JEF: I was a textile designer and home product development person in home fashions for many years in New York City working for various design houses. I have always been color obsessed. I love looking at all the castes and hues of a color palette. I kept going to Asia for work and I studied Classical Feng Shui over there for many years. People kept asking me to design their homes, businesses, etc. I kept saying “No, I don’t want to”. Finally I just started designing with feng shui principles using color, & great design aesthetics to suite their home/business style. Before I knew it that is what I was doing.

JEF: I like to mix styles into eclectic looks. I like Contemporary, modern and Asian. I find it makes the place more interesting to have different looks than you wouldn’t expect to see upon entering the home or business.

JEF: Feng Shui means wind and water and refers to the ancient Asian practice of considering landforms and sources of water when selecting the optimum setup for home or business. It was said to have originated as a quasi-architectural guideline set for imperial palaces and grave sites. Before they had religion, they had philosophies In this approximate 3,000 year old Chinese philosophy, balance and harmony manifest when two polar energy forces of yin and yang exist simultaneously, balancing each other. These forces are malleable through the manipulation of the five elements (fire, earth, metal, water, wood) and can be moved in positive or negative directions by a number of influences. Its often called The Art of Placement. But in case of an apartment, influences can include everything from lighting, color, flooring to the materials used in the décor and placement of furniture and artwork.

JEF: I went to Asia for my jobs in textiles and home product development. I kept feeling a certain way in different places I stayed or visited. I kept asking questions and finally someone told me it was the feng shui I was feeling. I started to study over there. It was a long haul. Now there are classes in U.S.

JEF: Now I combine decorating principles with feng shui when I work on a project. I want to enhance someone’s place to the best potential there is. I do not make their place look like a Chinese emporium, I use elements in the design process to attune to their aesthetics. Before I get to your home, I will ask what your birthday is, what year building was built. It’s all very mathematical. And then I have my compass, called a luo pan and I measure the facing direction of the building from the outside. After I get inside building I consult a floor plan and survey the space. I’m not just looking for clutter, I am looking to see if energy is moving. Sometimes you walk in a space and you can’t breathe. We call that stagnant chi or energy. I also look at colors, furniture and what is in room. If I am designing a vacant space, I assess what will work best where. As far as decorating, examples of element use are fire is lighting, earth can be terra cotta floor, metal is fridge, water is mirrors, and then wood is wood. If a client just wants to use me for decorating without feng shui, I do that too but my eye is trained to look at a space with that knowledge.

JEF: Yes, everyone assumes they have good taste. I listen and look at pictures of what they want. Then I go and give them so much more than what they thought or expected adding surprise elements. Yes I get resistance, people telling me I'm crazy, etc. but they always end up saying they trust me totally. It is also about trust and delivering what you say you can do. Keep a sense of humor always!

JEF: I purchased a really fluffy flokati rug and the contractor was sitting on it and laughing how his dog would love to play in it and pee all over it. We didn’t know the client was in the house and had heard him. It was really funny but really embarrassing. I think we all were laughing so hard, the client realized how funny it really was.

JEF: Yes and no. I mean it gives people access to view very different looks, styles, ideas. I mean let’s face it, clients don’t always know what they want, they see a picture and want exactly what they see even if it won’t work in their environment. So as a designer I have to know when it can work and when it won’t. You can’t look at 2000 sq. foot house in one of those magazines and expect to duplicate it in a 750 sq. ft. Manhattan apartment. Forget it but maybe it can be modified.

JEF: Understanding space, figuring out the flow of the space, planning the space properly, figuring out the correct colors, fixtures, furniture, etc. I really know how to figure out the function and flow one needs to have figured out to actually live and be in their space. Most people don’t think about it and just start buying stuff for their space and it usually has no rhyme or reason to it. I love color and have to have everything be in correct proportions to the space. Studying feng shui for so long gives me an added perspective of how to plan a space.