Feng Shui House Design
Carla: Okay, now let's talk tips. I'm particularly interested in furniture arrangement, living rooms, or especially family rooms. Are there some tips you can share about the arrangement of furniture in this space that often has a big tv, a fireplace, and is most likely open to the kitchen/breakfast room?
Amanda: Okay, so here’s the thing about feng shui: you can have anything you want, anywhere you want, and furniture doesn’t always play a role. Now I know what you’re about to say... “Hold the freakin' phone!!! That goes against everything I’ve ever known about feng shui.” Am I right? Like I said above, there is a lot of misinformation out there about feng shui.
With that said, there are some things that must be taken into consideration. It depends on where this room falls into the floor plan, what life area it represents, and what is showing up for the homeowner. The big thing with furniture is feeling comfortable. So if you don’t feel safe, that fight or flight response will kick it into high gear.
Are their sharp corners; does the layout make sense; does the room feel leveled?
So for example let’s take an open concept room that has a sofa and four chairs. The sofa and two of the chairs are on a wall, but the other two chairs are floating in the room. If those chairs that are floating have low backs, you better believe they will be the LEAST favorite chairs in the room. You consciously don’t notice, but trust me your subconscious is taking notes on everything - and those low, floating chairs don’t feel safe.
As for the fireplace: this can really depend on where it falls in your floor plan. And it depends on the homeowner’s personal Chi (energy). So, for example, let’s say the homeowner has a dominant fire element, having a fireplace in the center of the home could be explosive on many levels. This is where consulting a practitioner will be helpful. Trying to figure out these nuances on your own could be frustrating at best and disastrous at worst.
Same for the kitchen. Where is it located in the home? The front? The center? What type of kitchen is it? This is where my craft truly shines. The layout is what tells me what is showing up in your life. The furniture plays a very small role - unless you are a hoarder.
Carla: I had one question from a fellow designer on Instagram who asked about bed placement. Does is it have to face east? Is that a tenet of Feng Shui?
Amanda: I do not practice compass feng shui. And here is the theory on that from my Professor: "We use a moving bagua (a map of the life areas in our homes) to correct for the weaknesses of absolute direction. Directional feng shui can put you at risk or harms way. You cannot become a prisoner of absolute direction because it can give up your power.”
Our principles strongly believe each space is different and has a power position that may not lend to absolute direction. If you are told to face East, according to your birth date, but your back is to the door, that is a weakness of direction. And you are now in harm’s way.
