Creative Storage Idea -- Feng Shui Friday!

Storage can happen in unexpected places.  Especially if you are dealing with city-living when there is not much storage space.

Today's Feng Shui Friday discusses just that.   

A fan who lives in funky cool loft in Montreal asked:  
In a space with little, to NO storage, which part of the bagua is the best place to store stuff?

Here is an example. 
Since I only have a very small closet, I have a pretty awesome collection of vintage trunks, 
I use them to store things I need (and yes, i try not to keep anything I don't use!)
but that I don't need daily.
Is it okay to use these trunks?

(Source)  Here's a fun example that would be GREAT in the Helpful People/Travel section!

All I have to say is:  GENIUS!  Getting creative with you storage issues will make you feel much happier in your space.  In these cases, a pile of suitcases doubles as a table and some secret storage for the things you don't need every day.

Ahh, white...make it your own personal style!  (Source)

Be warned though:  that that is the key -- use this idea ONLY for things you don't need every day!

Remember when organizing and storing, you want to prioritize.  If you drink tea every morning, you aren't going to put your favorite tea cup on a shelf where you have to use a stool to get to it right?  No!  You're going to have it in the front, in the handiest spot ever.

Same notion with ALL of your items.

(The "priority system" was taught to me by my brilliant teacher, Sharon Stasney.  Her book Feng Shui for Work Spaces goes into depth about it and is a great read.)

Mentally label items as Priority 1, Priority 2, or Priority 3 and then place the *1 items in the handiest, easy-to-get-to spots, the *2 items in the next easiest places, and then the *3 items in places such as these trunks, where you may have to remove the decorations on top to get to it.  Ideas might include crafting projects and art supplies that you only use every so often, or perhaps your off-season clothes.  Brilliant, right?

The suitcase storage idea, with its stacks, is definitely a priority 3 area.  Heck, you can even store your tax documents in there!

And to answer her first question...about the bagua -- the answer is not so clear-cut.  You just want to pay attention to WHAT you are storing WHERE.  For example, if your love life bites, and you have a bunch of old photographs from your first marriage stored in the Romance section, guess what!  Not a good idea!  Similarly, if you are feel stuck in your Career and you have a ton of glue stored in your Career section, please move to your art section!  (Kind of kidding on that last one, but you get the idea.)

Got it?  Other than that, whatever makes sense aesthetically and logically should be okay as far as WHERE storage should be in the bagua.  

Another great question from an awesome gal!

Feel free to email me with YOUR feng shui questions and I may just choose it for Friday's discussion.  katierogersfengshui@gmail.com

Cheers!  Enjoy the weekend!

Kid's Artwork -- Clutter Alert!

Here's today's Feng Shui Friday dilemma:
Got one for you. What to do with all of the folders of school work which includes first writing samples, art work (some I am sure done by the teacher and not my child) and other work that my kids have compiled from pre school / kindergarten over last 3-4 years. Along with first paintings and other art work ----this takes up a full big shelf of a closet. kids like looking at it still. And I want some of it....but....seriously, at this rate, we will need a garage just for papers.

And here's my response:
Teaching your children the "art" of letting go is just as important a lesson as any writing, math, or painting lesson!

Here's what I suggest:
1.  Buy a simple file box or expanding file binder like this:

from Staples

or a portfolio specifically for art  like this:

from eBay

Or get a really plain one, and write their name on it really pretty or let them decorate it with stickers -- whatever makes it special for them.

2.  Take an afternoon of fun and go through their art with them.  If you have file slots label them Pre-K, K, 1st, etc.  Let them choose 3 - 5 pieces (yes, three!) from each grade that they love the most.  Then let them give away (mayyybbee) or recycle the rest.  Or make a fun bonfire out of it!  Or if they really and truly seem more attached, let them glue the second-bests to a piece of posterboard for a collage.

3.  For the current grade, they can save more art throughout the year, and/or you can choose to display the most current stuff on a bulletin board or via this adorable DIY found on Pinterest:

http://lessthanperfectlifeofbliss.blogspot.com/2010/03/home-is-where-your-art-is.html

Then half way through the year, go back to step 1.

I think you will find that children are less attached to their things than you think.  I mean, think about it -- wouldn't it be sort of annoying if one day your mom came down from the attic and said, "Honey, I kept every art piece, every report card, every little teeny weeny success from your whole life, and here it is."  I mean, it might be fun to go through for an hour or so, but then what?  You'd be left feeling guilty about throwing it away, and who has room for that stuff!?

