Feng Shui Balance - Yin and Yang

A harmonious life is all about balance; not too hot or cold, not too dark or light, not too small or large. In Feng Shui these extremes are defined as Yin or Yang.
Yin is  associated with curved shapes and small, dark and/or ornate settings.

 

Yang on the other hand is associated with angular shapes, and/or large light, open settings.

The more extreme our home designs are, the more uncomfortable they may feel. People tend to be happiest and most comfortable with a balanced mix of Yin and Yang features in their environments.

Use the chart below to analyze and help you balance any room:

Yin -  Yang Home Balance Analysis

                                                                        

                                                           Yin                                            Yang                                                                                           

Room size	Small	Large
Location in House	Quiet/Private	Noisy/Busy
Room’s View	Intimate/Private	Grand
Room’s View	Natural	Houses/Buildings/Street
Ceiling	Low	High
Natural Light	Low	Bright
Electrical Light	Dim	Bright
Open  Floor Space	Small Amounts	Large Expanses
Floors	Carpeting/Rugs	Tile/Cement/Stone
Wall Colors	Medium/Dark/Muted	Light/Bright
Furniture	Many Pieces	Few Pieces
Furniture Colors	Medium/Dark/Muted	Light/Bright
Furniture and Décor	Small	Large
Furniture and Décor	Low	High
Seating	Soft/Padded	Hard/Unpadded
Furniture Shapes	Curved/Rounded	Straight//Angular
Patterns	Floral	Geometric
Fabrics	Textured	Smooth/Shiny
Design	Elaborate/Ornate	Plain/Uncomplicated
Display Collections	Many	Few/None
Art	Many Pieces	Few
Art	Small	Large
Pillows	Many	Few
Books	Many	Few
Mirrors	Small	Large
Plants	Many	Few
Storage Areas/Closets	Organized	Chaotic/Disorganized

When Yin and Yang are balanced, you experience each room  in your home as comfortable and beautiful. The idea is to create a personal paradise that nourishes and protects your health, and happiness. Go for the balanced Human Comfort Zone!

Exercise Equipment and Feng Shui

   Two keys to a healthy body are exercise and rest. Unfortunately, in Feng Shui these two elements don't live well together in the same room. It's wonderful having exercise equipment at home so you can quickly and efficiently get in the minutes you need to get your heart rate up. At the same time bedrooms are designed for serenity, romance and rest. Exercise equipment is associated with activity that can chase  the feeling of serenity right out of the room. Remember that in Feng Shui everything is alive and constantly talking to you. Treadmills, stationary bikes etc. are constantly reminding you to get up and exercise. This can be especially frustrating if you are not using them and constantly  reminded of your guilt. Just when you need to rest, these action figures are announcing to you that you're looking a bit flabby and haven't used them for a while. Do you really need that constant reminder in your life?
  To maintain peace and tranquility in the bedroom, dedicate it to its original role - the room for the bed, and furniture that suggests relaxation such as comfortable chairs and soft lamps.

    So where is the best place to put exercise equipment? If you are truly planning on using it regularly the best places in your home are in more active rooms such as dens, exercise rooms, family rooms, garages etc. Bagua locations are good in the Health, Creativity, Helpful People areas. Wherever you put this equipment, make sure its being used,  otherwise it becomes a nagging reminder. Better then to sell it and use the money to go to the gym, like one of my clients ended up doing. She is having much more fun now, has met more friends, and has more space in her home.

Feng Shui Water Features

Water features invigorate Chi flow. Chi is the positive life energy flowing through your environment. There are many indoor and outdoor varieties in nurseries, department stores,  catalogues and on line. The two most auspicious areas of your home for water features are your Career Area and the Wealth and Prosperity Area.

The Career Area is located in the front center of your home, where many have their front entrance. This is where career opportunities flow in. The Wealth and Prosperity Area is in the back left corner, and again this is where you want a flow of prosperity. 

This garden fountain further enhances the wealth area with its beautiful purple color.

 I have this 360 degree bubbler by my front steps, greeting guests and welcoming the Chi. 

I then have a small fountain just inside of the front door in the entrance foyer, which is in my Career Area.

Whether inside or outside, place directional water features so that the water "points" toward the house or into the room. 360 degree bubbling fountains work very well at bringing energy to the home. Still water features such as birdbaths also enhance the Chi but must be kept clean at all times.

Aquariums are very powerful Chi enhancers because they act as "5 element displays," bringing the energy of all 5 elements: plants (wood), fish (fire), sand (earth), rocks (metal) and of course water. Make sure these are well functioning and clean so that they enhance and don't drain energy.

Pools, jacuzzis and hot tubs are considered water features and must be kept clean and in good repair. Enhance these with good lighting, flowers and comfortable seating.

Using Personal Feng Shui Chi Enhancers

Feng Shui is not about just hanging crystals. It’s about finding the personal Chi enhancers that match your personality and style.  

Chi  Enhancers are the basic Feng Shui tools that are used as remedies for treating, stabilizing, enhancing and balancing the energy in any environment.  Select items from this list using the Bagua attributes to guide you.  As always in Feng Shui, they have to be ones that you love!  You can choose one or more per given area, but for them to work make sure that they delight you when you see them, and that they are placed with intentionality and affirmations. 

v  Art – Paintings, sculptures, collages, collections, textiles 

v  Colors – Surround yourself with the ones you love! 

v  Crystals – Round and faceted to circulate Chi  

v  Lighting – Electric, candles, oil, natural sunlight

v  Living Things – Plants, flowers, animals 

v  Mirrors – In general, the bigger, the better, except in bedroom

v  Objects of Nature – Rocks, shells, potpourri, seeds, pods, etc.

v  Sound Makers – Wind chimes, bells, music, instruments

v  Water Features – Fountains, waterfalls, ponds, birdbaths, etc.

v  Wind Dancers – Mobiles, whirligigs, flags, banners, weathervanes

Have fun with it!!!

