Linda Varone | Nurturing Spaces Feng Shui

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Winter Doldrums? Flowers are the Cure.

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Winter doldrums? Flowers!

This time of year is hard. The excitement of the holidays is over and we have months of cold ahead. Days are short, overcast, and dreary. No wonder we feel tired and dispirited.

Winter Doldrums? A simple bunch of flowers is all you need!

A simple cure for winter doldrums: flowers!

No need to wait for the distant glories of Spring. Bring color, life, and beauty into your home today. A simple bouquet or bunch of flowers is all you need.

Too often we think of fresh flowers as something for special occasions only. In Europe having flowers in the home is an everyday thing. They come home with the fresh-baked bread.

Many supermarkets now have a flower department where you can grab a bunch of flowers as easily as your milk and bread.

Flowers by Anderson’s Florist, Arlington, MA

If you are lucky to have a local florist, get your flowers from them. They are fresher, handled with care, and will look beautiful longer.

You can display your flowers:

  • On the table where you enjoy your meals
  • In your bedroom, see them when you first wake-up
  • On the desk in your home office
  • By your favorite chair – comfy throw, your favorite beverage, simply add your favorite person or book.

To beat the winter doldrums, add flowers to your shopping list and enjoy some color and life this coming week.

Reminder: there are many beautiful flowers besides roses.

And the best part: flowers are calorie-free.

Click to learn about Feng shui and Nature:

Bring the Outdoors Indoors

Feng Shui for Winter Doldrums

photo – Flowers by Anderson Florist, Arlington MA

Want help bringing new life and energy into your home? Contact Linda to discuss a personal consultation.

 

Porches for Pleasure

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Porches for Pleasure: “A porch has a railing around it, and a roof over it, and it’s all white, and it has a swing and some rocking chairs…and a little table with lemonade glasses, and warm nights and fireflies, and crickets, and soft music, and a moon in the sky…” – Linus, Peanuts by Charles Schulz, August 27, 1995.

A porch is more than an attachment to your home. A porch is a place to create memories like Linus’. A porch, or patio, or balcony, can be made a place for cozy gathering or quiet rest in contact with Nature. Learn how to make porches for pleasure.

You are familiar with the healing and balancing qualities on Nature. Make your connection with Nature and your outdoor space welcoming with a few simple additions.

porches for pleasure by Linus - Peanuts
Linus’ Perfect Porch…anything else is just a stoop.

Linus Knows All the Essentials for the Perfect Porch

“A Swing”
This is ideal for your porch. Friends of mine have a swing on their deck and it adds to the enjoyment of their garden and hummingbird watching.

“Rocking Chairs”
If a swing doesn’t work for you then consider rocking chairs. They come in singles and bench style. Rockers or gliders.

There is something primal and soothing about rocking that you never out-grow,

Comfortable Chairs for Lounging
Comfort is essential for porches for pleasure. You want comfortable, practical and affordable seating for your outdoor space. This is the triple play of furniture, no less for the outside than the inside. If your furniture is not comfortable you won’t use the space – no matter how attractive it is. One client scored their dream porch chairs at an end-of-season sale.

“A Little Table”
Get a big table to eat around if that is your lifestyle and you have the space. If not, at least a small table for your “lemonade glasses,” or wine glasses. And on cool evenings or in chilly weather for a warming mug.

“Soft Music”
If you have your music on your cell phone then use your phone speaker dock, a Bluetooth speaker or something similar. Remember you want “soft music”.

“Warm Nights, Fireflies, and Crickets”
These words bring back wonderful memories of my childhood. Summer evenings my friends and I would run around the neighborhood trying to catch fireflies in glass jars, enchanted by their magical glow. Giddy with the sheer joy of the bob-and-weave of chasing after these winking points of light.

You you don’t have “fireflies and crickets” you may have the sound of the breeze in the trees, the song of birds, or the murmur of soft voices in the distance.

Light
So you don’t sit in the dark add candles in protective hurricane sleeves or lanterns. They will provide a warm glow and a gathering point on your porch. Battery-powered candles can add to the atmosphere.

