How does energy flow through your home? Is it something you think about? If you’re someone who practices feng shui, it’s not just something you think about, but something that you purposely set out to address in your home décor.

Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice that dates back to 4,000 BCE. At its most basic level, the idea behind feng shui is that there is a connection between humans and the universe and that you can guide energy in your personal space to encourage better wellbeing. Today, feng shui is most commonly known as a home decorating method and involves the placement of furniture, the use of colours and other decorating practices to push energy in a positive manner throughout the home.

One of the most basic aspects of feng shui decoration (and the one most of us can probably benefit from) is the removal of clutter. Proper organization and cleanliness promotes better energy flow. As well, clean, fresh air and good quality lighting are strong aspects of positive feng shui.

Beyond these basics, there are various considerations. If you’re planning to decorate with feng shui, you’ll need to understand the energy map – called a bagua – of your home. This map indicates what feng shui area the rooms of your home fall into and from there, you can determine what colours, shapes and materials will best match the element for that room and where they should be positioned.

For example, a south feng shui bagua area encourages the fire and wood elements, so the décor should take on warm colours such as reds, oranges and yellows to address the fire and green and brown for the wood.

However, feng shui also calls for all elements to be addressed in a room, so even if a room is found in the fire element, the other elements, such as water, will need to be addressed – but in relation to the primary element.

Decorating with feng shui requires a lot of research and analysis and this is just a quick introduction. However, a quick way to gauge the energy flow of your room is to stand at the entrance and visualize energy moving throughout the room. If it was a stream of water, would it flow, uninterrupted, in and out of the room? Where would it get stuck or trapped? Ideally, you want a clear, clean flow of energy – which will help you to feel better in your home.