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Bad Feng Shui in China: 5 Tips For Good Feng Shui

Feng Shui has been in the news and not in a good way.

Bad Feng Shui in Chinea. Corrupt Chinese public officials are being prosecuted by the central government for practicing “feudal superstition”, namely feng shui. These officials are not being prosecuted for simply using feng shui, they are being prosecuted for corruption and the use of feng shui.

The New York Times reported “from rural township party chiefs to the nation’s disgraced former rail minister” officials have used government funds to improve their personal advancement.” This is bad feng shui. In one case, county officials spent over $700,000 to move a 370 ton boulder six miles to ward of bad luck for their own careers. Feng shui is being used to get the upper hand over rivals with “dueling cures.” Citizens are angered by public funds being used for self-serving mysticism. The Communist government is legally prosecuting these officials on the grounds of corruption (and because feng shui is viewed as a competing dogma.)

This use of bad feng shui is reinforcing the negative reputation feng shui has as a superstition used for selfish ends.

Professor Lin Yun (my first teacher) taught that feng shui alone will not significantly improve your life. Feng Shui was one of five factors that influenced your success in life. The first two of the five are immutable, while the other three can be consciously changed.

The 5 Factors of Life Success:

Destiny – Each of us enters life with a destiny. The Chinese believe this is unchangeable. As a wise person you can learn what your destiny is and take steps to use it wisely.
Luck – Everyone has periods of good luck and bad luck. You can learn how to go with the flow.
Feng Shui – Feng Shui is the first of the changeable life factors. You can change the energy of your home and workspace to support and balance your personal element energies.
Karma – The Law of Cause and Effect. What you do has consequences. Karma can be energy carried from one life to the next and your choice of how you live with those energies. Karma can be what you do in this life – Instant Karma – “what goes around comes around”. Your actions can be planned or random acts of kindness, versus impulses to think only of yourself.
Education – Chinese culture has long honored education and the educated with good reason. With knowledge comes the ability to make smarter choices. As a wise person you learn about the world around and within yourself and then act on that knowledge.

The Secret of Feng Shui

Feng shui is not about “gimme”. The best feng shui techniques when applied to a life of corruption will have little-to-no effect. Clarity and purity of intention is most important. Feng shui used consciously to improve your life and the larger world will be more effective and powerful. So as you move that potted plant or treasured memento to a specific area of the ba-gua, think of your intention and the ripple effect it will have on you and the world. This is the secret to good feng shui.

Contact Linda to bring good Feng Shui into your home, office and life.

photo by See-ming Lee

Shadow Box: A New Place for Your “Rescued From a Fire” Treasures

Un-used, un-loved possessions becomes ”stuff”, which becomes clutter. That clutter blocks and sucks-up Chi energy. NOT good Feng Shui.

When you de-clutter you will discover forgotten personal treasures. What do you do with them? Stuff them back into a drawer or closet? The shadow box is a solution that works for mementos that are difficult to display.

Inspired by an article by David Caolo in Unclutterer he writes about his daughter’s beloved soft toy “Cow” and how it would be number one on his personal “rescued from a fire” list. He then talked about discovering his late grandfather’s personal treasures. He selected a few that represented his grandfather’s life passion and framed them in a shadow box.

framed shadow box with christmas mementos. — “Christmas Tree” shadow box saves special memories.

Sometimes the only display space in your home is your walls. Shadow boxes are an overlooked solution for displaying three-dimensional treasures. They are small enough to require you to distill the essence of that memory. Please avoid the temptation to overload the shadow box. Remember this is for display, not storage. 😉 If you feel overwhelmed about how to arrange and mount everything attractively, then check out your local framing shops. Some can do artful and archive-quality work.

One of the pleasures of displaying precious mementos on your wall – you see and enjoy them daily as you walks by. Much better than stashing them away again.

For more help on heirlooms check out When Gifts and Heirlooms Become Clutter.

Contact Linda to learn how to create a home that refections your passions and treasured memories.

Christmas Shadow Box by bab7268

Man Caves: Why Do Men Need Them? Feng Shui Perspective

Man caves are the subject of lots of jokes, but man caves fill an essential function. Is this something new? Or is it feeding a deep and primal need?

Modern social science has discovered that men need solitude to reduce stress and recharge their batteries. While women reach-out to “tend and befriend”. Men go inward. Men go to their man caves. Before man caves there were basement workshops, garage workbenches and poorly-lit bars. From a Feng Shui point of view: Men go into a Yin place/state and women go into to a Yang place/state.

