CREATE CALM with feng shui
Given how stressful our daily lives can be with hectic work and social schedules, it’s important to have a calm place to unwind – say, your own home? Whether or not we have enjoyed the forced slowdown in recent months, now may be the time to consider how your living spaces may be impacting your feelings of calm and inner peace.
Thanks to the feng shui method, you can transform your home into the ultimate serene space.
What is feng shui?
Put simply, feng shui is a Chinese practice that aims to balance and align energies in your home – or any other space, such as your office – and life, in order to positively reflect your emotions and aspirations.
“[It aims to] bring wealth, health and longevity for the occupants,” explains feng shui master Edgar Lok Tin Yung.
How do you feng shui a space?
According to home feng shui, your bedroom, bathroom and kitchen all weigh on your health and wellbeing
“The general rule of thumb in applying feng shui to the kitchen is to avoid using too much of the colour red in the room,” explains Lok Tin Yung.
Red is believed to create an imbalance and can be translated as having authoritative associations. Soft colours such as light greens, blues and greys, along with materials such as wood and metal, are more in line with the feng shui elements – water, metal, fire, wood and earth.
White is often seen as a tranquil colour, but in feng shui it’s often looked at as ‘sharp’. So, if you want to go for white, try a darker off-white and mix it with other neutral textures like a jute rug and furry throw.
These hues are also welcome additions to areas where you unwind, such as your bedroom, bathroom and living room.
Furniture placement is also crucial. “In the bedroom, the bed needs to obey the configuration of the room and the bed head should not rest against windows unless it’s
a window that ends higher than the bed head,” says Lok Tin Yung. “Items of furniture that are too big or too small can affect the yin-yang balance in the home.”
In your living area, the sofa should be pushed up against a wall and there should be a mix of different shaped furniture – such as a round coffee table, a rectangular couch and a square side table – to maintain that balance.
Placing a lamp in the corner of your living area opposite its entry also encourages the flow of wealth. Make sure the furniture matches the scale of your room.
In your dining space, placing a large mirror reflecting your table is said to bring good fortune and abundance. Just hang it slightly higher up from direct eye line so people aren’t staring at themselves over dinner!
It’s also bad feng shui to have kitchen and bathroom doors or entrances facing each other, as it’s said the energies flow in and out faster. This goes for your front and back doors, too.
Remove clutter from all areas in your home – think benchtops, tables and shelving – and allow as much natural light as possible.
Having fresh flowers, plants and even bowls of fruit attract positive energy for good health.
Crystals, including chandeliers, also provide great feng shui as their reflective surfaces make a space feel calmer.
What are the benefits?
“Recently published research by HSBC revealed that more than two in five of Australians believe implementing feng shui principles in the home leads to improved health and wellbeing, and one in five believe this increases longevity,” says Lok Tin Yung.
While there might not be any science to show the physical or environmental benefits of feng shui, if it makes you feel more comfortable and at peace, go for it!
But perhaps the most influential finding from the survey is that 57 per cent of all Australians believe feng shui could actually increase the value of their property. So a little decluttering and a new lick of paint can’t hurt!