SAFETY, COMFORT, BEAUTY

I first heard about this ‘mantra’ via a wonderful podcast - Feng Shui Decoded - featuring Ellen Schneider, a wise and wonderful colleague and friend. Find her and her work here: Arrange to Succeed.

I know a lot about feng shui as it applies to our wardrobe - the most intimate of our environments - but not so much about the application to home and office spaces.

The first episode talks about the tenet of Safety, Comfort and Beauty as being the foundation of all consultations. They are used in this order, with safety first as harmony and balance cannot exist without it. In the UK, ‘An Englishman’s house is his castle.’ Most of us would agree that our home is our haven, a place to recharge, rest, have fun, be yourself. The idea of it being unsafe, on any level, makes me feel very uneasy. I once lived in a house with an electricity pylon in the garden. My neighbours were always unwell, my husband died from cancer and I too had pre cancerous symptoms. Can I prove it was due to the electricity emissions? No. But you can bet your last dollar that I’d never live in a place like that again, however lovely the house looked from the outside.

Moving to comfort. Mandatory for me. Of course, it may mean different things to different folks. Someone’s neatness can be a nightmare for others to live with, and vice versa.

Then there’s beauty. Ellen spoke about how once you’ve established safety and comfort, you find beauty sits naturally between them.

So, I was attempting to work with this via the wardrobe.

I think Ellen has a point. If we feel safe and secure in what we wear (in other words, confident) and are comfortable with the way they fit, look and feel then I believe we radiate our type of beauty. This will be different for everyone according to the needs and preferences but the tenet still fits. A preference for minimalistic elegance may not sit comfortable for someone who is more creative, or dramatic. Attempting to wear clothing in this way will not provide the comfort or safety required. As a result, they will not radiate positively as they try to be something they are not.

Here’s the Thing: The more I think about this, the more I understand its brilliance. Who knew? Although I see clothes as part of our wellness package, I had never thought about these aspects in terms of choosing clothes and getting dressed. So, Ellen and co, thank you so much for introducing it to me.