Yin and Yang

The ancient Taoists created concepts that explained our universe and ourselves. First came Chi – the breath of life, the animating energy of the universe. Then Chi divided in two and became Yin and Yang. These are complimentary opposites. You cannot have one without the other. Note the small circle within each swish, this represents the existence of the opposite within each. Everything in the universe is made up of different proportions of Yin and Yang. Every human being is made up of both Yin and Yang.

Yang is described as:

bright,
loud,
active,
rational and
stereotypically male

Yin is described as:

dark,
quiet,
passive (I think reflective is more accurate),
intuitive and
stereotypically female.

Men need Yin spaces to balance and restore themselves

Man caves are dark, quiet, reflective and intuitive. A Yin space.

The décor of a man cave, or its equivalent, usually consists of sports memorabilia, college mementos, auto or motorcycle dreams. What you may think of as kitsch or clutter. While this may look stereotypically masculine, these items are selected and placed with their hearts, not rational analysis. The décor is intuitive or Yin.

We restore and balance ourselves by going into the opposite state and environment. (I will leave the reasons for this to the neuroscientists and metaphysicians.)

Why is this important?

There are two reasons while there is a greater need for man caves today:

In our disposable society, and with more complicated computer-based auto engines, there is less need and ability to do auto repairs, home repairs, make home-crafted items and the opportunities these gave for solitude. Unfortunately many men feel compelled to watch high-testosterone Yang sports (golf being an exception) on big-screen TV’s when in their man caves and miss out reflection and renewal.
Because decorating usually falls to women the result is the unconscious feminization of our homes and home décor. There is nothing wrong with the feminine in décor, but when there is little to no masculine or Yang elements in a space there is a lack of balance and men especially will feel unconsciously uncomfortable. (Click to Read How to Balance Yin and Yang/Female and Male in your Master Bedroom)

An Ideal Feng Shui Man Cave

It is in a quiet(er) part of the house
It is dark or has the ability to be darkened, i.e., light-blocking window treatments
It has lamps positioned next to his favorite chair and any craft or activity area. Avoid too much darkness, which is not restorative.
It has a stereo system for listening to music, book shelves for books, magazines and display. A table or desk for creative or manual work. Or whatever will make this a restorative man cave and not just a dark TV room.
This is where the man in your life expresses himself. This is where logic, good taste and order may be lacking from your point-of-view. But “good taste” and organization is not the purpose of this space. This is his domain for reflection, relaxation and renewal.

Contact Linda To bring the benefits of Feng Shui into your home and your life.

photo of man cave by DDfic
photo of yin and yang symbol by MAMJODH

Women-Only Stress-Buster: Create Spaces to Tend and Befriend

Create Spaces for Stress-Busting Time with Friends

No doubt about it, we are living in stressful times. A UCLA study, coauthored by Laura Cousino Klein, Ph.D, describes the unique ways women respond to stress. Women have a larger behavioral repertoire than just “fight or flight.” When women are stressed their brains produce oxytocin, which calms and creates an urge to “tend and befriend.” When women are able to care for others or spend time with their friends this response is increased. While estrogen enhances this effect, the testosterone that men produce hinders this response; unfortunately this is a woman-only phenomenon. Women! set-up Stress-buster spaces in your home for girls-only time for support and fun.

four diverse women laughing together, stress-buster — When stressed, women reach out to their female friends. Create a welcoming feng shui space for sharing and mutual stress busting.

Interestingly, more and more people are networking for new jobs, new contacts and mutual support. Many women are online networking, face-to-face networking at professional events, and “getting together with the girls” for informal social support and relaxation.

Here are three ways you can improve your home to support these activities:

Create a Calm and Focused Workspace

Whether you are using your computer for a job search, social media contacts (LinkedIn or Facebook), or simply emailing friends and colleagues to keep in touch and your ear to the ground, you need a designated space for you and your computer. If you have your own home office – Great! If not, claim your space – you deserve it – you need it. Too often my women clients “make do.” Set up a desk in an underused guest room or dining room. Wherever you are working should be reasonably organized. Aim for ease and order, not perfection. Minimize distractions. Put up a “Woman at Work” sign if need be. Studies show that when distracted, people are 50% less efficient and make 50% more errors. This means, working on your laptop while watching TV is counter-productive. Make sure you have good lighting for your desk – ceiling mounted lights are inadequate – you need a lamp on your work surface with a “warm white” light bulb.

