THE COLOURS IN FENG SHUI

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In feng shui, colour is linked to the five elements: each colour carries the quality of an element and gently shapes the mood of a space. This guide explains the colour of each element and how to choose the right palette for every room.

It is obvious to everyone that colour, in all its shades, is an important source of information and that it gently shapes our mood. A painting full of dark, grey tones favours a gloomy space, whereas a pleasing landscape — colourful, clean and full of optimism — has quite the opposite effect. The difference that emanates from various shades, and the associations they carry, is easy to recognise.

If you carry these pictorial situations over to a physical space and keep them there permanently, you will project a particular kind of Qi, or energy.

In the art of feng shui certain colours are linked to the five elements: a red, for instance, speaks of the fire element, of summer, of an internal organ such as the heart, and of associations like fun, stress or celebration. Both the quality of the tones and the amount of space a colour occupies can determine whether an element is balanced or not.

A few touches of fire in a space, for example, encourage activity and joy, but an excess can bring an extreme of dynamism that ends in stress and impatience. So, when working with the five elements, it is not enough to say “use this or that colour”: the range and the shades of the advice can be wide, and it is best to analyse the space as a whole.

People coming to this art for the first time always ask which colours they should use, and it is not a question answered simply by saying “put this colour here or there”. We are wary of giving “specific” advice without seeing a place in the flesh. Often people ask from a distance which exact shade to use for a bedroom, a living room or a business, without realising how hard it is to advise correctly. It would not be wise, for example, to put very yang colours in the living room of someone suffering from chronic stress, as it would surely make things worse; and in the same way an introverted, apathetic person who feels the cold would not be balanced by the grey, black and dark-blue shades of a yin character. These are matters to weigh together with the other information feng shui provides.

The five elements and the basic colours

Which colours to use in the areas of my house?

You should not be rigid about this and think you must paint each “area” a particular colour. The geomantic chart in its various approaches, the colours linked to the cardinal directions and the study of the elements give us varied — and sometimes contradictory — information about which colours to use.

Suppose you follow the method that assigns colour according to the theory of the five elements and their relation to the cardinal directions. You would place the dining room in the northern part, symbolised by the water element and therefore by the colours blue and black. But if that dining room has few windows and little natural light, it would be a serious mistake to follow that association blindly, as it would turn the room cold and lifeless. What follow are some ideas and quick guidelines for using colour in particular rooms and for particular kinds of character.

The colour of the personality and the rooms

In general, people who are nervous, hyperactive, absent-minded or excitable should avoid colours that are excessively Yang: reds, yellows, oranges or anything too loud. Neutral, soft colours that soothe and calm are more suitable. Statistics show that red cars have the most accidents; the link between stress and speed is clear. If the room is used by someone shy, apathetic, sensitive to cold or prone to depression, we should avoid excessively Yin colours: black, dark blue, dark green or grey shades would only bring them further down. Warmer, spring-like colours such as salmon, yellow or bright tones can stimulate movement and be more fitting.

The activity of a particular area

In a couple's bedroom, be careful with too much black, dark green or grey, which can feel too cold. For a couple's bedroom one usually advises pastel shades based on pale pink, amber or peach. Neutral colours and white can work well if the rest of the room has some warmth to it.

In the dining room it is best not to overdo loud colours that prevent relaxation, nor dark colours that lend the place a certain sadness. Creamy, yellow and soft shades can be a good choice. This advice should always be adapted to the natural light and the furniture.

In the kitchen of a home you can use earth-based colours (ochre, clay, beige and so on), avoiding a coldness that dulls the pleasure of cooking. In an industrial kitchen, where ease of hygiene and cleanliness matter most, the presence of the metal element is more acceptable.

In the entrance it is good advice to choose colours that are light, bright and cheerful, which invite you in with a good mood. A dark, gloomy hall produces a flagging Qi as you enter the home.

About personal taste

It is not advisable to impose any colour that will make the person using the space feel uncomfortable or dislike it. Feng shui seeks balance, and using any piece of information in a fanatical or rigid way can give a worse result than the problem it was meant to correct. In a family home we must find the widest possible agreement, while respecting individual spaces.

We should also say that a change away from one's usual taste is sometimes necessary, since we often crystallise bad habits, or a certain rigidity of sensibility. It is like someone who gets used to very loud sound, to the smoke of a stuffy room, to too much salt — or, in our case, to certain colours that affect them badly. One can begin with small changes that make way for larger ones. If you suggest repainting the whole house at once, someone in the family may take alarm; but if you start with something smaller, they will come round to the idea. Colour can also be introduced through minor touches in the decoration: a bedspread, the curtains, a plate or a picture. If these changes work, they open the way to treating other areas for the sake of a harmonious whole.

Heavy colours

We might call a colour “heavy” when its shade is too dark, or does not invite an optimistic, cheerful state of mind. The grey shades mentioned earlier are not advisable for a family home: they create a space that feels rigid, sad and short of light — though for certain businesses they may be valid. Colours such as military green are associated with illness and coarse emotions; it is the colour of many military uniforms. Dark brown speaks of stagnation and a lack of dynamism. In general, dirty shades of the basic colours represent complex or difficult aspects of Qi.

It is worth adding that a colour on its own is not enough for a firm judgement: a soldier or a security guard dressed in dark green may be a model of humanity and service, just as someone dressed in white may prove far from trustworthy. In physical spaces, however, colour is read differently — the shades stay in place a long time and their connotations are more marked. We should always be careful with our observations and the mental judgements attached to them; we might be in for a surprise.

Black

Black is a colour to treat on its own; strictly, it is the absence of colour. People who are clean and in good health can benefit from a dark colour such as black — as can some artists and athletes — yet in unclean surroundings black, because of its receptivity, is not advisable at all. Black invites mystery, reflection, the hidden, the Yin in its fullest expression. But it can also work in its negative aspect, concealing clarity, light and intentions. Black is a double-edged colour, though in truth it can be an interesting one. On people with plenty of fire in their face it makes an excellent combination, but on the lifeless and gaunt it is better avoided.

Pastel colours

I once heard from some feng shui practitioners that pastel shades are not effective in this art. This is completely false. It is true that a bright red, a dark blue or a dark green immediately signal the presence of a rooted Qi, so their impact is stronger at first glance; but that does not mean we should fill a house with such colours to have good feng shui. In most cases it is better to start from a base of pastel or neutral shades and then add intense tones where needed. Pastel colours are essentially more ethereal and spiritual, while stronger colours are more physical. If you read an old text on Qi, prana and health, you will easily find the strong colours associated with an unrefined, “etheric” whole, in contrast to what the brighter tones represent. Some may disagree, given how subjective judging the quality of a colour can be.

If we look at the aesthetics of modern operating systems — those virtual windows we use more and more — we can see that over the years their look has moved towards Aqua-like effects, transparency, brightness and light. The future of colour tends towards clarity and brilliance, not towards opacity and heaviness.

Any physicist will tell you that colour follows precise patterns of wavelength, and its infinite combinations are an essential part of art. Colour may well become, in the future, a science of health and advanced psychology. Techniques such as the colour therapy used in natural medicine, or the use of lasers in medicine, are signs of the possibilities of light and colour.

Remember that colours often speak of people's health and mood. It is hard to picture a child full of youth and vitality in grey, dark shades, or a depressed person in cheerful, spring-like colours; in the same way a home puts on its clothes according to the people who live in it, and a good feng shui consultant should never miss the chance to weigh the colour and light of a space.

Related: The Five Elements · Yin and Yang · Schools of Feng Shui. To learn to use colour and the elements in your own home, take a look at our professional Feng Shui course.