Feng Shui Homework: Focus on Home Lighting

Franca Giuliani - As an unwilling participant of Hurricane Sandy, my family and I were very lucky. We didn't lose our home. We had no major damage. We were only inconvenienced for 9 days without electricity: no lights, no heat, and no hot water. And this experience has strongly reminded me how much I take for granted the power of light. By the third day without light and electricity, I started realizing how dark and cold things can get so quickly.

Light offers heat. It gives warmth. It changes yin (dark) to yang (light). In essence light increases energy. It is a symbol of the element Fire. Fire is a microcosm of the sun and brings that charge of the sun into our space.

If we're lucky enough to have access to light, we can use it to bring uplifting Chi, or life force, into a space. Keep in mind these decorating tips.

Dark corners can become energized with light.
A desk with a decent lamp that shines light directly where the work actually occurs is very important.
Outdoor walkways can become alive with light, and this is a great opportunity to use solar lights.

Sheffield School, feng shuiGuest UserNovember 13, 2012Hurricane Sandy, bagua, lighting Comments

Feng Shui Homework: Travel Decor Items Will Boost Chi

Franca Giuliani - In my path I have met only a few people who hate traveling. In general I find that most people like it. Personally, I think traveling is a very important factor of life. It gives us a chance to learn new things, meet new people, and think of great ideas - all which can enrich our lives very much.

In feng shui, the bagua sector that represents this energy is found at the front right corner of your space: Helpful People and Travel (in the bagua above, it's listed as "Mentors and Networking"). It refers to the Heaven trigram and Father energy of a family, and it's associated with the number 6. This is a very powerful sector that emulates authority, control, and soaring possibilities. Having the element of metal, items with round shapes, and grays and whites in this area of your home - even in the front corner of a room - can be very beneficial for enhancing its forces.

Since it also represents travel and mentor support, it's important to have in this space symbolism of travel and symbolism of people or guides that inspire you.

And, yes here's another opportunity to be creative when you're decorating with feng shui in mind. For instance,

If a bathroom falls in this area, consider using a world map motif as a shower curtain. Start collecting hotel soaps from your journeys and use them as decor pieces.

If a kitchen falls in this space, you may want to enhance it with cook books for different countries and ethnic foods.

If here is where your living room is, there's so much you can do! Add an ottoman made of Moroccan fabric, or an item found in a Tuscan country house. Just make sure you pick things from places that you love.

feng shuiGuest UserOctober 2, 2012Franca Giuliani, bagua, decorating, home, interior design, travelComment

Feng Shui Homework: Consider the Color Blue for Your Decor

Franca Giuliani - This September started with the reminiscence of a blue moon (which occurred on August 31). For those of you who may not know, a blue moon is the second full moon occurrence in a given month. Some also say it is the fourth moon to appear in a season. Now the moon is not actually blue, so why do they call it that? There are a few different stories. The oldest one I found was because of a way to describe something so absurd that it would not happen, as in “That will happen when the moon turns blue.” And of course we eventually got the phrase, “once in a blue moon.”

No matter its origins, a blue moon is considered having powerful and magical energies. In honoring this moon, I thought it might be appropriate to talk about what the color BLUE actually means, and how we can use it in our space and lives for better harmony.

Based on a feng shui perspective, BLUE is associated with the North East/Knowledge & Self-Cultivation and the East/Family & Health sectors of the bagua. Really DARK BLUES (almost black) relate to the North /Journey & Career. SKY BLUE is associated with the South /Illumination.

Yes, BLUE is associated with sadness and melancholy. “I feel so blue,” or “I have the blues.” But in feng shui, BLUE illustrates calmness, peace, tranquility, and introspection. Therefore, it's used quite often in bedrooms (a certain shade of BLUE-GREEN can also work) to help with sleep. It can be used where people convene, such as offices, to help avoid conflict. Keep in mind, though, that everyone

Sheffield School, feng shuiGuest UserSeptember 10, 2012Franca Giuliani, bagua, blue, colors, decoratingComment

Feng Shui Tips - Fill in Missing Pieces of Your Rooms

Franca Giuliani - Living in a home or working in an office that has the shape of a square or rectangular is ideal in feng shui. It offers balance and incorporates a complete bagua. The bagua is an energetic map that includes the cardinal and intercardinal directions, each with their own powerful attributes. The bagua divides up any space - from a room to an entire house - into eight sectors plus the center.

Now it's not easy to find perfect squares and rectangles in our homes, apartments, or offices. With incredible design concepts and necessities like bumping out in a room to add a closet, different shapes are created. So, what do you do if you have a missing sector?

Well, first you should symbolically “square the space off.” This is quite easy to do if you have access to the outdoors. You can use bushes, fences, flowers, anything to create that outline needed to “complete the space.”

You should also figure out what sector you're missing and then compensate that space by adding the element of the missing sector. And you can be creative about it! You can add furniture, pictures, fabrics ... you can even paint the whole room the element color! Just follow these guidelines below. If you're missing the following sector, add that direction’s element near that missing sector.

feng shuiGuest UserMay 3, 2012Franca Giuliani, bagua, cures, interior design, room designComment