THE FENG SHUI IN THE DECORATION
At a popular level the most common question in reference to feng shui tends to be: How affects the overall décor of a house on different aspects of a family, like prosperity, relationships and general luck? People wonder if it's good to have this or that object, whether to paint the kitchen of a particular colour, or to have photos or not in the bedroom, and many other details.
It is natural that someone who has read a commercial book on the subject, or has seen some news in the press or television has these doubts. It is true that there are some general answers to these questions, but it is also true that the traditional practice of feng shui is quite flexible in regard to the decoration.
The idea of this article is to help you have a less rigid and more free perspective in the use of feng shui for the alignment of your home.
Feng shui objects
Carry out a job using the technique of feng shui never means to have a space that seems oriental, zen or like a Chinese bazaar, in fact, each house can and should show its own spirit, reflecting the soul and culture of the people living in it.
We always tell our clients and students that if they find a house packed with red tassels, flutes, bagua mirrors, fu dogs, mandarin ducks or the grotesque toads with a coin in the mouth, it is possible that they are using more some popular beliefs Chinese superstition than serious feng shui techniques. Often the most important issues and principles of this art, are subjected to the internal distribution of space (hallways, doors, windows, etc.) and to the external rivers that feed the natural and the virtual places (streets), and the magnetic orientation and temporary variables or natural cycles. Feng shui in its more serious and profound practice sometimes turns out to be a great unknown.
At this point, many readers will say right!, then what can I do to improve the feng shui of my house. The answer obviously depends on each household and its particular conditions. But because this actually discourages some people who seek rapid implementation, we will give here some general advices that we consider useful for the vast majority of cases, you can not expect a cure of a difficult disease without consulting a good doctor, in the same way these advices, although they may be positive in the general application of feng shui, they will not always overcome all obstacles. Here are some guidelines on the specific topic of the decoration, without going into more complex issues.
The need of void and order.
One of the most frequently found cases when doing Feng Shui work is to see houses filled with a myriad of objects that make up storage, clutter, obstacles and confusion. If you want to do a good Feng Shui the first step is get rid of the unnecessary. Making void serves to recover a good amount of vital energy lost in feeding unnecessary objects. The void is to release oneself from the hindrance of thousands of things that do not return to you anything interesting and that suppose for you loads to move yourself with freedom and simplicity. Sometimes one does not realize the chaos that is held inside a space until there comes a change that forces us to revise our acquisitions across the time, like moving from home or having to dismantle a house for a refurbishment, otherwise it may remain dormant in oblivion.
The word void can have a sense of denial but in reality its true significance lies not in creating a passive and sterile energy, but bring a detachment of the superfluous, that empty space that remains always has to be filled with something new, something with real meaning and light for us.
At the same time the void of which we are talking involves to review the impact of information we introduce within ourselves, it is not only about oblects with no apparent movement, but of images, sounds and words that can change dramatically the quality and purity of our deepest thoughts and feelings. More information about this topic, visit the void and order in feng shui.
General colours
As for color a flexible advice for many cases, especially housing, is the use of light tones and range of pastel shades, even more, when exposed in large areas like walls. Why? The simplest answer is because they allow a wider range in the general decor of your space, if you put a very intense colour in one place, it will make it more defined and concrete, and this can sometimes be the same as to put too much salt in a meal. Obviously, all has not to be neutral, but this recommendation provides a basis to play later with paintings, furniture, flooring and several objects.
Another issue to consider is that light colours or pastels provide lighting and energy savings, if you paint the whole living room in a colour like burgundy (a red a little dark) you will see how the light will disappear. Of course, you can use intense tones, here, the council would be to do it with balance and moderation. The very strong, powerful and intense is like the loud music, heavy meals or celebrations, they can not go on long in time without that health will suffer.
It's hard to give concrete answer to the question of colour in all cases, since it is also used differently at home than in businesses or commercial activities. For example on television, with a setting similar to a celebration, these advices might be a little different, leaves more room for yang and strong colours. All would depend on the type of program or presented idea. Can you imagine a program of ecology with a scenario based on gray and metallic colours, imagine a children's program based on dark and yin colours, and can you imagine a mystery program with colors like pale pink or a bank based on festive colours? Probably the answer to these questions is almost always negative. You can enlarge more information in the article about the colours of this website.
Forms and elements.
Forms are given a good attention in feng shui, avoiding above all, that these are aggressive or unfriendly. If you have a low table in the living room with very sharp corners and have small children, there is no need to explain anything more about this matter. These would be the fire element in feng shui, which involves some risk to use in an environment where energy moves quickly and without some control.
It should be clarified that in a house there has not to be all round and curved, like some people think when they hear about feng shui, basically, one should avoid what is harmful or belligerent to an activity or person. We can perfectly have a square table if its edges are normal, we always have to use the common sense. The square shapes, for example, add stability and concretion and does not include any negative consideration. The curved forms provide more softness, fluidity and movement, but are not necessarily always better.
In Feng Shui each form is represented by one of the 5 elements used in Chinese philosophy. The winding and irregular represents water, square shapes speak of the element earth, peaked or triangular forms of fire, round, spherical or oval shapes metal and finally the high or rectangular shapes to the wood element, a good example of the latter would be Manhattan.
Symbolism and decoration.
What paintings, sculptures, prints or exhibits should be put for a good feng shui? For example, you put a skull in your office to have good feng shui, you would probably quickly say no.Now if you were a cranial surgeon and this element would represent your knowledge and work, what could be wrong with that?
First of all, the symbols used in a space should be in accordance with your personality, tastes and vision of things. Generally no home is immune for this principle, and if we like it or not, its decoration hides certain psychological facts. In terms of feng shui, good advice would be to seek as far as possible the beauty around you, even if that word can be very subjective and different for each person. With the pursuit of beauty, we also refer to motives and emotional expressions. If you want to put somepainting would be advisable to analize what they represent. Are you looking for good relationships and contacts in your life? But you just put lonely people sad faces in your entrance. Do you want more harmony with your partner and all the plates in the bedroom show confronted people? Do you want more concentration for your child in its studies and this one keeps in his room a collection of empty bottles of gin, whiskey and tequila of his parties? These examples are real and are only meant to show some patterns that hide the symbols with our daily lives.
The only advice we can give you in reference to feng shui and the symbols,is that you project in your mind your best wishes and that you then surround yourself with that expresses the best views or virtual windows towards these goals.
