by llenore | Aug 2, 2013 | Uncategorized
A couple of basic Feng Shui principles are to stimulate energy and to direct its flow – both of which can be done through the use of specific colors. Two of the most powerful colors to accomplish this are reds and yellows.
A bowl of vine-ripened tomatoes in a white container stimulates the energy of the kitchen to enhance the vitality of the home and occupants’ bodies.
Have you ever noticed how many homes have red doors? It’s not just Asian families who paint their front doors red. This is a universally recognized occurrence. Just think of the number of Colonial homes, especially along the Eastern section of the United States, painted white with black shutters and red doors! It’s a stunning combination and definitely attracts attention, to not only the house, but the door as well.
Yellow is a color associated with joy. We think of the sunshine when we see it. It makes us smile. Did you know that homes painted yellow sell faster than other colors? The buyers are already feeling joy when they see the color outside. Their whole mood can be changed to that of happiness and more contentedness as they walk up to the home when they see the yellow.
Place lemons in interesting containers for stunning centerpieces. If you have a table cloth with lemons as part of the motif, that’s an added plus for supporting and enhancing the health of the family members whether they sit around the table to eat or are “just passing through” as they leave out the door. When you have high-contrasting colors, especially the “complimentary color” (the color opposite it on the Color Wheel), you’ll bring in additional vibrancy and vitality to the space.
Both these colors attract attention. That’s why the fire engines and many other emergency vehicles are painted red.
Think of another area of your life where red and yellow show up. A clue – think fast foods! Yes, it’s no coincidence that McDonald’s and In-And-Out-Burger have branded logos with those colors. They want to attract YOUR energy (money) to THEIR business.
There’s also symbolism and vibrational energy associated with every color according to Feng Shui and Eastern Medicine. Red is the energy of the heart – the lifeblood of our bodies. Yellow is the color related to health. Placing either or both of these colors in the kitchen, eating area and dining rooms supports the health and vitality of the occupants of the dwelling.
Cranberry-sized cherry tomatoes offer the energy of “abundance” as well as stimulating energy through the contrasting and complimentary colors of red and green.
There’s also high-energy connected with those colors and their complimentary colors – the colors opposite them on the color wheel. For red it is the color green. For yellow it is purple. You will often find these “complementary” colors used during holiday seasons since they “stimulate” the energy due to the contrast.
A healthy tomato plant filled with fruit at various stages of ripeness provides a visual feast to stimulate health and vitality.
I’ve included a few photos of ways to present these principles in your home through cost-effective and easy design concepts. If you have a garden or shop at Farmer’s Markets, you’ll love these inexpensive ways to not only display and contain your produce, but also actually embellish your home.
Here’s to stimulating your vitality and enhancing your health through thoughtful use of colors according to Feng Shui principles!
by llenore | Jul 28, 2013 | Uncategorized
How Nature Created Sacred Spaces in My Life Today
Inspired by a picture of a beautiful cloud formation in the form of an angel, I looked around my home today for various ways nature has created sacred spaces in my life. I realized many of the spaces were “sacred” due to the rituals of celebration and memories I have associated with the objects.
I have created “Sacred Spaces” each time I give thanks for the item or area through the blessings of gratitude I feel when I see them. The joy of fruits and flowers along with memories brought to mind by each of these has made this day a sacred space both inside and out.
I treated myself to this beautiful Double Salmon Begonia after I had given my first all-day “Balance, Order & Beauty: Feng Shui for the Woman’s Soul” event last year.
My husband gave me this lovely Double Yellow Begonia on one of our “Date Days” in Capitola. It was a joy-filled day, the sun was shining and we sat for hours talking at one of our favorite restaurants where we continue to visualize and create the dream life we live together.
Has someone given you a plant? Did you purchase something in celebration of a special occasion? Does an object or unique food remind you of “good” experiences in your life? Each of these situations could be a stimulus for creating a sacred space.
