Q & A: Seashells
Q. I just have a quick question. I have read The Western Guide to Feng Shui and have tried to implement it around my house. My only problem is that I have a couple of favorite items and I don’t know where they belong in the element table. I’ve been collecting shells and sand from overseas beach visits. Does the sand belong to the Earth or Metal element and do the shells belong to the Fire, Metal or Water element….or am I totally confusing myself? lol Thanks for your help!! —Kelly B.
Read MoreQ & A: Bagua Outside Spaces
Q. We built an addition onto our house, and now we are missing part of the love & marriage corner and a big part of the wealth & prosperity corner. Since we are more busy and more broke than we have ever been, please let me know if you have any suggestions!
Thank you for your time,
Elizabeth C.
Q. Help… My house is missing its wealth and prosperity corner… it is outside the house. My house is a perfect rectangle but has a large “carport” type patio on the back for 2/3 of it. So, the patio would take up the l/m and the fame area but stops at the w/p area… it is just a mud swamp over there… eventually we will add on a perfect rectangle… but for now it is missing… please help me… what can I do for this? Thank you
Claudia L.
A. Dear Elizabeth & Claudia,
I find that it isn’t so much that the Bagua area is outdoors, it’s that the area isn’t well-defined. It lacks the pleasing physicality that attracts and contains the vital energy needed to nurture the area. So ladies, time to get out there and define the space! I share many ideas on how to do this in The
Western Guide to Feng Shui, Room by Room on page 32. For instance, a beautiful piece of garden statuary , bench, and/or large birdbath can be used to define the corner of the Wealth & Prosperity area. Add more visual appeal with accents such as potted plants, flower beds, or other plantings. Define the “floor” and make pathways with bark chips, mulch, or slate. .The Love and Marriage Bagua area is a great spot for “twosomes.” 2 chairs, 2 trees, a bench built for 2. Create a space that attracts you to it! Enhance these outdoor spaces so that they become wonderful visual and/or literal destinations. And please keep me posted on your results!
Terah
Q & A: Love Birds
Q. I was wondering where to place love birds in our home?
A. Well, of course, the answer we want to hear is to place love birds in the Love and Marriage gua, either of the house , or of an individual room bagua. What an enchanting enhancement for that gua, provided, of course, that the two birds really do love each other, are both in great health, and their cage is spacious and LOVINGLY well kept. However, I can also see some strong reasons for NOT locating them there. The better answer is completely dependent on each home’s unique layout and family energetics.
Here are some of the issues we would address before settling on the location best suited to the love birds:
Where do they truly enhance both the home’s energy and their own? Since any living, moving, talkative pet commands attention, a living room, family room, large kitchen, or other spacious public room would allow for a balance between their liveliness and one’s ability to focus on other activities. The birds would blend in there, among several wonderful ch’i filled activities. They would also be well fed by the more frequent attention they might receive. But do they make it too active in those areas, bordering on chaos? I have been in homes where the giant messy cage and noisy bird dominates any and all conversation or contemplation! (Sometimes a separate “aviary” room close to an outside patio is a wonderful solution for that situation.)
In contrast, our love birds’ placement in a smaller, quieter room would mean that they would become the main focal point, as they would be the most active thing in the smaller Yin rooms. This could be a desirable ch’i boost in those spots, if the birds were visited often enough to feel loved and included in the family’s life, and if they did not distract from the necessary activities of that room. For instance, caged birds in a bedroom might disturb sleep, and the cage would need to be kept spotlessly clean so that odors or seed debris did not soil the smaller space.
We often see children’s smaller caged pets housed in their rooms, and they make wonderful companions for them for awhile, as long as they are well-cared for. Small pets allow the child to create a living microcosm in their own small room, and do truly feed their intellects and hearts, connecting the child to all other species.
So, you can see that no matter where we might place those love birds, there are plusses and minuses to consider in any location. We wouldn’t want to see them placed purely for gua enhancement or 5 element balance (Fire) without regard for their health and well-being, or our own. It might even be best for them if they had more than one placement to enjoy within the home–a bright, fresh-air daytime location and a cozy, night sleeping area, for example. Their delightful power to enhance ch’i springs directly from how well kept and happy they are, so make them an honored part of the family, rather than an object in service to the Bagua. Hope this helps–Happy Spring! Karen Carrasco, WSFS Presenter
Read MoreLooking for a Feng Shui Consultant?
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Read MoreOffice Feng Shui – Furnishings
Feng Shui maintains that you can reduce work-related stress and irritability by choosing the right furniture. One important rule of thumb is to choose furniture with rounded corners, even when the overall shape is square or rectangular. When you must include an item that has sharp corners such as a filing cabinet, make sure to place it away from the room’s traffic flow, or store it in a closet.
Most people work best on a surface where white paper contrasts “just right.” Paper tends to disappear on pure white surfaces and contrast too dramatically on black surfaces, and either extreme can cause eyestrain. Clear glass desks seem to disappear beneath paper, which can also strain the eyes. Most wooden or medium-toned surfaces provide the right amount of contrast without causing visual strain.
When choosing a desk chair, select only the best. Your capacity to produce and prosper is considerably enhanced by a great desk chair. Treat yourself to an ergonomically correct chair that has features such as excellent lumbar support and adjustable height. And always test drive a chair before you buy it—that’s the only way to know if you’ve truly found the right one for your body.
Consider the other furnishings you’d like in your office. Perhaps a comfortable reading chair or couch would be the perfect place to open mail, return phone calls, and receive visitors. Or, you may need a conference table or other work surface in addition to your desk. And every office needs storage…lots of storage! Being organized in your office is not an option – it’s mandatory. If your office has a closet, outfit it from top to bottom with shelves, built-in filing cabinets, and drawers. Or purchase furnishings that specifically meet your work-related storage needs such as a cabinet, armoire, or credenza.
Office Feng Shui – Desk Placement
No matter where your home office is located in the house, space planning is key. Of primary importance is the placement of your desk (or primary work surface) in the room. The ideal spot is where you have a direct or peripheral view of the door(s) from your chair, a pleasant view out a window, and a solid wall behind you.
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