By: Honorary Reporter Jean Lee C. Balatico from the Philippines
Photo = Jean Lee C. Balatico

Seollal (Lunar New Year) is one of the two biggest holidays in Korea. Koreans traditionally visit their hometowns and perform rituals with their relatives, and later catch up over huge meals.

Last year, I got a taste of celebrating Seollal in the Philippines through making traditional Korean crafts thanks to a kit from the Korean Cultural Center in Taguig.

Below are the traditional crafts I made.

Traditional fan 

Just two materials are needed to paint a traditional fan: the fan and colored markers. I found this an enjoyable activity because I got to decide what colors to use. I also jotted down my Seollal wishes on the left corner.

Hanbok keyring
Koreans wear the traditional costume Hanbok on Seollal. I made a lovely Hanbok keyring. My mom sewed the Hanbok for me because she's way better at sewing than me.  

Hangeul eraser stamp

This was challenging because I had to carve the eraser perfectly. Carving a Hangeul eraser stamp reminded me of the Netflix hit series "Squid Game." This was similar to the dalgona (sugar honeycomb candy) challenge shown in the drama. The letters I carved were na (나), which means "me," and neo (너), which means "you."

Flower mirror

The flowers in the kit were real and personally handpicked. It was challenging to make the mirror because the flowers were delicate but I was happy with the outcome of my creativity.

enny0611@korea.kr

*This article is written by a Korea.net Honorary Reporter. Our group of Honorary Reporters are from all around the world, and they share with Korea.net their love and passion for all things Korean.