Assess, Organize and Play with Your Wardrobe

If you are going to any professional networking events the unspoken standard is “professional dress.” Suits or other professional wear will have you looking your best and feel confident. Confidence about your looks is a powerful stress-buster. Now is a great time to go through your wardrobe and find those things that make you feel fabulous when you are wearing them. Check clothes and accessories for fit, needed repairs, and if the style expresses who you are now. Doing a deep decluttering of your closet and bureau, you will rediscover some lost treasures as well as things you can let go. Now the fun part: play around with different combinations of clothes and accessories to see if you can create new looks. Add a belt to an outfit you have never belted before. A different pair of shoes can jazz-up an ensemble. Try things on and mentally plan what you can wear before an event. Now, when you walk into a roomful of new people, you know you look smashing.

“Every time we get overly busy with work and family, the first thing we do is let go of friendships with other women. We push them right to the back burner. That’s really a mistake because women are such a source of strength to each other. We nurture one another. And we need to have un-pressured space in which we can do the special kind of talk that women do when they’re with other women. It’s a very healing experience. ” – Ruthellen Josselson, Ph.D., co-author of “Best Friends: The Pleasures and Perils of Girls and Women’s Friendships” (Three Rivers Press, 1998).

Make a Stress-Buster Space for Girls’ Night-In

Girls’ night-out is fun, but can stress your budget. How about a pot luck girls’ night-in, or simply coffee and tea with a sweet, or wine and something savory. Keep the menu simple. The focus is time with friends, not the food. If it is a potluck, kick your family out of the kitchen for the duration. If it is coffee or drinks with simple nibbles then commander the living room, or a sunroom or patio. Claim a space and make it comfortable: to kick back and share and laugh and have fun. An architectural psychology tip: to create connection choose cozy over formal, crowded over spread out.

One of the key concepts of both Feng Shui and Architectural Psychology is that creating space for a task, activity or goal supports your intentions, both energetically and psychologically. Create space to make your life and your goals easier.

photo by Bee Wolf Ray

Feng Shui Home Analysis: Recognizing the Good in Your Home and in Yourself

A young family asked me to do a pre-purchase Feng Shui home analysis.. It was a beautiful Arts and Crafts home on a partially wooded lot. I noted some Feng Shui vulnerabilities. But what struck me most was how good the energy of the house was. Here was a house that had been truly loved.

arts and crafts house with blooming trees in front, feng shui home analysis — A Blooming Arts and Crafts House

Some Feng Shui books focus on what is wrong with a home rather that what is good about a home. This approach increases readers’ anxiety that if something isn’t perfect bad things will happen. I was fortunate that some of my early teachers showed me not only how to correct the vulnerabilities in a home, but strengthen what is good in a feng shui home analysis. In strengthening what is good in your home you support and strengthen what is good in you and your loved ones.

“When you recognize the good in something it will blossom. This is especially true about your home.” – Denise Linn

Denise also writes about the “Spirit of the House.” When a house is neglected or unloved its energy sags. When a house is well maintained and well-loved its energy lifts. House love makes a huge difference in the energy of a building – more than mere maintenance – and makes a house a home. No house is perfect. Most are a work-in-progress.

Feng Shui Home Analysis: What do you love about your home?

Is there a place where everyone hangs out and feels comfortable and connected?
Is there a space that catches the morning light?
Is there a quiet corner where you can relax alone, or snuggle with one of your kids…or your sweetie?
Do you have a space outside where you can bask in the sun or catch cooling breezes?
Do you have a place where you can display your personal treasures: the objects that remind you of the people, places and events you love most?

Take a look around and identify what you love about your house. If you don’t have one, then create it.

Metaphysical Bonus for You:

Feng Shui is about your house as a mirror of yourself. Most of this thinking is focused on decluttering and the Ba-Gua. If your house is a mirror of yourself and you have a hard time loving it, warts and all; then maybe you have difficulty loving yourself, warts and all. (Damn that inner critic). Working on something concrete outside of yourself paves the way for the work of inner growth. Ask your house what kind of love it needs. And then take care of your home’s need for nurturance. As you do so you will practice nurturing and loving yourself.

Happy Ending/New Beginning

: This family had already fallen in love with the house. The Feng Shui vulnerabilities where easy to remedy. Their offer on the house was accepted.

Fall in love with your house again.
Identifying the good in your house.
Create a home that you love,

Contact me for a consultation.

photo by rictor and david (Note: This is not my clients’ house. I protect the privacy of all my clients. The home in this photo is a Charles Greene-designed house in Pasadena.)

Create Your Own Feng Shui Cures to Enhance Your Chi

Feng Shui is about Chi energy: universal Chi and personal Chi. Feng Shui seeks to balance the Chi of your home or office with your own Chi (5 Element Feng Shui).

