Feng Shui Design

Put simply, Feng Shui is simply a way of bringing harmony and serenity to your home or office space through a set of basic organizational and design principles. This lens is an introduction to feng shui and will show you how you can use its ideas to make changes that will improve your immediate surroundings.

Feng Shui first began roughly 3,000 years ago in ancient China and was a spiritual system of aesthetics. What was originally a highly complex philosophical system in China has inevitability reached the West in a somewhat simplified version, however, the basic philosophy of all life revolving around the "chi" or energy, remains at its core.

Literally translated, feng shui means "wind water", two elements associated with prosperity and good health in Chinese custom. Feng shui is a way of channelling this flow of positive energy into your home.

First things first!

• Feng shui practitioners use two basic tools at the start of any project. The first tool is that of a Lo Pan compass set in wood which, just like any other ordinary compass, points you in the right direction! The difference here is that the feng shui compass is used to help us assess the energy in our homes and to help us decide where to position the things in a room that will best allow energy to flow uninterrupted throughout the living space.
• Not every room in a home is the same and depending on the use of the room and the needs of its primary occupant, the feng shui elements and colours required will change. The lo pan compass will help you decide what's required.
• The other fundamental tool is the bagua or energy map of your home. Start with a blueprint drawing of your house or apartment, then map out the eight key areas of the energy map: South, South-east, North, Northwest, East, North-east, West and South-west. For each section of the home you will then need to establish the governing feng shui element, colour and purpose.
• A careful division of your home into these eight sections using the compass will help you create a detailed energy map which you can then use to determine how to reorganize the individual rooms according to where they fall on the map.
• According to feng shui philosophy you can impact the energy that surrounds you by creating a space that is positive, but in order to do this you must first understand the five feng shui elements, the feng shui colors and how the energy moves throughout the rooms in your home.

The 5 elements poster by Avanda

Feng Shui is an ancient philosophy from ancient China used to create positive energy in any space. The key factors of feng shui are those of the eight divisions of space and the five elements. The following is an introduction to these five elements and how they influence the colours and spacial organization of your home or workspace to create a positive atmosphere of good health and prosperity.

The 5 Elements of Feng Shui

In feng shui theory there are five main elements: wood, fire, water, earth and metal. Each one of these five elements plays its own role in your living or work space. Once you have prepared your bagua or energy map by using a lo pan compass and your home's floor plan, you then need to consider the elements that govern each of the eight areas.

Each of the five elements influences a specific life area. If you can discover which areas these are then this will help in the design of your home and how to use furniture and accents that highlight that particular element.

Water cascades from beneath the gently spinning marbled orb, showering the rock-like tiers below.

Fire

Anything associated with fire inspires deep burning passion. The fire element also, as you can imagine, brings great energy to any activities. One's sex life is probably what springs to mind first with such a passionate element, but this can also include your work and career as well as leisure activities.

The colors associated with this element are, as one might expect, red, orange, bright yellow, pink and purple.

Water

Water is a refreshing element and when it is allowed to flow freely brings with it an abundance of good fortune. Used as a purifying agent in the ancient rituals of many cultures, using the water element in your home adds purity, energy in abundance and a sense of freshness.

The colors for the water element are blue, and the less obvious black.

Earth

We often refer to people as "down to Earth" because it's well-known that the Earth element brings a feeling of stability and security to your home. Mother Earth nurtures all of us who live on this planet and same goes for the earth element in your home - it nourishes every member of the family.

The colors assigned to the earth element are shades of beige and pale yellow.

Metal

Whilst the metal element may seem so hard and impersonal at first, in fact, metal is used to bring efficiency, clear mind and focus into your life. The presence of the metal element will bring a clarity of purpose.

The colors gray and white are associated with the metal element.

Wood

Wood is synonymous with trees, the lungs of the earth which provide oxygen for all living creatures which need it to survive. Not surprisingly, therefore, the wood element brings health to the body. When feng shui is used for healing the wood element is included in the design. Prosperity in your home is also dictated by the presence of the wood element.

Like the lush leaves of new growth in a forest, the colors for this element are green, and also brown.