Feng Shui 101: Getting Started with the Basics

featured today on inhabitat.com

Photo credit: Shutterstock via inhabitat.com

Photo credit: Shutterstock via inhabitat.com

Feng shui is an ancient Asian art of placement developed thousands of years ago. Feng shui seeks to enhance and improve the flow of energy through your environment, to maximize the positive potential for your life. It is a truly holistic way to look at your environment. It may include interior or architectural design, but it’s really more than that. Feng shui looks beyond the superficial and is about creating awareness beyond what you see on the surface. The intent is to create an environment that supports and nurtures you.

As a holistic interior architect, many people share with me the wish to integrate feng shui into their homes and businesses, but they want to wait until the space is clean, or they have more time, or when they move. These are of course appropriate times to renovate or redecorate, but what most people don’t know is that you can incorporate feng shui at any time. It may even be more helpful when it comes at a challenging time. Feng shui is more than just about moving furniture around, it’s about shifting your environment physically and energetically to support and nurture your life. Even if you are not ready to renovate or redesign your home, you can still incorporate feng shui principles into your space.

How to get started: There are many aspects to feng shui, and one of the most important rules is called the “command position." The “command position” is the feng shui concept that governs where and how you can position your furniture in a given space to achieve the best and positive flow of energy. Ideally your bed, desk, and stove should be positioned so that you can see the door, while not in line with the door. Better yet, is to have your back against the wall furthest from the door, so you can see the expanse of the room, but not in directly in line with the door. This places you in command of the room, your home and your life, so that you can see what the universe brings to you and you are not in a position to be surprised. The “command position” situates you in so that you can clearly see ahead and move forward with your eyes open...

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by Anjie Cho

Everyday Feng Shui: Simple Tips to Keep Your Apartment Calm and Centered

featured today on Streeteasy.com

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Many people would like to integrate feng shui changes into their homes and businesses, but put it off until they can first clean it or until they renovate or right before they move.  But what most people don’t know is that you can embrace feng shui at any time.  It can actually be more helpful to integrate small scale, simple changes into your daily life. Feng shui isn’t just about moving furniture around but rather about physically shifting your environment and supporting  your daily life. Below are 3 simple feng shui tips you can incorporate right now to clear, calm and center you home.

Clean Your Windows

My husband and I cleaned our windows early this summer and afterwards he noted how clearly he could see the world now.  The environment and your perspective become clearer, brighter and more vibrant.  In feng shui, windows represent the eyes of the inhabitants of a home. Dirty and cloudy windows represent a lack of clarity in your life.  Improve your outlook by maintaining clean windows. While this is not necessarily an everyday occurrence, this tip makes a huge impact and your windows should be maintained on a regular basis.  It’s also important to use non-toxic cleaners such as vinegar and water to clean the windows.  Not only is a vinegar-water solution superb at cleaning glass, it keeps the indoor air free of toxins.  I like a mixture of 1 part vinegar to 1 part water, mixed in a spray bottle with 9 drops of sweet orange essential oil. Be sure to shake the bottle before use.

Rotate Your Stove Burners

What’s your favorite burner on your stove?  Mine is located front, right.  In feng shui, your stove represents nourishment, as well as career, fame and wealth.  This means it is essential to use your stove everyday, even if only to boil water, and to keep it very clean and in working order.  All the burners should work properly and wipe down the stove on a daily basis.   So what does this have to do with your favorite burner?  Next time you use your stove, try using a different burner to expand your opportunities for success in career, fame and wealth.  Instead of mindlessly using the same “favorite” burner, intentionally make an effort towards something new every day.

Use your Dining Table

Sadly, nowadays dining tables tend to be used for everything but dining.  If possible, it is important to take some time each day to eat mindfully at your dining table.  The dining table symbolizes a space to nourish and feed the body, especially with family and friends.  Using it on a daily basis prevents it from collecting dust and clutter, and allows you to take some time to nurture yourself.  Since space is often at a minimum, a dining table is often a daytime desk or perhaps non-existent.  If used as a desk, be sure to put away the “work” while you eat.  If non-existent, create a small space somewhere that’s dedicated to eating one meal.  Perhaps clear off the coffee table, keep the TV off, and find a beautiful placemat and dish to serve yourself your meal of choice.

I challenge you to incorporate these three simple everyday tips to provide some clarity, calmness and centeredness in your home and life.

by Anjie Cho

Using Feng Shui to Create a Harmonious Living Space

featured in "Sales In The City" by Kelly Kreth in  
Residency New York this month

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Anjie Cho, a Feng Shui consultant and licensed architect who is also at work on a book to be called "108 Ways to Create Holistic Space:  Feng Shui and Green Design for Healing and Organic Homes," suggests:

  • "Because most New Yorkers are so career-oriented and short on space, look at the clutter on your desk.  If it is in the left-hand corner, you might have stuck energy in financial aspects of your life; if it is in the middle top, your reputation may be suffering and if it is the top-right corner, you need to open up your relationships."  Bottom line: clear that clutter--everywhere!
  • She continues, "not only is it important to keep your door and entrance tidy, but I once lived in a NYC apartment with a broken buzzer.  In feng shui your entry symbolizes opportunities to find you.  How will an amazing project find you if your door cannot be found?"  Greeting guests with a new doormat would also assist in inviting in energy.
  • Storage space is in high demand in NYC.  But in feng shui most things should not be stored under your bed.  Cho warns, "This can represent subconscious blocks in your relationships.  You spend many hours in a passive "yin" state while sleeping.  What is underneath you affects you.  If there is a box of old love letters lurking it may be the reason you are single. Store only soft items related to sleeping such as sheets or pillows."
  • Never work out of the bedroom; it should only be a place for rest and relaxation.

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by Anjie Cho