When I work with Feng Shui clients I encourage them to display meaningful personal treasures and mementos to lift their personal Chi and enhance the Chi of the space. Personal is the keyword here and nothing is more personal than hand-made art either by a local artist or a loved one (or even yourself). Manufactured items that are not emotionally connected to a beloved person, place or event have no soul and no Chi.

The best way to bring soul and Chi into your home is with hand-made or hand-crafted items. I have a needlepoint pillow on my sofa. I originally made it as a gift for my mother. Every time I look at it I see its flaws (missed stitches and a twist in the decorative binding), but more important it also has a soft handworked feel to the tapestry and I remember how it had pride of place on my mother’s sofa.

If you don’t have the time or inclination for a needlepoint pillow then how about a quick craft project?

sand art mandalas, personalized feng shui cures — Sand Art party mandalas. Creative fun becomes personalized feng shui cures

Last week I had the pleasure of being part of a sand art party at ArtBeat. We gathered around a table and in an hour (including brief instructions) we had created beautiful designs with colored sand and adhesive cards. We sprinkled and patted and etched our way to bliss. As we were working on our projects, we were “in the zone.” Time stood still, we were relaxed and totally focused. And we could have kept going a lot longer on our projects if we had the time.

Not only did we create something lovely, but we experienced the joy of un-pressured creativity. It was a peak-flow experience that stayed with us for the rest of the evening.

Check out your local craft store/craft studio for projects for your kids, for your family or for yourself. I am very lucky ArtBeat is nearby. If looking for crafts find those things that fill the creative zone between a blank canvas (which can be intimidating) and connect-the-dots (which allows for little originality and is boring). Also avoid things with media character connections – they are limiting, people simply reproduce what they have already seen.

Take a little time to tap into your creativity. It will expand your mind, relax you and bring good Chi to you and to your home.

My next project? A decoupage folding screen/vision board [link], inspired by ArtBeat, to decorate my home and hide my home office desk. I am amazed how quickly I get into “the zone” when I am sitting on my sofa and cutting out the pictures for my screen. Lots of enjoyable quick little steps toward the bigger result.

Feng Shui Basics for Home: Feng Shui Look vs. Feng Shui Feel

The Key Concept of Feng Shui

Many Feng Shui blogs and articles (including my own) seem to only offer decorating tips and furniture arrangement ideas. Something has gotten lost – the key concept of Feng Shui: Chi. Feng Shui decorating and furniture placement should be in the service of enhancing, balancing and harmonizing Chi energy for your benefit.

Chinese calligraphy of pictogram for Chi — Each brush stroke of this calligraphy for “Chi” has a meaning.

Let’s take a minute and discuss: What is Chi? and Why do we need it?

What is Chi?

“Chi is the invisible, intangible, animating energy of the universe.” – Stephen Post

Chi is the “life force” or “breath of life.” Ancient Taoists believed everything in the universe contained Chi.

There is Chi in the heavens – Celestial Chi – Compass school Feng Shui
There is Chi in the earth – Earth Chi – Land Form and BTB Feng Shui
And there is Chi in our bodies – Traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture, and Tai Chi.

Why do we need Chi?

You absorb the Chi in your space – good, bad or stagnant. This is experienced as energy, and physical and mental health – good, bad or stagnant. Feng Shui seeks to bring harmonious Chi into your environment to support your personal Chi.

How does Feng Shui help you receive Chi?

How do you get Chi into your home or workspace?

“Chi floats like air and is drawn to water.” – Chinese proverb.

The words “Feng Shui” translate to “wind” and “water”. Chi is omnipresent in Nature. It enters your space through the designated front door or “mouth of Chi”. Chi is a nourishing energy.

Chi can be blocked from entering your home or office by clutter. Decluttering is an important precursor to Feng Shui, not because being organized makes you a better person, but because clutter sucks up Chi. As Chi moves through your space it scatters its energy around like fairy dust. You then absorb that energy. Chi can be lost if it leaves your home too quickly.

If the Chi of your space is out of sync with your personal needs (your 5 Element Energies) you will miss this fine-tuning of your Chi.

If the Chi of your space is too Yin or too Yang it works against the feeling and function of the space for you.

Want help improving the Chi of your home or Office? Contact Linda Varone.

If you liked this review of Chi and would like to learn more about the core concepts of Feng Shui, please comment below. Let me know what you would like to learn in these blog posts.

