.

Here are our Top 5 picks, in no particular order.

SKINCARE: Clé de Peau Beauté’s limited edition Eye Contour Cream Supreme

This is one of Clé de Peau Beauté’s bestsellers and it’s now available in an exclusive, limited edition, Lunar New Year design! 

Eye Contour Cream Supreme is a high-performance eye cream formulated to powerfully re-contour and rejuvenate the eye area. This luxurious product delivers immediate results that progress day by day, diminishing the appearance of fine lines, deep wrinkles and under-eye darkness. This skincare changer is powered by Retinol ACE to combat the appearance of lines and wrinkles, as well as Lempuyang Extract to support skin’s actin fibres, the key to a firmer, more youthful-looking eye area. Meanwhile, the Citrus Unshiu Peel Extract visibly brightens the skin around the eye area. With continued use, skin appears firmer, lifted and plumped for eyes that look bright, youthful and fully awake.

For Lunar New Year 2025, the brand collaborated with renowned Chinese enamel artist Li Pei Qing. His design for the cream’s packaging features intricate, expertly detailed motifs inspired by the Chinese zodiac sign for 2025, symbolizing wealth and happiness. 

And, since the bottle is refillable, you can keep it as long as you like, way past the festive season!

Retailing for $365.

FASHION: Sézane’s Claude Bag in Icy Carmine Red

If your gift recipient is someone who loves fashion, we recommend opting for Sézane, the first French fashion brand born online. 

The Claude Bag is expertly crafted in the brand’s Italian workshop. Available in 14 colours and with the Lunar New Year in mind, we recommend the Icy Carmine Red style. With stylish shape and signature clasp, it will never leave your shoulder this season and would look fantastic with any outfit: whether it’s a complement or a contrast accessory. The best part? Claude is bigger than it looks, and the perfect size to carry books or notebooks.

The design is smart: think smooth patent-effect leather exterior, cotton lining, a longer strap that sits at 52 cm (20.5 in) and a leather handle that is adjustable with press-stud. The inner zipped pocket and patch pocket offer more room for storage if you’re constantly on the go.

You can also make Claude truly unique with Sézane’s complimentary monogramming atelier! On this model, gold stamping is done on the back of the bag. You can add your or a loved one’s initials (3 characters maximum), or choose to continue without personalization when adding this piece to your basket.

Retailing for $645.

HOUSEHOLD & BEVERAGES: Nespresso’s Lunar New Year range

Well-known for its colourful and joyful collections, Nespresso introduced a number of limited edition items for Lunar New Year this year.  

The Lunar New Year Gift Sets include a coffee assortment (for Vertuo or Original), a set of two Limited-Edition Gran Lungo cups, an exclusive Tote bag and a set of 5 red envelopes. 

If you have a coffee lover in your life (or you happen to be one yourself, or both), this is the ultimate gift choice. The Limited Edition Gran Lungo cups (ca. 270 ml) from the Lume Collection are elegant and pretty, adorned with beautiful floral designs. This set of two red glossy porcelain cups, imagined by Milanese designer Federica Biasi, brings a modern twist to traditional Italian barista know-how. The intricate floral designs on the cups symbolize the renewal of the new year, making them a perfect addition to your Lunar New Year celebrations. The sleek design combines dense porcelain with a linear look, adding a touch of elegance to your coffee experience and putting coffee traditions in a new light.

We recommend pairing the cups with the limited edition tote, red envelopes and the Vertuo Pop+ in Spicy Red colour, for a lovely colour pop in your kitchen!

Retailing for a total of $271.

HAIRCARE: Oribe’s Lunar New Year limited edition gift sets

We’ve professed our love to Oribe’s limited edition holiday gift sets before, and this Lunar New Year is no exception. With the Year of the Snake fast approaching, Oribe’s limited-edition release is a collaboration with the celebrated artist and textile designer Chris Chun, who brings his signature style to these gift sets. Chun has crafted captivating boxes that echo the strength and resilience of the snake through intricate and symbolic designs. Each collection offers some of Oribe’s most beloved products, tailored to bring strength, volume and vitality to hair. 

The Magnificent Volume Collection Set features the Shampoo and Conditioner from the Magnificent Volume line. This duo adds uplifting volume and thickness, to leave hair full, lush and strong. This set also includes the Maximista Thickening Spray that helps the hair expand to its absolute fullest, with enduring lift and hold.

Meanwhile, the Hair Alchemy Liter Set features the mega, 1L-sized Hair Alchemy Resilience Shampoo and Conditioner. These products penetrate the hair cortex to build strength from within, while creating a protective shield around strands for smooth, strong, ultra-resilient hair. The sculpted bottles can also be refilled to reuse.

Retailing for a total of $507.

A SPECIAL TOAST: Johnnie Walker’s limited edition Blue Label whisky

Once again this year, Johnnie Walker has teamed up with the visionary artist James Jean to unveil an exclusive limited edition design for the Blue Label range that’s bound to captivate both whisky connoisseurs and art aficionados alike.  

The design of the Johnnie Walker Blue Label Year of the Snake Limited Edition celebrates a blend of tradition and innovation, symbolizing Lunar New Year’s themes of transformation, wisdom and self-reinvention. This second collaboration between Jean and Johnnie Walker features three snakes shedding their skins amidst vibrant flowers. 

Inside the bottle is a rare blend made using some of the most sought after whiskies from the unparalleled Johnnie Walker reserves of maturing Scotch. This includes irreplaceable casks sourced from long-closed “ghost” distilleries. This iconic whisky features a mellow nose with almost no prickle. It has a velvety mouth-feel, with hazelnut, rose petal, sherry and orange flavours. 

Retailing for $419.95 (price may vary across Canada).

Images courtesy of each brand.