How to Feng Shui Your Kitchen

There are numerous schools of Feng Shui, and what it entails. Generally speaking, not much is said about Feng Shui in the kitchen, and that’s too bad, because it is a very important room. When Feng Shui is discussed, it centers around the stove, and it is generally concerned with the direction or placement of the stove.
My advice is to consider the placement of the stove solely in relation to what works from a design and practical point of view.

The remainder of his article focuses on Feng Shui from and how it will make your kitchen flow well with good energy. The following will give your kitchen “Feng Shui.”

* Great layout. When appliances are positioned well, there is adequate counter space to work, and kitchen tools and dining ware are thoughtfully stored, you will have a great space in which to work.
* Appliances are in good working condition. Energy Star rated is even better, as these appliances are more energy efficient.
* There is appropriate lighting for cooking, eating, and any other activities that take place in kitchen.
* The kitchen sparkles with cleanliness. Bonus points for using non-toxic cleaning supplies! See my handy guide to non-toxic products. Keep refrigerator clean and have a container of baking soda inside to absorb odors.
* There is no clutter. Go through your drawers and cabinets and remove anything you don’t use. Donate, sell or recycle whatever you can.
* Organize your kitchen for maximum efficiency. Give everything a designated space. Extra points for facing cans, bottles and other food items faced forward and lined up, like in a grocery store.
* Replace non-stick pans, which are carcinogenic when heated, with cast iron, enamel and stainless pots and pans.
* Use great quality knives. Dull or inexpensive knives make cooking a chore. Good knives—I recommend Wusthof—will last a lifetime.
* Store and cook wholesome, natural, organic foods. Avoid food with preservatives and artificial colors.


Norma Lehmeier Hartie is the award winning author of Harmonious Environment: Beautify, Detoxify & Energize Your Life, Your Home & Your Planet. She is currently working on a book to help homeowners sell their property.

Choosing Colors in the Home for Harmony, Health and Balance

I love the subject of color and have studied it extensively. Interestingly, when I first studied and practiced interior design, I found myself calling colors "warm" or "cool" as you speak of them--depending on their undertones. I did this for years.

Then I began to study Feng Shui. I won't get into detail, but suffice to say that traditional Feng Shui is an interior designer's nightmare...you are supposed to use certain colors (that are significant in traditional Chinese culture) in every room. Ugh.

I understood that people react strongly to colors, but I wasn't sure why. In preparation of writing Harmonious Environment:Beautify, Detoxify & Energize Your Life, Your Home & Your Planet, I began to study color from the dispassionate scientific point of view. For example, in the 20th century, The Luscher Colour Test revealed that colors stimulate different parts of the autonomic nervous system, affecting metabolic rate and glandular secretions. In the 1950’s, studies showed that yellow and red light raised blood pressure while blue light lowered it. Blue light is now commonly used to treat neonatal jaundice and to treat rheumatoid arthritis. Different colors, pulse rate and respiratory rate; color affects muscular tension, brain activity and the emotions.

Each color has its own vibration; color can be used to bring harmony and balance into your life. The invisible vibrations of color can be used to either relax or stimulate. The color spectrum is made up of seven colors, with thousands of tones, shades and tints in between. The longest wavelengths, or yang colors—red, orange and yellow—are considered the warm, expansive and outgoing colors. The shorter wavelengths, or yin colors—blue, indigo and violet—are cool, soothing and introverted. Green is considered neutral.

Picture the pure color spectrum--red, orange and yellow are considered warm; green neutral and blue, indigo and violets, cool. Black is warm, white cool. Add to that each color can become a shade (add black), tint (add white) or tone (black + white=gray=neutral.)

Now it's all math. Pure green is neutral because it's made up of equal parts blue + yellow. Add more blue and you have a cool green; add more yellow, warm.

Knowing that, pink cannot be cool--neither can red or orange. Add white to a warm color and it lessens it's heat; black to a cool color and it warms it.

Here is another example: brown is composed of red, yellow and black and is considered warm, because the intensity of black overwhelms the red and yellow. However, add some white (tint) and the color becomes beige or tan and effectively moves to the center of the spectrum, or the neutral zone. (You have undoubtedly heard of colors like beige and tan being referred to as “neutral” colors. This is why.)But add a pinky undertone to beige and you effectively make it warm again.

When planning the predominate color theme in a room, remember that warm or yang colors—red, orange and yellow—are best used in rooms that are meant for social and physical activity, as these colors stimulate the more physical aspects of life; eating, socializing and exercise. Conversely, cool yin colors—blue, indigo and violet—are ideal in spaces meant for rest or meditation, as these colors invoke feelings of calmness, creativity and inner transformation. Green, which represents balance, health and harmony, is ideal in all rooms.

Color is one aspect of how our homes affect us—there are many things that do. (I’ll save for another time…) How things like color, energy, clutter and so on affect us is the psychology of home (an actual category used in libraries). Understanding these processes—how color works, for example—helps us to create harmony, balance and health in the home.

