5 Feng Shui Living Room Ideas for a Harmonious Space
Entering your lounge, an immediate feeling of tranquillity and positivity washes over you. You’ve worked hard to curate the perfect feng shui living room over the past few months, and now it’s finally paying off.
Allowing your eyes to slowly wander around the room, you pick up on the key elements that inspire joy and comfort. From the colour scheme to the ambient light fixtures and even the placement of your furniture, everything works in harmony to positively energise your living space.
Discover how to create the perfect feng shui living room for a happy and harmonious home.
What is feng shui and why does it matter?
Feng shui is the Chinese practice of bringing balance with the natural world into our interior spaces. The goal is to establish harmony between you and your environment by harnessing energy forces.
‘If you don’t feel comfortable in a space but can’t quite pinpoint what’s causing the discomfort, it may be energy—specifically, the flow of energy,’ says Ally Dowsing-Reynolds, interiors expert and co-founder of Dowsing & Reynolds.
‘Although we can’t see energy, we all feel it and are affected by it to a greater or lesser degree – especially if you’re highly sensitive to your environment.’
Creating good feng shui matters because it’s believed to create a positive flow of energy that makes us feel happier, safer, and more productive. ‘If a room is cluttered, the extra objects disrupt the energy flow, and it becomes stagnant, potentially causing us to feel sluggish, fidgety or on edge’, says Ally.
How to feng shui your living room
The living room is where we spend most of our time at home and is typically one of the first rooms that greets us upon entering. It’s therefore essential that it sets the right mood and puts us in a positive mindset.
There are many simple ways to feng shui your living room and create a happy, harmonious space for you, your family, and your guests to relax in.
1. Consider the position of your furniture
The position of your furniture can have a huge impact on how energy flows through your living room. ‘Try to keep entranceways completely unobstructed’, says Ally. ‘Shimmying around furniture to get through doors is frustrating and blocks energy that needs to flow freely around your space.’
Interior designers recommend paying particular attention to the position of your sofa.
‘Sitting with your back to a door can be very uncomfortable and may cause you to feel on edge’, says Ally. ‘Part of your brain is constantly alert for danger, so not being able to see what’s coming up behind you quickly leads to a sense of unease.’
Try rearranging your furniture so that your sofa is facing the door. This will make you feel safer and more relaxed by giving you a clear view of who is entering the room at all times. If it’s not possible to place your sofa so that it faces the door, consider placing a mirror in a position that gives you a clear view of the main entrance to the room.
2. Declutter your space
Letting clutter accumulate in our living rooms massively disrupts the flow of positive energy through the space, making us feel stressed and overwhelmed.
To feng shui your living room, think about which items in your living room spark joy and which ones you can live without. If it’s not something you need, use, or love, let it go to allow positive energy to flow more freely around your space.
Design tip: Choose multi-functional décor to save space and prevent your living room from feeling cluttered. Decorative lamps will serve the practical purpose of providing light while also being a point of visual interest.
3. Cultivate the right energy through colour
In feng shui, each type of energy is associated with a different colour. You can therefore use colour to invite certain types of energy into your life, whether it’s related to your career, family, love life, or something else entirely.
Decide which energy you want to cultivate and then bring it into your living room through your décor. This could be as simple as choosing unique ceiling lighting fixtures in the corresponding colour.
It’s important to listen to your intuition when it comes to choosing a colour scheme for your living room. ‘Check how the colour makes you feel’, says Ally.
‘We all react differently to colours, so just because blue is supposed to be calming doesn’t mean it is for you—you may find it cold and standoffish. Choose a colour that appeals to you.’
4. Choose artwork carefully
Image courtesy of @our_greenhouse_reno
The artwork we hang in our living room can also affect the energy of the space. Try to avoid art that is emotionally charged, especially if it conjures up negative feelings. This could be the case if it was chosen by an ex-partner or if it was a gift that you’re not particularly keen on.
Consider the positioning of your artwork as well – artwork that is placed too low can cause low energy and mood. If your living room is on the smaller side, choose artwork that is appropriate for the size of the room to make it feel more spacious and allow energy to flow more easily around the space.
Design tip: Use accent wall lights to draw attention to your artwork and make it a focal point of your living room. The adjustable Fender gold wall light is a great choice for this and will add another layer of visual interest thanks to its beautiful design.
5. Stimulate bright and uplifting energy through lighting
Make sure your living room is well-lit to encourage a positive flow of energy, paying particular attention to illuminating dark corners and shadows. The best way to do this is by layering your lighting, making sure you have the right lighting for any time of day and any task.
There are three types of lighting that you should feature in your living room to achieve this:
- Ambient lighting: This is the general lighting that provides overall illumination in a room and is typically provided by ceiling lights.
- Task lighting: This lighting accentuates specific areas of the room and illuminates tasks to prevent eye strain (e.g. table lamps or pendant lights).
- Accent lighting: This is used to highlight certain features or areas within a room, drawing attention to key elements of the décor. Wall lights are a good example.
Design tip: Lighting is a key aspect of your décor, so make sure you choose fixtures that spark joy and creativity for good feng shui. A contemporary chandelier could be an excellent choice, drawing the eye in and creating a captivating focal point.
Show us your feng shui living room
We’d love to see how you’ve used these feng shui living room ideas to bring good energy into your home. Tag us on Instagram @dowsingandreynolds – we can’t wait to see what you’ve come up with!
