Lupe Soto, Realtor in Burbank, CA and Feng Shui Lover.  I have improved my life and the life of others by welcoming feng shui to our lives.  Learn how to improve your health, love life, relationship with others, luck and wealth. Please feel free to email me any questions and i will be happy to assist you and connect you to the right source. May you prosper with good health. Lupe Soto, Burbank, CA

Feng Shui (pronounced "fung shway") has certainly been in the news a great deal, but what exactly is it?

No, you don't have to use Asian design to incorporate Feng Shui into your home. This ancient Chinese interior design philosophy may be based on the principles of the I Ching, but it has nothing to do with the style of décor that you choose.

In Asia, Feng Shui enthusiasts believe the way your home is arranged can affect how you feel, as well as the energy that you attract in your life. In other words, home design can actually help to create good luck or bad luck.

Feng Shui seeks to create an easy flow of energy throughout your home and a harmonious atmosphere to attract more positive energy into your life. This is based on the belief that everything contains energy or "chi." Feng Shui balances your chi and keeps your personal energy flowing properly.

The principles of Feng Shui are extremely complicated, and to learn the process well requires extensive study and training. Despite the complexities, you can apply some of the basics to your home. For example, each part of the home represents a different aspect of life, and certain colors work best in each section.

Colors The East and the West have different ideas about colors, however. In China, black attracts abundance and good luck in your career, and it is best used in the northern part of your home. Blue in the northeast is helpful to develop wisdom and new skills.

The southern portion of your home should contain red, which is a celebratory color in China and represents fame and reputation. In the east, green is best and signifies family. Purple is a spiritual color for the southeast portion of your home that also attracts prosperity. The southwest has to do with helpful people and travel, and gray is the best color there. Due west, white is the right Feng Shui color, and it represents creativity and children.

Pink signifies love and romance for the Chinese just as it does for us, and you can improve this aspect of your life by using pink in the southwest portion of your home, or the rear right corner of your bedroom. Health is signified by the color yellow and is located in the center of your home.

As you can see, utilizing lots of colors can be a healthy thing according to Feng Shui. This creates a problem for the interior designer, however. How can you utilize all of these colors of the rainbow and maintain harmony? Bear in mind that the Feng Shui color need not be a dominant color in its area of your home. You can simply introduce one small item of some of the colors, such as a vase or curio.

There are different schools of Feng Shui, and their ideas differ somewhat. If you are very serious about utilizing its principles, your best bet is to hire a professional to evaluate your home and make recommendations. You may never actually feel any difference, but many people swear that their lives improve when they have "Feng Shui'd" their home.