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we rent an apartment we often feel as if we have little or no control over our
environment, some of us find our apartments through friends and others have searched
and carefully selected a space which we feel suits us perfectly. Either way we
have all known the difficulties of finding just the right space to live in at
one time or another. Some
of the things to look out for in an apartment building are; the common
areas, at the entrance to the apartment and inside the apartment . The
common areas Poor
or non existent lighting and broken light fittings No
choice in terms of the colors used. Dirty
and marked walls and floor No
pictures or decorations on the walls Bare
looking areas Noisy neighbors
Feng Shui remedies for these
concerns are: Checking
the traffic volume at different times of the day, for noise and pollution concerns Ask
the super to increase the wattage of the lamps of the existing fittings and let
him know as soon as a light has burnt out. Ask
your landlord to replace light fittings that are defective or broken - remember
to be polite as you will probably get a better response. Ask
your landlord if he would mind if you hung a few posters on the walls. Many stores
sell inexpensive plastic poster frames, buy posters and hang them at strategic
points along the hall using vertical images will create “pauses” horizontal
images will encourage movement. Spend
an hour on Saturday or Sunday with a suitable cleaner and clean the worst marks
off the walls between the elevator and your front door, if you expect the building
staff to do it you could wait a long time! In
the older apartment buildings it is often the case that the apartment is configured
around a stair or elevator well and has a corner missing. You can place a very
small object in the common area, perhaps under the carpet or tucked into the baseboard,
perhaps a small stone, a crystal or some other symbolic piece to make up the complete
shape. For my first rental the solution was a tiny stone with the Yin/Yang symbol
on it tucked into a crack in the side of the staircase.
At
the entrance to the apartment Your
front door looks the same as all the other doors Often
the door bell does not work Little
Individuality Either the
entry door closes shut with a bang or does not close at all
The very first thing to do would
be to make sure the door works properly and the hinges are well oiled. If the
door slams shut all the time speak to your super as it is a relatively simple
operation to adjust this problem. If
you have the usual type of door bell which is fixed to the inside of the door
and has a mechanical push, then it is a very simple procedure to replace it. Most
hardware stores sell the common types for relatively little money. If your door
bell is working properly then I suggest that you replace the inside cover as in
many apartments the painting work is not that carefully done. When you buy a new
one, they are usually in grey or cream, it would be best painted in a bright color,
cheery and welcoming color for example yellow or green, my first one was lemon
yellow. If it is
permitted by the Landlord apply something personal to the outside of your door,
perhaps a name plate, or a picture of a country scene, something that personalizes
the door as yours. The
other thing to do is to place a door mat outside your front door the old fashioned
ones with the thick tufting are best, but really anything that makes you feel
at home. Inside
the apartment Electrical
panel close to entrance Light
fittings are always cheap and are often fluorescent Doors
to closets are usually bi-fold doors or sliding doors which often do not work
well Space issues; closets
used for multiple purposes and tend to get overfilled. The
walls tend to be painted white and usually the painters have painted everything
including the light switches and electrical outlets and anything else that was
there. Cures:
Hang a picture or mirror over
the electrical panel, of course make sure that it reflects head and shoulders
of all guests 5’ to 6’6” tall. This is simple to accomplish by
tilting the top of the mirror out from the wall a couple of inches.
Use full spectrum daylight adjusted
bulbs, they are more money but last a lot longer, this may be better than simple
increasing the wattage as that may make the space be too bright for comfort. Remember
too much of anything can be harmful – for light think of sunburn!
Try different shades on the lights
that variegate the light. This will mimic nature in the way that there will always
be
some perceived “shadow”. It
is a simple task to replace the switch cover plates and electrical outlets in
the walls. Be careful, if you have not done this before do not attempt it without
the help of a friend who has or, if you prefer, ask the super to do it for you.
If you go to the hardware store you will find many different colors and styles
however the simplest solution is to replace all of the existing switch and outlet
cover plates with simple white or cream colored plastic ones which include matching
screws. In the
more important areas of the apartment replace the switches with a dimmer switch.
The cost of a good quality dimmer switch can be as little as $20. Try one and
soon you will be hooked on the idea of using them everywhere. Also, for plug in
lamps, Lutron make a simple table top plug in dimmer. Remember anything that you
can do to vary the light in the apartment will help the feeling of being closer
to nature. Having
plants in the bathroom or kitchen, if you have no window, may seem to be a problem.
However all you really have to do is to buy two hardy plants and put them in matching
plant pots. Then place one in the bathroom or kitchen and the other one on your
sunniest window sill. Then once a week, for me it is on Sunday morning, switch
plants over so that the one which was in the room without a window all week stands
on the sill and has sunlight for a week. Very quickly both plants will acclimatize
to their “shared” sunlight and will thrive well. Lastly,
once you have move in, remember to clear out your drawers on a regular basis and
go through every item to make sure it is still useful and wanted by you. Think;
are you paying rent to store items which are not giving you anything in return.
If you leave space in your closets and drawers then you will be leaving space
for new things to come into your life. ©
Benjamin Huntington 2008 Benjamin
Huntington, ASID, FSIA Web
Site: fengshui-ny.com
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