A FEW days ago, I visited the hairdresser needing a pre-Chinese New Year trim, and I left with hair so red I’m now afraid to stand next to any Chinese New Year decorations. I went red for a purpose, though.

My hairdresser, Addy Lee, got a fengshui master to indicate the lucky colours to wear for the different animal signs.

I’m a Monkey, and it’s yay to red, yellow and orange and nay to black and green.

I ended up with red via a process of elimination: I won’t be able to rock orange hair, and I’m not a good blond, so red won.

Coincidentally, when I checked with my fengshui expert Brandon Chua, red came up too.

Mr Chua told me that red is always a good colour for the new year.

He said: “Red is the colour for the fire element, which stands for brightness and clarity.”

And if that is too much, try bamboo.

He said: “In Chinese, the word bamboo also means peace and safety.”

This week, I decided it’s time to look at red/pink/orange items that you can carry. It doesn’t have to be things you wear. You could, like me, colour your hair.

Or paint your nails really red or use red lipstick.

Don’t forget the bling

Then there are accessories you can tote, and I’ve included jewellery and lifestyle items too.

If you want to go head-to-toe red, with hair and accessories to match, go ahead and look like a overstuffed hongbao on the first day of Chinese New Year.

People will smile politely and think you’re crazy, but at least they’ll keep it to themselves. It’s not nice to be nasty, after all.

Here are some items you might want to add to your collection, and who knows, they might bring additional blessings.

These headphones are the latest milestone on her road to richdom. The Heartbeats by Lady Gaga headphones are sold out in many countries, but you’ll find them in Singapore. The red ones are adorable. The price: $240. They are available at Audio House, Best Denki and HMV.	To launch its flagship store in Paragon (you can’t miss the facade), Gucci has created a special bag for charity called the Paravanda Frida Boston Bag ($1,280). Here’s the part that will thrill a collector: Only 78 of them are available and each bag has a unique serial number embossed inside. All the proceeds will go to the Mainly I Love Kids (Milk) charity. The bags are available from early next month. Lady GaGa – chief trendsetter in pop culture today – is cashing in.
One of the best ways to wear red is on your finger. This Goldheart Mode cocktail ring ($2,932) is made with coloured gems such as red garnet, pink tourmaline, yellow citrine and, of course, diamonds. While all that red may be auspicious, a sparkly diamond is also good to have. It’s a dazzler! This bold design is bound to get people staring, which may then increase your tao hua yun (Mandarin for luck in love).	If you’re more discreet and wear your red quietly, check out this pendant which is made out of 18K white gold and rose gold, with sapphires, rubies and pink sapphires ($3,430). It is from the Fleurissimo range at March Jewels (#01-08 Clifford Centre). This is an investment piece, which hopefully means that your wealth will increase during the Year of the Tiger.

Don’t you love that some gadgets are so pretty now? This Samsung PL150 camera’s strip of red adds dash to the design. It’s only out at the end of the month, so I can’t comment on how it performs. But it has a Couple Shot feature which snaps a picture when the subjects in the frame tilt their heads towards each other. With this, you’ll be taking lots of photos with your friends and family. The price is yet to be confirmed, but hope it doesn’t stray too far from the $500 mark.

This article was first published in The New Paper.