We don't need all these material and physical reminders of who we are and of what we are capable.  Keeping some, perhaps in a creative fashion, is great, but what's greater -- is teaching your children the lesson of non-attachment and that they don't have to have wonderful art pieces or perfect grades or 100 trophies to be valuable and loved.

Letting go is part of life.  And making choices of what to keep is part of life.  What better place to start than when they are young!

Exposed Beams -- Shui or Not Too Shui?

It seems like every grand home these days has exposed beams.  I'm not sure when this came on trend, but it. is. everywhere!

For Feng Shui Friday, someone sent me this pic with the message:  "Is this bad fung shei?  Beams on walls - bedrooms - I love the look!!"  

Here's the thing:  in general, exposed beams are NOT good feng shui.

I know, I know -- it's cool-looking, it's pretty, everybody likes it.  Everybody's doing it.

But see below -- these beams have a sharp, dagger-like feel, pointing straight down. Nobody's going to be sitting on those sofas for very long!

Source

The truth is there are instances where trendy, pretty, funky, and fun, and what's in vogue in the design world are not the best feng shui.  Beams are one of them.

Here's why:  They are big and heavy and very prominent in a room (or in the above case, sharp), accentuating the big, heavy, and prominent (or sharp).   Therefore, to our cavemen brain (which is still very much affecting us), they have an oppressive feeling, especially if you are sitting or sleeping under them.  It is a subtle and subconscious thing, but you will feel like "something is hanging over your head" or you've got something "bearing down on you."

This bedroom is especially tricky because the beams are over the bed!  And look -- it's splitting the bed down the middle.  This could signify a "split" in the romantic relationship going on here.

Source

Yikes, and look at this one!  It draws attention to the slanted ceilings.  Please don't!

So what do you do if you have beams?  Like most everything in feng shui, there are cures.
1.  Bamboo flutes.  This is the traditional cure.  Go here for instructions.
2.  Hang a very large round-faceted crystal on the most damaging beam where people congregate or sleep below.  This will help disperse the offending chi.
3.  Paint the beams the same color as the ceiling to make them "disappear."
4.  Remodel to have them covered!
5.  Use fabric to soften the blow.

I hope I didn't crush any hearts with this post, because I know that people love their beams!  But trust me when I say that your subconscious will thank me if you do these easy cures.  Just try it and see if a sense of relief washes over your life.

After all, no one wants to feel weighted down!

Feng Shui Friday -- Formal Dining Room

Ah, the formal dining room.  I found this photo on-line, and it spoke to me, so I thought I'd give a little "feng shui assessment" of it for a Friday treat.

Formal dining rooms are not so common these days.  Today, kitchens, dining rooms, and even family rooms blend into one.  I believe that there is a subconscious reason for this super-combo.  We are all so busy that, sometimes, our only time with our families is at meal time, so that parents and spouses and children want to be "with each other" as they cook, play, or watch TV.  I also think that we have created a culture of isolation (i.e. home to car to work to car to errands to the occasional social function to home again), so that these "great rooms" are our attempt to have some sort of connection!  We are tired of being in our own little pod-worlds!

Nonetheless the room below is beautiful, and if you are lucky enough to have the space for a formal dining room, why not make it a gracious and lovely?  

From Wakefield Design Center

Here's what is "Feng Shui approved" about the room:
1.  Balance of yin and yang.  The rug, curtains, cushioned chairs, and even the texture of the blue-gray soften the room.  The white, the lighting, and floor ceiling windows and that active yang.
2.  Color palette.  The soft blue makes for an elegant statement, and since it's accentuated by the white, it is neither overpowering (depressing) nor underwhelming.
3.  Feels lux. The decor lends to a lux feel that will delight guests and have them enjoying their meals and feeling quite treasured.
4.  The shape of the dining room table.  Yes to round, as everyone will feel included!
5.  Comfy chairs.  Not too hard, not too soft --- just right?
6.  Centerpiece.  Can you imagine the room without that gorgeous bouquet?  It gives it a focal point and an anchor.  Centerpieces can make a huge difference to the chi (energy) of a room!
7. Cleanliness and clutter-free.  Excuse the obviousness, but dining in a space so sparkling clean and clear of clutter will make for an uber-pleasant experience.