Porches for Pleasure

Think about what will make your porch/deck/balcony a comfortable and welcoming place to be. Make those changes and enjoy one of the overlooked pleasures of summer: an evening outdoors with Nature.

No Mosquitoes
Citronella candles are optional for the scent memories. If you are trying to keep mosquitoes away, then try a fan. Science Magazine Online notes that most chemical deterrents don’t work. The New York Times reported that a fan pointed at you is more effective. How does this work?: mosquitoes don’t like flying into a headwind, and a fan will disburse the body heat and odors that attract insects. Use an oscillating fan or box fan for best results.

What are your favorite porch pleasures. Please comment below.

Click here to see more about creating gardens for warm memories.

Want to create porches for pleasure, a garden, or home that grows warm memories for you and your family? Contact Linda.

Gardens that Grow Wonderful Memories

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Gardens are unique as a place for creating wonderful memories. My favorite garden is one I saw on a garden tour in Newbury, Massachusetts several years ago.  It was not the fanciest, but it was the most personal in expressing the lives of the family that lived there for 3 generations.

gardens grow wonderful memories stepping stones on moss covered path in garden
The best gardens invite you in.

Walking up the gravel drive I noticed pachysandra circling the bases of trees.  A shaded patio next to the screened porch was made of old brick pavers with moss growing in the cracks. A wrought iron table and chairs invited conversation and relaxation.  I could almost hear the clink of ice cubes.

Straight ahead I saw a tall hedge with a narrow opening. Squeezing through, we entered an outdoor room, enclosed on three sides by the hedge and on the fourth by a garden house.  The garden house was a small cottage with a roof and three walls, the “missing” wall opened to the outdoor room. It had a soot stained stone fireplace on the back wall and was furnished with well worn upholstered furniture covered with faded chintz. It was the perfect place for a drizzly summer day read or cool spring evening gathering.

The far back of the yard had a large lawn, perfect for games, with the tall hedge corralling both kids and balls, while muffling the sound of excited play.

Back at the house, near the kitchen, was a stand of tall pines.  Clustered under the broad branches I saw several small crosses – the graves of several generations of family pets.

This garden is unpretentious, loved and lived in. It offeres places for different activities and even different age groups.  It is a garden where wonderful memories are made.

Few of us have a multi-generational home on a few acres of land. But we can rethink our garden. We can create areas within our gardens that support gathering, quiet, contemplation, and active play.

Rethink the interaction between inside and outside.

  • In the garden arrange something especially beautiful to be seen from a particular window.
  • Inside arrange furniture near that window to encourage connecting with nature.
  • Think of how adding lights or a fireplace can make your garden more welcoming in the evening.
  • Or simply open your windows and let in fresh air and energized Chi into your home.

What gardens have you known or experienced that create wonderful memories for you?

If you would like guidance creating a memorable garden or outdoor space contact me.

Outdoor Spaces with Feng Shui: Connect with the Power of Nature

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Feng Shui Makes the Most Out of Nature

Feng Shui power of nature: "Every blade of grass has its angel that whispers grow grow."
Experience the Power of Nature.

After a bleak and cold spring Nature is now in her glory. Gardens are exploding with life. You are experiencing the restorative power of nature. More and more scientific studies agree that time in Nature reduces stress and improves health and wellbeing. Feng Shui knows the power of Nature is balancing: if you are feeling frazzled Nature calms you, if you are feeling down Nature lifts your spirits.

Click the links below to see how to savor your connection with Nature.

“Declutter your Summer Stuff for Less-Stress and More Fun”

“The Secrets to a Porch or Patio You Can Enjoy”

Contact me to help you bring the power of Nature into your home and your life.

Feng Shui Patio. Feng Shui Porch

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Feng Shui Insights for Outdoor Living

Feng Shui Patio: Set up the patio chairs and the sun umbrella. Find your sun block and sun hat. With the long summer days finally here enjoy the best of nature. Unwind and recharge yourself in the same moment. Whether you are entertaining or relaxing by yourself, make the most of your outdoor space and have a refreshing and relaxing outdoor experience.

