Just today I was in my art studio and feeling totally overwhelmed by the materials I had strewn all over the place. I have wonderful storage containers there but I had neglected to put my stuff away after a creative three days of art production. So today I took about 30 minutes and put things in their proper places. (Glad I did, too, because I found a mouse house in my painting towels!)…this got me to thinking about storage and why it’s so important to feng shui. I felt more relaxed as soon as I cleaned up my art space. (And wouldn’t you know it but 2 carloads of customers arrived soon after once I had created the room for them to come in). Creativity & Future Projects area of the feng shui bagua is related to Children. Creating storage options in your home helps you keep organized for optimum feng shui flow. A child’s room can be particularly challenging. Finding a place for all those toys! Consider the built in boxes above from remodelista. They’re so sleek and functional they could work anywhere not just a kid’s room. Or the white-on-white hutch I saw recently at ApartmentTherapy that turns a nursery into a sophisticated statement. 
Category Archives: Family & Health
TINY TOILET TANK A WINNING DESIGN
Check out this sleek ‘tankless’ toilet design…at ApartmentTherapy.com
Fitting a toilet into a small space is a design challenge. If you’re feeling flush, Gerberit has a system that hides the tank within 2 x 4 stud walls so it appears tankless. Go get the full story at Apartment Therapy. And don’t let anyone give you that crap about not being able to design a sleek toilet, okay? 😉
Filed under Creativity & Future Projects, Design, Family & Health, Feng Shui, Fun, Interior Design
MITZVAH WITH GOOD FENG SHUI
Mothers and daughters share secrets and this is one I recently kept from my mother. I left my 90 year old mother’s house this morning feeling really good about my ruse. What trick did I pull on her? I cleaned her bathroom without her knowing it. You see, my mom lives alone and would never ever ever permit me–or anyone–to give her that kind of help. It would embarrass her and make her feel bad that someone thought she wasn’t up to snuff on her own housekeeping. I could see that she needed some help, though, and so I snuck in a huge bottle of Clorox, some scrubbing bubbles, and some rubber gloves. Then I proceeded to run the water so mom thought I was taking a bubble bath. Instead I scrubbed the tub like mad…years of soap scum buildup and not a little mildew on the shower curtain (I’d offered to replace it many times). Soak a plastic shower curtain in bleach long enough and it WILL come clean and there’s no need to add it to the local landfill! My mom has always prided herself on her homekeeping skills and I’m pretty confident that if she notices the difference she will believe that she cleaned the bathroom herself and simply forgot that she did. And her eyes will sparkle at her own ability to take care of herself at her advanced age. This is what Jewish people refer to as a mitzvah, a good deed. In feng shui terms, this type of good deed is good karma for the giver and makes you feel really good. Have you done something similar that you want to share or suggest with the readers of Feng Shui By Fishgirl?
MAKING FRIENDS IS HARD TO DO (OVER 30)
Life gets in the way of making friends. Too many people are too busy. That’s been our experience and we seemed to have tapped into the zeitgeist because the New York Times recently had two articles about just that—lots of us boomers are having trouble making deep solid friendships in our later years. What’s that tell us? We’re not alone! It’s a challenge due to many factors. Check out the article and share your experiences / advice with me.
PS: If you’re wondering why I haven’t been posting as often as I usually do (ie: daily) it’s because the summer months find me very busy making new artworks in my studio, socializing with friends I haven’t seen all winter, and enjoying life on Deer Isle, Maine. Happy Summer!
Filed under Family & Health, Feng Shui, Fun
DISHING DINNERWARE & ITS FENG SHUI IMPACT
I’m a sucker for pretty colorful dishes. I googled just that and the first image that came up was these handpainted ones shown at the Imported Hand Painted Dinnerware Blog. In my own kitchen I’ve got a collection of vintage Fiestaware that I have been collecting since I was 16 years old. My dad got my collecting bug started when he took me to my first auction way back when. The last gift he gave to me before he died was the money to go to an auction he knew of that was going to be selling a lot of Fiestaware. I ended up with two platters and the dealers outbid me on the rest. I think of my dad whenever I look at my colorful dishes–which is daily. I believe in using them even though they are valuable collectibles.
I was never one to like fine bone China. I have friends that are really into it, registered for China for their weddings, collect their mother’s patterns, etc. I much prefer my bold everyday Fiestaware. But here’s something I do know. If you have a need to find a replacement for any of your fine China that may have broken or been discontinued, check out Replacements Ltd. This company happens to be nearby to where I live in North Carolina but you can work with them online from anywhere. Another HOT TIP: If you have China from a marriage that didn’t last, ended in divorce, or you simply don’t like it anymore then get rid of it! Turn it into cash by selling it to Replacements, Ltd. I frequently advise my feng shui clients to do this so that the old China doesn’t block their Love & Relationship ch’i.