Fiddlehead Fern Recipe

I love this time of year because, among other things, fiddelhead ferns are available! They have an earthy flavor, somewhat like a cross between asparagus and artichokes. You may be able to get them from your local farmer, and Whole Foods carries them.

Do not eat them raw. Rinse thoroughly, and remove the brown scales with your fingers. Cut off the brown tips and excess stems.

Simple Fiddlehead Recipes

Fiddleheads
Salt
Butter
Steam 10 minutes or boil 5 minutes fiddleheads. Melt butter in a saute pan and lower heat, stir several minutes, allowing butter to brown. Toss fiddleheads into pan and add salt.

Fiddleheads
Oilive Oil
Salt
Heat oven to 425. Dry fiddleheads thoroughly and place on a tray, one layer deep. Toss fiddleheads with salt. Rub olive oil on ferns. bake about 30 minutes, tossing twice, until fiddleheads begin to brown.

You can add ingredients like lemon and garlic, but I keep this treat nice and plain.

Your Home Can Help or Hinder your Landing a Job

Is your home cluttered and dirty? Is your home unwelcoming? If you answered yes to either of these questions and you are looking for a job, your home could be hurting your chances at success. Clean, remove clutter, and organize your home. Next, use the magic of Feng Shui and simple manifestation techniques to help you land the job of your dreams!

A home that is dirty, filled with clutter and unorganized is not a happy place to live in. The energy is stagnant and negative. Consequently, the people living in this environment will suffer. Clutter will literally bog you down and you will feel stagnant, unable to move on in your life. It will make you inefficient, because you are constantly searching for things. Stress, because searching for things causes anxiety. Lack of productivity and energy, as negative energy of clutter depresses.

This environment is hardly conducive to aiding you in a job search. If you are living in these conditions, begin by cleaning your home thoroughly.

Next, get rid of the clutter. Clutter is anything that isn’t used or liked. Sometimes, we hold onto stuff for sentimental reasons. Clutter can also be just too many objects on a given surface. If you collect stuff and don’t wish to get rid of those objects, another option is to rotate them. For instance, if you have six objects on a side table all vying for attention, store three away for half the year. Now, the three objects will look nice and you won’t have that cluttered look.

If you have things around that aren’t being used or enjoyed, that stuff is not giving off good energy and will make you feel stagnant in your life.

If the prospect of organizing is akin to a trip to the dentist, start with a small space. If cheap psychological tricks—like rewarding yourself for a job done—work, employ them. Conversely, do not try to organize a space so large that the project could take weeks—forcing you to look at depressing piles of things waiting to be organized or removed. Take that large space and divide it into easily managed projects.

The payoff for a clean, organized home or workplace free of unwanted clutter is immense. The energy in your home or workspace will change—stale and negative energy will be replaced with positive, powerful, life-enriching energy. The space will feel lighter. And that good energy will make you feel more energetic and happier. When you know where to find your belongings, you will find yourself with more time—to be more productive or to actually relax. Finally, a clean home—one that is as free as possible from dirt, mold and allergens—is a healthier space.

Once your home is organized and clean, you are ready for the fun and exciting part of your journey—using Feng Shui and manifestation to help you get your job. The following is a basic introduction to Feng Shui.

Bagua Map

It is beyond the scope of this posting to give more than a rudimentary explanation of Feng Shui, but I hope this will interest you to study this remarkable practice further. Feng Shui is based all about energy, or chi and the placement of objects to increase good energy.

There are two levels of Feng Shui; the visible and the invisible. Moving, removing or adding objects is visible, but changes also occur on the invisible level. When I go to my chiropractor because my back hurts and he realigns it, I instantly feel great. One reason is because the pain is released, but the other reason is that energy is now flowing properly throughout my whole body, so it adds to my sense of well-being. When an object is in the correct place, it too exudes positive energy, which radiates and fills the space. When a room is in proper alignment, you cannot help but to feel good in it.

Another aspect of the invisible level of Feng Shui is to first visualize a particular outcome that you would like as a result of making a change. For example, you will learn how to add objects to a room to strengthen or bring love into your life. When adding these objects, you need to focus your thoughts on the object and visualize having a strong and happy marriage or finding your soul mate.

To help you find a job, you will concentrate on the Career, Wealth and Helpful People categories. Picture the Bagua placed over your entire home or a single room. The door to the home or room must be in one of the three quadrants—career, knowledge or helpful people.

· Water flowing represents cash flow:

o Put a water fountain in entry room of your home..

o Put a water fountain in the wealth corner of the home or in the wealth corner of a room, like the entry or bedroom.

o Photograph or art depicting water

· Flowers

o Put fresh flowers anywhere in home for bright energy and to uplift spirits

· Fresh plants and bird feeders outside represent growth—as in career

When you add any of these objects, visualize yourself accepting the job of your dreams. Look at these objects on a daily basis and keep those positive thoughts in mind.

By the author of the award winning book, Harmonious Environment: Beautify, Detoxify & Energize Your Life, Your Home & Your Planet, copyright 2007