A tray of peaches from our small, but prolific tree ready for the freezer to be made into delicious shakes and protein drinks after the season is gone. The peach tree was planted as a Feng Shui symbol for a long and loving relationship – something I am so very grateful to enjoy in my life.
Here are several examples I found in just 5-10 minutes:
To make the area a “sacred” area, simply give the item and area some TLC (Tender Loving Care or Total Light Ceremony). Here is one way I often use:
1. Look at the item.
2. Hold it in your hands or touch it.
3. Visualize the time when it became yours – was given to you or you bought it.
4. Remember what you felt at that time – joy, surprise, gratitude, appreciated, etc.
5. Verbally say a prayer or blessing expressing the FEELING you experienced at that time – joy, surprise, gratitude, etc.
6. With an “attitude of gratitude,” consciously be “in the moment” with the item or location as you expand the energy of these feelings to include all that surrounds you.
7. With “soft eyes” gaze around you to see the space in a softer, more gentle manner.
Take a few moments to go around your home and acknowledge the “special” items and areas within it. And while you you’re at it, take note of any item that brings sadness or any other “downer” energy. These may be items to consider removing from your home or areas where your “focused attention with a clear POSITIVE INTENTION” could be placed to increase the vitality and sanctity of your home to improve your life.
by llenore | Jul 26, 2013 | Uncategorized
Five-Minute Feng Shui Friday – Bird Feeders as Feng Shui Energy Attracters
Bird feeders are amazing energy attracters according to Feng Shui, especially hummingbird feeders. They are perfect for the front door and front entrance of your home or office.
A Hummingbird feeder outside my front door and in the middle of my office bay window attracts energy all day long enhancing the vitality of my home, my business and my life.
I do focus on the front door a lot. The reason for this attention is due to the fact the front door to the home and business is the main mouth of chí, or energy. We want to do as much as possible to make this an incredibly high-energy area to enhance the vital chí of the building and our lives.
There is much symbology with birds and the qualities we want in and around our entrances – again, especially the front door. One of the main qualities is the very nature of birds – they take flight, soaring to new heights, sometimes taking nose-dives, singing in the rain, building nests and nurturing their young. All of these represent the essence of life and our homes.
A couple different types of bird feeders attract the birds specific to the feeders. The squirrel guard protects the feeders from being raided by the squirrels. Tucked in amongst the rose garden, it is almost impossible for the local cats to attack the birds without being seen. Stimulating scenes of nature abound in this location with high vitality.
Hummingbirds have even more specifics we want around us. They can hover to make sure it is safe – really taking in what is going on around them and deciding if it is time for the “fight or flight” syndrome to kick in. They have bright iridescent colors including red that sparkles and shines, catching our attention.
Red is the color to attract attention and most hummingbird feeders are red since the hummingbirds themselves are attracted to the red color. Their movement is extremely fast reminding us of exuberant vitality.
Regular bird feeders will attract many types of birds creating a sense of community as well as an abundance of energy. Most birds are not as territorial as hummingbirds, which allows for this sense of community building.
Birdbaths allow a place for the birds to cool off and take a bath. Watching the process makes me smile and I imagine it does the same for you. The bath will also attract dragonflies and small insects needing water to survive.
A birdbath allows the birds to refresh themselves and are delightful to watch – a sure way to bring in “Good Feng Shui” energy to your yard.
We do want to have a variety of items by our front door attracting “good” energy to us plus we want to attract any energy lingering in our back yard to come our way. I have birdfeeders by a couple of my doors.
Actually, I have hummingbird birdfeeders by two of my doors – one being the front door – and I have wind chimes by at least two of the doors. I also have hanging plants, which attract hummingbirds, by two doors. I have more items by the front door to encourage more of the energy to come to and into the “main mouth of chí” to vitalize the home, which in turn, invigorates me.
I have several birdbaths plus the pond I often describe in my front yard that stimulates the energy of the home. Since I can see the pond, hummingbird feeders and wind chimes from my office window, it also supports and reminds me of the power of these items and the intention I used when placing them in these locations. This is powerful stuff – a way to interact and love my home through focused intention, attention and gratitude for this beautiful shelter I am blessed to call my home.
