But since it carries a particularly heavy symbolic load, it’s essential to deploy the color Black very carefully and correctly in your space.

Black is closely associated in Feng Shui with the Water element and all that it signifies:

• The depths of your fears and the courage it takes to conquer them.
• The will to move forward in your life.
• The mysteries of life and a philosophical outlook to help you deal with them.
• A sense of flow and connection with the world around you.

Black is best used when you wish to cultivate these specific attributes in your life.

When used in or near your entryway Black has an especially meaningful impact, helping you to cultivate things like flow, courage and connection on a daily basis.

However, it’s easy to get “carried away” with the flow of Black. Too much Water energy can make you feel disoriented, as if you’re drifting and aimless. 

If that’s the case it may be time to pull back on Black in your environment.

Using other Feng Shui colors and elements you can direct your energy appropriately: simply add Earth energy (Yellows and other earthy colors)  to introduce boundaries, or Metal (Whites and pastels) to create structure.

How much Black do you like to have in your environment? How is it working for you?

(Photo credits: David Gunter and epsos.de on Creative Commons)

One great way to attract fresh energy into your life is by treating your front entry to a Feng Shui update.

Just think how many people cross your threshold each day… each week… each year!

Your main entry holds onto energy from each and every person that passes through, so if you haven’t changed it out for awhile you may be holding on to a LOT of stuck energy that you no longer want or need in your life.

Here are 3 great Feng Shui ways to give your Chi a fresh start.

1. As you know black is a great color for an entryway because it evokes the Water element, creating graceful energy flow through your front door and attracting positive Chi right along with it.

This entry is particularly welcoming, with a black front door and very clear house number, plus the cheery black & white rug with a lively and welcoming pattern.

Very nice.

2. Here’s another take on a black & white entry rug that leads you around the corner from the front door and on into the living space.

Again the black & white pattern brings in Water, while helping Chi energy find its way easily into the home. 

The white in these rugs represents Metal, which creates and nourishes Water in the Five elements cycle, so it, too, adds positive energy. (Read more here about using rugs to create good Feng Shui.)

3. Here’s a black & white entry floor with no rugs at all — just a beautiful tile pattern!

This formal approach is absolutely perfect in a home where beautiful, inviting color beckons in the distance as in this photo.

It’s lovely, don’t you think?

(Photo credits: gracioussouthernliving, littlegreennotebook, casasugar)

A water feature creates great Feng Shui by establishing a sense of reflection, depth and refreshing vitality in your space.

If a fountain, bird bath or small pond are in your future, you’ll want to place it properly and in the most auspicious location to encourage good Feng Shui.

According to the Feng Shui Garden Bagua Map, the best locations for your water feature are the Life Journey, Family/New Beginnings, or Wealth/Prosperity sectors of your garden.

These three areas are nourished by Water in the Five Elements cycle that drives Chi flow in Feng Shui.

The Water element represents your Life Journey and Career, the sector that’s located in the bottom center of your garden, near its entryway.

Likewise it nourishes the Wood element that’s associated with the Wealth sector in the back left corner as well as the adjacent Family and New Beginnings sector.

It’s just as important to make sure that your water feature flows in the most auspicious direction.

Any fountain or stream that you set up for good Feng Shui should flow inwards, towards the center of your garden.  When its flow is directed outwards you will lose out on the benefits of its natural Chi energy.

Good luck with your new fountain!

(Photo courtesy of Red River Interiors)

Did you know that Feng Shui’s Water element also creates a loving bedroom atmosphere?

Water is the element of communication and connection, insight and reflection.  It keeps your life on an even keel and provides refreshment for your body and spirit, which in turn helps you attract or maintain a healthy relationship.

Here’s how to bring Water into your bedroom without extinguishing the ardor of Fire.

A flowing blanket: Water in the bedroom.

A simple Feng Shui bedroom tip: evoke the flowing nature of Water with a beautiful throw blanket.

This simple idea adds dimension to any bedroom, transforming it from sterile and cool to inviting and intimate.

• It brings the two sides of your bed together to evoke a place where intimacy can happen.
• It creates a “path” that symbolically leads from one side to the bed to the other, making it clear that two people belong in this bed.
• And it adds vitality to your bed, improving Chi balance with color and texture.

Fire & Water in perfect harmony.

 This orange throw combines the color of Fire with the flowing nature of  Water, and has the additional benefit of making a huge king-sized bed feel a bit more intimate.

Delicious texture!

