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Ask an Expert: What You Need to Know About Feng Shui
Curious about feng shui? Read up on the basics of improving energy flow through your house for a happy and harmonious home
The majority of us have heard of feng shui, but do we really understand what it actually is? The term conjures up images of perfectly spaced Chinese cabinets and perhaps a koi carp pond in the garden, but there’s so much more to it than that.
Feng shui masters such as Kay Tom of The Energy Specialist compose calculations based on your home’s floor plan and the location of the property, and factor in astronomical constellations, seasonal changes, and topographical peculiarities in order to determine how to optimise energy flow in your home. 'We work directly with the energy of nature, and we work closely with the seasons,' says Kay. For the average homeowner, all this information can be overwhelming, but it’s easy to incorporate the basic elements of feng shui into your home for a revitalising makeover that will have the good chi (energy) flowing in no time.
‘Feng shui is about common sense,’ says Mathilde Kubisiak of MK Design. A respect for nature and a building’s place within nature are fundamental aspects of this ancient Chinese practice. ‘A building is just as much a living organism as we are,’ says Kay, and therefore must be properly maintained and cared for.
Keeping your home clutter-free and clean are fundamental ways to ensure your surroundings positively affect your mind and body. Mathilde suggests the key places to start are the hall, kitchen and bedroom, but all your rooms can benefit from a few simple changes. The following tips from Houzz professionals specialising in feng shui are a good way to get acquainted with the basics, and bring a breath of fresh air into your rooms.
Professional advice from:
Mathilde Kubisiak, founder of MK Design
Kay Tom, founder of The Energy Specialist
Sophie Watkins, founder of Create Yourself
Feng shui masters such as Kay Tom of The Energy Specialist compose calculations based on your home’s floor plan and the location of the property, and factor in astronomical constellations, seasonal changes, and topographical peculiarities in order to determine how to optimise energy flow in your home. 'We work directly with the energy of nature, and we work closely with the seasons,' says Kay. For the average homeowner, all this information can be overwhelming, but it’s easy to incorporate the basic elements of feng shui into your home for a revitalising makeover that will have the good chi (energy) flowing in no time.
‘Feng shui is about common sense,’ says Mathilde Kubisiak of MK Design. A respect for nature and a building’s place within nature are fundamental aspects of this ancient Chinese practice. ‘A building is just as much a living organism as we are,’ says Kay, and therefore must be properly maintained and cared for.
Keeping your home clutter-free and clean are fundamental ways to ensure your surroundings positively affect your mind and body. Mathilde suggests the key places to start are the hall, kitchen and bedroom, but all your rooms can benefit from a few simple changes. The following tips from Houzz professionals specialising in feng shui are a good way to get acquainted with the basics, and bring a breath of fresh air into your rooms.
Professional advice from:
Mathilde Kubisiak, founder of MK Design
Kay Tom, founder of The Energy Specialist
Sophie Watkins, founder of Create Yourself
Nurture your kitchen
‘The kitchen is considered the heart of the home. It generates the energy for the whole house,’ Kay explains. ‘A healthy kitchen is a clean kitchen, so surfaces must be washed and clutter-free.’ The kitchen should be an inviting place, and all the appliances must be in good working order.
Sophie explains that, if possible, the kitchen sink and the hob should not be facing each other. The sink represents the water element, while the cooker represents fire. ‘Fire and water will clash,’ Sophie says. ‘If the sink and cooker are too close, they can cause arguments in the house,’ Kay explains.
Also, since the kitchen is responsible for the creation and maintenance of wealth, it’s important the kitchen, or at the very least the cooker, is not be visible from the front door. ‘Otherwise you’re exposing your finances,’ Kay warns.
‘The kitchen is considered the heart of the home. It generates the energy for the whole house,’ Kay explains. ‘A healthy kitchen is a clean kitchen, so surfaces must be washed and clutter-free.’ The kitchen should be an inviting place, and all the appliances must be in good working order.
Sophie explains that, if possible, the kitchen sink and the hob should not be facing each other. The sink represents the water element, while the cooker represents fire. ‘Fire and water will clash,’ Sophie says. ‘If the sink and cooker are too close, they can cause arguments in the house,’ Kay explains.
