The Power of Feng Shui and Scents: Achieve Harmony in Your Space

It's no great secret that certain smells can evoke feelings of warmth or comfort. There are scents that make most people think of their favorite holidays and those that remind them of home. Scents in feng shui are known to bring about great change if used properly and can dispel stuck energy in your home or office by using essential oils, burning candles or burning incense. You can invite wealth, calm family matters and even help children sleep better. You can open up the lines of communication, boost your creativity and encourage a lift in your love life.

Sage is a scent that is meant to clear the air so old, stale chi, or energy, can be dispelled and new energy can flow in. If your career has come to a standstill or your life has stalled you may have stuck 'chi' Burning sage incense in your home of office is a great beginning to letting that new energy flow through your life. Begin by opening the doors and windows so that the stagnant energy has a place to go and then travel from room to room with the sage incense. As you go into each room wave the sage incense around so it can stimulate the stale chi to move on.

To change the chi in each area of your home it is advisable to have the proper scent in every room. Begin with the entrance to your home. This is the first impression to your home and as such should immediately set a guest at ease. A popular method of making guests feel comfortable when they enter your home is by applying a vanilla scent to that area. During the holidays it is perfectly acceptable to use a pine or balsam scent to stimulate visitors with the scent of the season. In warmer climates or during warm months you can use a citrus scent.

The living room scent is another room that can use different scents depending on the desired outcome. Lavender or vanilla scents bring family together in harmony. Use this scent if you are having a family get-together to make sure all of your guests are comfortable and open to harmonious conversation. Scents that stimulate, such as cinnamon, clove, ginger, cedar or sandalwood are preferable for those wishing to engage in intellectual conversations. Flowery scents like rose, gardenia, ylang ylang, bergamot and jasmine are warm, loving fragrances that promote feelings of love among family and friends.

The dining area and kitchen benefit from a citrus scent. Orange or lemon scents are stimulating, yet cleansing and are perfect for these areas as they do not interfere with eating. For the dining area you can also use hints of mint scents to increase appetite and cleanse the palette. Bathrooms are naturally water areas and as such they need to be balanced out. Choose fire, or stimulating, scents to counteract the water element, such as clove, cinnamon, amber, sandalwood and cedar.

Bedrooms are places of relaxation, but master bedrooms need special attention since they are the heart of the relationship area. For relaxation in both children's bedrooms and master bedrooms it is advisable to use scents of lavender . This scent promotes healthy sleep habits and reduces stress and anxiety. You may also use vanilla scents for children's bedrooms to promote warmth and comfort. In the master bedroom you should use light flowery scents to stimulate feelings of love. Rose, jasmine, musk or ylang ylang incense adds the right scent and the fire element to ignite passion.

In your office, or home office, there are two scents that can be used depending on the need. Citrus scents clear your mind and can help you concentrate harder on the task at hand. Peppermint scents stimulate prosperity, especially if you begin each day by burning peppermint scented incense.

The basic rules of dispelling scent in an area relate to what you are trying to achieve. Burning candles and incense both use fire to create the scent and are thus stimulating. In areas of igniting passion, encouraging wealth or simply cleaning the air it is advisable to use the fire element to stimulate the chi. Most areas where you would use a stimulating scent you will want the fire element to apply it. For methods of relaxation or promoting feelings of warmth and comfort the scent is more beneficial if it is released through essential oils. In bedrooms you can mix a spray bottle with water and 9 drops of lavender essential oil and spritz the room just before bedtime.

If you find your life in a rut or are having problems at work - try clearing your air and letting some good chi into your home, office and life!