Feng Shui 101

Feng Shui 101  – Part 1

In an effort to fully understand and appreciate what’s important to our buyers and sellers, we have been busy understanding the world of Feng Shui.  Here’s what we’ve discovered:

Feng shui is the study of the relationships between human life and the environment.  It teaches us that everything is energy, and we are in a constant energy exchange with everything around us. Thus, it is it very important to create a feng shui home that has a happy and healthy energy.

In feng shui, the house is viewed as a whole being in which one part is intricately connected to the other. Let’s take a look at some of the key things to consider when making sure you have a good flow of energy.

Location

The location of your home has always been an important thing to factor into your investment, but here are a few more factors to consider.  Dead end streets, a straight road pointed at your house or the center of a cul-de-sac also restricts energy flow and are all considered to have bad feng shui.  A better choice would be a street where energy can flow freely.

What else should you be considering? Look for a well maintained neighbourhood, with good amenities and landscaping.  Avoid being too close to airports, police stations, fire stations, cemeteries, highways and abandoned buildings.  Make sure your backyard isn’t sloped or lacking a proper support system, avoid large buildings, and pay attention to the direction of the front door.

Front Door

The front door is very important in feng shui as this is how the house receives its Chi, or energy nourishment. Look for an unobstructed, well cared for, and well-proportioned door to create balance and harmony.  The pathway leading up to the door is also important.  Look for curved walkways, nothing straight or harsh looking as this allows energy to escape quickly.  You want your front door visible, not blocked by trees, shrubs, walls, etc.

Main Entry

A good feng shui house has a main entry designed to welcome, strengthen and channel the incoming feng shui energy throughout the whole house. This energy nourishes your house and creates good energy versus pushing the energy away or weakening it.  Look for a spacious and clean front entry with minimal clutter.  You want this space to be welcoming for your guests as well as condusive to the flow of energy through your home.  Watch out for line of sight when entering a home.  Avoid backdoors which are lined up with the front door, walls that obstruct your view, and you do not want a staircase lined up with the door which allows the energy to flow back out the front door.  Décor should be clean and inviting, without any mirrors facing the door.

Once inside the home, there are 3 main energy centers in a feng shui house. There can be no good feng shui house without a good feng shui bedroom, a good feng shui kitchen and a good feng shui bathroom. We’ll explore these rooms in more depth in part 2… coming soon