Both in the East and in the West, a regular meal is a real event for the whole family. A good feng shui in the dining room strengthens relationships between family members and forms a solid foundation for success in other areas of their lives.
Ideally, the dining room should be located next to the living room and as close to the center of the house as possible.
Yin and yang
Since food is a calm and pacifying activity, the balance should be slightly shifted in favor of Yin, with softer lighting and dim colors than in the living room. Try to avoid angular furniture with a pronounced Yang: it prevents home and guests from relaxing and makes them overly active. On the other hand, too soft chairs and very dark heavy curtains can create an atmosphere of gloom and apathy. Then you strive for a combination of home comfort and lively conversation, so you try to find a balance point.
Colors and elements
The colors in the dining room should be softer and more subdued than in the living room. If you want to stimulate certain areas of the room, just add a few strokes of the appropriate color. For example, a small brown ornament in the southwest will support the quality of the Earth in this sector, and a blue-tinted painting on the north wall will focus on the successful career of the head of the family.
General considerations
Many considerations that apply to the living room are quite applicable to the dining room. The space of the room needs to be arranged so that Chi energy can flow freely inside, and all those present feel free and confident. As mentioned above, if your house has a dining room and a living room combined in one room, then the dining area should be isolated from the living room. This can be achieved using a wooden lattice with climbing plants, a mirror and paintings or photographs. A bookcase, bookcase or other similar piece of furniture can also serve to create a “dividing line.” In combination with a warm color scheme (possibly different from the color scheme of the living room) this configuration may be a good solution for your apartment.
Too large a window or several windows in the dining room is considered unfavorable from the point of view of Feng Shui, as it distracts from food and can cause vague concern, especially in children. Regardless of whether the dining room is located in a separate room or allocated as part of the living room, it should have no more than two entrances.
The main pieces of furniture in the dining room, of course, are the dining table and chairs. Although ideally chairs should be against the walls, in practice this is far from always possible. It is also recommended to place an even number of chairs around the table, since even numbers are considered especially favorable – possibly also because paired objects are associated with images of love and partnership. But regardless of the number of chairs, there are certain places for furniture that create the most convenient configuration and allow qi energy to circulate freely around the room.
The dining room door, opening inward, should not collide with the back of the chair; However, this applies to other rooms. As in the living room, in the dining room there are “guest of honor” positions, located facing the door, but not directly opposite it.
Very often the most advantageous position of a table in a rectangular room is diagonal, when the sides of the table are not parallel to the walls. In this case, you get two places that can be considered “honorable”. Two chairs facing the door are in an “honorable” position, none of the chairs is completely back to the window, and no one is sitting with his back to the door. You can add additional touches – for example, put a vase of flowers on the mantelpiece and hang a mirror in the far corner of the room.
The number of other furniture in the dining room should be minimized; in addition to the table and chairs, a buffet or, say, a sideboard will be enough.
Some table layout problems:
– facing the front door. Placing a dining table in front of the house or on the veranda is considered unfavorable;
– facing the toilet. If the dining table is located opposite the toilet, this will adversely affect the health and well-being of family members. If you cannot change the position of the toilet door, install a screen or a wooden partition;
– between two doors. If the dining table is between the doors at the opposite ends of the room, well-being will quickly float out of the house. In such a situation, you need to hang a musical pendant or a Feng Shui bell at the door to slow down the flow of Qi;
– under the ceiling beam. If the dining table is located under the protruding beam, the result will be a depressed mood and indigestion;
– at the lower level. The dining room, located below the living room level, symbolizes a gradual decline in business. If the ceiling is high enough, align both rooms. If this is not possible, place a mirror on the dining room ceiling to raise the level of qi in this part of the house;
– in the kitchen next to the toilet. The qi stream entering the toilet through the door exits through the window. If the dining table is adjacent to the wall of the toilet, this guarantees health problems. In this situation, it is better to use another table set in the dining room for food.