Designing your Feng Shui Kitchen

When it comes to facelifting your kitchen or designing a brand new one, the most common questions that pop in our head are: How? What colors should I use, which materials are better? How much space do I need? And, so on…
In previous posts, we discussed different aspects you should focus on and useful tips you can use, when remodeling or designing your new kitchen. Since we are beginning November, we would like to dedicate this whole month to an ancient science and art.
Remember your kitchen is one of the most important areas of your home. Therefore, it should be nice, cozy, relaxing and appealing and there is no better way to reach these attributes than designing your kitchen through the feng shui vision.
In the next series of posts we are going to show you, the benefits for the health of your body and mind when planning your home through feng shui holistic principles. Also, how through different tips of locations, appliances and colors, you can achieve a well-balanced and harmonic environment.

What is Feng Shui?

Now, it is very important to understand that feng shui is not just a cool name to describe your kitchen when your friends are showing off, their rustic, modern or baroque kitchen designs.
Before we begin throwing ideas and suggestions, it is essential to understand the basics of this ancient art.
Feng shui is a Chinese philosophical system, developed over 3,000 years ago, of harmonizing everyone with the surrounding environment. It discusses architecture in metaphoric terms of “invisible forces” that bind the universe, earth, and humanity together, known as qi.
In Chinese culture wind and water are associated with good health. Taoist vision and understanding of nature, believe that the land is alive and filled with Chi, or energy, therefore land’s energy could either bring good fortune, bad luck, or misfortune.
Feng shui practice reveals how to balance the energies of any given space to assure health and good fortune for people inhabiting it.

Analysis and Calculations

Feng shui is one of the Five Arts of Chinese Metaphysics, classified as physiognomy (observation of appearances through formulas and calculations). These are performed with a Compass and a Bagua.
The feng shui energy map, or bagua, is an octagonal grid containing the symbols of the I Ching, the ancient oracle on which feng shui is based. Knowing the bagua of your home will help you understand the connection of specific feng shui areas of your home to specific areas of your life.
The feng shui compass, also called Luo-Pan, is used to access deeper information about a site or a building. It consists of bands of concentric rings arranged around the magnetic needle. Luo means everything and Pan means bowl, which can be interpreted as a bowl that contains all the mysteries of the universe.
You can find these tools on any Chinese store and even on feng shui books.
Once, you have defined the areas with positive and negative energy; you can begin balancing the energies of your environment through different techniques and using several elements.
On our next post, find out more about feng shui and how to apply it to your kitchen in order to design the healthiest, most relaxing and coziest environment you can possibly have.