This example shows a monochromatic bedroom that’s sensual nonetheless, partly because of a throw blanket that you just want to reach out and touch!

A simple Feng Shui change like this can make a big difference in a bedroom.

Do you think you’ll try it in your own room?

In Feng Shui the entryway is extremely important because Chi energy enters here to begin its nourishing circuit around your space.

So the “right” art is essential here. It needs to attract good energy as well as set the tone for the experience you, your visitors, and Chi will have within the home.

A watercolor painting of river rocks.

The best Feng Shui art also serves as a guide in the entryway, indicating which way to move once inside: to the right, left, or straight ahead?

The Water element is always associated with the entry to a space because of the flow of energy through the front door.

This elegant bamboo fountain brings an elegant water element to any room, soothing nerves and restoring the spirit. Available from our affiliate partner Serenity Health.

So the best Feng Shui art for your front entry will be connected with water.  This gives you a lot of flexibility since the Water element is represented by undulating, sinous shapes, mirrors and glass, the color black, and of course water itself.

Here are a few specific ideas that will attract the best Feng Shui to your door:

• An undulating landscape or painting of a beautiful flowing river.
• Abstract art that includes sinuous shapes.
• A beautiful mirror.
• A welcoming carpet with dark colors or winding shapes within it.
• Any art that’s associated with water: a painting of river rocks, for example.
• A small water feature, such as a fountain.

Use your imagination and have fun selecting the “just right” piece of art for your entry.

Do you have something wonderful in your entryway?  Please share the love in the Comments!

With Feng Shui’s Five Elements you can enhance specific energies depending on what you are seeking in your life right now. Are you looking for serenity — or vitality? Stability and balance – or flow and movement?

Here’s the guide you need for enhancing the Five Elements in your garden, to make the most of your life this spring.

How To Anchor The Five Elements In Your Garden

Wood
Wood, of course, is THE element of springtime. Wood is represented by the color green in Feng Shui – the color of life re-emerging after the long cold winter.

Wood represents ideas like new beginnings, growth, health and family, so if you’re looking to energize these parts of your life, put an emphasis on Wood.

Wooden furniture or containers, plants with a vertical, upright habit, columns as decorative accents – these are just a few ways to anchor the energy of Wood in your garden.

Fire
Are you ready to shine your light in the world? Then it’s time to bring in Fire, the element of passion, enthusiasm, and illumination.

Fire supports your efforts to be recognized for your strengths and talents, drawing attention to them with its warmth and light. You can add the Fire element to your garden with the color red – flowers, planters, decorative items.

One of my favorite ways to add Fire to a garden is with a birdfeeder that attracts lively, colorful visitors.

If birds or the color red aren’t your thing, use décor with triangular or pointy shapes that evoke fire, or add candles or good lighting that literally light up your world. If you have the space, set up a barbecue or fire pit!

Earth
Looking to slow down, smell the roses, breathe deeply and calmly? Add serenity and soulful nourishment to your life with the Earth element.

Earth brings you into the receptive, loving embrace of Mother Earth, giving you a sense of stability and groundedness.

Your garden is planted in the earth, of course, but other ways to enhance this important element in your garden could include ceramic tiles (to create a new life path, perhaps?), items in the color yellow, and broad horizontal surfaces that evoke a planting field.

Metal
When you’re ready to sharpen your thinking, get organized and bring your focus to the future, bring Metal into your garden.

The bright and shiny objects of the Metal element are also associated with a sense of childlike joy. Besides things made of metal, this element is associated with rounded items from circles to arches to ovals, and with whitish colors.

In your garden, think about pale-colored flowers, archways and silvery gazing balls – just for starters!

The natural slate material combined with the pleasant sound of running water will add a soothing natural element to your outdoor space. Available from our affiliate partner Serenity Health.

Water
Water brings a sense of spiritual reflection and flow into your life.

Water is the element to enhance when you’re feeling stuck because it evokes your capacity for truth-seeking and courage, enabling you to sail forth bravely into a new day.

Add Water to your garden with fountains or birdbaths, a small pond or meandering stream. Dark colors and sinuous patterns evoke this mysterious element, which is so important for keeping a sense of movement in your life.

Don’t have a garden? Check out my article about enhancing your indoor space with the best Feng Shui houseplants.

Garden or no garden, if you’re looking for ways to enhance your life this Spring, I can help.

Please give me a call at 646-382-3878 just as soon as you feel ready to make the changes you’ve been dreaming about.