Feng Shui porch/ Feng Shui Patio. Yellow front porch with two rocking chairs.
Feng Shui Porch. Feng Shui Patio

 
 
 
 
 
 

” [Front porches] became an integral part of the house, as essential as a dining room or a working kitchen….Front porches came to symbolize the lifted mood. Inside the house were never-ending chores waiting to be done. Porches were for escape, relaxation, neighbor talk, and a touch of the outdoors….Potted plants added color and warmth. Swings, comfortable chairs and rockers were popular fixtures, as were goldfish bowls and birdcages. Flowering trellises shaded out the hot afternoon sun and gave fragrance to gentle breezes.” – Hugh Stevens, Country Journal


This nostalgically perfect place ended with the advent of automobiles and air conditioning, but its charms are unchanged and can be reclaimed. Porches, patios, sunrooms and decks can give you a greater connection with nature with the added comforts of “civilization.”

There are significant differences between the classic porch and the more modern patio or deck.

Something was lost. Below are insights from Feng Shui and Environmental Psychology so you can create a cozy and welcoming space that is used and enjoyed.

A porch has a roof and feels like an extension of the house.  While your patio or deck is a flat slab of concrete or platform of wood projecting from the back of the house. The result: They leave you feeling exposed to the full effects of the sun – a cause for concern in an SPF 50 world – and exposed to your neighbors. You experience a loss of privacy. This feeling of exposure results in patios and decks not being fully enjoyed.

No matter how well furnished, an exposed outdoor space will be used for grilling, period.

Feng Shui discovered two thousand years ago that people are more relaxed when they feel supported from behind. I call this the “embracing mountain.”Having a wall, fence or thick hedge behind where you are sitting will help you feel anchored and protected. Decks and patios are usually attached to a house, giving you protection from behind, but you need some sort of privacy screen or sense of enfoldment to feel at ease. This is important for creating a feng shui patio.

You can create a space that is partially enclosed and gives you the experience of sun, wind and the smells and sounds of nature.

5 Tips to Create a Feng Shui Patio: Make your patio or porch feel more private:

  • Nestle your social or private space into an outdoor corner of your home, the kind created by an addition or bump-out.
  • Add screens or trellis on one or two sides of your deck or patio, leaving one side open for fresh air and the best views.
  • Plant hedges that will grow 4 feet tall for privacy when you are seated for a full or partial length wall
  • Hang brightly colored sheets – like one client did while her hedges were growing tall enough.
  • Add a trellis roof, canvas shade or large adjustable umbrella for shade and a feeling of protection.

A porch can benefit from:

  • Hanging plants
  • Trellis with vines, or
  • Canvas shades on the exposed sides.

Give yourself the visual privacy and sense of protection you need.

  Balance this privacy with openness and a real connection to the restorative qualities of nature.

Tips on Patio or Porch Size (Yes, size does count)

Architect and author, Christopher Alexander states for a balcony or patio to be useful it must be at least 6 feet deep. This allows for chairs, a table and room to move around. If it is shallower than this it will just be a display space for garden furniture. If you have limited outdoor space, consider smaller scale patio furniture or chairs that have a smaller footprint.

Group chairs on patios and porches closer together for personal-conversational distance. Arrange chairs in a circle or semi-circle
for ease of eye contact.

To learn more read:

“Gardens That Grow Wonderful Memories”
Arrange Furniture for Personal Conversation and Personal Connection

Make the most of your outdoor space with a personal Feng Shui consultation. Contact me by clicking on the link. You are one step closer to a welcoming and refreshing outdoor space.

Originally published July 9, 2014; updated June 13, 2017

porch photo by Kendyl Young

Feng Shui Declutter For Summer Outdoor Energy

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Summer Feng Shui Declutter: Time for Outdoor Fun.

Feng Shui declutter for summer means letting go of sporting equipment that is broken, out-of-date, or unused. Donate garden and grilling things that you don’t really use. Clear the decks for summer time outdoor fun.

Feng Shui knows that Nature is the prime Chi energizer. And contact with Nature – which is Summer’s gift to us – is the best way to absorb Chi.

When warm weather comes you clean-up the effects of winter on our home and cars, you switch to our summer wardrobe, and pull out the grilling and sports equipment. But in the excitement of summer finally arriving do you really look at and assess the stuff you have unearthed from previous summers?

