New YearAnimated

Plum Blossom

Plum blossoms on an ink-drawn branch before a red rising sun

An ink-drawn plum branch grows across a cream washi card, and its white and red blossoms open one by one before the year’s first red sunrise. Bands of gold mist and flecks of gold leaf shimmer all around.

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New Year

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About this design

Plum Blossom draws an ink plum branch across a cream washi card, and its white and red blossoms open one by one before the first red sunrise of the year. Bands of gold mist and flecks of gold leaf shimmer around them.

Plum trees flower at the very end of winter, often through the cold, so they have long stood for resilience and a fresh start in East Asian art. The design echoes traditional Japanese New Year cards and suits anyone who prefers calm beauty to fireworks.

The washi texture and the hand-drawn ink branch give the card the feel of a traditional brush painting. In Japan the first sunrise of the year, hatsuhinode, is a moment of hope and fresh resolutions, which suits a card wishing someone well for the year ahead.

When to send it

Japanese New Year greetings (nengajō-style)
Lunar New Year wishes for those who love plum blossoms
A calm, elegant Happy New Year for colleagues and clients
Encouragement for someone who has had a hard winter

Messages that suit this design

Happy New Year! Thank you for your kindness this past year, and I look forward to another year together.
Like the plum blossom in the cold, may this year bring quiet strength and new beginnings.
Wishing you health, peace and many small joys in the year ahead.
A new year, a first sunrise and a branch in bloom. All the best to you and your family.
May the year ahead be gentle and bright, like the first sunrise. Happy New Year.

Make it yours

Short, formal New Year wishes suit this design best. If you’re writing in Japanese, the text is revealed with a brush-pen effect that matches the ink branch; the soft music box is gentle enough for colleagues and clients.

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