Feng Shui and the Kitchen

Anjie Cho March 17, 2021

When we talk about kitchens and feng shui, it’s helpful to look beyond the functional purpose of the kitchen and look into the metaphorical aspect as well. You can look at the kitchen as a place to nourish as well as a place for families to gather. I’m also a licensed architect, and I’ve noticed that kitchens, and open-plan kitchens in particular, are often places where families come together. Everyone tends to make a beeline towards the kitchen island!

In feng shui, it’s often said that white is the best color for a kitchen because it represents purity and cleanliness, which are qualities that we want in our food and nourishment. White is a great color for kitchen walls and backsplashes, as well as dishes, because it shows off the many colors of the food that we eat.

That said, this is very general advice, so you may want to work with a feng shui consultant to get a more personalized recommendation for your situation. They can give you much more background on different colors and figure out what is best for you, if you’re interested in that. Also, if you really want your kitchen to be a certain color, go for it! No one’s going to stop you. I don’t want you to be afraid to do something because you think it will be bad feng shui. You have to keep in mind that you’ll be living in this home, so you should love the kitchen that you design!

Because your kitchen represents how you nourish yourself, you always want to keep it clean and bring in the highest quality produce and items that you can. This includes cleaning products, too. The quality of your food directly impacts your personal energy, so you want to bring in the highest vibration food that you can.

Lastly, appreciate your kitchen! It does a lot for you, and our homes speak in energy, so offer gratitude to this part of your home that nourishes you.

by Anjie Cho

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

Q&A Sunday: The Best Feng Shui Colors for a Kitchen

Guest User March 7, 2021

What are the best colors for a kitchen?

The short answer is: it depends! I encourage you to go back and read my philosophy on color. The most important thing to take into account is what colors you are drawn to, and how they make you feel.

I do have some ideas to share as a starting point, if you’d like some guidance. One principle of feng shui that can guide you in choosing colors is the five elements system. Knowing that your kitchen is a room where you might spend a lot of time, this can give you some ideas about how you want to welcome colors into this part of your home.

The five elements are earth, metal, water, wood, and fire. I recommend reading the descriptions of each below, and seeing if anything resonates with you. Then, think about how you can bring colors into your kitchen with intention. You can do this through the food you cook and eat, your dishes, a new coat of paint, or even something as simple as napkins.

Here are the colors associated with each of the five elements, and what qualities they can bring into your home:

Earth: Brown, yellow, and neutrals

Earth element is great for nourishment, stability, and growth. This makes it a supportive element if you’re struggling with anxiety or if you want to focus on self care.

Metal: White, metallics

Metal is thought of as one of the more ideal colors for a kitchen because it’s related to cleanliness and purity, which is important for the food we earth. We want clean, healthy, pure food with vibrant life energy.

Water: Black and dark midnight blue

Water can help to support wisdom and flexibility. It strengthens our ability to go with the flow and to be less rigid. It can also represent our social connections to other people.

Wood: Green, teal, blue

Wood represents vitality and healing. It’s a great color if you need a healthy boost of qi. Wood is also connected to kindness and open-heartedness.

Fire: Red

Fire symbolizes how you show up in the world. It’s your vitality and passion for things, and how people see you. Fire is a great element to work with if you would like to be more visible.

Maybe one of the qualities of the five elements spoke to you, and you can find a way to bring this into your kitchen. It doesn’t have to be a big change—you can try out something small like a napkin or a mug. As you introduce a color, work with the intention of bringing in the quality of that element that you want to invite.

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

Q&A Sunday: Broken Dishes in the Kitchen

Guest User January 31, 2021

I have a lot of broken dishes in my kitchen. They’re still usable, but some have big chips in them. Is that bad?

In feng shui, your kitchen represents your nourishment, how well you do in the world, and your resources, so it’s an important place to pay attention to.

It’s also one of the most popular areas for people to work on in their homes. I do home renovations, and people spend a lot of time and money improving and updating their kitchens. We also spend a lot of time and energy cooking for ourselves and our families in the kitchen, and that translates to health and wellbeing. How we nourish ourselves also reflects on how well we can do in the world.

While I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily “bad” to have broken items in your home, it is certainly something to take note of. If you do have broken or chipped dishes or other items, that can represent some kind of broken energy, or difficulty and challenges. I invite you to repair or replace those items if you can, and I also understand that it’s not always possible to do this. You have to do the best you can with what you have, and because I’m not working with you directly, you have to be the judge and use your own intelligence and intuition to determine what is right for you.

In general, though, if you have a kitchen full of broken things that are no longer serving you, what does that say about how you care for your health and your inner environment? As I’ve said before, your inner environment and your outer environment reflect each other. Are there any broken dishes you could let go of in your kitchen?

If there’s an item in your kitchen that you absolutely love and cherish, find a way to repair it. One good example is the Japanese practice of Kintsugi, which is a way to use precious metal like gold to repair broken pottery. This makes it into something precious, rather than something damaged or fragile. Again, think about what your kitchen represents: we want to have a lot of strength and support when it comes to our health, rather than things being broken or in disrepair.

I invite you to take a look at what you can let go of in your kitchen in terms of broken or damaged items, take the time to repair any items that you really love, and begin to open up more opportunities for health, support, resources, and strength.

by Anjie Cho