Feng Shui Your House

I am by no means a Feng Shui expert, but here are some of the primary Feng Shui principles to guaranty good energy flow throughout your house!

The Front Door. The front door represents our relationship with the world and guides incoming feng shui energy into the house. 

What is the first thing you see when you walk towards your front door? Is there an overgrown bush in the way? A recycling bin? Are the numbers to your home clear? Do you use your front door as the primary entry?

One of the feng shui principles holds that energy (or Chi) prefers to enter through the front door if invited. When you walk in your front door, where do you feel your attention (or the energy) flows to right away? Is it reflected (back out of the house) from a mirror facing the front door? Does it go straight through the front door to a back door? Consider moving the mirror to a different wall, or placing a plant or bookshelf as a barrier to prevent the energy from flowing straight out of the back door.

If you don’t use your front door as your main entry, consider opening it every day, or installing a storm door to let energy and light in.  Spruce up your front stairs or porch with plants, a fresh wreath, or a new outdoor light fixture.

What is the first thing you see once you open the door? Is there a pile of shoes in the foyer, or keys and mail tossed onto a table? Does the door even open all the way or does it hit a pile of coats? The wider we can open our front door, we are opening ourselves to allow unlimited resources and opportunities into our lives. If you have clutter in the way, find a space for it with designated baskets, hooks, or cubbies.

The Feng Shui Trinity. A good feng shui house has good feng shui anchored in its main energy centers – the bedroom, the kitchen and the bathroom. Keep good quality energy in these three rooms and good feng shui will flow through the rest of the house. 

For good feng shui, the energy has to be attracted into the house and channeled through all rooms, most importantly the three major “trinity” rooms.

Living Room – Ideally, the sofa should be farthest from and facing the entry, against a wall, leaving a few inches of space between the sofa and the wall. If you don’t have a wall, put a sturdy console table behind the sofa, and a mirror facing the sofa so you can see behind you. Make sure each seat has a nearby surface to place a book or a drink. Try a round coffee table instead of a square or rectangular one, which point harsh angles at people. This doesn’t mean use only circles everywhere. Squares represent earth; round shapes represent metal; rectangles, wood; and triangles, fire. Try to incorporate a mixture of all of these elements throughout.

Kitchen – The first rule of the kitchen is to keep down clutter! Kitchens are magnets for clutter, so be disciplined as to where items are thrown after work and school, which appliances need to always stay on the counter, and how many things need to be displayed on the refrigerator door. Overall, the kitchen should be bright, airy and open. If you are building or renovating a home, the kitchen should not be placed in the middle. The stove is best located where the cook can see the rest of the room (i.e., an island stove). If you can’t move the stove, consider putting a mirror or reflective tile behind it.  Keep the sink and fridge away from the stove as these are water elements and the stove is -obviously- fire. Herbs and potted plants in the kitchen are good too, the color green symbolizes the wood element, and supports the existing  fire and water elements.

Bedroom –  In feng shui, there are private (yin) spaces, like bedrooms, and public (yang) spaces, like living rooms. A TV in a public space is OK. What does this mean? No television in the bedroom! Place the bed farthest from the door but not opposite. There should also be space on either side of the bed, not pushed into a corner. The decor should balance masculine and feminine – perhaps a sturdy wooden bed frame with a feminine duvet cover. Lastly, don’t use under the bed as a storage area – clutter under the bed will mess with energy flow.

Quality of Feng Shui Energy. A good feng shui house is nourished by fresh, clear and freely flowing energy. There is no stagnant, old or blocked energy anywhere in the house. Use mirrors and living things to keep good energy flowing. 

This is where the feng shui bagua, or energy map, comes into play. Use this to create a foundation of strong feng shui in your house. Get into good habits of keeping the energy fresh and flowing; constantly change and edit what items need to come and go.

Get rid of clutter, clean out closets, and make sure any decor items express happy, meaningful energy. It’s important to surround yourself with beauty and items with meaning. A mirror can help recirculate energy and enhance natural light, and living things -such as plants or fish- enhance energy and slow down any overstimulated Chi.

For more on feng shui, check out one of my favorite blogs, Feng Shui Dana.