December 20, 2021
TikTok influencer Tan masterfully demonstrates the practical application of feng shui in his easy-to-follow debut. He kicks things off with an explanation of the basic principles of feng shui—there’s yin and yang (essentially, balance); ba gua (a system of solid and broken lines that make use of yin and yang); the five elements (fire, earth, metal, water, and wood); the five animals (tortoise, bird, dragon, tiger, and snake, which correspond to rear, front, left, right, and center); and chi (which deals with feelings, flow, and energy). Then he walks readers through ways to combine the various elements (avoid having a bedroom near the kitchen, for example, since the fire element is present there), dealing with clutter (a storage plan helps), how to select a home (take into consideration the amount of light it gets), choosing colors for doors (if the door faces south, red would highlight its “strong energy”), and how to lay out every room in the house. Tan keeps things simple, and beautiful illustrations and diagrams demonstrate feng shui in action. Readers looking to spruce up their homes will find this worth returning to.
February 1, 2022
In his first-ever book, architect and TikTok influencer Tan offers feng shui made practical and comprehensible as he simplifies the potentially confusing elements that make up ""the way of wind and water,"" bringing harmony and balance to living spaces. Definitions come first, explaining the foundations of yin and yang, ba gua (solid and broken lines), the five elements, chi (energy), and the five animals (directions). He summarizes all in a sentence or less--the epitome of common sense and instinct. Accompanying Tan's bulleted text and examples of good and bad floor plans, illustrations by Dura Lee show what to avoid in various rooms and what to embrace, and demonstrate memorable examples: Make the bed every morning to destroy any stale chi. Cut down on clutter. Get rid of fake and dead plants. Consider the command position, or the best place to control a room. It becomes easy to see that too many mirrors make for an imbalance of space, and that low beds harmonize a room better than a dramatic four-poster. Practical advice for today's homes and offices.
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