How To Feng Shui Your Home This New Year
They say bad things happen in threes: you get in an argument with your significant other in the morning, forget the report for your big meeting in the afternoon and get a flat tire on the way home. Could the day get any worse? Like many Americans, you may think this domino effect is just a fluke – that you just had a really bad day. But what if that bad day turns into a bad week, month or even a year? Could something else be to blame?
The topic of positive energy has become quite popular these days and for good reason. A study performed by Dr. Masaru Emoto, a native from Japan, proved the effects of positive verses negative energy on physical molecules. Emoto famously observed that when positive thoughts, words and even music surrounded isolated water, the water’s molecules grew, brightened and crystallized into beautiful symmetrical formations. When negative thoughts, words, and music surrounded the water, it did just the opposite: the water halted development and formed incomplete, asymmetrical patterns with dull colors.
So how do these scientific findings affect the other areas in your life? According to 26 Feng Shui Secrets, feng shui is the ancient Chinese system of aesthetics. It is believed to utilize the laws of both astronomy and geography to help you improve your life by receiving positive qi (pronounced “chi”) or the flow of energy. In other words, the science that everything around you – the furniture, colors and images – in your home can have a positive or negative effect on your life.
If applied with an open-mind and positive intent, some believe that the art of feng shui may actually work with positive energy to make your life and those around you happier, healthier and luckier. Follow these tips and get ready for your best year yet!
1. Clean And De-Clutter
While it may seem obvious, cleaning and getting rid of excess items around the house is one of the quickest and easiest ways to open up the avenues of positive energy into your life. Think about it, when your home, office, and car are clean and organized, you instantly feel relaxed and more able to approach any new task given with a capable and positive attitude. In the world of feng shui, clutter and dust literally block the flow of qi, or positive energy, into your home. Therefore, if your home is cluttered and dusty, you may have feelings of anxiety and unwanted clutter added to your mind, life and ongoing to-do list. The cure? Pull out that mop and Windex, and start a new winter cleaning routine. If you take the time to clean house and rid yourself of unnecessary stressors, you’re bound to feel the difference almost overnight.
2. Color Your World
Color has a profound effect on your well-being. According to feng shui, you can use color to energize, balance or relax yourself, depending on how and where it is being used in a room. The key to colors is to surround yourself with tones in each space that amplify your goals or intentions. For example, if your goal in your bedroom is to feel comfortable and restful, then colors like blue, lavender or yellow are appropriate. On the other hand, if you have a home office where you need to be alert, then colors such as red, orange and white can be energizing. While color guides are helpful, the most important thing is listening to your intuition and noticing how specific colors and tones make you feel and place accordingly.
3. Positive Pictures
Once you have chosen correlating colors to each room’s mood, you can begin to analyze the images and pictures you have hanging on the walls. Like with colors, your internal compass is far more important than following rigid rules. However, according to Feng Shui: Back to Balance by Sally Fretwell, often what you see every day can become a literal window to what you will see in your life. For example, if you have cold, contemporary art with inaccessible items or people, you may begin to feel lonely, unapproachable or cold. Use the images around you as insight into your world, and notice what images you’d like to keep and what images are getting between you and your perfect world. Use your creativity, and choose images that bring you genuine happiness and reflect the life you want to live.
4. Hang Up Mirrors
26 Feng Shui Secrets explains the placement of mirrors in different parts of your home is thought to double the energy of focal points in a room. Mirrors can also repel negative or unharmonious components in a room as well. For instance, it is ideal to place a mirror on the wall directly across from the entrance door to reflect any negative energy from entering into the home. Since mirrors act as a reflection or “double imaging,” mirrors should also be placed to reflect harmonious items in the home, such as plants, symbols of wealth and any heating elements such as a fireplace or candles. This will increase your qi to those items and double your chances of health, wealth and success in the outside world.
5. Power of Plants
Plants play a supportive role in feng shui because they symbolize life and natural energy. Thorny plants are not advised to have in the home because they symbolize negativity and the possibility that you may “prick” those around you. Plants are encouraged in areas of mental stimulation, such as a home office or living room. While it may seem like plants in the bedroom would encourage life, according to 26 Feng Shui Secrets, flowers and plants should be avoided in bedrooms for couples looking to have children. It is quite popular in today’s culture to keep old, dried-out flowers and roses – especially if they were given at a memorable occasion. However, traditional feng shui states that these dead plants can stop the proper flow of qi, bringing about unfavorable surroundings. It is far better to take a photo at the memorable event and frame it in your home than to keep old items that collect dust and interrupt the flow of life.