Filed under Design, Family & Health, Feng Shui, Feng Shui Home, Getting Organized
GETTING POT JUST GOT EASIER…
Keeping your kitchen organized and your pots out of the way makes for excellent feng shui. Want to find out how to make this pot rack yourself? Click here for complete instructions from DIY Network (one of our favorite blogs). And send Feng Shui By Fishgirl pics of your finished project hanging in YOUR kitchen!
I’D RATHER BE…..?
Stuck in a rut? Feel like life is slipping you by and you don’t know where to begin to change that? Here’s where: rethink your priorities by looking over this List of 50 Questions to Ask Yourself . Reading this list is like reading questions from your soul. If you take the time to answer them, you may find you have all the answers to jumpstart your new attitude. Be gentle with yourself and take baby steps at first. Change can be scary–yes!–but without change we stagnate. That’s bad feng shui.
Filed under Family & Health, Feng Shui, Healing Energy, Health & Fitness, Reading, Self Help
PARTING IN SWEET SORROW
A still pic from the “I Miss You” video by Cliff Wagner & the Old #7
My friend Cliff Wagner sent me a link to his new music video “I Miss You” which is about the particular loss of his parents. Warning: you’ll probably need Kleenex to listen to this beautiful melancholic tune. In the song, Cliff describes a dream vision he had of his mom in her favorite chair smiling at him. Then he woke up. Cliff Wagner & The Old #7 are a traditional bluegrass band out of Los Angeles now but with roots in Cliff’s home state of Mississippi where his dad, an accomplished musician in his own right, taught him how to play. Be sure to check out the Old #7 website for more great music.
Feng Shui By Fishgirl gets a lot of inquiries about what to do when someone has passed away in your home. It’s especially difficult to let go of this ch’i if it is a loved one that has died. You might even feel guilty as if you are smudging away their memory. You’re not. Clearing the space helps to heal your grief and sorrow so there’s more room for the happy memories to enter. It also helps to let your feelings out before you smudge so remember that if you’re on a crying jag. Honoring your deceased loved ones is a good way to keep their memory alive. Try dedicating something you are currently doing to the one you love who is no longer with you—a poem, a hike, a pie, a drive to the country, a meditation—and see how your heart will grow lighter.
Filed under ART, Creativity & Future Projects, Family & Health, Feng Shui
GIVING UP THE GHOST
Have you ever experienced a ghostly presence in real life or in dream time? It could take the form of hearing a voice like this story from Trainee Golem Builder Blog (where I borrowed this great ghost picture from). Or it could be that you are having a problem with shattering glasses and things breaking frequently in your home space. Some people I’ve spoken to who live in centuries-old homes like their ghosts and feel that they add friendly energy to their lives. As a feng shui practitioner I have witnessed many paranormal entities. I always recommend removing ch’i energy that doesn’t belong to you. Get rid of residual energy by doing a thorough smudge / incense/ space clearing. You’ll feel more energized and lighter once you’ve banished the otherworldly energy.
Filed under Dreaming, Family & Health, Feng Shui, Getting Organized, Healing Energy, Qi
HERE WE GO ROUND THE MULBERRY BUSH…
We used to have a mulberry bush in our front yard when I was growing up in NH. If my memory is correct, it was only about 5 feet high and the branches fanned out over the top and spilled down to create a “tent” that my younger brother and I could hide behind, picking the ripe juicy fruit from the under branches. We were certain our mom didn’t know where we were hiding. Maybe our blue-black mulberry smiles gave us away later on when we’d come out from the hiding space. It was always a favorite spot for hide ‘n’ seek. Our mulberry bush was located in our Wisdom & Knowledge area of my childhood home. My mom always had the wisdom to let our imaginations go wild.
Maybe that’s why I didn’t recognize the trees in our backyard in NC–they are tall trees with branches that stick out over our 2nd story deck. Laden with berries, the fruit is consumed pretty quickly by our resident birds and squirrels. This season we’ve gotten a bumper crop of berries and they’ve ripened extra early due to the mild winter, lots of rain, and early summer weather we’ve had. A visiting friend insisted we not let our organic treasure of bounteous berries go to waste and so this is what we gathered from the deck.
I found a great recipe for mulberry muffins here at allrecipes.com. And if you want to make a mulberry pie, just do what I do: buy the premade pie crusts (two to a box) and then just toss your berries with some sugar to taste, a spoon or two of flour to thicken the juice (or you can use cornstarch), a tiny squirt of lemon juice, spread it all into the pie crust and add the top and voila follow the directions on the box for baking your pie. Happy Memorial Day Weekend everyone!
Filed under Family & Health, Feng Shui, Feng Shui Home, Fun
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