Boundary Waters Balance Part 1

By Jessica Hoelzel

The feng shui of the Boundary Waters? Perfectly balanced and harmonious.

Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, John Lake

For good feng shui, one of the core principles you must follow is to “use nature as your model”. Heading into nature every now and then is a good way to observe nature’s perfect balance, and achieve a state of balance for yourself.

When you are in nature there is less distraction, pulling your energy this way and that. No TV, no cell phone, no Internet…in our case, no motorized boats or traffic either. When in nature, you are free to be present, to BE. When you can BE, unencumbered by the typical distractions, you have the opportunity to find some balance. With the nurturing solace of nature’s beauty surrounding you, you have the opportunity to:

BE in quiet

BE clear-headed

BE healed

BE refreshed

BE inspired

…and return to a state of physical, mental and spiritual harmony.

So how do you keep that state alive when you return home? By ensuring that your surroundings are also balanced. That you don’t have too many noisy distractions – or at least opportunities for quiet. That you also have a place of beauty which provides you solace.

Stay tuned for more to come on how “stuff” impacted our experience of balance…

Energy Scattered? Make One List

By Jessica Hoelzel

Do you ever feel like you are bouncing all over the place, from one thing to the next, unable to focus?

Not sure what should be your top priority?

Sometimes our energy can get scattered when we have too many things “scattered about”. Whether it’s random sticky notes around your desk, or piles on the kitchen counter, what you need to do is make one list of “to dos”.

Pull all the paper “reminders” that are out in the open into a file folder or tray. Then place a list of what’s to be dealt with on top. For example:

 To Do:

1. Make hair appointment 
2. Renew tabs 
3. Call Mom
4. Buy groceries: eggs, tortillas, salsa, strawberries
5. Bring dress to tailor
6. Schedule dentist appointment

To be even more efficient, you can either 1) create your list with priorities at the top or 2) highlight or star the most urgent tasks. That way they’ll pop out at you. Make sure your file folder or tray and list are in a prominent place.

If you are tech savvy, put your list on your phone. And you can even set up reminders or appointments with yourself to complete different tasks.

This should work better for you, because your priorities will be organized and easy to access, as opposed to scattered or set around. Sometimes when things are out, they don’t actually work as good reminders, because they become “fixtures” in the space, and soon get ignored instead of dealt with.

Happy achieving!

Your Home Needs Fresh Air Too

By Jessica Hoelzel

Open the windows. Let the breezes blow in and refresh your space.
Now that the weather is a bit cooler early and late in the day, give your house a dose of nature’s medicine – fresh air. Houses can be nourished just like people. Clear out all that stale, recycled air and freshen things up.

When you restore the health of your home by letting in vital chi (life force energy), it’ll translate to your own health being revitalized too.

Embrace the quiet.
Listen...no more constant hum. If your air conditioner has been running all summer, give it a break. Not only will it allow your home to get a wee bit quieter, but your efforts will consume less energy, and let nature do what it’s meant to do.

If you’re looking for more ways to refresh your space, read my earlier post on diffusing essential oils.

Keep Bathroom Clutter in Check

By Jessica Hoelzel

Are you seduced by personal care products? The promise to clear, hydrate, firm, shine, volumize, straighten, curl or what have you? We all succumb to the marketing of these products, and sometimes you do have to buy it to try it. But if a product (or products – multiplied) doesn’t work out, where does that leave you? With one more bottle or tube of something you won’t use, cluttering up your bathroom space.

I’ve seen showers that you cannot step into without creating an avalanche of bottles…The clutter is burdensome on us, and the excess consumption is burdensome on the environment. What I recommend is to keep things simple.

Here are three ways to make that happen:

1. Choose products that offer a small trial size. They won’t take up as much space, and if they don’t work for you, you’re not out much money. Their waste has less of an environmental impact too.

2. Use up what you have before you start using another. Make use of every last drop of that shampoo,
before you bring the next bottle into your shower. Simple.

3. Choose products that have multiple uses. Try Dr. Bronners multiple-use soap. Body wash, shampoo,
laundry detergent, and more – all in one (18 uses, in fact).

The bathroom is a place where you spend time at the beginning and end of your day. Make it neat and streamline, and you’ll feel unburdened and productive before you even leave the house. And at ease before you slip into bed at night…Nice for you and nice for our world.

Looking for natural personal care products? I recommend Young Living. Email me with questions or products you’re interested in. I’d be happy to let you know how you can place an order, and help you get the best deal.

6 Ways to Enhance the Feng Shui of Your Front Door

By Jessica Hoelzel

As I discussed in my earlier post, it’s important to use the front door of your home, as well as to make sure the energy flow to it – in terms of blessings and opportunities – is not blocked.

 

But going beyond that, what can you do to go one step further – to really make a feng shui statement?

Enhance your “mouth of chi”, and draw attention to it with the following ideas:

1. Paint your front door red, or another color complementary to the house.
2. Place pots of flowers near your door in the summer/plants or tree toppers with lights strung on them in the winter.
3. Hang a wreath or bucket with silk flowers on the door (taking care that the silk flowers don’t get faded or dingy).
4. Place an attractive rug in front of it.
5. Hang a new light fixture over it, or clean and shine your existing.
6. Add a shiny door knocker to it. (Opportunities just might come a-knocking!)

Let me know what you decide to try - and the results you have after. I'd love to hear your feng shui stories; just click "Post a Comment" below...

Why It’s Important to Use Your Front Door

By Jessica Hoelzel

With the modern convenience of a garage door opener, most of us just push the button and pull in. But to have good feng shui, you must use your front door. It’s where chi, or life force energy, enters your home, and where blessings and opportunities find their way into your life.

