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Take the quiz nowKnowledge Knows Feng Shui
Knowledge is information, awareness and understanding. Without any attention in this area of your home or office, you may be prone to indecision, bad decisions or even fatal decisions.
Knowledge and ‘self-development’ is often paired with Relationships and/or Health in order to find a balance in a familiar working relationship. It can help couples and partnerships respect the progress in a business or partnership as it changes and continues to grow.
The ‘Knowledge Area’ in your home is found in the corner on the left hand side, closest to the door as you enter the home or room.
In a recent reno in my own house, our Knowledge Area -located in the family room, was disrupted for almost a year! I did experience a disturbing ripple in the house energy.
The focus, and intention, was for a visual clean-up in Dec 2013; buff the floors and redo the shelves in the living room. Simple.
Stage one: When we tore out the shelves that were framing the fireplace, my husband stated, “You know, I’ve always hated the stone on this gas fireplace. It would be easy to chip it out and redo this.” He is a geotechnical engineer, and I understand. He hates fake stone and he wants to fix it.
Stage two: Since we decided to chip out the stone in the front of the fireplace, we had to take off the mantle piece. With the mantle removed, we could see into the guts of the fireplace. My husband had another idea; “Maybe it is time to reroute that vent while we are in here!” I also understand this motive as the vent did not go up the chimney as planned; it must have been a last-minute decision to force it straight out into the walkway. And, we bump into it all the time.
Stage three: While inquiring how to move the vent up the chimney, we came to another realization, ‘Why would we put a new vent on 21 year old fireplace guts?” Hmmm…. So, while discussing new plans for a new gas fireplace and new vent system, we realized that it would be a major expense to put in a chimney liner three stories high. (This was probably why it was placed in the wrong spot in the first place.) We made arrangements for a guy to come in and cut a new hole in our house about 9’ off the ground and put in the new vent.
Stage four: This was the easy part, just wait a few weeks for the gas guys to come and install the new fireplace.
Stage five: The next step was back to us and our do-it-yourself attitude. We had to build a new frame for a hearth, choose tiles, tile and grout them in, order a custom mantel piece, paint, and then wait.
Next: it just took forever to find shelving to fit into non-standard measurements. We wanted a desk-type item for one side and options for a TV and media on the other. We ended up getting quotes, another quote, another delay, and then (exasperated) my husband ran out and bought maple stair treads and made the shelves himself! With a little help we learned to make drawers and then spent an entire week (Dec 2014) staining the wood shelves and pieces; then clear coating, more clear coat, and cleaning up this area. I finally rolled out carpet out last weekend.
Yep, it took a whole year to do this project! We were not anal about deadlines, but this did drag along. We were also working and living our lives as we explored options for our new (knowledge) living room.
Knowledge? Yes, we learned a lot. (By-the-way, this extended disruption is ‘bad feng shui’.) However, I did notice the visual clutter/disturbance was worse some days than others…and when the balance in your home is well, unbalanced, it spreads into the rest of your chores, commitments and decisions. Dysfunction in one area does affect the whole house!
The sub-conscious is tries to help and the conscious mind is just too busy processing!
Enhancements were placed in this living area to offset the disruption. Colour cures, bells and crystals were placed in strategic places. I kept it as clean as I could in between the stages. It was dead, yin space and also loud, aggressive yang space at the same time! Thanks goodness for soothing, singing bowls! Ohhmmmmm…
It has been a heck-of-a-long-year to pull this together and there are a few things still to do. We still want to get a media center hooked up and the floors done. We are looking forward to more knowledge and a prosperous 2015. Oh, and we neglected to purchase drawer handles for the cupboards…maybe next year!
Kathryn
~ If your family is experiencing disruptive trauma in your own home, please email me and we’ll find a time to talk. There is no charge for questions; and all inquiries are confidential. Find out how feng shui can help you find balance and harmony in your life!
Finally, new stone and tiles! Did you notice the driftwood and crystals insert?
Almost done!
About Kathryn Wilking
Author, Home Stager, Feng Shui Consultant
Kathryn has inspired women for more than a decade to take charge of their lives; arranging their environment, home and office, to support a positive, prosperous lifestyle. She provides informative tips and talks to organizations and small groups through her Facebook Group and Blog Posts and recorded podcasts. Contact her today for more info about bringing the practical application of Feng Shui into your space.
Her book, Practical Feng Shui for the Office; never goes out of style!
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