October 1, 2007
Feng Shui My Way
Posted by Therefore Single (tS) under Chance It?, Redesigning My Life, Relationships, Singledom, Unsettled SoloYou will all probably think I’m nuts but I really believe there is something to be said about the environment someone lives in and it’s impact on that person’s life. **That and I’ve been watching WAY TOO MUCH HGTV the past few days.**
Nearly a year ago I rearranged the furniture in my room after getting my parent’s old computer. I wanted the desk in a place where the computer wouldn’t be the first thing seen when walking into my room. **It’s a bedroom after all and not an office even if it acts as both some days.** When I moved the computer in I also rotated the bed to be against 2 walls. **Man did I hate that but I gained more floor space.** As I said, I’ve been living like that for about a year. In that time my life has been turned upside down. My bedroom became a catchall for all the material and doodads I’ve collected to use in my business. My room became anything but a sleeping chamber. With the bed pushed up against the wall it was obvious sleeping was the last thing on my mind. In fact, visitors to my home and bed were nearly nonexistent. My love life was going no where, sex life…not good, career…chaotic. The list goes on. I always felt unsettled in my room. And I hated sleeping with my bed against the wall.
After watching all the remodeling shows, especially one on feng shui, I got the urge to clean and redecorate. **Those shows are dangerous.** I started by trying to just clean my room and therefore clean-up my life. Suddenly I wasn’t just cleaning. Instead I was moving everything out of my room so I could move my bed. **Of course this was after I measured every piece of furniture and moved them around on a little floor plan I made of my room. Yes, I’m a bit of a nerd.** I rotated my bed to the same wall it had been on over a year ago. I placed it (this gets scary even for me) into the children zone of my room. (See the floor plan below.) I swear I had no other choice. I didn’t do that on purpose. Already my room felt more like a bedroom.
There were several reasons for moving my bed. **This is where I get a little nuts about this design stuff.** I analyzed my room and realized by having my bed pressed up against the wall I was preventing another person from coming into my life. By moving my bed it now allows access to more then just me. I also opened up the love zone. It all makes sense now. I threw my bed into that corner and my relationships changed. **Granted I’ve been focusing more on my work but still, I need all the help I can get these days.** Since I’m trying to put more of an emphasis on dating and relationships my bedroom should reflect that as well. Right? By opening up this space it will give me the chance to decorate the zone in a way that should help improve my love life and my relationships with others.
When I finally went to sleep that night, wow, did I sleep well. It was as though things were beginning to fall into place. Granted I now have a shopping list of things I want in order to finish off my space but it will get there. I have a birthday coming up and Christmas. Just a few opportunities to get some help with purchasing things for my room. I have so many plans. I’m glad I hadn’t done much of anything with my room until now. This will give me the chance to do it right.
October 1, 2007 at 3:33 pm
If measuring furniture and laying it out with the computer is nerdy, I’m also guilty. I moved recently and did exactly the same, but, when I noticed that my Corel 2D plan didn’t give me enough feedback about volumes, I did it in 3D with Google SketchUp!
I have not read nearly anything about Feng Shui thing, just know the concept, but I’m pretty sure that how a place is organized has great influence on what happens within.
Two of the books I enjoyed most reading was “The Timeless Way of Building” and “A Pattern Language”, both by Christopher Alexander and some collaborators. The first book explains the concepts and the second book is a catalog of patterns (well known solutions), from city and town planning to sub-room space.
Not everything in that book is helpful to everyone. Some ideas need you to be able to plan or decide from the start, to build your own house (something most of us can’t do), or perhaps you cannot alter things without asking somebody else, but it’s not useless.
Now I look some places and know what’s wrong with them, or can I choose better what’s presented to me (shame I have no money to buy a house :-), or, sometimes, I can improve a little my environment.
October 1, 2007 at 8:52 pm
Wait! Hold on just a second. YOU are telling ME about Pattern Language? Honey, you’re preaching to the choir. Remember I’m an architect? I had a whole semester course on Pattern Language.
HGTV has a new show called Fun Shui. They have a webpage too, hgtv.com/fun. It’s a crash course on Feng Shui. You should check it out. It tells you what colors or elements should be in what area’s of your home. However, if you really want to Feng Shui it out the web page won’t get you there but even the slightest changes can be benefitial.
Wow! When did I become a commercial?
October 2, 2007 at 12:24 am
Well… Changing the bed is so dangerous. I remember one time I changed my bed in the room I use to share with my brother and sister (yes we were poor but it was funny). My bed was against the wall in the left side and we changed it so the wall was in the right side. In the morning I wake up and go out of the bed thought the wrong side so I hit my head against the wall. The result of changing the bed: a knock out Kus!!!
October 2, 2007 at 2:58 am
I didn’t know it was taught in university, it seemed somewhat “informal” to me. But, yes, I supposed you had read it. Anyway I consider useful for anyone reading this blog. I’m not an architect - my area is computers - and enjoyed it a lot!
Who should have read something about environments was the decorator of my previous job. Hang peaceful paintings doesn’t work when the wall is painted with this color:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pumpkin_%28color%29
October 2, 2007 at 10:18 pm
Hey, I shared a room with my 3 sisters…you thought you had it bad growing up? Try four adolescent girls in one room. Yikes!
**Granted our bedroom was nearly the size of my condo I live in and our closet was almost the size of my bedroom here but still… :)**
October 4, 2007 at 2:20 am
Our apartment was (still is) 45 square meters… So imagine how big was our bedroom…
December 29, 2007 at 1:10 pm
I want to build a small house with 2 bedroom, 1 kitchen, 1 living room, 1 bathroom + toilet, 1 small porch. Can you send me some sample of feng shui home style
Thanks