5 Feng Shui Decoration Tips to Know for Chinese New Year

The Lunar New Year is just around the corner—start your year right with tips from interior designer Terri Tan of Designworx Interior Consultant, who shares more about stylish and simple ways to craft a home with good feng shui

Make headway for a prosperous year by inviting a positive chi to your house with feng shui elements in the year of the Water Tiger. While feng shui within a home varies from one individual to another, there are some general principles to follow.

Having worked on several projects with feng shui requirements, Terri Tan, design director of Singapore-based firm Designworx Interior Consultant, is familiar with creating stylish homes that also adhere to geomancy principles.

Here, the seasoned designer offers some tips on how to stylishly incorporate feng shui elements into your home.

Don't miss: Feng Shui Do’s and Don’ts: How to Maximise Your Home’s Energy in the Year of the Tiger

1. Know your auspicious directions before the renovation begins

Designworx Interior Consultants incorporated the feng shui requirement of having a mirror in this dining room whilst incorporating the client's preference for modern oriental motifs

Above Designworx Interior Consultant incorporated the feng shui requirement of having a mirror in this dining room whilst incorporating the client's preference for modern oriental motifs

In classic feng shui, the direction or orientation of your home plays an important role to accurately analyse how chi flows around your abode. If you’re intending to move or renovate your space this year, prioritise knowing your auspicious directions before you start the building works; this way, it can be easier to map out the furnishings required in each area.

“Feng shui requirements—in particular, the bed or study table orientation and the wealth positions—are best introduced at the conceptual design stage in interior projects,” says Tan. “As such, we will always check with our clients if they intend to engage a feng shui master during the initial meeting. If yes, we will only kick start the design after the feng shui report is completed.”

In case you missed it: Tatler’s Feng Shui Guide to the Year of the Tiger

2. Choose accent pieces in lucky colours

Designed by Designworx Interior Consultants, the lift wall is cladded with striking red mosaics as per the feng shui requirements of this home

Above Designed by Designworx Interior Consultant, this wall is cladded with red mosaic tiles to adhere to the feng shui requirements of this home

Colour theory is a major auspicious factor in feng shui. “Feng shui colours are easier to incorporate into the interior design through selected wall and window treatments; they can also be reflected in the choice of rugs, loose furniture, artworks or cushions,” Tan advises.

For the festive period, the designer recommends decking your home with bright and bold colours. “Vibrant colours are a safe bet to add more chi for the festive season,” says Tan. “It can be in the form of a rug, cushions or even wall art.”

3. Use art to balance the five elements

This hallway by Designworx Interior Consultants features a sculpture that adds to the metal element of the abode

Above This hallway by Designworx Interior Consultant features a sculpture that adds to the metal element of the abode

In feng shui, the five elements—earth, metal, water, wood and fire—should be balanced within your environment in order to create harmony and peace. “[These elements] can be easily introduced in the form of loose furniture, sculptures, wall art, or even indoor water features,” Tan reveals.

For example, the design team amplified the metal elements in a home through the use of a stand-alone sculpture in the hallway.

4. Fill your home with plants

Above Plants can help add abundant energy into an abode (Image: Pexels/Rodnae Productions)

Besides bringing the wood element into a home, many also believe that plants help to improve the positive energy within a space. “The easiest way to add life into a home is to buy some auspicious plants like Calamondin Orange Tree, Lucky Bamboo and the Jade Plant, or flowers such as Anthurium, Orchids and Bormeliad from the local nurseries,” says Tan. “These greeneries will help to rejuvenate the oxygen level as well as the energy in the home, in time to welcome the Lunar New Year.”

5. Add a festive energy with patterns

Above Scene Shang Prosperity Mountain satin cushion

Celebrate the Year of the Tiger with decorative pieces such as cushions and vases that imbue your home with a festive energy; consider chic accent decor that also holds a timeless appeal.

“Instead of traditional Chinese New Year designs, pick modern motifs or abstract patterns so that the decor pieces for styling can still be used post-festivities,” advises Tan. “Position these touches in an Instagrammable corner of a home, or at the centre of the room to create a focal point.”

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Topics

interior design decor feng shui chinese new year 2022 home design

Tatler Asia

Ask a Designer: 5 Feng Shui Decoration Tips to Know

1. Know your auspicious directions before the renovation begins

2. Choose accent pieces in lucky colours

3. Use art to balance the five elements

4. Fill your home with plants

5. Add a festive energy with patterns