In the ancient art of Feng Shui, the kitchen lives up to its reputation as the heart of the home—as it should be able to nourish and sustain the good energy produced throughout the rest of the house. Considered one of the three most important parts of a Feng Shui home (along with the bathroom and the master bedroom), a properly decorated Feng Shui kitchen symbolizes good health, productivity, and prosperity. Designing one for your home shouldn’t be rocket science. This simple guide contains easy-to-follow steps on how to make your kitchen the center of your home.
Kitchen Placement
If you’re in the process of building or buying your home, note that placing the kitchen in front of or under a bathroom makes for terrible Feng Shui. In a Feng Shui perspective, a bathroom facing the kitchen entrance could lead to illness for the inhabitants. Apart from the obvious sanitary hazards of having a bathroom right across the kitchen, bad energy leaks out through the smells and sounds we’re all familiar with when we do our business, which can be a real appetite buzzkill for whoever’s preparing the meals at home. Also, the kitchen is known as a space rich in fire energy that nourishes and sustains. However, if the kitchen is placed across the bathroom, the positive effect of fire energy would go to waste, as it flows into the bathroom which is known to be a place of exit.
Stove and Oven Placement
The stove is the key element to any Feng Shui kitchen, much like the bed is to the bedroom, and the sofa is to the living area. To promote stability and strength for all those living in the home, all key elements must be positioned against a sturdy wall. Remember not to position the stove facing any of the doors in the kitchen, as stoves are known to hold overwhelming amounts of fire energy. That same energy could spill over the rest of the house if the kitchen door is left open which can cause an imbalance throughout the home, making for terrible Feng Shui. If this setup cannot be avoided, make use of room dividers to create a partition between the door and the stove.
The ideal placement for a kitchen stove is in front of objects with prominent earth energy such as herb gardens, clay pots, or decor inspired by nature—as earth elements have the ability to neutralize the fire energy coming from the stove.
Kitchen Layout
The rule of thumb for Feng Shui kitchens is to follow the kitchen triangle, wherein the main idea is to have an imaginary triangle connecting the cooktop, the sink, and the refrigerator. This layout creates a clear path between the three so meal preparation and cleanup are both done efficiently. To learn more about the Feng Shui triangle, read this.
To achieve the balance of nature in your kitchen, make sure to fill the room with appliances and décor that balance out the overwhelming amounts of fire energy being produced. Examples would be a kitchen sink (water), an herb garden (earth), a wooden kitchen island (wood), and stainless steel cutlery and appliances (metal). In line with this, note not to place a mirror in the kitchen, as mirrors have the ability to reflect and amplify the fire energy being produced in the area, which can cause an imbalance of fire energy throughout the home.
Prioritize Functionality
In line with Feng Shui’s need for an absence of clutter, this last one’s a no brainer—make sure everything in your kitchen is a necessity, and make sure every single one of these items live up to their purpose. Don’t hoard on dozens of kitchen materials and equipment you don’t plan to use like cheap kitchen knicknacks commonly found in checkout areas in hardware stores (put the avocado slicer down). If any of your kitchen equipment are broken, make sure to get them fixed as soon as you can, and to throw out items beyond repair like broken plates and chipped glasses.
Knives
As much as you love that brand new sushi knife collection you purchased all the way from Japan, make sure to keep all knives and sharp objects out of plain sight, as sharp objects are not only dangerous, but are also known to produce overwhelming amounts of Sha Chi (negative Feng Shui energy). Seeing knives in plain sight also creates a sense of paranoia and discomfort, which makes for terrible Feng Shui.