What can you do in a short period of time or with little effort to instill the power of gratitude and sense of reverence in the building you are lucky to call your home and/or place of work? Please share any examples for all of us to contemplate.
by llenore | Jul 19, 2013 | Uncategorized
With only a few days left during this Mercury Retrograde we want to take advantage of the positive qualities of this astrological event. Almost any word that starts with “re” is an activity supported during this time.
The citrus tree I used at the West Elm event in Palo Alto needed some TLC after being in the retail store for 4 weeks. Re-potting it into a larger container, trimming the dead branches and re-positioning it by some lavender has produced 4 new branches in just over a week.
I’ve heard literally dozens of people who have known nothing about Mercury Retrograde who have been inclined to go through closets, file cabinets, drawers and garages “re”leasing items that no longer serve them. That’s one of the things we can do now. It just seems easier to do it during this time. Plus people seem to be compelled to clear things rather than hold on to them.
In the Asian culture the Fu (or sometimes times spelled “Foo”) Dog is both a protector and a greeter of good energy.
In order to bring in “Good Feng Shui” we’ll focus on the front door area of your home. One reason we focus on the front door is due to the nature of the front door. It is known as the “Main Mouth of Chi” for the home, which in turn brings the energy into your life. If the energy is low by the door, then the energy for the home and your life tend to be low. When we raise the energy around the front door, we raise the energy of the home and our own vitality.
A few other ideas to where we can take advantage of the Mercury Retrograde energy are:
1. Re-pot plants
2. Re-position furniture
3. Re-cover chairs
4. Re-finish furniture
5. Re-paint the door or house
6. Re-locate a wind chime, flag or windsock
7. Re-arrange or re-group pots
8. Re-move dead flowers and leaves from plants
9. Re-enforce protection and a “welcome” feel with a Protective greeter
Re-arranging furniture or outdoor displays can add a revitalized energy to the area of the front door – also known as the “Main Mouth of Chi” to the home or business.
I’ll give you more information about Mercury Retrograde at a later time along with the dates of the next one so you can arrange to schedule activities in order to have “the Force be with you!”
Have fun this weekend “re-doing your environment in order to re-invent your life!”
by llenore | Jul 14, 2013 | Uncategorized
Honoring daily activities and celebrations in our lives are a couple of ways we might create Sacred Space using our intention according to Feng Shui as well as many other cultures and philosophies. Many spiritual groups and religions say blessings for the food before eating.
Celebration table at Disneyland honoring several birthdays while playing and enjoying family time together.
In this very busy world, many of us don’t even sit down to eat, much less remember to give thanks for our food. We are “multi-tasking” while consuming our food by sorting and reading the mail, putting dishes away or watering the plants. Not that I would know about any of this – yah, right!
Setting a table for a celebration is one of the many ways we might create a sacred space. It doesn’t even have to have special plates, flowers or party favors. Just having a gathering of people singing “Happy Birthday” brings a celebratory energy to any location. The sacredness is ignited by the joy, laughter, smiles, singing and memories we hold from these special times, no matter where they take place.
Napkin ring to set a sacredness to the table display.
Another way to create a sacred space would be to set the table for a “non-celebration” occasion – an everyday meal. Wouldn’t it be lovely to come home to a table already set for dinner with candles, cloth napkins, flowers and special glasses for a chilled drink?
Napkin ring to set a sacredness to the table display.
How about placing candles on the table along with a vase of flowers? Maybe having a special decorative light fixture would add to the ambience. Sitting in a loveseat-type bench might be an added bonus to coax you to sit a while, relax and read. Who knows, you might even start to daydream!
Table at San Jose Bikram Yoga enhances the energy of this sacred space in the studio.
