Our Zen Home and How we Organize (Less is More)

2015 was indeed a wild ride. But despite the challenges that the year brought, we still consider ourselves blessed and fortunate. We ended the year with a new baby boy to expect in the first quarter of 2016, Hubby got promoted, a fun filled baby shower with our family and closest friends and most of all, my mom, two kids and step-daughter was with us for a Christmas vacation in Chicago.

So hubby and I have been house hunting for over a year now. We never came to find a home that suited us best (by best, I realistically mean budget, location, and Feng Shui – yes, I am very much into that.)

To cut the long story short, we eventually found the perfect house. And here is how we made it our home sweet home:

As you enter the main door, we set up our buddha bar. Many feng shui consultants recommend placing the Buddha opposite the main front door of a home on a table that is about thirty inches high. This location allows Buddha to interact with the chi energy entering your home. From this position, the statue can neutralize any negative chi, and transform it from damaging to very lucky energy.

Most auspicious location for your Buddha is opposite the main entrance.

Our living room is Expressed in feng shui colors, the Yin, feminine energy is black and the Yang, masculine energy is white. Energy-wise, Yin is soft, slow, relaxed, diffused, moist, passive and silent. Think of the rhythms and essence of feminine energy – the softness of water, the mystery of the Moon, the blackness of rich soil and the deep silence of the night.

The Yang force is expressed by a contrasting, opposite to Yin quality of energy. Think of the fiery directness of the Sun, the aggressive speed of racing cars, the rock solid surface of a mountain, the focused energy of a laser beam. Yang is the fiery essence of the mid-day sun and Yin is the stillness and mystery of the night.

Because your home needs a balanced feng shui energy in order to support your well-being, it is important to understand the application of the Yin Yang theory on a practical, simple level.

Our Yin Yang Living Room (Black and White)

Chanel Tray

This Chanel tray is a DIY project. I place coasters for readily available use whenever we are serving guests.

The home has an open layout. The living room connects to the dining area.

And the dining area connects to the heart of our home which is the Kitchen.

Dining Area Knick Knack table – this is where I place my cookbooks and coupons (yes, I love couponing!) This is where I also place sweets such as cakes and candies – Hubby has a sweet tooth you wouldn’t imagine.

My Chanel center piece. Another DIY project that gives our black and white theme that much needed accent.

And here is the heart of the home where the action really happens. My Baking and Savory section earned the hashtag #Goals.

My pride and joy. The baking section. My best friend here is my label maker.

Everything is organized by category and can easily be seen from cupcake liners to sprinkles, flavorings, icing tips and coloring.

Most OC moms will agree. This is heaven.

The Savory Station. This is where I cut meat, chop vegetables and where the savory condiments, spices and ingredients are accessible. If you notice all the grill seasonings, that’s the hubby’s. He loves grilling and he is super at this. He makes the best grilled chicken wings and steak! This is also where I keep my Asian condiments which I regularly replenish whenever I go to Seafood City (An Asian supermarket on Olive Blvd. in St. Louis)

The Coffee and Tea Station. This is basically my breakfast nook. I can’t start my day without coffee. The Kieureg was a fabulous gift from our wedding. I mostly stack up on different kinds of tea, coffee and hot chocolate for more choices. While hubby make sure I always have fruits in season to snack on.

The Pantry

Sweets and snacks on top. This pantry is about 8 feet tall. And you know the reason why. If you open the pantry and the first thing you see are snacks and sweets, then you are prone to take some even if it wasn’t the reason why you came there in the first place.

The Fridge

The fridge is likewise organized by category. A regular inventory is made to ensure that there is no food going to waste. According the the National Resources Defense Council, each year, Americans waste 33 million tons of food. In our efforts to be part of the solution and not be one of the problems, we practice the following: Food Planning, Recipe Selection, Having a grocery list and properly storing food.

And before I forget, Kitchen aprons is a must.

His Dressing Room

Up on the second floor is the man of the house’s very own dressing room. Decorated with a day bed, nightstand and a full sized mirror. The closet is organized by color and sleeve length. The pants are categorized by type and the uniforms are arranged together either after dry clean or laundry.

White short sleeve V neck shirts

Back to the master bedroom is where my vanity is. Just like everything else in our home, we organized based on station or category. Anything I have in excess from promotions or my previous modelling stints are either given away or (if I like it a whole lot) are kept in a box for future use.

I feel bad acquiring things that would never or are hardly used. I believe someone else would always need it more than I do stored in a box.

The Vanity is a project that hubby and I proudly collaborated on. Another DIY project. The table, the mirror and the lights on the mirror were just assembled together with a little craft work, electrical and lots of patience.

The Walk in Closet.

First of all, thank you so much IKEA for the fabulous shoe storage boxes. I like having my closet organized based on season. The rest of the clothes that I wouldn’t be wearing for a while is folded and kept in a tub and of course labelled.

Master Bath

Taking long baths is one of our luxuries. Our master bath is designed to have that spa ambiance complete with scented candles, bath salts and bubble bath. We also have a blue tooth speaker where we can play relaxing Zen music. Just the same, we prevent clutter by having a basket filled with essentials such as deodorant, lotion and body oils.

Organization makes life simpler and stress free. Having a place for everything is key. I personally organize by station and category. Be it by color, size, use or function.

In the Western culture, we tend to experience an imbalance of feng shui energies. We live in a constant flow of the very active, busy, Yang feng shui energy and often weak, or even missing Yin energy (the relaxed and nourishing one).

Having a harmonious balance of both Yin and Yang feng shui forces in your home will create the quality of energy you need in order to live a healthy and fulfilling life. It may not be a hundred percent guaranteed because both positive and negative energy can come from different sources and forms. But staging your home for the positive energy? What do you have to lose.