Nothing beats the warm coziness of a fireplace.
Why are we so fascinated with campfires, barbeques, and fireworks; so much that we wish to bring fire into our homes?
Fire and fireplaces have been part of our lives as long as man has been cooking their own food. In the past, a fire would bring us not only warmth, but nourishment for cooked food and afterwards, ambiance. Any ‘fire’ brings people together.
In our modern day life, the actual ‘fire’ functions of heating and cooking have been mainly replaced with metal appliances, cold surfaces and impersonal chores.
In most urban settings, the roll of a fireplace has evolved simply for ambiance;
something that brings casual warmth to the soul.
It’s all about the glow; getting back to nature and having an old-fashioned ‘campfire’ can be a real treat! Let’s utilize this a bit MORE! Use this change of season to form new habits; learn to relax and reconnect, communicate and talk about…anything-you-wish...in front of a fireplace.
Generally place as a focal point in the whole house, fireplaces are often described as an eye-sore. Many clients have expressed concern (or apologies) that their fireplace isn’t quite ‘their taste’ and seeking a replacement in the near future.
Designing a ‘fire element’ or architectural feature in a home, can be very personal. Fire and fireplaces bring a ‘wow’ factor into a room; and yet, the desire for warmth, relaxation and connection can be lost. Have a look at your space: is the fireplace ‘too much’, not the correct scale, or does it appear to be an unsightly afterthought?
When your fireplace ‘feels’ aggressive, try one of these ideas to ‘tone down’ your fireplace:
• Use the water element: blue, water or wavy lines, to subdue your fire. Hanging a water scene over the fireplace is usually discouraged, as it can tame-the fire. So, if that is what you need-to-do...consider this option.
• Earth tones and earth products can also soften the fire element; clay pots, slate tiles, tumbled stones, pottery, raku wall hanging…will ground the hearth.
• A mirror over the fireplace will amplify whatever it sees, so hang these wisely. Lighting candles in front of the mirror is a nice touch and can help set a gentle mood.
REAL CASES: I visited had an abundance of red in her small condo: red leather couches, red seat cushions in the dining area, red items on the floor and in the bookcase…as well as a fire place. She expressed a real distaste for her fireplace! My opinion: There was too much representation of the fire-element in the whole condo. We changed the sofa cushions to a soft stripe to include other colors, and removed the red seat cushions in the kitchen.
To ‘rearrange’ items on the large mantle of the fire wall, we introduced a soft, shimmery blue scarf to soften the edges of the mantle and placed a waterscape image over the fireplace. Several pointy knick-knack objects (also representing the fire element) were removed and replaced with softer shapes. What a difference! we toned down the fire energy to a level that she can relate to. The lady now ‘loves’ her fireplace in the condo.
REAL CASES: This couple had a 2-story fire-place, built with large pointy stones (a double-fire-element). It was an aggressive ‘feature wall’ in a large, great rom in a single-family home. Interesting enough, the lady of the house arranged the furniture to face towards this overbearing feature -making it appear even larger. To make this ‘great room’ more functional, I arranged the furniture to offset this aggressive feature and placed softer items (clay pots and tall branches) on the hearth and to the sides of the fireplace wall. These few actions shifted the focus of this room towards the baby-grand piano and photos of the grandchildren on another wall.
This great room turned out to be much calmer to live with.
Don’t have a fireplace?
How to bring a balance of earth and fire in your area:
• Bring a little red color in your décor with decorative pillows or ceramics pots.
• Tall items such as a lamp or stripes can mimic the upwards movement of fire. Use green (wood items) to ‘feed the fire’.
• Include some candles (more-fire element-yang) and dim the lights (yin). Finding the balance.
• Use warm tones in the area; caramel, copper, rust and soft yellows.
• Bring cozy textiles into the space (pillows, rugs and clay objects.) to soften the ambiance.
• Include a cozy blanket to the couch to share with a friend.
Using ‘fire-and-earth elements’ to balance your space can encourage memorable moments with the ones closest to you. Use this room/space to relax, sit quietly or talk over things at the end of the day. Take advantage of the shift that happens when seasons change; cultivate new habits and find opportunities to connect. Your home can become a better place to hang out.
Enjoy the journey; make changes today.
* The clients referred to, as all consultations, are discrete and anonymous; therefore, photographs of these examples are not available.
(This BLOG has been updated from the original posting in 2016. Feng Shui never goes out of style! )
Kathryn delivers ‘Practical Solutions for Life!
Enjoy the season with warmth, Kathryn