Chinese calligraphy by Russell Eng Gon

Feng Shui, Romance And An Oscar-Winning Valentine Video

Feng Shui and Romance

Valentine’s Day draws our attention to gifts, events and simple gestures that say “I love you”. Feng Shui encourages you to build that romance into your home and into your daily life, not save it up for one special day a year.

vintage valentine with young boy and gilr — Feng Shui romance is more than campagne and chocolates.

Set up your bedroom to encourage romance, or add romance throughout your home.

Romantic lighting is not just for the bedroom. Light is a form of energy. When added to a space it adds energy, yang energy. When light is dimmed or turned down that encourages relaxing and romantic yin energy. In your living room, place a lamp or two next to your favorite sofa or love seat. Ideally used lamps with a 3-way switch or dimmer. Set the lights on low. Dim or turn-off the other lights in the room. Add wine or decaf cappuccino. Play some soft music. This is great for after dinner-for-two or after the kids are down for the night.

Create the space and time for you as a couple.

If that special someone is not in your life, do an intention and visualize that special person and what you do together as a couple.

My valentine to you.

This charming video of an Oscar©-nominated [now Oscar©-winning] animation short by Disney is an object lesson in getting the love you want.

A strong intention includes:

Identifying your goal. (Paperman was a bit slow on the uptake.)
Persistent effort (He was persistent and used more than one approach.)
Accepting help that comes your way. (Paperman’s help was magical, but sometimes the most magical things in our lives look very ordinary.)

vintage valentine photo by Mark Gstohl

Feng Shui for Valentine’s Day and Beyond – 6 Steps to Make Your Bedroom a Sensual Retreat

Chocolates, champagne, and silky camisoles are the stuff of Valentine’s Day.

Simple Feng Shui changes to your Master Bedroom help you celebrate Valentine’s day 365 days a year.

heart-shaped valentines candies — Simple Feng Shui changes in your bedroom for Valentine’s Day 365 days a year.

As a home and office design consultant, I often see clients with beautiful homes but their own bedrooms are merely functional. A room with a bed, a bureau and a bathroom, period. Not very romantic. Feng Shui helps you make simple changes to make your bedroom into a sensual retreat for you and your special someone. Instead of a total makeover with bordello red wallpaper, architectural psychology lets you be more subtle and more effective. How about tactile delights, adjustable lighting, and artwork or mementos with special meaning for both of you?

Before you bring in anything new, start with a simple de-cluttering. Feng Shui tells us that clutter under a bed will negatively affect the energy of the people using that bed. So clear out that jumble of shoes. If you really need to store things under you bed, be sure that it is well organized and easy to access.

1. Touch – A sensual room has inviting fabrics. From chenille to cashmere, or satiny high thread-count cotton sheets, use fabrics that ask to be stroked.

2. Color – Colors create atmosphere. Even though red is the color of romance I do not recommend red walls. Red walls create too much fire energy and you will have difficulty sleeping. Also a red room will cause either heated arguments or hot sex, I can’t guarantee which. Red accents are great, but no red walls. I do recommend wall colors that have warm undertones. You can even find blues and greens with warm undertones. Flesh tones are especially good, from a beige pink to salmon.

3. Light – Overhead or recessed lighting is simply not romantic. Create the right mood with a lamp on each side of the bed. This will give the space energy and warm illumination. Use incandescent (Edison) light bulbs in those lamps to create pools of warm light, like candle light, that draw you in.

4. Sound – Play music: your favorite jazz, show tunes, or whatever your heart suggests. The sound of a water fountain can be soothing; while sounds of nature, leaves rustling in the trees, birdsong can be enjoyed through an open window.

5. Personal Decoration – On home consultations, I often see master bedrooms decorated as if only the woman of a couple, lives there. This is completely unintentional. It is important that there be decoration or personal mementos that represent each member of the couple and the couple together. I do not encourage crossed hockey sticks over the head of the bed, but include something from both of you.

6. Feng Shui – Identify the Marriage – Partnership – Romance corner in your bedroom. Stand in the doorway facing into your room, the Romance area is in the back right hand corner. The energy in that area has a direct impact on the energy in your love life. First de-clutter it. Then place a wonderful memento of your relationship there: a current photo of the two of you or a souvenir of a wonderful trip you took together. You get the idea. If you don’t have someone in your life yet, then you can use symbols or metaphors: a picture or statue of a romantic couple, two flowers or two of something that symbolizes romance for you. Add an intention for romance and joy, now you can have Valentine’s Day every day.

I wish you much love and happiness. Linda

photo by dave parker flickr creative commons