Beautiful works of art, Carey’s Feng Shui photography portfolio captures the Five Elements, aspects of the Bagua and other Feng Shui concepts that are sometimes easiest to convey through pictures rather than words.

It can be difficult, for example, to find images that represent the Earth element, but this photo does it beautifully:

The stability of Earth: horizontal, strong, solid.

Its strong horizontal lines, earthy color and sandy texture are all reminders of Earth’s supportive, stabilizing qualities, especially appropriate for the Knowledge/Self Cultivation, Marriage/Relationship and Center areas of the Bagua in your home or office.

Here’s a beautiful example of the Water element:

The mystery of Water: deep, dark, moving.

This photo perfectly embodies the essential qualities of Water: spirituality, reflection and clarity. As a bonus it includes a bit of the Fire element (the fish) and even some very soft Wood in the seaweed as well.

Carey’s limited-edition prints are available to purchase in a range of sizes. Be sure to check out all the gorgeous images on her site. I hope you find some that perfectly capture the Feng Shui ideas you’re ready to anchor in your space.

“What if my master bathroom is in the Wealth area of my home?”

While placing the master bedroom at the back of the home is excellent Feng Shui (find some of the reasons for that here), many home designs place the master bath in the back left-hand corner of the home — exactly where the Bagua’s Wealth area is located.

This is an issue because

1. The entire function of the master bath is to deal with and drain away dirt and waste.
2. The master bathroom contains the most draining energy in your home. The toilet, sink, shower and bathtub are powerful drains that can suck away vital positive energy if you’re not careful.
3. It is a “Yin” room because it’s all about wetness and water, and because it’s often windowless and dark.

Interestingly, the energy of the Wealth area is also Yin — it anchors feelings of gratitude for the abundance in your life, symbolized by a gentle, gathering wind.

Even so, you don’t want the abundance you gather to yourself to “go down the drain.”

So here are a few ways to create great Feng Shui when your master bath is in the Wealth area:

• Counteract draining energy with the uplifting energy of Wood.  This might mean the color green, botanical artwork, vertical design elements, or best of all, a healthy plant.
• Anchor your Wealth intention with something that reminds you of abundance.  I recommend using something costly: high-end towels, a fabulous piece of artwork, a custom-made vanity.
• Give your bathroom a spa-like feel: clutter-free, spotlessly clean, and filled with self-care products that make you look and feel great.
• And don’t forget to keep the toilet lid closed!

Have I forgotten anything?  What other suggestions might make a master bath feel Wealthy?

But is white an auspicious office color from a Feng Shui point of view?

The answer is a resounding YES, showing the collective wisdom of office managers worldwide, who may have absolutely no knowledge of Feng Shui but want to use neutral colors that encourage focus and cleanliness.

If it’s time to refresh your workplace with a new coat of paint, here are a few Feng Shui tips for creating an atmosphere that helps you and your team become as productive and successful as possible.

1. White and other very light colors are best for offices because they represent the Metal element.

Metal is associated with business because it’s the element of concentration, sharp thinking and productivity, and because money itself has historically been made of metal.

2. Too much Metal, though, can throw the office out of balance. If the walls are white, and the file cabinets and desks are made of metal, you will need to balance Metal’s dominance with Feng Shui’s other elements.

3. Use the Fire element — red accents in art or furniture, good lighting, leather and animal prints — to warm up the chill of Metal. Wood soften Metal’s impact as well: healthy plants are the best option here, especially air-filtering Peace Lilies.

4. Use Water and Earth to create the harmony of all five elements. Water is important because it’s the element of communication and cash flow, and Earth adds stability to any space.

(Read more here about Feng Shui’s Five Elements.)

5. You don’t have to stick to white for every part of the business, though! Welcome visitors with bright colors in your reception area, and use warm tones to provide a nourishing atmosphere in the break room.

Do you like white for offices — why or why not?

And — what color is your office?

In Feng Shui the Bagua Map can help you decide where to keep toxic items like these.

When you want to move through a tough situation smoothly, quickly and productively, I recommend placing this type of material in the Life Journey area of your home.

This sector is associated with the Water element and (among other things) represents your ability to make your way through difficult situations.

When Water is moving it carries us along from one part of life to another — exactly what you want when you have a new life destination in mind, in this case settling on an agreement where everyone wins.

And when it is still, Water’s depths represent the courage we must draw upon to deal with life’s difficulties.

Placing toxic materials here will anchor your intention to move steadily through the difficulty and emerge stronger than ever after the event.

What do you think? Where’s your favorite place to keep toxic materials until the day you can get rid of them?