As 2017 begins it is time to see if our lives are truly in balance with what we want. For interior design that means asking the question is your home or office in alignment for your goals and do you feel a big hug when you walk through your front door? If not then it might be time to do some energy work with your design by employing some Feng Shui principals. Let’s first talk about what Feng Shui is. The words Feng Shui mean wind and water. Which makes sense as it is about using the elements, colors and shapes to create a space that is in balance with the natural world. Feng Shui has a traditional implementation and there is now a more modern implementation. It is this more modern implementation that I use with my clients and what I feel is easier to understand and implement into our everyday lives. Either style, the main purpose is to have your Chi, or energy flow, to stay gently flowing through your space as opposed to flowing straight out or becoming stuck or blocked. Each element must be in balance to create the proper flow of chi.

So let’s talk about what the elements are and how they are represented. The five elements are fire, water, earth, metal, and wood. Each of these elements have shapes, colors and attributes.

Fire – triangle, red, orange, purple, passions, emotion

Earth – square, brown, yellow, grounding, stability

Metal – circle, white, metallic, strength, independence

Water – curvy, blue, black, relaxation, inspiration

Wood – rectangle, green, teal, growth, expansion

In traditional Feng Shui it is about the placement of the Bagua an octagon shaped chart that each section represents areas of your life. It is used to place items in accordance with the elements within your home or office to affect the chi of the space. In a modern approach to Feng Shui a vertical or horizontal chart is used and is based on the shape of your home or office. This new chart is also based on nine areas of your life.

When working with this modern approach each item that goes into a space still has impact and is used for specific reasons.

Color is used to represent and balance the elements.

Sound such as music is used to connect to the environment. This can be used to remove stress from a space.

Lighting is used to bring more chi into a space.

Art enhances chi. The placement of the artwork will increase the chi to the area it is placed.

Growing things such as plants connect you to the natural world. if the light is poor in an area that needs a better connection silk plants can be used.

Water features increase the flow of chi throughout your space. These can be fountains or aquariums.

Wind features attract chi into your space. This can be wind chimes, weather vanes, banners, flags and mobiles.

Mirrors and crystals are used to unblock structural elements that cannot be changed.

So how do you incorporate this into your home or office? Start small, if your entry is to a wall add a mirror to remove the blockage that is created with the stop. Make sure that each of your spaces has each of the elements represented. Focus on the one area that you want to increase and make sure that your house is aligned with that focus. As you affect and change your first focused area move on to the next. Remember it is a living space and the energy or chi will always be changing. We want to make sure that you are bringing in the energy you want and keeping it flowing through your space. But it is also understood that as our lives continue to progress we must adapt and incorporate new technologies and how they effect our environments.

Make 2017 your best year yet, start by creating balance and harmony in your home and office. Once this is created you will be able to achieve anything you decide to create.