Home office glamour: ideas for interesting & intentional DIY artwork

When you work from home, it can be extremely difficult to stay focused, to stay inspired and to stay on track. Knowing how important our surroundings are to our success, I am always very intentional with what I surround myself with. Especially when it comes to the art.

The thing about artwork is that it will always have an impact on your mood, on your emotional state. It can positively or negatively affect you, depending on what you decide to put in your sight. They say that the art that you are instinctually drawn to will speak to what you need in your life at the time. So, if you listen to that and put up artwork that you really like, it can enhance your overall emotional well being.

Most people have art on their walls for years. They take in the same artwork every single day. Artwork can be expensive so I totally get wanting to keep the art you have always had. However, in your work space, I want to encourage you to change up your artwork to match or equal your current mood. Or you want to hang artwork to inspire you for where you want to go and what you want to manifest.

The artwork has to speak to where you are wanting to go. For me, the below artwork spoke to my future. A photo of girls getting ready together to me symbolized support in my work, the cheetah art print for me represents a fierce side of myself and who doesn’t have Chanel on their vision board, am I right?

FENG SHUI TIP: Gold is the color of success, so when it comes to your home office I like to encourage you to decorate with gold. I personally love to hang gold frames for the art in my work area. It pulls in wealth. Just like to gold crystals Pyrite & Citrine pull in wealth, the metal will do the same thing energetically. If you want to learn more about how to Feng Shui with crystals, read this book.

Lately I have been inspired by art walls at home because I know the impact art has on your Feng Shui and I am really loving some of these. Right now is the perfect time to create artwork at home. It makes for good Feng Shui because when you put effort and intention into your art, there is magic behind it! You created it. You made something to be proud of, which encourages more feelings of pride in yourself. This is how Feng Shui works, its exactly like the law of attraction! Your home becomes your real life vision board.

Because I’m sure you don’t want to spend a ton of time or money creating DIY art, I wanted to share 2 ideas for interesting art.

1) FRAME SHOPPING BAGS. For me. CHANEL is my absolute favorite brand. I love how minimal and chic the logo is. It always inspires me to be conscious of branding and reminds me to continually dream bigger. To reach for more. Anything Chanel is always giving me something to reach for, something to aspire to. THAT’s exactly what you want to feel when you are working, right? It can always remind you of a very special shopping experience. Artwork that brings up happy memories is uplifting, encouraging and will totally spark joy a la Marie Kondo. OR if you just want the look, you can find them on Ebay.

2) LOCAL LUXURY MAGAZINES. I am always grabbing the latest issue of my local Paper City or Modern Luxury Design. They always have good stuff for the vision board and they make great guest bathroom reading material. You can always find them in my home. Fun tip: Grab the larger sized issues so if you find inspiring images, they are big, bold and beautiful. Perfect for framing. This photo below I ripped out from one of my mags, its a photo of a woman with jewels all over her face. I ordered a black gallery basics frame from Amazon and voila. Very chic art for my home office aka LOVE ASHLINA HQ aka my jewelry making work station. It always inspires me to keep going and create interesting, unique stuff.

I never used to like gallery walls. But once I started using interesting photos, magazine tears and different things in frames. It made my home so much more light hearted fun and enjoyable. For more fun tips, listen to this podcast episode to inspire you for your workspace.

Happy framing!

The top 5 areas you must feng shui in your small apartment or home & why

This post is all about 5 top areas of the home you must feng shui.

Hello. Hello.

After yesterday’s blog post, I got a slew of emails asking for more tips of living a Feng Shui lifestyle. When you begin to see how life changing, simple home adjustments can be, you always end up wanting more. If you’re anything like me, you’ll do whatever you can to ensure you are doing your part for happiness, love, health and financial freedom, am I right? I mean, who doesn’t want to feel good in their life?

So, I just want to remind you, incase you forgot.....The literal translation of Feng Shui is ‘Wind Water’. Feng Shui is the energy exchange between wind & water. 
Wind = moving energy
Water = flowing fortune
The whole purpose of feng shui is to lead you towards your flowing fortune. That’s right, not everybody’s fortune is the same. Some people want more fame, others want deeper relationships, others want to find their purpose. There is a unique life path for each one of us, so to ensure we are on the right track, we need to Feng Shui our environment to help us get there. I am obsessed with Feng Shui and I teach everything I know about it in my online course, High Vibe Home. For now, I’ll just share with you some simple things you should know.

HOW FENG SHUI & ENERGY AT HOME WORKS

Our environments are broken up into sections, according to the Bagua Map. Each section represents a specific part of our life and within that area, there are certain colors, elements and energy that can be used to enhance that energy (For example: the color pink, used in the love & marriage area can enhance your romance).

Here is what the bagua map (energetic layout of your home) looks like:

You’ll notice within each area sits different aspects of your life and below that are the energies you can work with to bring balance and harmony to that area of life. When all are open and flowing, your life will be blissful.

That's why my passion is showing you how you can set up the energy of your home environment for flowing fortune. in all areas of your life. My goal is to make Feng Shui simple and give you practical tools so that it works for you. I’ve even broken down a simple and effective way to feng shui using crystals.

Your home environment needs to flow in order for your life to flow. A cluttered home leads to a cluttered mind. If your home has stuck energy, your life will likely feel “stuck” as well. Whatever is going on in your home, seeps into your life.

