The Xiaonian Festival is a traditional Chinese festival; Due to different customs in different places, the date of the Xiaonian Festival is different. In northern China, the Xiaonian Festival is on the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month; in the south, it is on the 24th day of the twelfth lunar month. It is the beginning of the Spring Festival celebrations.

There are many customs in addition to offering sacrifices to the Kitchen God on the Xiaonian Festival, such as house cleaning, pasting paper-cuts to windows, bathing and hair-cutting, and preparations for Spring Festival. The Xiaonian Festival is the prelude to the Spring Festival. This period is called "the day of welcoming spring" in folklore.

House Cleaning
From the Laba Festival to the Xiaonian Festival, families throughout China undertake a thorough house cleaning, sweeping out the old in preparation for the New Year.

Pasting Paper-Cuts to Windows
In the Little New Year, old couplets and paper-cuts from the previous Spring Festival are taken down, and new window decorations, New Year's posters, and auspicious decorations are pasted up. 

(By Yang Jiming/Qi Qian)