Feng Shui Room Ideas and Tips for the New Year

After the hectic year that’s been, there’s never been a better time to fill your home (and life) with positive energy. Enter: feng shui, the ancient Chinese practice you’ve most likely heard of, but may not know exactly what it means.

Find out exactly what feng shui actually is and learn how to apply it to your home and interior design below.

What is Feng Shui?

Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice that charts the balance of energy, or ‘chi’ (qi), via scientific calculations and arrangement of the home.

The literal translation of ‘feng’ means wind and ‘shui’ means water, which are both associated with good health in Chinese culture. As a result, feng shui is centered around the belief that you can arrange your home in a way that balances energy and brings good luck.

What are the basic principles of Feng Shui?

In order to allow energy to flow effortlessly through your home, it’s important to follow the key principles of feng shui, summarised below.

Bagua:

The bagua is the feng shui energy map that offers a systematic way to evaluate the energy field of your environment.

The Five Elements:

Feng shui principles focus on the five elements: earth, metal, water, wood, and fire. While each can be taken literally (e.g. wood furniture), they also correspond to certain emotions, colours, shapes, and areas on the bagua map.

Yin and Yang:

This concept of duality demonstrates how opposite forces are interconnected in interior design. A balance of both types of energies is ideal when it comes to room design, with yin energy (passive) in relaxing spaces like the bedroom and yang energy (bold) in communal spaces like the kitchen and dining area.

The Commanding Position:

The commanding position is the spot in a room that is the furthest from the door without being in direct line with it. Ideally, you should have a clear line of sight to the door.

Interested in feng shui tips for the bedroom? Feng shui guidelines suggest you determine this dominant position in the room, then place your bed in diagonal alignment, if you can.

4 Feng Shui Window Tips

While we can’t tell you the best spot for your new framed print, we can certainly offer some guidance on best feng shui practices for your windows.

Let there be light

You don’t have to be familiar with feng shui to know that natural light can bring great energy to your home. To let extra light in through your windows, tie back curtains or raise the blinds as soon as the sun rises (or at least, as soon as you get out of bed).

If your window treatments don’t currently let in enough light, consider upgrading to popular light-filtering styles such as vision blinds, sheer curtains, vertical blinds, roller blinds or double roller blinds.

Allow yourself to see clearly

In feng shui, windows are considered to be the ‘eyes of the home’ and are related to your ability to ‘see things clearly’. To gain fresh perspective in your life, start by cleaning the glass of your windows, then move on to your window treatments. Once your windows are spotless, you might be surprised at what other areas of your life suddenly become crystal clear!

Close window treatments in the evening

Traditionally, it’s said that not closing the blinds or curtains allows negative energy to enter the home at night. As soon as the sun sets each evening, roll down the blinds or close the curtains to ensure your home remains a safe haven. Plus, with your window treatments closed overnight, your home will feel instantly cosier and you’re almost guaranteed a good night’s sleep.

Make your shades seasonal

Chi can change just as the seasons do, so it’s a good idea to match your drapes with the weather if you can. The short, chilly days of winter call for heavier fabrics and warming colours, whereas the long, languid days of summer are best suited to bright hues and breezy fabrics.