Feng Shui Vision Boards

Vision Boards are simply a collection of images, words and objects that represent a physical manifestation of your feelings and thoughts; creating a doorway from the unseen to the seen.  They are known to produce profound expected, as well as unexpected results.

How To Create a Vision Board:

A Vision Board is a very personal, individualized representation of your hopes and dreams, so no two are alike.

·         Begin with a board (11x14 or 8 ½ by 14 are the most practical sizes, but anything goes). 

·         Think of your life in the course of a year, a season or an event, or even a loftier lifetime goal, then close your eyes and visualize exactly what you want to happen, how you want to feel.

·         Cut out images from magazines, calendars, maps, postcards, photos that represent these goals.

·         You can make it 3 dimensional by adding glitter, string, stickers, shells, rocks, magnets, beads etc… Remember you have freedom in creating YOUR board.

·         Use a glue stick, glue gun, tacks, white glue, tape etc. to adhere items to the board.

·         Add inspirational words that are very specific to your goals. Words are very powerful, they turn ideas into action. Therefore they need to be always kept in the affirmative. Positive, uplifting statements only. Focus on what you want your life to look life, not what is happening at the moment.

·         Add specific affirmations that you write yourself, as if the goal has already happened.

·         If you want to create a board with quantitative goals, add sticker dots to each one as you achieve them. (A real estate agent had a goal of selling 10 homes that season. She placed a dot on her board each time she sold one. This way she could honor her achievements and watch her goal manifest itself. )

The key is to keep it realistic. Can you say “yes” to everything on your board, or do you need to set a more achievable benchmark for the yearly timeframe. If you create a vision board for a loftier lifetime goal like, “I will be president of a company” before you have a job, on your board have that as the ultimate goal in the center, but also state positive ways for you to get the job that will in time will put you on the path to be in a managerial position and ultimately own a company. Your board has to have substance and you should be able to check off benchmarks as they are achieved.

 Connecting Your  Vision Board to the Bagua:

In the Feng Shui  Bagua (Ba-gua) Map, represented  as a grid of nine sectors. The Bagua comes from the Chinese philosophy, “The I Ching,” and literally means “eight trigrams” , with the 9^th area being the ever important Center, or hub.  It is known as an environmental treasure map helping you locate specific energies in your home.  Incorporating these areas in your vision board helps to connect with emotional energy.

 No matter what your goal is, placing a picture, affirmation or word in the area of the map connected to the bagua area will make it more powerful.

·         Health/Friends/Family -  Represents strength, vitality, growth

·         Wealth/Prosperity - Gratitude and abundance

·         Fame -  Integrity, how you are seen, where you glow

·         Love/Marriage -  Receptivity and intimacy

·         Children/Creativity -  What makes you happy, childlike, creativity

·         Helpful People/Travel - Synchronicity, being at the right place at the right time

·         Career - The power and depth we have within, following one’s bliss

·         Knowledge/Self Cultivation - Personal growth, honoring the ability to self enrich and be at peace

·         Center- Grounding and centering

 

WEALTH PROSPERITY	FAME REPUTATION	LOVE MARRIAGE RELATIONSHIPS
FAMILY FRIENDS HEALTH	CENTER GROUNDING	CHILDREN CREATIVITY
KNOWLEDGE SELF-CULTIVATION	CAREER	HELPFUL PEOPLE TRAVEL

) yo
 Connecting Your  Vision Board to the 5 Elements:
Once you have your pictures, words, objects and affirmations on your board, and before everything is glued on take a minute to look at your board through the 5 Feng Shui Elements lens to ensure that there is a balance or colors and textures.

·         Wood - Represented by objects of nature, blues and greens representing growth

·         Fire -  Represented by lighting, brightness, fire,  red, people and animals or animal prints

·         Earth - Represented by earth tones, soil, yellow, stability and solidity

·         Metal -  Represented by rocks, stones, circles, whites, mental activity

·         Water – Represented by dark tones, water, asymmetrical designs, creativity

These representations can be in any of the bagua areas on your board, but a balance of all 5 of these will make your board more powerful.

 You’re done! Display your board in a location where you will see it every day. This will keep you grounded, help you grow and remind you of what you are grateful for.  It will help you create order out of chaos. Once you have achieved the goals on the board, update it or create a new one. This is not an event – it’s a journey. Enjoy the journey and the unfolding of your life!

 Feng Shui at Work:

We’re in the throes of a kitchen remodel. I have already placed affirmations for a smooth project in my Helpful People corner but am now creating a Vision Board.
                                                                                          

 

 In the Center I am placing a colored version of our architectural plan on a yellow background, representing the finished product and grounding element. In Career, I represented water with pictures of our black appliances, with words stating MOVING FORWARD.  In Knowledge I put the business card of our contractor. In Family/Health I represented growth by pictures of the mighty oak cabinets. In Wealth I put a log of our budget and the word AFORDABLE. In Fame I have samples of our red glass tile and pictures of our lighting. In Love, I placed pictures of our pair of lights over the sink and two hand blown glass love birds, as well as the words WE LOVE OUR NEW KITCHEN. In Children/Creativity I have the card of our kitchen designer. In Helpful People I have a picture of our quartz countertop (representing the metal element) with the names of all friends and contractors who have advised and worked on the project. Additional words such as COMPLETED, EASY REMODEL, NEW AND IMPROVED.  Once completed, I will place i the board in our current kitchen and as demolition begins move it to our temporary kitchen, and add to it as needed. Can’t wait to see the result!