This is the time to not only let-go of un-used or out-grown winter things, but to take a look at the summer stuff you are resurrecting.

Do you have things from last summer that are beyond use or never used? Now is the time to let go of them to have a clutter-free and stress-free summer.

feng shui declutter summer, young boy canoeing
What is your favorite way to enjoy nature?

As part of my seasonal Feng Shui de-cluttering I am donating a set of cross-country skis and a pair of rollerblades I haven’t used in years. I know the skis will hang around the charity store until the weather gets cold again, but the rollerblades will hopefully be grabbed within the week. Donations are a blessing for someone else, instead of clutter for me.

Summer stuff has the same kind of nostalgic glow holiday stuff contains.

Which makes it harder to let-go of. Looking at a old grill brings back memories of the wonderful cook-outs you had and the people you entertained. Looking at beach stuff you remember the sun-filled days spent there. But if the grill has been replaced by a newer one and you are keeping the old one “just in case”, or the beach umbrella has never been used, then it is time to let them go.

Summer Things You Can Let-Go Of:

  • sporting equipment that is broken, out-of-date, or unused because your interests have moved-on
  • camping equipment that hasn’t been used in donkey’s years
  • summer supplies that are inherited and unused
  • unused suitcases and travel accessories taking up space in the closet, attic or basement
  • grilling gizmos that looked good at the time, but never worked out.

Are your summers so cluttered with old stuff you are stuck in the past? If so, that means less energy for the present and future.

If you are holding on to something that holds memories for you, take a picture of it, or if small enough mount it in a shadow box frame.

In that pile of sneakers and boots by the back door, how many are out–of-season and need to be stored until fall? How many pairs of sneakers have simply died and need to be thrown out?

Why Feng Shui Declutter?: Unused things become clutter. Clutter is an energy drain

.  Now is the time to clear these things out. Repair what you will genuinely use, donate and make someone else’s summer more fun, and trash what is too broken to repair or donate. Give yourself the gift of space and energy for this summer’s fun.

Note: check with your designated charity regarding what items they can and can’t accept.

Now that I have donated the skis and rollerblades, I have the space and energy for my new bike!

Want to have a more enjoyable and energized summer? Want to bring fresh energy into your home and your life? Contact me, today, for a personal consultation.

This article was originally published June 11, 2014 and updated June 12, 2017.

Photo by HeatherHeatherHeather

How to Keep Your Home Cooler: Smart Window Treatments Save You Money and Energy

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With summer giving us blasts of hot weather, keeping cool is a real challenge. Recently I have been in several homes that had been unnecessarily hot, simply because their owners did not know a few old tricks.

With almost universal air conditioning we have become habituated to flick a switch for instant cool. But this can become expensive and uses a lot of our natural resources.

diagram of greenhouse effect in a home. Sun and heat rays
The Greenhouse Effect: How windows trap heat inside your home.

You know about the Greenhouse Effect and its impact on Global Warming. But do you know about the Greenhouse Effect in your own home? Sunlight enters your home through your windows, bringing light energy and heat energy. Part of the heat energy cannot exit through the glass and is trapped in your home, making it hotter and hotter. This can be delightful on a cold winter’s day, but during the hot days of summer, it can be a killer. Either your air conditioning goes into overdrive or the space stays hot. (The all-glass modern houses of the 50’s and 60’s were designed when fuel was cheap.)

This is where smart window treatments come in.  This taps into what our grandparents did to keep cool(er) and what is still done in Europe. For part of the day you want to block out sunlight – and heat- from your home. I have written about window treatments which open your views and connect you with nature   You can have both, using the right window treatments.

There are 4 reasons for window treatments:

  1. Protection from sunglare and heat.
  2. Protection from winter cold.
  3. Protection from unattractive views
  4. Protection from nosey neighbors.
View of palm tree against blue sky, through partially opened plantation shutter
In hot climes plantation shutters are used to filter out light and allow cooling breezes to enter.

Learn how to use window treatments to keep your home cool.

