Wood and parquet in Feng Shui
To enter a home and perceive an immediate feeling of well-being and harmony: this is the goal of the ancient Chinese discipline of Feng Shui , which attunes the energy of the home to that of its inhabitants. A particular distribution of space and the use of certain materials, shapes and colors can in fact generate beneficial influences or disturb those who stay there.
Feng Shui experts follow precise guiding rules but at the same time integrate and adapt them to each specific situation in relation to the type of house, the people and the relationships in it.
A first assessment involves the use of the Ba-Gua symbol, an octagon composed of trigrams that, superimposed on the floor plan of the house, divides it into eight sectors, generated by combining the cardinal points with the natural elements Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. The latter are associated with colors, respectively: Green, Red, Yellow, Gray, Blue. The areas formed identify the most favorable zone for each activity and, by derivation, the functional arrangement of rooms, whether domestic or working.
Also important within them are the placement, shape, color and material of furnishings and finishes in order to increase positive energies and reduce tensions. Favorable are symmetrical and regular shapes such as circles, rectangles, squares, hexagons, octagons, arcades and porches while L-shapes, triangular spaces, slanted walls or slanted attic ceilings and north-facing rooms are not recommended.
For Feng Shui it is important that Ch’i, the flow of life energy, flows freely, avoiding dispersion and irregular areas of stagnation. “Clutter,” accumulation in English, or the clutter given by superfluous objects that we store for no reason, also gets in the way of vital energy and should be removed.
Each color, then, is assigned a meaning: red is auspicious, yellow refers to authority and cheerfulness, green peace and longevity, blue heavenly blessing, and white purity. Berti Pavimenti Legno’s parquet floors, in addition to the natural ranges, are available, for example, in bleached finish, pearl gray and “denim blue”: many solutions to introduce the suggested color in every room.
While in the East the Feng Shui master follows all phases of the design and construction of a building, in the West the discipline is more frequently applied to interior design alone. Having assessed the pre-existing energetic situation, “remedies” can be used to counterbalance any imbalances or interferences detected: Wood reduces excess Water, feeds Fire and controls Earth. People can also be characterized according to the dominance of an element: an Earth person will draw more energy from a marble or terracotta floor, while a Wood person may choose parquet.
Feng Shui, favoring natural materials, recommends the use of wood as long as it is not painted or treated with non-ecological substances. Berti is the only manufacturer in Italy that uses water-based varnish, a non-toxic solution that can reduce harmful emissions by 95 percent compared to a solvent-based varnish, to finish parquet. In addition, our company uses wood-based panels whose formaldehyde release is lower than the already restrictive limits prescribed by European standards.
A living, growing and balancing material, wood is suitable for all areas and thanks to parquet flooring is the ideal solution, even in the bathroom. A renowned expert in this art characterizes functional areas with parquet in various colors and essences, in which to insert inlay designs that reinforce the identity and energy of that environment. Berti Pavimenti Legno has developed a technology of excellence for laser reproduction of any design or inlay without limits of complexity to make parquet a vital element of the Feng Shui home.