Also, since the kitchen is responsible for the creation and maintenance of wealth, it’s important the kitchen, or at the very least the cooker, is not be visible from the front door. ‘Otherwise you’re exposing your finances,’ Kay warns.
Strive for serene symmetry in the bedroom
The bedroom is important, since it’s a space of relaxation, regeneration and reconnection. ‘Symmetry is important if you want a balanced relationship,’ Mathilde says.
The bed should be accessible from both sides, otherwise one partner may feel pushed against the wall. This detail also applies to single homeowners – equality and balance are important in all of our personal relationships. The more symmetrical the space, the better. Mathilde suggests choosing matching bedside tables and lamps.
As with any room, the bedroom should be well-ventilated, so energy flows freely.
The bedroom is important, since it’s a space of relaxation, regeneration and reconnection. ‘Symmetry is important if you want a balanced relationship,’ Mathilde says.
The bed should be accessible from both sides, otherwise one partner may feel pushed against the wall. This detail also applies to single homeowners – equality and balance are important in all of our personal relationships. The more symmetrical the space, the better. Mathilde suggests choosing matching bedside tables and lamps.
As with any room, the bedroom should be well-ventilated, so energy flows freely.
Keep clutter at bay
Since your bedroom is a space for resting, clutter should be removed from sight. Again, the placement of mirrors is important. ‘A mirror will reflect what it sees, so if you have a mirror that reflects clutter, the clutter will double in your life,’ says Mathilde.
Browse creative de-cluttering solutions for your bedroom
Since your bedroom is a space for resting, clutter should be removed from sight. Again, the placement of mirrors is important. ‘A mirror will reflect what it sees, so if you have a mirror that reflects clutter, the clutter will double in your life,’ says Mathilde.
Browse creative de-cluttering solutions for your bedroom
Be aware that location matters
Feng shui practitioners first study a building’s floor plan. ‘The best floor plan is in the shape of a square or rectangle,’ says Sophie. However, not all properties conform to this. A feng shui consultant will advise you on how best to counteract the property’s shape by harnessing the energies of the five vital elements: wood, fire, earth, metal and water.
The location of your home’s rooms within the property is also crucial. Sophie explains that she will divide a property into nine spaces representing eight directions, with ‘each direction representing a person in the house, a part of your body, and your own personal life’. For example, the southeast governs your wealth and your career, and needs to incorporate a strong wood presence. ‘You can do something as simple as adding a wooden panel or carving into that space,’ she says, like the wooden bedhead in this image.
Feng shui practitioners first study a building’s floor plan. ‘The best floor plan is in the shape of a square or rectangle,’ says Sophie. However, not all properties conform to this. A feng shui consultant will advise you on how best to counteract the property’s shape by harnessing the energies of the five vital elements: wood, fire, earth, metal and water.
The location of your home’s rooms within the property is also crucial. Sophie explains that she will divide a property into nine spaces representing eight directions, with ‘each direction representing a person in the house, a part of your body, and your own personal life’. For example, the southeast governs your wealth and your career, and needs to incorporate a strong wood presence. ‘You can do something as simple as adding a wooden panel or carving into that space,’ she says, like the wooden bedhead in this image.
Welcome in the sun
‘If we think of the cycle of the sun, the sun rises in the east, and therefore contains the most vital energy of the day,’ Kay explains. You should identify the eastern sector of your home and make sure it’s clutter-free, so the fresh energy can enter your home in an unobstructed way.
‘If there’s a window in the east, I would encourage that window to be left open as often as possible to bring in the rising chi,’ Kay says.
‘If we think of the cycle of the sun, the sun rises in the east, and therefore contains the most vital energy of the day,’ Kay explains. You should identify the eastern sector of your home and make sure it’s clutter-free, so the fresh energy can enter your home in an unobstructed way.
‘If there’s a window in the east, I would encourage that window to be left open as often as possible to bring in the rising chi,’ Kay says.
Wind down in the west
The west, on the other hand, is a space for relaxation and reflection, since the sun goes down in this direction. ‘That’s where I would put the seating area,’ Kay says.
