Quote for the Month....

To go along with our theme of clearing out this month, here's a quote that seems appropriate:

Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful. ~ William Morris

Happy last days of March~

PS....this is my new logo, in the works for the last several months.

Feng Shui Tip of the Month:March 2009 part B

And, for part B of our Spring Cleaning segment.....


Have you finished clearing out your clutter yet? I haven't, it's an ongoing process, but I'm making progress. Once you've cleared the physical clutter, at least to a point,

2) Do a thorough Space Clearing

Space clearing is a way of cleaning out the energetic cobwebs. Space clearing is a technique used within many spiritual traditions to clean out old, stagnant energy and make way for new beginnings and desired outcomes. My husband and I included a space clearing as part of our marriage ceremony, clearing the way for a beautiful life for us together.

There are many techniques for space clearing. It can be as simple as opening the windows and burning some sage or incense in each area of the house, or as complex as using sage, salt and rice and leaving it overnight before vacuuming up.

If you subscribe to a specific religion or spiritual practice, you might research and incorporate a method used in that tradition. Below are some links to articles that give some good information on space clearing techniques.

"Feng Shui Principles for Space Clearing" by Valorie Sands-Budelis

Excerpt from "Clear Your Space, Change Your Life", By Amanda Slaz on planetbonsai

"What Space Clearing Can Do for You" by Stephanie Roberts

Space clearing can be done anytime you feel the energy in your space or life needs some freshening up. Here are some specific times when it's recommended:

• After an illness (like that nasty stomach flu that went around this winter)
• When moving into a new home
• When someone moves into or out of the household
• With each new season
• During any difficult time in life
• Before making significant Feng Shui changes

If your having a hard time getting through the decluttering process, it can be helpful to do a space clearing first. Sometimes when subtle blocks to change are occuring within us, something as simple and beautiful as setting the intention to clear the space and performing the steps to do so can help get things moving again in a postive direction.

I've requested some books from the library on the Feng Shui of clearing clutter....I'll be back to review them as I have the chance to read them.

Until next time, enjoy March, fickle beginning of Spring!

Feng Shui Tip of the Month: March 2009 part A

In honor of spring's arrival in just a few short weeks, I'm going to recommend some cleaning, on a couple of fronts....

1) Declutter your space

The Feng Shui rationale for this is fairly simple. A very cluttered space inhibits the flow of Chi, creating a stagnation of energy which can, in turn, cause stagnation in various areas of life.

• Clutter in the bedroom can cause health and relationship stagnation
• Clutter in dining room can create financial stagnation
• Clutter in the living room can create stagnation in friendships and family relationships
• Clutter in the office (home or outside work space) can cause financial or career stagnation(this is an area I need to put some attention to)

Early Spring is a good time to clear out and take stock of what's really needed. I'm absolutely itching to get outside right now, but, at least in this climate, the weather is iffy at best, and cold and uninviting at worst. So it's a great time to take a final look at our indoor spaces before the warm weather calls our attention outside for awhile.

The goal, with Feng Shui, is always balance, and this applies here too. While we do want to avoid clutter, having an extremely stark space gives the energy of the space nothing to meander around, therefore sometimes causing rushing Chi, or Chi that moves to quickly and can cause as many problems as stagnation.

But for the purpose of this month's topic, we're focusing on the over abundance of items in our living and working spaces.

The things in your space should, ideally, uniquely reflect the occupants living there, and bring pleasure to them. Have things in your space that are beautiful and useful, and if sentimental, then let them be items that evoke positive sentiments. Anything else should be either packed away or let go of.

My daughter and I are working with the concept of letting things go. At 4, she gets the reason behind parting with clothing that no longer fits, but letting go of toys and other items is still difficult, and I choose not to push it, but let her find her own way around this. But I do like to remind her of another reason why we do this....

Several years ago, after visiting with some friends who had a great little climbing cube with a slide, Helena mentioned to me that she had "nothing fun to play on outside." Knowing what she was referring to, I said, "do you mean like the slide?" "Yes," she said. "Well," I said, "we don't have one right now, but I'm sure, if it's important, we can find one." She was satisfied with this.

Not even a week later, I was driving home from my Feng Shui course and happened to have my husband's pickup truck, since he and Helena were out and about in my car. Several blocks from home, beside a neighbor's driveway, was the very same slide with some other items, and a big sign stating "free." I quickly backed up and loaded it and brought it home, much to Helena's joy. I'm perhaps revealing my bent for the Law of Attraction, but that's a topic for another time.

The moral of this story, is that letting go of clutter can free up things in many ways, and allow the flow of abundance of the things you want into your life. And maybe, just maybe, that item you're tripping over and no longer using, will make someone else's dream come true.

Stay tuned...this month's topic has a part B.....