The Perks of Organic Bed Linens

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

I've noted a few times on the blog, we spend a lot of time in our beds. This is why it's so important that they're comfortable, holistic and have ample room for positive qi to move freely about. Aside from the command position and minimal storage beneath our beds, another important consideration is what we put on top of our beds. 

If you're aiming to live a green, holistic lifestyle, chances are you've already made the change to organic in many places, from deodorant to detergent to conditioner, fruits and vegetables, and even paint. While you're at it, look into going organic with your bed linens as well!

The most obvious perk to making this switch is that going organic with sheets, etc. eliminates a number of chemicals added to ordinary bed linens for a variety of reasons. Whether to maintain the bright color of your bedding, keep your sheets wrinkle-free, provide a cooling sensation, or any number of other "benefits," chemicals added to your sheets and other linens are just as dangerous as other household chemicals. In fact, due to the amount of time you spend in your bed, they may even be more dangerous! 

Along the same lines, switching to organic linens will significantly decrease the likelihood of allergic reactions to your bedding. Many sheets and comforters contain dyes and other chemicals that may contain allergens. Who wants to sleep in a bed they're literally allergic to? Organic bedding is much less likely to cause skin reactions or aggravate other allergies. 

Organic sheets, like bamboo, tencel and organic cotton, are also much more durable and easy to wash. Each of these materials provides a smooth, almost silky feeling, and because they are plant-based and used to standing the test of time and environmental factors, they tend to be much more sturdy, allowing them to be washed over and over without special instructions. 

Finally, like most organic products, bedding produced without extra chemicals helps to push toward a more sustainable, naturally farmed planet. With so many factors contributing to the destruction of our natural resources and Earth overall, it's important that we do what we can to help in any way, and switching to organic bedding is one easy, beneficial way to help rebuild our environment. 

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui, check out Mindful Design Feng Shui School at: www.mindfuldesignschool.com

Q&A Sunday: Flowers and Feng Shui

Photo by Paula Russell on Unsplash

Photo by Paula Russell on Unsplash

Someone told me it is good feng shui to have flowers in the dining room. Is this true?

Thank you for your question! Yes, in general, fresh flowers are great, because they can bring in joy and uplift the qi in your home. Flowers also feel special. When I was going to ikebana class every week, I would bring flowers home and people would always ask where they were from. Having fresh flowers in your home can be a lovely and simple way to do some special for yourself. 

It’s also true that flowers are especially good for the dining room. Dining rooms are important places in the home because they represent how we nourish ourselves, and also how we connect to others and how deep our friendships are. However, they’re often neglected because we often don’t spend a lot of time eating in the dining room, and sometimes we even use the dining room table as a home office. If you want to deepen your friendships, make sure you are being mindful of how you interact with your dining room and especially your dining room table. Find a separate space that can function as your home office if you can, and take time regularly to eat meals at your table. Having a vase of beautiful flowers here can also help to bring more attention and energy to your dining room table and the parts of your life that it represents. 

If you do bring flowers into your home, there are a few things to keep in mind. First, if you can, try to find locally grown flowers. Local flowers are generally better for the environment because they aren’t shipped from far away, and don’t require as many chemicals to stay fresh for a long trip. It’s also a great way to support your local farmers. 

It’s also important to care for your flowers once you’ve brought them into your home. Replace the water daily and remove any dead leaves or flowers. Water is their life blood, just like it is ours, and it’s important to keep it clean and free of any debris that might fall into the vase. When you replace the water, you can also cut off the bottom inch or so of each stem, so that the flowers can receive more water.

I encourage you to do something special for yourself and bring some fresh flowers into your home. Choose flowers that you’re drawn to, and if you like, you can even look up the symbolism of those flowers to learn more about what they can teach you.

by Anjie Cho

Thanks for reading our "Q&A Sunday". If you have personal questions, we encourage you to check out Practical Feng Shui or hire one of Anjie's Grads.

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui, check out Mindful Design Feng Shui School at: www.mindfuldesignschool.com

7 Rules of Mindful Renovation

featured this month on Hunker by Laura Lambert

There's mindful eating. Mindful breathing. But mindful renovation? Well yes, of course. The mindfulness revolution absolutely belongs in the home, because home is where we retreat, recharge, and reimagine ourselves. But what is mindful renovation, exactly?

"One of the ways that my teachers describe mindfulness is paying attention to all the details in your life, whether it's making a cup of tea or your environment," says Anjie Cho, an architect and feng shui consultant who practices mindful design and writes about it on her blog, Holistic Spaces. "Mindful renovation is also like that."

Mindful renovation is informed by so many things that Cho has embraced in her own life — feng shui, meditation, Buddhism, as well as architecture and design. It's about slowing down and paying attention to how the space around us makes us feel, and using that quiet intelligence to inform design decisions. It's also about making choices — like using high quality, green materials, or paying your craftsmen well — that have a thoughtful impact on the world around you. And it's as much about the process of renovating as it is the colors, textures, placement, and finishes.

...read full article

If you’d like to learn more about feng shui check out the Mindful Design Feng Shui certification program. Laura Morris and I are launching our program in September 2018. We have a free webinar “Five Feng Shui Tools Revealed: Must-Do Business Boosters for Soulpreneurs and Wellness Practitioners” coming up, too! To get on the list about it, sign up at: www.mindfuldesignschool.com.

Mindful Design is a new way to learn feng shui. Our unique training program takes an holistic approach to learning the art of feng shui design. Mindful design is about becoming aware, and attentive, to the energy around you: both inner and outer qi. It is about promoting a better way of living and creating sacred spaces that support, and nourish.