Not only must you use your front door, but you must also make sure your front door:

• Is visible from the road
• Is well lit at night
• Is unobstructed by overgrown bushes or trees
• Opens easily and fully

If you can check YES to all of the above, you’re in pretty good feng shui shape. But also go to the extra effort to pull out those keys – yes, and even walk around the house or up your sidewalk to enter your home through your front door, at least occasionally.

In fact, this is usually the most pleasant way to enter. And have your guests come in the proper way too. After all, you’re just allowing the house to do what it was designed to do. Invite entrance through the front door and invite feng shui blessings in too.

Using a Home Diffuser to Make Your Home Smell Fresh & Lovely

By Jessica Hoelzel

Looking for a natural way to freshen the air in your home? Well no doubt. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), typical air fresheners are mainly made up of four chemical ingredients: formaldehyde, petroleum distillates, p- dichlorobenzene, and aerosol propellants. These chemicals are known to be highly flammable, can cause irritation to the eyes, skin and throat. And, they can cause death if ingested by people or pets. Read more

Have you ever been in a space where the smell of air freshener or scented candles gave you a headache? Well, this explains why. It’s unnatural, dangerous even, for chemicals or artificial scents to come in contact with the human body. A headache is a minimal side effect, but clearly, there are other more threatening side effects from using them as well. I want nothing of the kind in my home, and I don’t want it for others either…

This is why I became an independent distributor of Young Living Products. I’ve been experimenting with their essential oils for years, and I've found several oils that can be used for enhancing feng shui and space clearing.

Let’s be honest, the air in our homes can get stale, funky or otherwise unpleasant at times due to lack of air flow, humidity, kids, pets, cooking, and so on. So freshen it the natural way with a Home Diffuser. You just fill it with water and some drops of essential oil, turn it on, and it disperses the oils as vapors into the air, making your home smell fresh – not by masking the odors, but helping to eliminating them. And they’re 100% natural and therapeutic grade.

Here are two I recommend having on hand at all times, for diffusing:

Purification – An essential oil blend that can kill bacteria in the air. Crisp, refreshing scent.

Lavender – An essential oil with a myriad of uses, especially for relaxation. An herbal scent most people enjoy.

If you’d like to order a Home Diffuser, Essential Oils or are curious about other Young Living Products, check out the website. Email me with questions or products you’re interested in. I’d be happy to let you know how you can place an order, and help you get the best deal.

Feng Shui for Shared Spaces

By Jessica Hoelzel

As I mentioned in an earlier post, my home office happens to be in a loft, which is shared with a playroom. One nice thing about it is that there is plenty of space; it’s a large square room. However, the room needs to function for both purposes, independently. In other words, when it’s a playroom it’s a playroom, and when it’s an office, it’s an office. And those two things need to be kept separate, in order for the room arrangements to work.

This is the case for many of us with either 1) smaller spaces, that we’re trying to make multifunction, or 2) open floor plans. The most important thing to do is to create boundaries for each function.



Below are several ways to establish each function its own space:

Rugs
Rugs can square off areas, and define boundaries.

Screens
Screens work well to define an area as a room, and block views.

Plants
Plants can also semi-block views, as well as create a visual boundary.

Storage with drawers /doors
Smart storage that keeps things fully enclosed helps minimize visual clutter and distraction.

Furniture with the back finished
Desks/bookshelves/dressers with that you can face out help set up boundaries of a space, so you don’t have all furniture around the perimeter of the room, and so you don’t face the wall at your desk (for good feng shui you want a view of the door, and the largest view of the room possible).

Similar color schemes
Similar color schemes in paint colors, wood finishes, baskets, decorative items, etc. will tie the room together, keeping it easy-on-the-eyes, and visually functioning as a whole.

Update: Putting My Life Back Together After Moving

What’s been the toughest part of getting used to my home office is not having the internet there. It’s difficult to get settled in a new workspace when there’s one crucial thing missing - my connection to the outside world. I’m bouncing around from the library to coffee shops, to meetings. And I’ve been getting lost, and stuck (like on the highway for 2 hours the other day because of a flood).


I’ve never really considered the internet from a feng shui standpoint, but I know it’s about connection. For a lot of people it can be grounding too. Getting on facebook or checking twitter can be like touching base. Right now I have limited access to touch base and feel connected, plus I’m changing up my access because I don’t have internet at my home base.

So with all that craziness going on it’s no wonder the getting lost and the getting stuck – disconnected. That’s just how the energy is manifesting in my life.

Help! I wonder if there’s a feng shui adjustment I can do to get the internet faster? I’ll have to think about that…

Update: Putting My Life Back Together After Moving

By Jessica Hoelzel

I gave myself until Sunday for completion of this list, and I got most of it done, plus more. Put an organizing and feng shui consultant/perfectionist in a space and what do you get? Obsession with getting things in their places!

There is still much to do, but I feel more settled as each thing gets done, and the rooms come together. Every little bit helps me feel like I’m able to focus better while I'm working, and not have my energy scattered around. When things are settled, I can be settled, because I know, according to feng shui, my space is a reflection of me and vice/versa.

My office space is set up, and I’m pretty pleased with it. At our previous place, I had a huge closet to keep all office necessities. Not so here. Before I found my solution I had stuff, stuff, stuff that was partly out in the open, and partly in makeshift storage in a plastic dresser.

That was not going to work for me. I needed to pull it together and keep it enclosed – partly to minimize the visual distraction of having lots of things set around – and partly because my office space is in an open loft shared with a playroom.

My talented woodworker brother-in-law offered me the solution of the armoire, which was previously designed and used for a TV and electronics. I repurposed it; it’s got room for all the office things I need and good accessibility. Plus, it helps to define the boundaries of the shared space. I absolutely love it!