Blending in with the locals: Don't wash your clothes or yourself & other Chinese New Year customs

Unless you're invited by local friends, you probably won't feast on a Reunion Dinner tonight to celebrate tomorrow's arrival of the Year of the Rooster. But, "When in Rome.." as they say, it never hurts to be educated on local customs. Or at least understand why your neighbour has been wearing red lipstick for days or hasn't bathed since the New Year started. For a prosperous New Year, read (and follow if you dare) these personal care & beauty customs for Chinese New Year - Gong Xi Fa Chai!

1. Wear red clothes to scare away bad fortune - lipstick will also do!

Red is THE color for Chinese New Year and is worn generously throughout the celebrations. It is believed that red scares away evil spirits and bad fortune and is considered an auspicious color that represents happiness and prosperity. If you're more of a black clothing type (like me), some red lipstick will also do.

BEST PICK: Stay in style and opt for a matte red lipstick, like YSL's Rouge Pure Couture Mat "Rouge Rock" n° 203 (51 SGD - available at a.o. Tangs & Takashimaya)

2. No bath or laundry on the first day of the Chinese New Year!

It is believed that the whole of the next year will be much more prosperous if you make a good start. Although cleaning your house before Chinese New Year is a well-known tradition in South East Asian countries with large Chinese communities, the opposite is true once the new year has commenced and does not only apply to your house but also concerns your personal hygiene. Yes, you read this correctly: no cleaning on the first day, including yourself and your clothes, as cleaning is considered to wash away all the year’s good luck. I'm not sure how local people deal with this, especially given the fact that they visit lost of friends and family during this first day. My guess: loads of perfume.

BEST PICK: Estée Lauder's "Modern Muse Le Rouge Gloss" Eau de Parfum comes in a red flacon, for some extra prosperity. This fruity and sensual fragrance with notes of a.o. Black Cherry, Mandarin, Pink pepper, Jasmin, Vanilla and Patchouli lingers a long time on your skin, so nobody will notice you haven't showered (132 SGD for 50ml - available at a.o. Tangs, Takashimaya & Sephora)

3. Save your Fa: no haircut on the first day of the Chinese New Year!

This won't be too hard as pretty much all stores and salons are closed on the first day of the New Year (at least in Singapore), but in case you cut your own hair or have a hairstylist as a friend that is dying to give you a make-over, think twice. In Chinese, hair is pronounced as “Fa”, which also means prosperity. So if you chop off your strands, you also chop off your Fa, which is particularly believed to symbolise losing money. So just don't. See it as good opportunity to experiment with a new hairdo without a cut!

BEST PICK: Lucido-L's small 20g pots with Non-Sticky Volume Airy Wax, Juicy Moist Wax and Arrange Up Wax are only 4,80 SGD (available at a.o. Guardians & Watsons) - a sweet size and price to experiment with!