| | Published September 7th, 2016
| Feng Shui
| | Create an Inviting Front Entrance | | By Michele Duffy |  | | Red front doors like this Moraga home are considered the best Feng Shui since red is protective and also attracts Qi , or life, towards the home. Photo Michele Duffy |
Fall is almost in full swing and here come all the fabulous fall gatherings. With that anticipation of home entertaining, what better time to review the Feng Shui of the powerful front entrance?
In Feng Shui we call the front entrance the "Mouth of Qi/Chi" or the main entryway where the Qi enters the structure. It is akin to the way each of us takes nourishment into our mouths so that our whole body is supported, nourished and fed. Sometimes the front entrance is called the "Doorway to Good Fortune" or the "Doorway of Opportunities" since this is again the main portal of energy into the home.
We also always overlay the Feng Shui Bagua map over the home from the front entrance, even if residents enter most days through a garage or secondary door.
The front entrance of a residence creates a first impression for you, for others, and for unlimited opportunities to come your way. It sets the intention for the rest of your home and every time you drive up to home your house either emanates an aura of success, abundance and pride, or a feeling of disarray, laziness and misfortune.
Think about when you are on holiday and drive up to the entrance of a hotel entrance - what goes through your mind immediately? You look at the maintenance of the building, landscaping, parking lot, the number of staff around, and all of surrounding influences of your first impression. You make many evaluations instantaneously and either you are elated or incredibly annoyed. When the hotel driveway welcomes you with beautiful trees, colorful flowers, a grand water fountain and a friendly doorman, you are happy before you have even stepped foot in your room. It is not a coincidence that most of the building budget goes into creating as lavish a first impression as possible.
In the same way, your home must welcome you, your family, your guests and all of your opportunities with loving, open arms. Before these "opportunities" ring the doorbell, your goal is to flood them with beauty, happiness and harmony. While they wait for you to answer the door, give them multiple reasons to generate positive thoughts about you. Create a home that glimmers and stands out from the rest.
Step outside your door. What do you see? What do you hear? Does the outside of your home emanate beauty? Notice the upkeep of the paint, roof and landscaping and keep in mind that a home that is clean and well cared for leaves a lasting impression. The trees, shrubs, and flowers should be thriving and well-trimmed. A cluttered yard or overhanging, tangled weed growth creates the same sort of stuck Qi (energy) outside in your yard as it does inside (ying) your home. The inside should always reflect the outside (yang) so if it's neat inside your home, it should be tidy outside in your yard, so balance is achieved and you have an uplifting view of outside from inside your home.
The path leading up to your home must be easily accessible. Clear away bicycles, trash, garbage bins, dead plants, newspapers, water bottles, and repair broken or leaky sprinklers. Here are some basic Feng Shui tips for powerful entrances:
Clear clutter from the yard, pathway and front porch to allow energy to flow into the home. No old gardening wellingtons, newspapers or children's toys. Also clear away all spider webs with a broom and keep your front stoop spotless.
Repaint the front door a bright, cheerful color. Red is the Feng Shui color for prosperity and abundance. Green is the color of nature and money.
Place a tall, healthy plant on either side of your front door. It should not block the entrance.
Hang white lights around the front porch to attract attention to golden opportunities.
Install a water fountain on the right side of the main door to bring fortunate energy in every time you open the door.
Place a statue to bring stability, blessings and protection to the home. This can be a ceramic angel, a friendly animal such as rabbit (love), deer (longevity) or turtle (health). Cultural artifacts such as a stone Buddha are also great to ground the front entrance but Buddhas are sacred art and must be shown great respect, so place a small table or flat rock or piece of driftwood under the Buddha so there is elevation off the ground.
Buy a colorful welcome mat with red to attract the qi into the home. Red is a color that stands out and gets noticed and this is desirable at the front entranceway. Then imagine that the moment visitors step the lovely welcome mat that their love for you is heightened.
If you energize, clean and prepare your front entrance now it will create much greater clarity to layer the many upcoming fall and winter seasonal decorations. Just remember to remove each set of decorations after the holiday has passed to reflect living in the moment. ... continued on next page
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 | | Here are some basic Feng Shui tips for powerful entrances: Clear clutter from the yard, pathway and front porch to allow energy to flow into the home. No old gardening wellingtons, newspapers or children's toys. Also clear away all spider webs with a broom and keep your front stoop spotless. Repaint the front door a bright, cheerful color. Red is the Feng Shui color for prosperity and abundance. Green is the color of nature and money. Place a tall, healthy plant on either side of your front door. It should not block the entrance. Hang white lights around the front porch to attract attention to golden opportunities. Install a water fountain on the right side of the main door to bring fortunate energy in every time you open the door. Place a statue to bring stability, blessings and protection to the home. This can be a ceramic angel, a friendly animal such as rabbit (love), deer (longevity) or turtle (health). Cultural artifacts such as a stone Buddha are also great to ground the front entrance but Buddhas are sacred art and must be shown great respect, so place a small table or flat rock or piece of driftwood under the Buddha so there is elevation off the ground. |  | | Here are some basic Feng Shui tips for powerful entrances: Clear clutter from the yard, pathway and front porch to allow energy to flow into the home. No old gardening wellingtons, newspapers or children's toys. Also clear away all spider webs with a broom and keep your front stoop spotless. Repaint the front door a bright, cheerful color. Red is the Feng Shui color for prosperity and abundance. Green is the color of nature and money. Place a tall, healthy plant on either side of your front door. It should not block the entrance. Hang white lights around the front porch to attract attention to golden opportunities. Install a water fountain on the right side of the main door to bring fortunate energy in every time you open the door. Place a statue to bring stability, blessings and protection to the home. This can be a ceramic angel, a friendly animal such as rabbit (love), deer (longevity) or turtle (health). Cultural artifacts such as a stone Buddha are also great to ground the front entrance but Buddhas are sacred art and must be shown great respect, so place a small table or flat rock or piece of driftwood under the Buddha so there is elevation off the ground. |  | | THE NOBLE CHRYSANTHEMUM Using seasonal foliage, color and plants is excellent Feng Shui and the Feng Shui symbol for fall are chrysanthemums. Chrysanthemums have more of an oriental origin where people in the nobility have been planting them for years, but they also have become very popular in the west. Because this flower is still favored by the rich and noble in China, other people, common people, were prohibited from growing this plant. As time passed, however, views about the chrysanthemums changed and it became part of Feng Shui. Having chrysanthemums at your front entrance attracts abundance and happiness. Chrysanthemums are highly regarded because they are associated with a long life of ease, constancy, faithfulness and goodwill. Chrysanthemums seen so abundantly in floral shops and in fall gardens represent bumper harvests, abundant joy and a long, fruitful life. Placed at your front entrance symbolizes health and long life for your home. Chrysanthemums are thought to bring laughter and happiness into the home. Chrysanthemums are excellent indoors as air filters, are easy to care for and last much longer than cut flowers. Place Chrysanthemums to also attract weal |  | | |  | | Michele Duffy, BTB M.F.S. is an Orinda resident who, since 1999, enjoys creating "Space as Medicine" Feng Shui one space at a time, as well as hiking in nature, cooking, and spending time with her family; Canyon Ranch Feng Shui Master, International Feng Shui Guild (IFSG) Red Ribbon Professional. To schedule a professional 2015 Feng Shui Consultation, contact Michele at (520) 647-4887 or send an email to spaceharmony@gmail.com. | | | |
Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA