Fancy Nancy Designs

Feng Shui has been practiced in China for over 3,000 years. Hong Kong, one of the world's richest cities, is built according to Feng Shui principles. Today Feng Shui is becoming more and more popular in Western households and businesses. Increasingly, developers and retailers are using it to maximize customer satisfaction and return on investment. This environmental art and science sees the world as completely alive with all things. The buildings, streets, land and furnishings are connected in a dynamic relationship that influences all we experience. The growing popularity of Feng Shui is the result of its extraordinary effects on people, including improved health, rewarding relationships and a measureable increase in happiness and prosperity.

You Need Feng Shui...
• When you are designing and/or building a new home, or place of business. Consult with me when you're in the idea stage because it’s easier to erase a line than to tear down a wall.
• When you are remodeling or building an addition onto an existing structure.
• When you are buying/renting an existing home or business location.
• When you are selling a building, or a piece of land.
• When you want to increase your prosperity, enhance your relationships, boost your health, or upgrade your life in any way.
• When your life has changed in some important way since you moved into your current home or office, such as the birth of a child, or a divorce.
• When you'd like to simply bless the building you live or work in and be happier!

 What I do...

• Interior Redesign
  Using the furniture you already own (or helping you select new pieces), I arrange everything to call in your life goals. Proper placement creates miracles! Your environment then becomes an affirmation for the wealth, health and happiness you seek. Consultations are available in person in NE Wisconsin by appointment, or elsewhere via email.  Inquire!
• See what else I do... Inquire!

 Feng Shui news flash -  posted January 2010

Feng Shui: The Art of Placement Benefits All Aspects of Life
 
In ancient China, people understood the lived with an invisible energy called ch'i. It moves in and through everything, including our bodies (Ask any acupuncturist) and our buildings. A Feng Shui Master could direct the flow of ch'i to bring about magnificent results in people's lives. Similar to how acupuncturists use needles to stimulate the ch'i in the body, Feng Shui, the art of object placement, likewise stimulates the flow of ch'i in the house or any given environment – from the desktop to the landscape.

Feng Shui is all about Bagua Mapping
Based on the I Ching The Chinese Book of Changes, the Bagua translates to mean Eight (Ba) – Trigrams (Gua), and describes the eight basic building blocks of the I Ching. I discovered that one of the most exciting aspects of Feng Shui is that the Bagua connects the design of your home with the blessings and treasures of life, and when we correctly place the furnishings and objects we love in the home, miraculous results are achieved. So-called insolvable problems have been quickly resolved.

"People can discover that their Wealth and Prosperity Gua correlates directly with a chaotic and disorganized area in the garage; or that their Fame and Reputation Gua is located on a back porch filled with dead plants," said Terah Kathryn Collins, best-selling author of The Western Guide to Feng Shui. "They often discover that all guas need to be cleared of clutter and unwanted possessions, to allow the chi, or life force energy, to move through. When that happens, positive results are assured."

A young couple in their 30s wanted to get pregnant and start a family and they were nervous that they were getting too old and the opportunity was passing them by. I placed the BaGua over their floor plan and paid particular attention to the Children and Creativity Gua. I found it to be in their master bedroom which was piled high with clothes and unwanted possessions. I explained that by clearing this area out and then placing in that space their antique rocker (a cherished gift from their great-grandmother), they would see results. About four weeks later she called to report her pregnancy test was positive and later announced the birth of their baby girl!

Each part of the floor plan, when we place the BaGua Map over it, represents an aspect of human life such as career, wealth, relationships and health. The goal in Feng Shui is to get the ch'i flowing through each of the areas in a gentle, harmonious way so as to nurture and promote these areas in the life of the inhabitants. A Feng Shui practitioner surveys the space and asks questions to find out what is or is not working in their life, and then makes specific adjustments of the furnishings and other elements in the BaGua accordingly to allow the chi to move through the space.

Feng Shui is all about Comfort
When you are comfortable in your home, things happen in life and avenues open. When you're not comfortable, things are clogged and the goals and desired results feel blocked. If there is too much clutter, the items need to be sorted and the excess removed (tossed out, given to someone who will appreciate it, or donated to charity), because just as clutter blocks the ch’i from flowing through the house or structure, it blocks the correlating area of life.

In January, after a light snowfall, I arrived at my client's house as she was shoveling a path up her driveway to the side entrance of her Cape Cod style house. I noticed the walk to the front door was not shoveled, and hadn't been all winter. The snow was piled high and drifted over the sidewalk. She invited me in through the side door and we sat down in her kitchen. When I asked her why she called me here, she complained about never getting recognized or promoted at her job. In several years, she was passed over whenever there was a promotion. I was most interested in looking at the Career Gua, which happened to be the area of her front door. On the inside of the snowed-in front door she had accumulated several boxes of stuff that were stacked high in front of the door, intended to go to the attic. She told me she never used that door and had become too lazy to deal with the boxes and put them away. No surprise. Clutter depletes our personal ch’i! I've seen it cause laziness and illness! Her foyer not only looked like a disaster zone, the clutter, as it turned out, was the culprit that was blocking her career. One week after clearing the boxes away and using the door daily to get her mail, she called to tell me she not only got the promotion she desired, she received a substantial raise!

Feng Shui is all about beauty -- and results!
Feng Shui is all about the results you want in life. In other words, a "feng-shui’ed house doesn't have to look like a feng-shui'ed house." It doesn't have to look 'Oriental' or 'weird', nor do you have to live with a furnishing style you don’t like.

Implementing traditional Feng Shui cures (objects that correct the flow of chi to bring about balance, such as hanging bamboo flutes or crystals) isn't really necessary for bringing about the changes you are seeking. Your house will likely end up looking like a regular house, only it will function better, look great, and feel more comfortable than before.
   
Structural problems such as an entryway opening directly into a living room that opens to the backyard can make you feel hurried and unsettled, and about as comfortable as being in Grand Central Station. This is what is called “bad ch'i” because it can cause discomfort, drain away personal energy, and eventually cause serious problems like poor health, or a low bank balance. A skilled Feng Shui practitioner slows down the ch’i by placing strategic ch'i breakers where needed. In this example, an entry hall rug placed sideways; whimsical art that catches the eye; or a table with photographs to draw people into the living area would break the ch’i from flowing too fast. You will feel the difference right away. It just feels good.

Feng Shui is all about dramatic effects
A huge benefit of the Feng Shui interior design process is that it allows the homeowner's personal choice of art and furniture to shine. This ancient, and now revived art of object placement isn't just about redesigning houses to look and feel good, but redesigning people's lives to bring about personal goals that have been seemingly out-of-reach.
 
A few months ago, a woman called me to stage her home so she could get the best resale value for it. As I was there with her rearranging the furnishings, I learned the reason she was planning on selling was because she and her husband were going to divorce and go their separate ways. She looked very sad, and went on to tell me that she did not want the divorce but felt they had no choice. I put on my "Feng Shui detective hat' and took a closer look. The artwork she had – very large paintings and statues of single women were everywhere. One painting was of a lady wearing black and looking very sad hung front and center as you walked into the livingroom. As we took some furniture pieces to the basement, she showed me a painting of a couple dancing wearing very vivid colors, looking very happy. I suggested we change that out for the sad lady. We also found a beautiful orange glass vase stored in the basement that her husband had given her as a gift. The dining room table needed a centerpiece and so we dusted it off and placed it there to give it an honorable place. When her husband arrived home later, he seemed pleasantly pleased with all we had accomplished. A few days later, my client reported to me that he had called her at work just to say hi – something he had not done in years, and that they were both being kinder to one another. Their home now supports their partnership and perhaps they will work things out and stay together.

A good thing to remember about Feng Shui is that it has benefits ordinary interior design just doesn't offer. As Terah said, "Good design, whether it originates in the East or West, actually can heal our lives in very profound ways – from the purely aesthetic to the deeply spiritual." I've seen it happen!
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Nancy is a professionally trained Essential Feng Shui® Consultant and a skilled intuitive interior designer whose passion is helping clients create miracles.

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For more information, please email me!

Did you know?

• Moving your desk can increase your income?
• Hanging a mirror can attract new opportunities?
• Clearing clutter can improve your health?
• Selecting the right furniture, elements and colors can produce harmony in your life?

I am a professionally-trained interior redesigner and Feng Shui consultant with a passion to help you create a better life. I use what you already own in an entirely new way to bring about life goals very quickly.
Schedule an in-home consultation! FancyNancyDesign@aol.com