What could use some feng shui improvements:
1.  White chairs.  Although I personally love the aesthetic of the white chairs, the color may cause diners to feel "too careful" while eating in fear of dirtying the white.  (This could be a good thing though!  I'm a little on the fence on this one.)  Nonetheless, the white adds to the "formal" feel of the room, and will have those dining here using their best manners!
2.  Glass/metal table.  I tend to steer clear of the glass and metal mix for tables, especially with coffee tables as it has a "precarious" feel.  However, it's not horrid here, because the chairs add some stability -- alas, because of the see-through vibe of a glass table, this room may benefit from having a solid table to anchor the room to alleviate that floating feeling.  Even a table cloth would help.   It will make those dining feel more settled and as a result would aid digestion!
3.  Cure the shar.  Do you see how the wall juts out (on the left of the photo), making a sharp edge point towards the table?  This is called a "shar" in feng shui.  Whomever is sitting in the line of that shar will not feel very comfortable nor settled!  There are various ways to cure this, too long to list here.  :)
4.  Is it too formal?  That question depends on who you are!  In feng shui, your home should represent YOU.  If you are into formality, entertaining, and the like, go for it!  If you have a more casual approach to life, then do something else.  Your home is about you -- don't try to be who you aren't -- that's the worst feng shui of all.

This photo is a great example of "how a room affects you."  It's obvious, simply from the choice of furniture and color that one would have a luxurious experience dining in this room.  Can you imagine the same room, fit for more casual dining?  It would have a totally different decor, color scheme, etc.

Such are the basics of feng shui!

I hope you enjoyed this little edition of what is to become Feng Shui Friday, where you can email me photos and ask a question or two for my blogging files!

Hey!  Here's an article I wrote for-evah ago that was appeared in a Sun Valley, Idaho publication.  Ezine.com found it and posted it on the Internet, so I decided I would too.

Enjoy!

What Feng Shui Reveals About YOU

By Katie Rogers

"A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life." --His Holiness the Dalai Lama

The above statement may seem simple at first reading, but upon consideration, it is really quite powerful. I believe that the Dalai Lama is emphasizing the importance of the state of one's living space.

Too many people are careless with the space in which they work or dwell. In terms of the Black Sect Tandtic Buddism school of feng shui (which is a derivative of Tibetan Tantric Buddhism), when a person is thoughtful (or thoughtless) in regard to his or her living space, it spills out into his or her life.

So why does feng shui have all those strange and curious "cures," you might ask, if all one has to do is create a "loving atmosphere"? The fact is most of us have forgotten what a loving atmosphere is. Sure, we may recognize it when we see it, but making it happen is a different story. This is a result of a mass disease that has taken over our world: that is the disease of not knowing how to love our selves completely. Otherwise, creating our lives according to our deepest desires and most lofty dreams would be a cinch.

I like to tell my clients to imagine reading a short story where the author describes the space. This a quick way to notice the "symbolism" that occurs in your own home. After all, the subconscious sees everything. It constantly absorbs messages from our environment and processes these messages. In turn, these messages are sent into our energy fields, creating the very lives we are experiencing. Imagine the difference of a home filled with unwanted gifts, dying plants, and cluttered closets compared to one with healthy flowers, treasured objects, and neatly organized closets with (gasp) extra space! The first home feels slightly neglected, even if the rest of the furnishings were pleasant, while the second space feels freer, lighter, and, cherished. Even the smallest of details have an impact. Our subconscious mind takes images without a filter.

symbolism goes a long way in feng shui--
interior design by Liz Williams

A wonderful start to a loving atmosphere is to first discard or give away any objects that you do not love in your home. Clutter is a sure way to block your highest potential as the subconscious sees it as a symbol of things that we don't love or need in our lives and creates accordingly. It is amazing how letting go of a thing as simple as a candle from an unfaithful ex-lover or a blanket that you have never used because it is too scratchy can lighten your load! The subconscious gets the message that you'd rather have something (or someone) better in your life.

Next, play with ideas, and find out what it is that want to invite into your life. Then consciously bring it into your home symbolically. For example, you've always wanted to travel to Italy. Then stick a postcard of Rome on your refrigerator. Would you like to amp up your love life? Figure out your own personal "romance symbol" and drape it, plant it, or play it on your stereo everyday. The key to creating a great life is to get creative!

With every object in our homes, we are sending a message to ourselves and to the Universe. Wouldn't you want your message to be one of pure and uplifting love so that you could receive that, and only that, back? Use your conscious mind to transform your subconscious mind, and then witness the shifts in your life.

What NOT To Do To Your TREES -- Tree Care 101: Lesson in Mulching

Mulch.  What a great word.  Say it:  Mulch.

Basically, mulch is tree parts. I know a lot of people go to Lowe's and buy the stuff by the bag, but honestly, anything that falls off a trees (twigs, leaves, pine straw, pieces of bark) makes great mulch.

Mulch is good stuff.  Trees love it.  I love it.  The world -- obviously-- loves it, by the way they seem to pile it on.  

But there is a right and wrong way to go about mulching your trees. 

Here is the DON'T.

See how this mulch is piled up AGAINST THE TRUNK -- this is BAD.  The trunk is buried!!!

Here's where I dug it out -- you can see the trunk is ROTTING!

Here is the tree again, a little further out -- big pile of mulch AGAINST THE TRUNK = BAD

Now this tree is quite glorious, don't you agree?  So, why, why, why would someone put it at risk?

Because when you weaken the structure of the trunk, you put the tree at risk of dying, or worse, having a weak trunk, and then it could fall and really hurt something or someone!

Let's save our trees, please!

Here's what mulch is good for:
1.  Replenishing nutrients in the soil
2.  Keeping the soil moist
3.  Preventing soil erosion
(Those are the ultra-uber-basics, the Ground Guys have written it out, shortly and sweetly here)

Because mulch is so good at keeping moisture in, it's exactly why it should NOT go up against a trunk. The trunk does not need the extra moisture!

Think of it like this:
Mulch, mulch is good for the DIRT
When it touches a tree, it will HURT.

(I just made that up -- I'll try to work on it for you.)

The proper way to put mulch around a tree is to do just that:  put mulch AROUND a tree.  A half-foot to a foot away from the trunk should suffice, and it will still ensure that the soil is getting what it needs...so that the tree gets what it needs.

THANKS!

P.S.  If feeling altruistic one day, go help the improperly-mulched trees in your urban environment by pushing the soil a foot or so back from the trunk -- make a day out of it, and see how good you'll feel!  It's as important to CARE for a tree as it is to PLANT one.

When a Feng Shui Cure is NOT a Cure (a.k.a. My Feng Shui Nod to Football Season)

It's football season!  And you know what that means in the South.

That it's football season!  And people are really happy about it.

For that reason, I thought I'd share a true story about a client and a football helmet.

To begin:
This particular client had a working knowledge of feng shui, so much so that her entire home office (which was also located in her Money section) had just about every knick-knacky feng shui cure known to man in there.

Like this:

...wealth gods?

...some kind of money tree?

...no clue...just don't go there.

And, of course, the famous lucky cat:

Hi, I'm a lucky cat...(and I'm kind of random.)

Now, if this is your style, then great.  BUT these items do not necessarily promote good feng shui.  Especially if there are so many of them that it equals the c-l-u-t-t-e-r.

When I explained to this client that
#1. clutter is not good feng shui, I don't care what the kind of luck it promises,
#2. having SO many cures actually reveals to me that she's afraid of losing her money rather than implementing a cure and trusting that the cure will work, and
#3. a lot of these gimmicky things that are labeled as good feng shui are actually just that --

gimmicks...

...so we both went to work clearing out most of these so-called cures and leaving only the really awesome ones to represent healthy wealth and finances.

It felt great!

But we weren't finished.

Now, as we were clearing out objects, it became more and more apparent what was working and what wasn't.  (You know, the ol' peeling layers from an onion analogy.)  Lo and behold, a certain something was calling out to me.  She had a large bookshelf in her office, and it was very close to her chair and desk, and on the top of that bookshelf, amongst other items, was a football helmet in a glass case.

It looked something like this:

I asked her about it.

She said, "Oh, I don't know.  It was some gift or award or something.  I just didn't know what to do with it."

Ding, ding, ding!!!  My little clutter alarm went off.  She could care less about this helmet so why the heck was it taking up space in her home?

Now, here is what happened.

We took it down.

And let me tell you, it felt like a gush of wind had come into the room. The energy shifted so much from that one item, that my client literally had to sit down because she was dizzy.  I was used to this kind of shift, but boy, she didn't know what hit her!

gush of wind   (Hey! Feng Shui is literally "wind, water")

It was BIG.  I noted that the helmet was representing a burden "hanging over her head," and that it's presence had taken on some major energy.   I explained that her money situation was "overbearing" in some way and had become a "weight on her shoulders."

By removing the helmet and shaking that energy up, we lightened the feel of the office...and therefore, her money situation.

I'm happy to say that her finances, which had been in major crisis, took a huge shift and are getting back on track.

And that football helmet has found a new home at the Goodwill. Thank goodness.