Feng Shui'd

I've been waiting to post this entry for quite a while now. You see, a few months back...an embarrassingly long few months back, I had a little get-together with a girl I met via Tumblr. She specializes in all things Feng Shui, and I contacted her about giving me some feedback via email about my then-new apartment.

I emailed her photos, and told her the problems I was having (both in my life and with the "vibe" of my apartment), and she promptly suggested we meet in person in order to get a more thorough idea of the issues I was facing. I know what you're thinking, in fact, I was thinking the same thing at first: feng shui??? What a bunch of hippie nonesense. But I had been seeing a therapist for some time who specialized in astrology with great results, despite the fact that I'm mostly a sceptic when it comes to that matter, so I figured "what've I got to lose?"

Dana and I met one Sunday morning at a cafe not far from my apartment, and I immediately liked her. She was my age, pretty, sweet, and something about her persona was so calming to me. I had to hold myself back from telling her my entire life story...she just projected that kind of empathy. We talked for an hour or so and she gave me some written tests that were supposed to give her an idea of what aspects of my life were not being represented (wood and metal, in my case).

After talking for a bit, we left the cafe and headed to my apartment where she started pointing things out and explaining why they were getting in the way of my happiness and success, and causing me the anxiety and depression I'm so prone to. I must admit, her points made a ton of sense, and I felt like an idiot for not noticing the little details beforehand.

For instance, in what she told me was my "love corner", I had a Chinese divider up with a cat box behind it. Duh. Of course I wasn't having the best of luck with love. In what I remember as my "career corner" (although I may be mistaken) I had my drums set up...the drums I almost never played, felt incredibly guilty about not playing, and whose sale could have given me some badly needed extra pocket money. Above my bed with a built-in shelf full of barely used odds and ends and above that a shelf crowded with decorative luggage and bags - not an environment made for restful sleep.

It took me some time to implement all her suggestions, which she emailed to me promptly after our meeting. Painting the living room and bedroom, which when I moved in were a god-awful shade of khaki, took some time, which delayed the process of subtracting and rearranging my art. Since "cutely cluttered" is kinda my favorite form of decoration, I had a hard time subtracting as much as Dana suggested, but I did remove everything and rework it with an eye for minimalism as best I could.

The drums were sold and my kitchen table took its place (doubling as a writing/work space). The Chinese screen was tossed out and replaced with my family/childhood sewing machine which now houses my record player and vinyl, and the shelves above my bed were de-cluttered and decorated instead with soft blankets and pillows, as Dana had suggested.

In all, I'm really glad I met with Dana. It was a great experience and I am now a full-believer in the positive attributes that feng shui (when done by someone who is experienced and interested in your specific needs) can bring to ones life. I wish I had the patience to implement all of her suggestions, but after 29 years of doing things my way, I'm still a bit stubborn with my space and don't think I can ever let go of my "grandma" aesthetic and "cutely cluttered" style. Luckily Dana never expected that from me, and worked with my specific style to help focus my apartment. In all honesty, I think it made a big difference in my life.

Check out Dana's blog for some great pointers (you can even email her with questions and photos!) and to schedule a meeting with her. Tell her I sent ya!

Now how about some apartment pictures?! Keep in mind that I'm well-aware that a lot of the differences are very subtle, and maybe only visible to me...but I DO notice them, and it DOES make sense to me.

View of my bed:

Before

After

Next to my bed:

Before

After

View of my living room from the entrance:

Before

After

Corner of my living room:

Before

After

Living room:

Before

After

View into bedroom:

Before

After Have you or would you ever consider feng shui?