Silk Evening

Silk Evening

Feng Shui Decorating With Silk Plants, Flowers & Trees

Feng shui (pronounced fung shway), or "wind-water," is the ancient Chinese practice of achieving harmony with the environment through the design and layout of space and the placement of objects in one's environment. This positioning is based on the belief in balance and harmony between nature and living beings, patterns of yin and yang and the flow and effects of positive and negative chi (energy).

The goal of feng shui is to achieve harmony, comfort and balance...first in one's environment and then in one's life. Feng shui objects and accessories can greatly enhance your environment, bring about positive life changes, create prosperity, enhance relationships, increase wealth, achieve goals, provide more energy and better health.

Adding new decorative items to your home that represent life, whether with plants, flowers or trees, helps to create a calming, tranquil atmosphere.

If you are hesitant to use real plants or flowers because of the maintenance involved, consider exquisitely made silk plants, silk flowers and silk trees from The Silk Garden. They never need water, aren't messy and always look great.

"Many people shy away from using living plants in their decor, claiming their lack of a green thumb results in unhealthy and dead plants. For these people, I recommend using life-like or 'live looking' fake plants," says Joyce Hyde, feng shui consultant. "Attractive, good quality silk plants are available in a wide variety of styles...their vibrant green color that symbolizes life, growth and health can transform a dull, lackluster space into a warm and inviting one."

Feng Shui Decorating Suggestions

In feng shui, different plants, flowers and trees have different effects, depending on their overall shape, the shape of their leaves and flowers and their color. When incorporating feng shui into your decorating scheme, keep in mind the following feng shui suggestions.

1. Rooms of relaxation and rest, such as bedrooms, bathrooms or meditation rooms, should not include plants with spikes, spines or pointed leaves. Avoid cacti, dracaena, agave or bromeliad. Instead, use round-leaved plants, such as schefflera, monstera, calathea or jade plants.
2. Plants with pointed leaves or strong upward growth work well in areas that are used for stimulation, such as the kitchen, living room or office. Consider using cacti, palm trees, yuccas or dracaena.
3. Place plants with dense foliage and round leaves in front of any protruding corner.
4. Tall palm trees with spreading leaves work well in front of internal corners.
5. Have a long corridor in your home or office? Stagger bushy plants along either side.
6. Choose a silk flower arrangement in purple to add more passion to your life, a red or pink arrangement to add romance and excitement or a white flower arrangement to add stability.
7. A money or jade plant, with it's round, thick leaves, brings positive energy, fortune and enhances finances. Lilies are also a symbol of abundance and positive energy.
8. Chrysanthemums bring laughter, happiness and harmony to an environment.
9. Hanging plants are great for moving energy around a room.
10. Tall green foliage plants, such as ferns and grasses, increase vitality and freshness.
11. Red or purple orchids can help revive a dormant sex life.
12. Dahlias, daisies and chrysanthemums enhance romance and finances.
13. Red tulips and red roses increase romance, pink tulips bring pleasure and white tulips increase motivation.
14. Bushy plants with rounded leaves are calming.
15. Trail philodendron or any round-leaved plant over sharp corners of tables or shelves.
16. Bamboo symbolizes positive energy and good fortune.
17. The most popular feng shui plants and flowers include bamboo, ficus, palms, dracaena, money plants, hanging baskets, peonies, chrysanthemums and lilies.

When choosing silk flowers, plants or trees for your feng shui decorating, be sure to purchase the highest quality silk flowers, silk plants and silk trees available.

The Silk Garden offers beautifully realistic, exceptional quality, designer silk flowers and arrangements, tropical silk flowers and orchids, silk plants, artificial silk trees and silk wreaths for discerning and particular plant enthusiasts or for those who simply want some of nature's beauty to enhance their decor. Created with particular attention paid to detail, our silk flowers, silk plants, silk trees and silk wreaths look so authentic, you won't believe they're not!

Fountains in Feng Shui Decorating

Fountains, and the soothing sounds of flowing water, diffuse negative energy and enhance health, well-being and serenity, making them a very popular and beneficial element in feng shui decorating.

Feeling tired, stressed, worn out? Scientific evidence has shown that the sound of running water helps us relax, breathe deeper, alleviates depression, relieves stress, boosts our energy and can actually improve the quality of life.

Fountains are an easy way to incorporate the soothing sounds and benefits of flowing water into your life. Close your eyes, focus on the sounds of the water and drown out distracting noises and thoughts.  What a perfect way to center yourself, help you focus and relieve everyday stresses at home or at work.

Not only are fountains and water features a relaxing addition to your home or office, they bring positive energy into your life and are highly beneficial to your health, financial life, romance and relationships.