If your spiritual practice includes gurus or deities you honor, you might include pictures or statues of them to watch over you. Anyone, or any location, can have these items displayed for private or public viewing. In some businesses it becomes part of the energy of the place itself, like a yoga studio, healing environment or mediation center.
Indeed, our homes, businesses and even our amusement parks are sacred spaces. Is there a table calling to you to make it a “Sacred Space” within your home? Just a little thought and time will enhance the energy of your home and your life when you create a sacred space.
by llenore | Jul 12, 2013 | Uncategorized
Feng Shui Fundamentals are powerful tools to use when selling a home. Feng Shui is also powerful to make your current home a place of peace, power and prosperity.
In the last week I have consulted on five homes, making recommendations to get these homes ready for sale. Although the recommendations were focused on “selling” the home, the principles apply to making the home energetically correct for us to live in as well. After all, when “staging” a home, what we really are doing is helping buyers “see” how they might live in the space.
Feng Shui greeters to yard and entry
Here are nine rather simple – in some cases quick – tips for “staging” a home or making it a more balanced and powerful environment for you in which to live:
1. Create “Curb Appeal” by adding beautiful flowers, lighting, seating areas, water features, plants or objects that move with the gentle breeze and make sure it is clean and weed-free.
2. Have a greeter at the door by either having a lovely front door mat or statues on both sides of the door.
3. Remove all dead or straggly plants
Remove dead plants and flowers both inside and outside for Good Feng Shui
both inside and out since they drain energy or create a “lack of caring” energy that can permeate the home.
4. Clean the windows and mirrors to have clarity in life, which can also help potential buyers make up their mind to buy or you to move forward with clarity on your dreams.
5. Make sure the doors and windows open easily, completely and quietly by oiling the hinges and clearing objects stored behind the doors.
6. Get rid of “extra” furniture (anything you don’t absolutely need and love) to allow free movement into and around the rooms, which allows the chi to move easily and makes the space feel bigger.
7. Bring fresh flowers, houseplants and blooming plants like orchids into the kitchen, bathroom and bedrooms to bring more life into these rooms.
This house hasn’t sold in this “hot market” due to many issues, one of which is that several of the doors can’t be opened or closed since the house has settled. This is really bad Feng Shui! Plus it needs a serious coat of paint, oiling and lots of color, greeters and overall “love energy” applied.
8. Remove all sharp, old, outdated, faded, smelly and dark items – accessories, outdoor furniture, flower arrangements, musty books, etc. – and remove all tags or “protective” coverings to show it really is used and part of the everyday life of the home (not just a temporary “show” item.
9. If it’s not useable, beautiful or functional, get rid of it or make it work, like a water feature without water, an outdoor chair without the soft cushion it needs, the plant stand without a plant, the desk without a chair, the poster taped to the wall or the exercise equipment with books piled on it.
Each one of these tasks will start the flow of energy in the direction you desire. If you want to sell your home, these are basic “must do” projects that will take time. Yes, it might be difficult to picture where you can put things or figuring out how you can live with the changes if you are staying in the home.
That is exactly the point. If you have trouble picturing how you will live there, the potential buyer will have trouble envisioning how THEY can live there with your stuff. Give them the suggestion without the particulars.
If you are staying in your home and want to change your life, these subtle undertakings will shift both the energy of your home while shifting the perception in your mind to encourage movement in your life.
For Good Feng Shui we want to be able to move around the rooms without it feeling to tight. By not having a dresser on this wall we can move freely around the bed making the room feel more spacious.
You may be saying, Linda, this is just common sense. You’re right. Most of Feng Shui is common sense. Unfortunately we get so wrapped up in our day-to-day lives we don’t observe our homes with the eyes of common sense or ignore the issues thinking they really can’t be affecting us enough to deal with it along with all the other things in life.
Let me leave you with this thought by Winston Churchill –“First we shape our dwellings, then our dwellings shape our lives.”
What shape is your dwelling? What shape is your life? Do you see a correlation? Maybe some Feng Shui Fundamentals would help!
