The general interest in Feng Shui is not accidental. The meaning of the doctrine that originated several thousand years ago in Ancient China is extremely simple – to help a person achieve harmony with the world around him. We are talking not only about the harmony of the spirit but also about the immediate environment of a person, especially about his home. It is especially important to realize the ideas of Feng Shui in the kitchen, the place where the whole family gathers, and some of its members spend at least a couple of hours a day.
5 elements in the arrangement of the kitchen
Experts assure that the main value of the doctrine is that it helps to improve bodily and spiritual health, as well as bring good luck to life (whatever you mean by that). According to the teaching, there is life-giving energy of qi, for which it is necessary to create a regime of maximum favors. Its opposite is the destructive energy of the sha, from which itself should be protected in every way.
The positive energy of qi can fully exist and benefit only in the system of five fundamental elements (elements). In order for the kitchen arrangement to be balanced, all 5 components must be present in the room:
Fire
The physical embodiment of fire in the kitchen is, of course, a stove, and it does not matter gas, electric or induction. Under the sign of the element of fire is also the entire kitchen equipment: kettle, microwave, slow cooker. Elements of fire belong to all shades of red, as well as orange and purple.
Water
The element is present in the kitchen in its pure form in the pipes of the sink, in the boiler, in the washing machine. Colors of the elements: blue, blue, black.
Metal
You can’t do without it in the kitchen: some kitchen appliances and equipment, metal utensils, and cutlery. Colors: white, gray, golden, silver.
Land
Stones also belong to it, so the representatives of the elements are ceramics, granite surface of countertops, ceramic tiles. Colors: shades of brown, beige, yellow.
Wood
It can be found not in every kitchen, although the number of objects under the sign of this element is quite diverse: home plants, furniture, decoration elements. Colors of the element: all shades of green.
Location
No less important than the presence of all five elements is the correct location of the room itself. If you are just planning to build, or are in search of housing, be sure to pay attention to how the forge is located. The room will comply with Feng Shui rules if the following requirements are met:
- For a kitchen dominated by the element of Fire, placement in the southern or southeastern part of the house will be optimal. The north side is by far the least favorable option. The North is governed by Water, and the conflict between the two elements will certainly result in family strife.
- The kitchen is filled with specific energy, so it is advisable to isolate it as much as possible from living rooms.
- An option is considered unsuccessful in which the entrance to the kitchen is located near the front door or from the bathroom; an energy draft will inevitably draw luck out of the house.
- A fashionable solution is a kitchen studio when the kitchen also functions as a dining room (and sometimes a living room). Such an arrangement leads to improper distribution and loss of energy, and therefore unacceptable from the point of view of Feng Shui.
If the kitchen is not located correctly
This situation is typical for most houses and apartments, and most often it is impossible to eliminate it by arranging a redevelopment. To smooth out the contradictions, you can make the following adjustments:
- If the kitchen faces north, the element of the Tree will come to the rescue. Living plants and green tones of decoration and decor will help harmonize the flow of energy.
- If you can look into the kitchen from another room or directly from the entrance, the easiest way is to keep the door closed, but not everyone likes this solution. An alternative may be a decorative curtain at the entrance of beads or beads; especially good if the beads are wooden. You can distract attention from the kitchen door by hanging a picture or a panel with flowers in the hallway.
- In the case of the proximity of the kitchen and the bathroom, the Feng Shui mascot “Wind Music” will help. It should be placed close to the kitchen doorway to prevent the leakage of wealth.
- Choose the right colors for decoration that support the harmony of qi energy. Finish the walls, ceiling, and floor with natural materials, carefully use metal and glass, if possible, refuse from combining metal and wood.
- If a kitchen studio is your old dream, do not give it up. It is important to correctly zone the space, for which finishing materials with different colors and textures are suitable. For the same purpose, decorative partitions and furniture are suitable.
Feng Shui Arrangement Rules
Anyone who wants to contribute to the prosperity and health of their families can try to arrange a kitchen in Feng Shui; the rules are not complicated and are based on the following ideas:
- The design is based on harmonious color combinations with the indispensable inclusion of white and green.
In the kitchen, there should be no unnecessary things, faulty household appliances, and a bat (with cracked dishes). - A Feng Shui mirror is considered an ambiguous subject: if work surfaces are reflected in it, the owners will always have extra trouble. If you want to bring prosperity to your home, the food on the dining table should be reflected.
- It is worth abandoning the mirror tiles in the design of the walls: it splits the reflection and violates the correct flow of qi energy, which is generally better not to allow.
