The Traditions from Samhain

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SamhainWhen my great-great-grandfather came from Ireland, he like other Irish immigrants brought with them the custom of jack-o’-lanterns. Their origin comes from an Irish myth about Stingy Jack, who tricked the Devil for his own monetary gain. When Jack died, God didn’t allow him into heaven, and the Devil didn’t let him into hell, so Jack was sentenced to roam the earth for eternity.

In Ireland, people started to carve demonic faces out of turnips to frighten away Jack’s wandering soul. When Irish immigrants moved to the U.S., they began carving jack-o’-lanterns from pumpkins, as these were native to the region.

Halloween is based on the Celtic festival Samhain, a celebration in ancient Ireland that marked the end of summer and the beginning of the new year on November 1. It was believed that during Samhain the souls of those who had died that year traveled to the otherworld and that other souls would return to visit their homes. Traditions from Samhain remain, such as wearing disguises to hide yourself from the souls wandering around your home.

Day of the Dead

Just another reason why October is my favorite month of the year!

Happy Halloween!

Have any Feng Shui questions? Feel free to contact me at michelle@michellecromer.com and sign up for your Power Color or visit me on Facebook at Michelle Cromer Feng Shui.

The Energy Map of Feng Shui

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The Energy Map of Feng ShuiI have been fascinated by maps my entire life. A map tells you where you’ve been, where you are, and where you are going, three tenses in one. Maps bring people together, just like campfires, everyone gathers around them, because they allow people to understand complex issues at a glance.

During my first trip to Tibet in 2005, I learned of another map, the bagua, which is an energy map used in feng shui and is the foundation of black hat feng shui, which I teach, and practice.

The bagua map is made up of a grid of nine sections and each corresponds to nine important power sections of your life.

The Bagua Map

By aligning the bagua map over your floor plan, you can locate the energy fields in your space and then learn how to enhance them and in turn, activate the corresponding areas of your life.

Each of the nine sections of the feng shui map has its own prescribed colors, shapes, elements and I have placed mythological goddesses that represent these areas and enhance the chi or energy of the space.

Using the bagua is simple; just draw a floor plan of your home, taking great care to mark where the front door is located. The floor plan will include everything that is under your roof or is part of the foundation. This could include a garage, patio, porch, or anything else attached to your home.

If you live in a two-story or even a three-story home, make a separate floor plan for each level. I have a basement and you might as well, so this would need a map if it is a walk in the area. Start with your main floor first, which is the most important level because this is typically where the front door is located.

After you have the floor plan, take a bagua map that is to scale of your drawing, and superimpose your floor plan with the bagua map by aligning the front door along the bottom of the bagua map.

The bagua is so flexible you can align it with the floor plan of your home, or a room within your space, or a desk, a closet, a garden, a car, or any space you can think of.

Watch my video here for a more in-depth look at the energy map and how to use it.

Have any Feng Shui questions? Feel free to contact me at michelle@michellecromer.com and sign up for your Power Color or visit me on Facebook at Michelle Cromer Feng Shui.

Welcome to Fall

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Fall is my favorite time of year!

We have cooler temperatures, cashmere sweaters, hot tea, and my birthday is in the fall. After the great light of summer, we must welcome the depth and mystery of fall. This is a time when endings make way for new beginnings. Mother Nature begins preparing for a type of death, and we too may feel called to let things go. Because life is a circle, and nothing truly grows unless it dies. I find there is a beauty in new beginnings that start quietly under the darkness of colder months.

Here are 7 things we all can do to bring balance to our lives during the fall:

  1. Fall is the season of the metal element, which is represented in the shape of a circle and in colors like silver, grey gold, white and black. I like to bring in wear these colors and I send myself white flowers.
  2. This is a wonderful season to clean out all the clutter from summer.
  3. Pull off the dead leaves from your garden. We don’t want any stagnate dead energy.
  4. Replace your doormat, which symbolically will represent bringing new opportunities in all aspects.
  5. Clean out all the expired can goods and spices from your kitchen.
  6. Bring in candles that smell like cinnamon or pumpkin or anything that reminds you of fall and light those candles representing lighting the way to new opportunities.
  7. Have fresh fruit in a bowl in your kitchen symbolizing that you will never go hungry.

Fall is the perfect time to connect to the light and to the dark; the yin and yang; the masculine and feminine, because if we allow it, life can truly begin all over again in the fall.