Purchase any of The Silk Garden's water fountains, table fountains, wall fountains, indoor or outdoor fountains for your relaxed, positive state of mind at www.the-silk-garden.com/Fountains.htm.

Wind Chimes in Feng Shui Decorating

Wind chimes with pleasing sounds are very popular feng shui decorating items. They dispel negative energy and attract new, positive energy, promote health and harmony, increase popularity and goal realization and protect a home or business from intruders.

Wind chimes are very soothing and calming tools of tranquility, providing peaceful background noise. There is evidence that these gentle, wind-created sounds can improve health and well-being. Wind chimes are also quite comforting, their gentle sounds easing a troubled mind or soul.

Wind chimes are very popular choices as both indoor and outdoor accessories. When you add wind chimes to your porch or patio, hanging from a tree branch, roof beam, ceiling or any area where the wind will move them, you add a new dimension to your space. The sound of the metal, wooden or bamboo chimes adds a serene ambiance with its gentle sounds.

Improve your life with a selection of wind chimes from The Silk Garden at www.the-silk-garden.com/Wind Chimes.htm.

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About the Author

The Silk Garden offers beautifully realistic, exceptional quality, designer silk flowers and arrangements, silk plants, silk trees and silk wreaths for discerning and particular plant enthusiasts or for those who simply want some of nature's beauty to enhance their decor. Created with particular attention paid to detail, our silk flowers and foliage look so authentic, you won't believe they're not!

Shop The Silk Garden at www.the-silk-garden.com for the finest in silk flowers, plants, trees and wreaths, fountains, garden accessories, vases & planters, wind chimes, scented candles, decorating, home staging and more.

How do I cut and sew silk?

I'd like to start working with silk fabric, but I don't even know where to start. Can anyone suggest a good instructional DVD or book which would help me. If someone can even give some tips on cutting and sewing that would be awesome as well. Thank you much!!!

Happy Holidays

Claire Shaeffer's Fabric Sewing Guide or the newer version of the same will have good tips.

Here are mine:

1) Pretreat the fabric as you intend to care for it... wash it if it's going to be washed, dry clean if it's going to be dry cleaned. Especially dark silks have a tendency to be loaded with excess dye, and I want it out of the way. If you think you want to wash the fabric, wash a swatch first and check shrinkage and hand. Some silks handle washing with great aplomb -- others turn into mere shadows of themselves. Good to know before you commit.

2) Pin the fabric to a paper underlayment and then pattern to fabric and paper. Read Crawford's article in Nov/Dec 2001 Threads Magazine, "Layout and cut accurately". This keeps the grain straight, the fabric unstretched and relaxed, and makes the cutting accurate. More accurate cutting, easier sewing, better looking project.

3) Use really sharp scissors. Wipe down the blades with rubbing alcohol before using them, and put a tiny, tiny drop of sewing machine oil at the pivot.

4) If you're working with charmeuse or 4 ply or similarly very closely woven silks, small "microfiber" needles are nice. Otherwise a fine sharp. Fine ballpoints or jerseys for silk knits.

5) Pressing cloths are very useful with silks.

6) I prefer to open a new box of pins for finely woven silks, rather than use my old pins that may have a few rough spots on them now and then -- even though I pitch any snaggly pins as soon as I find them.
On the other hand, I use those monstrous yellow-headed quilting pins
on silk suitings.

7) Test any marking methods you're intending to use on the fabric before you commit to them. I tend to use plain chalk, but for internal markings like pocket placement dots, I use tailor tacks done with serger chain on loosely woven silks like many suitings. On charmeuse and similar snag-prone silks or silks that needle-mark, I punt and use the industrial method of marking 1/2" back from the point towards something that will wind up on the inside or otherwise hidden, instead
of marking the exact point.

Old embroiderer's trick: silk catches easily on every bit of snaggly or dry skin on your hands. Put 1 tsp of white sugar in the palm of your hand, and add enough oil (sewing machine oil, cooking oil, almond oil, whatever you like!) to make a thin paste. Scrub your hands thoroughly with the sugar/oil mixture, paying special attention to cuticles and corners of finger nails. When you think you've done enough, wash and dry your hands with soap, and moisturize with something non-greasy (i like Cornhusker's lotion for this) and then work with your silk. Repeat as needed. Oh, and keep a good emery board by your machine, in case you develop a nail snag.

Take your time, don't let 'em scare you, enjoy the journey. Silk's a great fiber to work with. Start with something relatively inexpensive and with some body, like a duppioni, and you'll be on your way!

Loie Fuller inspired "Evening in Grenada" (from "Debussy Soiree")