Feng Shui's goal is to create homes that feel comfortable
and supportive for those who live there. The five elements
(water, wood, fire, earth, metal) can be used to create
those homes based on what element the people are. There are
a number of different ways to determine which primary
element you are (most people actually have several elements
as part of their personality, but one may be more
prominent). Without getting too involved though, I'm going
to give you a general description of personality types, so
you can determine which one you most closely match. Then you
can match your element with that home design.
Water
Water Personality:
Water people are intuitive, creative, spiritual, and
sensual. They feel things deeply. They can be easily hurt and
won't show it. Water doesn't like to be confined or travel
in straight lines. It prefers to flow effortlessly.
Likewise, water people don't like confinement and do best in
a job that isn't structured. Nine to five isn't the best for
them. They like to stay up late and sleep late. Laying down
is their favorite position. They love the mystery behind
things and they enjoy private, alone time. They love loose
flowing clothes, have wavy lustrous hair and will have a
slight plumpness or softness to their face or body.
Water Home Design:
Water people love open floor plans that flow into each
other. Being near the water or with images of water in the
artwork is important. They love exotic or unusual decor.
Heavy drapes add to the cozy feeling of their homes. They
don't like bright rooms, preferring dark corners with just a
couple of lamps to create cozy niches. Private space is
important along with places to recline. (comfortable
couches, recliners, bed). Water features are greatly loved
by a water person (pools, hot tubs, bath). Creating a
wonderful master bedroom / bathroom retreat area would be
important to a water person so they could spend time soaking
in the tub before going to one of their favorite places -
the bed.
Wood
Wood Personality:
Wood people are doers. They're optimistic and active.
They're athletic, competitive, and love the outdoors. They
tend to be either tall and lanky or short and energetic
types. They have sensible hairstyles that are easy to care
for or require just being tucked behind their ears. They
like preppy clothing, denim, flats and running shoes.
They're organized and practical. They love to be doing
things with many projects going on at once. They start
projects, but follow through is more difficult for them.
Since it's hard to hurt their feelings, they tend not to be
as sensitive to others too. Under stress they can get
frustrated or angry. Wood people make great leaders, good in
business, accounting, law, military, working with tools and
in nature.
Wood Home Design:
Wood people prefer furnishings made from wood, pictures of
landscapes, and lots of plants. The decor tends toward
simple, masculine or rustic. A place in the home to exercise
would be good for them. Also they would love a space to work
with tools or to store gardening supplies. Since they love
plants, the color green is a great color. They need to have
plenty of organizational tools (file cabinets, drawers,
shelves) as the wood person loves to organize their things.
Fire
Fire Personality:
Fire people seem to have boundless energy. They are the
vivacious people who love to talk, joke, and laugh. They
tend to have quick, fast movements. They can have red hair
or extreme hairstyles and have slim hips. They also love
extreme clothing that calls attention to themselves - i.e.,
pointy, high heels, sexy or dramatic clothing. Their skin
has a pink flush and they blush easily. Their inner warmth
inspires and attracts others. They hate to feel sad and
aren't the best friend to console you when you're feeling
sad. They like to be the center of attention, are
flirtatious, and can be a drama queen. When stressed, they
can get scattered or go into hysteria or panic attacks.
Since they are great with other people and not self
conscious, they are great in public relations, marketing,
and sales, or as performers.
Fire Home Design:
Fire people love drama in their homes too. Strong, saturated
colors for walls and furnishings are great for them. A
playful decor works as they feel everything should be fun.
Plan for a variety of activities in each room with lots of
different workspaces. Sharp corners and vaulted ceilings add
to the drama of a room for them. Fire people love extreme
artwork and abstracts.
Earth
Earth Personality:
Everyone should have an earth friend. They're the huggers.
These are the nurturing, loving, supportive, sympathetic
people who are always wanting to help others, many times
neglecting themselves in the process. Families and friends
are the most important things in the world. They don't like
to be alone. They're faithful, sentimental, and always want
to feed you! They prefer things to stay the same and aren't
as comfortable with change. They love garage sales and will
tend to have more cluttered homes. Cleanliness is not as
important to them. When earth people are challenged, they
tend to worry, can't think straight and become confused. The
projects that Wood people start, the Earth people love to
finish. Earth people wear comfortable, loose-fitting
clothes. They have a roundness to their face and body. Earth
people are the caregivers of the world -- nurses, social
work, the neighborhood mother.
Earth Home Design:
Earth people enjoy small cozy rooms and spaces. They prefer
low ceilings and large, soft comfortable chairs and couches.
They'll change decorations with each season and tend to have
the most clutter as they love to have things around them -
i.e., sentimental items and collections. Adequate wall space
is important for hanging photos of family and friends. Earth
people need storage and flat surfaces for displaying their
treasures. The living room will need lots of comfortable
furniture grouped together into a conversation area to
enable talking with friends and family. The kitchen is the
most important room for earth people as they love to cook
for their loved ones.
Metal
Metal Personality: Metal people are sensitive,
authoritative, gracious, hypersensitive, and an appreciator
of beauty. They can see both the big picture and the tiny
details and tend to be perfectionists. Fairness, rules and
manners are important to them. They strive for beauty in all
things. They're critical with others and especially
self-critical of themselves. Because of their extreme
sensitivity, they are easily hurt when criticized. They pay
particular attention to their appearance and want everything
to feel good on their body. Clothing preferences are classic
and refined with luxurious fabrics such as silk and
cashmere. Genuine jewellery is preferred over costume. Since
appearance is important, drawers and closets may be messy,
but the top surfaces will be uncluttered. They tend to have
a regal bearing, fine bone structure, slim body, and pale
complexion. Under stress, metal people may go into grief and
are challenged to 'let it go'. Metal people are good as
leaders, artists, and professions requiring precision and
detail. They will find the typos.
Metal Home Design:
Metal people don't like to be overstimulated so pale,
neutral colors are best for their homes. Large rooms are
preferred with large windows that give a distant view. They
will choose a few select pieces of art to display and like
one nice painting on the wall. They are most affected by
visual clutter and need clear, uncluttered surfaces. They
are organized and need places to store things. They do well
with a place to meditate or to be alone to ground
themselves. Metal homes can either be a place of simplicity
or wealth, depending on whether the person longs for the
good old days of simplicity or prefers sci-fi, with all the
latest and best gadgets.