For deeper insight into the changes, you can make for fall, watch the video here.

Have any Feng Shui questions? Feel free to contact me at michelle@michellecromer.com and sign up for your Power Color or visit me on Facebook at Michelle Cromer Feng Shui.

5 Ways to Use Feng Shui to Help with Bad Neighbors

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Use Feng Shui to Help with Bad Neighbors

Did y’all every watch Bewitched? It was one of my favorite childhood shows, and one of the best characters was Gladys Kravitz. She was nosy, obnoxious, and often caused problems for Samantha by sticking her nose in where it didn’t belong.

Some of you might be living next to a Gladys Kravitz and you might be wondering if there are any feng shui cures to help protect your house. Yes!!

Below are some common-sense cures to help you with the energy from your neighbors.

  1. Create a loving barrier. Ground the property lines with rose quartz. Bury them in the ground at each of your four corners. There is nothing stronger than love, which these represent.
  2. Create a strong protective energy around your house. Plant things you love on your side of the property line. This serves two purposes when you see them they will bring you joy, and they will act as a barrier. A good solid fence is also a good option. Even a feng shui rock garden will help.  
  3. Hang wind chimes. Tall wind chimes or small ones will help move the bad energy around. Hang them as close to the neighbor’s property line as possible. A rooster wind chime symbolically has the power to reflect bad energy.
  4. Strengthen affected areas inside your home. If you have windows or doors that can open up to your neighbor’s property, you can strengthen these areas with strong protective art such as paintings or photographs of mountains, which are symbolic of strength.
  5. Bless the neighbors. This might be the hardest of all but I would wake up each day and bless your neighbors. Simply offer up a prayer on their behalf as well as any member of the family. Then seal up your home and property with some healing gratitude.

Have any Feng Shui questions? Feel free to contact me at michelle@michellecromer.com and sign up for your Power Color or visit me on Facebook at Michelle Cromer Feng Shui.

8 Ways to Feng Shui Your Kitchen

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Your kitchen is the heart of your home, and no matter where it is located in your house; it represents your health and wellness. Feng shui-wise, it is the most important part of your home. It is also a feng shui symbol of wealth and prosperity. The ancient Chinese felt that the place in the home where food was prepared, namely the kitchen, was incredibly important to maintain as a safe, well-designed, and healthful space. Because of the importance placed on this room, various feng shui guidelines were established.

Below are a few tips that have stood the test of time in order to make sure your kitchen nourishes and sustains life.

  1. Paint colors: It is always best to go with a color that you love and are drawn to.
  2. Plants: Herb gardens and plants add not only beauty and calm but they symbolize healthy growth.
  3. Stove: A significant feng shui symbol of wealth and the fire element, the stove is a powerful appliance. Rotate through the stovetop burners to distribute the energy evenly and ignite healthy passion in all aspects to all the home’s inhabitants. Keep the stove clean and in excellent condition.
  4. Clutter-Free: It is critical for the chi to flow freely in this area.
  5. Doors: If you have a bathroom door that opens up into your kitchen, make sure to keep that door closed at all times. This will help to block the healthy energy from “going down the drain.”
  6. Lighting: Some kitchens abound in natural light, which is fortunate. It is a good idea to keep this space as cheerful and sunny as possible, so make sure this area is well lit.
  7. Well maintained: Make sure all the appliances are in working order, broken dishes should be replaced and chipped paint should be touched up. Ensuring a well-maintained kitchen will signify that the people in the home are capable of maintaining and caring for themselves.
  8. Balance the Elements: So many modern kitchens easily have fire (stove), water (sink), metal (appliances), and earth (color) represented, but it often takes a proactive stance in order to ensure that the wood element is represented in the kitchen. It’s not hard – you don’t need to redo your cabinets to be wood or anything like that.
    Incorporating wood could be something as simple as placing fruit into a wooden bowl on the kitchen counter, or leaving a wooden cutting board or butcher block visible, as long as you actually use it, of course.

How are you and your family feeling? Is anyone chronically sick? How are the family finances? Look at your kitchen first and determine how you can incorporate some meaningful and symbolic solutions.

For more ideas on how you can Feng Shui your kitchen, watch this video.

Have any Feng Shui questions? Feel free to contact me at michelle@michellecromer.com and sign up for your Power Color or visit me on Facebook at Michelle Cromer Feng Shui.

Michelle Cromer