The west is also an important area for making plans and reflecting on the day. The closer your home and your habits mimic the cycle of the sun, the better. ‘It’s all about appreciating and following nature’s example,’ Kay concludes.
The west, on the other hand, is a space for relaxation and reflection, since the sun goes down in this direction. ‘That’s where I would put the seating area,’ Kay says.
The west is also an important area for making plans and reflecting on the day. The closer your home and your habits mimic the cycle of the sun, the better. ‘It’s all about appreciating and following nature’s example,’ Kay concludes.
Celebrate water
A body of water, such as a fountain or pond, is a great way of incorporating the water element into your home, and can enhance areas representing wealth. However, the position of this water source must be carefully planned.
‘I would never set up water in the west, because the west includes the metal and earth elements, which absorb the water,’ Sophie explains.
Instead, the best places for water are in the northeast, the east, the southeast, and the south.
A body of water, such as a fountain or pond, is a great way of incorporating the water element into your home, and can enhance areas representing wealth. However, the position of this water source must be carefully planned.
‘I would never set up water in the west, because the west includes the metal and earth elements, which absorb the water,’ Sophie explains.
Instead, the best places for water are in the northeast, the east, the southeast, and the south.
Be green in the bathroom
You can apply some basic feng shui concepts to your bathroom, too.
Kay explains that bathrooms usually drain significant amounts of energy (with all that flushing going on) so must be properly looked after.
‘The bathroom has the responsibility of eliminating the old energy,’ she says. Since the bathroom is also an area that relies on water energy, it’s important to conserve that water as effectively as possible, both materially and spiritually.
‘Green is a very good colour for the bathroom, because it can stop the water energy from leaving too quickly,’ Kay says. Since water is associated with finances, you don’t want your money to be flushed away too quickly. The colour green, which represents wood, ‘takes up some of the water and helps lock the finances’.
And finally, in a move that will potentially eliminate all domestic disputes regarding closed versus opened toilet seats, Kay says that seats should always remained closed. ‘Keep the toilet seat closed because otherwise it flushes away the energy and drains your finances.’ Not a bad argument at all.
TELL US…
Have you used elements of feng shui in the design of your home? Share your thoughts and photos in the Comments below.
You can apply some basic feng shui concepts to your bathroom, too.
Kay explains that bathrooms usually drain significant amounts of energy (with all that flushing going on) so must be properly looked after.
‘The bathroom has the responsibility of eliminating the old energy,’ she says. Since the bathroom is also an area that relies on water energy, it’s important to conserve that water as effectively as possible, both materially and spiritually.
‘Green is a very good colour for the bathroom, because it can stop the water energy from leaving too quickly,’ Kay says. Since water is associated with finances, you don’t want your money to be flushed away too quickly. The colour green, which represents wood, ‘takes up some of the water and helps lock the finances’.
And finally, in a move that will potentially eliminate all domestic disputes regarding closed versus opened toilet seats, Kay says that seats should always remained closed. ‘Keep the toilet seat closed because otherwise it flushes away the energy and drains your finances.’ Not a bad argument at all.
TELL US…
Have you used elements of feng shui in the design of your home? Share your thoughts and photos in the Comments below.
Mathilde likens the entrance of the home to the mouth of a person. ‘All the energy enters your house through this place,’ she says. Kay adds: ‘If the front door isn’t healthy, the house isn’t healthy.’ So it’s important your hallway is clean, well-lit and clutter-free so chi can flow in freely.
‘Once energy gets in, it has to flow around the house,’ Kay says. Shiny surfaces and objects, such as crystals, glass and mirrors, help to move the energy around.
However, Mathilde advises against placing mirrors right in front of the door. ‘A mirror in the entrance will reflect everything that comes in back out,’ meaning that good energy from outside won’t have a chance of even entering your home. In fact, mirrors facing doors should be avoided in all parts of the home for that very reason.
Also avoid lining up a staircase with a front door. ‘The energy will leave your house too quickly,’ says Sophie Watkins of Create Yourself. For the same reason, you also don’t want the main door to align with the back door.’
Discover 10 ways to de-clutter your hallway