I feel like it’s a good idea to share a story with you, to help paint a picture of what I want you to understand. My work with my Feng Shui Flow clients is always so inspiring, I love sharing their experiences. Take a look at the below photos. My client, let’s call her Miss Kay, a young, vibrant, beautiful woman who was experiencing a loss of inspiration, focus and calm in her life. For some reason, things felt off and incomplete in her life, she lives with an underlying feeling like something in her life is “missing”. Can you relate? I think most of us can relate in one way or another. Sometimes, it feels like there is always something we need to “fix”. It wasn’t until learning about Feng Shui that she thought it could quite possibly be her apartment that needed a refresh. It felt uninspired, stuffy, stuck and blocked.

Now here’s where it gets good. Most people in this exact space think to themselves, “oh I need a better/bigger home”, or “I need a whole decorating/design overhaul” or “maybe I should move”? That’s how we get when we feel stuck, like things aren’t fulfilling us or we need some sort of change. I am here to tell you today, don’t fall into the trap or those lies. You probably just need to Feng Shui your living space.

Take a look at the before and after. By the time our 1 hour session was over, we had her entire space shifted and her whole life opened up! She felt incredible, filled with energy, inspired, alive and clear on her direction. With Feng Shui, your life can change instantly.

Here’s the thing about Feng Shui. It’s not just a one time fix all, it’s a lifestyle that you must adopt. I’m always asked about my favorite Feng Shui books or basic tips, I am going to share 5 of my favorites with you in just a moment. But first, I want to address these ideas. Feng Shui is personal, it’s different for everyone. There are a thousand Feng Shui books out there but without guidance, and consistent implementation, they can be misleading and end up letting you down. I’ve seen it dozens of times, people get their hopes up and then disheartened when the Shui doesn’t actually help manifest what you want. Feng Shui wisdom is deep and needs to be really well understood, I highly encourage hiring a Feng Shui coach, just like I did.

For now, I will share with you 5 of my favorite practical things you can do at home that are easy to apply and always a good idea when you want to get started on your Feng Shui journey.

5 mOsT iMPOrTANT AREAS OF YOUR HOME TO FENG SHUI:

1) YOUR ENTRYWAY. The energy that comes into your home, enters through your front door and it is considered to be the area that welcomes in new energy and opportunity. I wrote an entire ebook on 25 super simple ways to attract money in through the front door. This is my go-to guide for anyone wanting to call in new energy to their home and is a MUST for when you first move in.

It is essential to make this area inviting, clean and beautiful.

A few super simple tips:

• Always light a candle for guests coming in to feel warm and welcome.

• Have ample space to put shoes, keys and bags.

• Make entering your home feel easy and feel good. You want it to amplify your blissful vibes, not take away.

• Hint: The crystal to use in the entryway is Tourmaline which protects your home from negative / draining energy. 

• Since this area represents opportunities and flow, bring water elements to the entryway. You could place a photo of a body of water or even place a water fountain by the front door ( this will usher in money making opportunities ). Most places of business will put a fish tank in the entryway to boost success and new customers.

2) YOUR KITCHEN. Clean and clear off all the counters in your kitchen. Flat surfaces speak to the energy in your life, especially your health and happiness. If you have to keep things on those flat surfaces like counters and islands, clean them off. you want everything clean, dust free so that the chi (energy) can flow. 

Hint: Citrus is not only good for your health, its good for your luck. 9 oranges, lemons or any other citrus in a bowl goes very well in this area.

You can always be sure if your kitchen surfaces are clean and smell really good, you are in good shape & promoting optimal health.

3) YOUR BEDROOM. the current status of your intimate relationship with your partner and with yourself lies in how to feng shui your bedroom. Wash your bedding/sheets or get new ones. These carry all of the old energy, so if you are ready for new life and energy in this area get new sheets. Your bedding should look harmonious, you want the feelings of balance and harmony on your bed. Not a bunch of mismatched sheets and pillows, that represents too many different energies in your love life, like other peoples opinions interjecting in your love life or too many distractions from your romantic connections, etc.

 Hint: Pink flowers in the bedroom inspire romance. If you want to learn more about how to manifest love with feng shui, read this.

4) YOUR CLOSET. There is always money hanging in your closet. You can sell old clothes and make money. Always get rid of clothes that are old, don’t fit or no longer look good on you. You want your home to have only things that speak to who you are at your best and the woman you want to be. Things should be well cared for and organized. If its a cluttered mess, your social life and confidence is probably a mess too. A clean, chic closet = complete confidence!  

One of the easiest ways to do this is to get matching hangers. I love the velvet hangers because they really hold the clothes well and keep them unwrinkled. Especially the velvet beige with rose gold hardware. I love them.

5) YOUR OFFICE. Get your office space looking good. De-clutter everything! Organize files and paperwork. Decorate it with some style. You want to feel lit up and inspired where you work, that’s where your inspiration needs to flow. I am a big proponent of using Feng Shui in your home office to create massive success.

The most important thing you want to do is to have your desk in the command position, meaning facing the entryway so you see any opportunities that may come in.

Another super simple thing you can do to Feng Shui your home office is bring in plants. I love an orchid or a snake plant as they are super easy to take care of and bring in vibrant new life energy. Hint: a purple orchid in the upper left hand corner of your desk will call in abundance and divine wisdom energy.

Hope you enjoyed these tips and that they serve and help you. And don’t forget to head over to check out my High Vibe Home course, it will literally change your life!