Before the day heats-up, early morning, close your windows and draw your drapes, blinds and shutters, especially in bedrooms and unused rooms. (Some of the older houses on Beacon Hill have interior shutters for just this purpose.) If you have skylights consider adding adjustable shades to them for the hot days. Are your drapes lined to keep out sunlight, heat and cold? Are your shades room-darkening?  You may want to close out the heat in all the windows of your home, or maybe just the rooms facing the sun. As the day gets cooler open your window treatments. If it is a cool evening, open the windows to catch the cooling breezes. If the night is cool, leave your windows open and sleep with the cool air from outdoors, moved by a fan placed in or by the window. I personally prefer to sleep in an air-cooled bedroom, than in an air-conditioned bedroom.

Experiment with this and see what works best for you. If you don’t like to feel closed-in, then try solar shades. These are mounted like window shades, but are made of several densities of heavy plastic mesh that blocks out different degrees of light (and heat) while allowing a veiled view of the out-of-doors.

Air conditioning makes life easier during the hot months, but we don’t have to use it exclusively to keep cool. Re-claim some of the wisdom of your ancestors. Stay cool and save money and energy at the same time.

greenhouse image by realscience dot org dot uk

plantation shutter photo by simonsimages

Feng Shui and Nature: Bring the Outdoors Indoors

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Nature indoors is a powerful way to energize your home and yourself. Modern social scientists are now discovering what Feng Shui Masters understood thousands of years ago: Nature balances and de-stresses us.

Pink peonies on window sill, Bring the power of Nature indoors
Peonies in the window bring the energy of Nature indoors.

How to bring nature’s energy indoors:

  • Bring potted plants indoors, or bring some home, and arrange them where you can enjoy them.
  • Place a comfortable chair near a window, so you can sit in the warmth of inside and enjoy the ever-changing life outside.
  • Keep window treatments simple so they don’t crowd or obscure your view.
  • Consider doing some planting in your garden with an eye on what you see from inside, rather than from the curb.  Do some landscaping for your own pleasure, rather than the neighbors’.

Want to bring the power of Nature into your home? Contact Linda to discuss a personal consultation.

photo by muffet

Feng Shui Your Window Treatments: Are Your Curtains Getting Between You and Nature?

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Feng Shui has known for centuries that contact with nature is essential for balance and health. Recently a growing number of Architectural Psychology studies have supported this wisdom – contact with nature decreases blood pressure and the incidence of chronic-stress related illness. The right – or wrong – window treatments make all the difference.

But many of my Feng Shui clients have unknowingly set up their homes to limit connection with nature. How? They use window treatments – curtains, blinds and shades – that block views of nature that nourish energy and spirit.

Window treatments with overwhelming valence, curtains and austrian shade
Light, view and Chi-blocking window treatment

Window Treatments

Curtains:

Too often I see curtains and valances covering a third or more of the window. This limits your access to light and nature. BIG curtains are meant for BIG windows in TALL rooms.

Solution #1: Hang valances and swags higher, so that the bottom edge of the valance is just below the top of the window. A recent Feng Shui client was excited with how much more light came into her kitchen with this simple change.

Solution #2: Mount your curtain rod closer to the ceiling. This will make your window look bigger when the curtains are closed.

Solution #3: Use longer curtain rods, 6-12 inches on each side, so when your curtains are open they gather and hang along the outer edge of the window – framing your view, not blocking it.

Shades:

Shades can be an all-or-nothing window treatment. If you need protection from sun glare, you draw the shade and close off all access to sunlight. And your room feels like a dark box.

Solution #1: Consider a pleated or honey comb shade for softly diffused light.

If you need protection from nosey neighbors, you do not need to shut out all access to nature along with curious eyes.

Solution #2: Bottom-up pleated shades give you visual privacy while allowing you to leave the top half of your window open to light and views of sky and trees.

Blinds:

If you use blinds for protection from sun glare or nearby neighbors:

Solution: Adjust your blinds so the blades are partially open and either tilted up or down to get the light and privacy you need, this will give you indirect light and avoid a totally dark room.

Simple changes in your curtains, blinds and shades will give you access to sunlight and connection with the natural world outside your window. Take a look around your home and see where some easy changes can make a big difference.

photo by author