New Year's Eve custom: These 5 alternatives are much better than pouring lead

The New Year's Eve custom of pouring lead has been banned for several years. Instead, you can try our 5 alternatives and predict what 2025 will be like.

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What will 2025 be like? Is there luck in love and money or is bad luck following you? Lead casting has been banned for several years, but with these original alternatives you can still take a look into the future on New Year's Eve.

What do your stars say for next year?

Why was lead casting banned?

The classic lead casting sets have no longer been available for purchase in stores since 2018. The reason for this: In 2018, the European Union set a new limit value for lead in products in its chemicals regulation. And for good reason. When the toxic heavy metal is heated, lead oxides are formed, which can be inhaled. The toxic metal can also get into the mouth by touching the lead figures - especially in children.

But you don't have to give up your traditions - there are lots of fun alternatives to the classic!

1. Wax casting, dough casting, tin casting

If you miss the classic lead casting, you don't have to be sad - you can melt and pour lots of other (non-toxic) things and use them to make oracles for the New Year.

The alternative that comes closest to lead casting isTin casting. Even the sets with the figurines and the spoon look very similar to the lead casting classic. The big advantage: tin is non-toxic and melts even faster than lead.You can buy a tin casting set on Amazon* here.

Also popular for a look into the futureWax casting. There are special sets with wax blanks that can be purchased commercially for this purpose. You can also simply melt leftover wax from candles on a spoon, pour it into the water and use the resulting patterns and shapes to interpret your future.

It is definitely the tastiest alternative to lead castingPouring dough! To do this, mix 1 egg, 50 ml milk and 80 g flour into a dough. Heat oil in a large pot and add small pieces of dough with a spoon. After a few seconds, take out the fried dough and start cooking on it.

2. The Nutshell Oracle

The nutshell oracle is a little more child-friendly than hot wax or oil. To do this, fill a large bowl with water and build small boats out of the shells of halved walnuts. You can paint them, fill them with a candle or make a small flag for them.

What's missing now are some clothespins and pieces of paper on which you can write down things you want for next year. Attach the wishes to the edge of the bowl with the clips and place the nutshells in the water.

Now it's time to ship ahoy! Stir the water slightly so that the boats start moving and watch to see what wish the nutshell is heading for in 2025.

Reading tips:

3. The delicious gummy bear oracle

Do you want to know what the new year has in store for you? Then take a look into the future with the gummy bear oracle. All you need is one (or two, three, four) bags of gummy bears and a large bowl.

Take turns drawing 5 gummy bears with your eyes closed. Then you can start interpreting. It depends on the color and frequency of the candy pulled.

  • A single red bear, for example, represents energy and strength.
  • Whoever draws three red bears can look forward to a new love in 2025.
  • Orange stands for humor and new contacts.
  • Yellow for success in career.
  • White means you have to be prepared for deception.
  • Depending on how many you have drawn, green can represent trust or order in life.

If you want to know exactly, you can get instructions with all the meanings of gummy bearsAmazon* buy. Or you can simply think about what each color stands for!

Credit:Getty Images

4. Place homemade oracle cards

Not just with tarot cards (like these fromAmazon*) you can have the future predicted. Simply make your own oracle cards.

Here you can let your creative side run wild. Draw or paint your own cards on thick craft cardboard, cut them out and write a saying on the back. For example: “You will go on an important trip next year” or “Three men come into your life.”

It will be especially fun if you let your children design a few of the cards, because as the saying goes: “Children’s mouths tell the truth”!

If you don't want to do a lot of crafting, you can simply find several postcards with different motifs and label them with a prophecy. On New Year's Eve, take turns drawing one of the cards or place it under the plate of each of your guests as a surprise.

5. Chinese fortune cookies

Another classic that cannot be missed on New Year's Eve: the fortune cookie! It's a lot of fun to open the cookies together and think together about what meaning the (sometimes cryptic) text inside might have.

Our tip:and fills them with very personal or funny sayings. The recipe isn't that difficult, just folding the cookies takes a little practice.