- The more acute angles in the kitchen, the more acute moments in your life. In order not to aggravate the existence, choose furniture (including a table) with rounded edges. The table in general, if possible, it is better to get around or oval – this form harmonizes the space. It is worth abandoning open shelves; Forks and knives should be stored in a drawer, not kept in sight.
- You can not save on lighting – twilight is appropriate in the bedroom, but not in the kitchen. A multi-level lighting organization is welcomed, including not only the central lamp but also peripheral illumination, built-in point light sources.
The kitchen equipment is based on the rule of the triangle. A stove (element of fire), a sink (water) and a refrigerator (metal) should form a triangle (this does not happen only if they are placed along the same line); the more symmetrical the shape, the better.
In the Feng Shui tradition, these energies are considered to be opposing each other, therefore symmetry is so important (the location of objects, if possible, at equally distant points). In this case, the stove should not be placed in the corner or near the window, and in the space between the refrigerator and the stove, according to the canon, there should be a wooden or stone thing (if not a table, then at least a picture in a wooden frame or a plant in a ceramic pot).
Design elements
For a positive effect, the picture of the kitchen in Feng Shui should bring peace. Especially good on the atmosphere of the kitchen are paintings depicting water in any form, from the sea to the jug. Any positive landscapes and still lifes are also suitable. A clock on the wall will help establish a favorable flow of energy, not to mention help in cooking.
Water and fish are one of the symbols of the abundance of Feng Shui, so it’s good if there is a place for an aquarium in the kitchen. The shape of the aquarium can be any, but the number of fish is always odd.
The ideas of Feng Shui have much in common with the ideas of minimalism. Here free space also plays an important role, therefore, the less the room is cluttered, the better. The rule applies to work surfaces, and to the table: dishes, containers with bulk products, and kitchen small things should be stored in cabinets, pencil cases, and cabinets.
Things to remember when choosing a color palette
Official science has established that colors evoke different emotions and affect well-being; ancient canons suggest influencing more subtle matters. If the owners want to bring health and prosperity to the house, one cannot do without choosing the color of the kitchen according to Feng Shui; how the color of the kitchen affects a person, largely depends on the location of the room relative to the center of the home.
When choosing the color of the kitchen, one must remember that in this place the elements are represented unequally. Elements of fire (stove) and water (sink) prevail here. The use in the decoration of flowers corresponding to these elements will lead to the strengthening of the latter. The elements of wood, earth, and metal will be suppressed, and the qi energy will be unbalanced. That is why in the interior of the kitchen in Feng Shui there should not be red (fiery) shades, as well as black and blue (water), only accents are permissible.
Favorable colors
In a place where there is a constant struggle between the elements of fire and water, a harmoniously selected color of the kitchen according to Feng Shui is able to establish a balance of energy; the rules suggest the following shades, favorable in any case:
- White (metal) and shades of beige (ivory, bleached canvas, coffee with milk). Light colors symbolize purity, the freshness of ideas, and success in their implementation. They are chosen to design a kitchen in the style of minimalism, classic or province. Light can be not only the decoration of the walls, floor, and ceiling but also the kitchen, furniture upholstery, curtains. It is easy to select household appliances in a light interior, and maintaining cleanliness, thanks to a variety of detergents, is generally not difficult.
- Yellow (earth) and its shades. Color fills the space with positive energy while protecting from negative emotions and events. Yellow is associated with the sun, so it causes a feeling of comfort and also arouses appetite. It can be made basic or accented, combined with white and beige; yellow decorative elements are good for any Feng Shui-style kitchen.
- Green (tree). This color symbolizes nature and therefore is considered optimal for the design of the kitchen. It positively affects the psyche, improves physical condition, relaxes, and soothes the eyes. A combination of green and white carries a lot of vital energy of qi, the mood rises in such a kitchen, an atmosphere of goodness and coziness is formed.
Conclusion
The colors for the kitchen in Feng Shui can be determined by its location relative to the center of the housing, and the color palette will look more diverse. The kitchen in the northern part of the house according to Feng Shui is decorated in gray, blue, pearl colors, with the addition of green and brown. In a room located in the northeast, white and yellow colors are acceptable.
West and northwest belong to the elements of metal. Light shades are chosen here: white, pearl, gray, silver. The zone of east and southeast corresponds to shades of green in combination with brown, light blue, and light yellow.
In the south and southwest, the colors of the elements of fire – red and orange should prevail. But, since there is already a conflict in the room related to this energy, it is better to avoid them. A substitute will be the tones from light yellow to peach and pink; they will be balanced by white or metallic color.
