ABBA Live in my Garage

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Whenever I discuss de-cluttering I remind my clients that they don’t get to move the clutter somewhere else...like to the garage, for example. 

Why? Because, even though it’s "just" the garage, it matters from the feng shui point of view. IT ALL MATTERS.  The garage IS part of your home.

I get it, I really do. The garage is, well, the garage. Its not pretty. It's not sexy. Its primary function is to store cars, lawn mowers, bicycles, oil, rakes, and more.   All of which are the dirty, greasy, grimy items we won’t allow in our homes. 

It goes to reason the garage is a dirty, greasy, grimy space too……right? To that I say, “NO”!  

The garage is still part of your home. And, your home is your sanctuary. Your little slice of heaven. (Wait. What's that you say? It’s not?! Run, don't walk, to the phone and call your local certified feng shui consultant. NOW!). 

For most of us, the garage is the last thing we see when we leave and the first thing we see when we return home. This bears repeating: the garage is often the last thing we see when we leave and the first thing we see when we return home. 

At the same time... are you at the point where you no longer see the mess, the clutter, the dirt, or the grim? News alert! Your subconscious does see it and it is a huge energy drain on your psyche. Definitely not how I want you to begin your day.   

I'm going to take a wild guess that a cluttered and dirty garage is not the first thing you want to see right before we walk into your home. You want to be at your best possible best when greeting your (insert here: spouse, partner, kid, furry kid, etc...) after a long day. The good news is that if addressed thoughtfully and intentionally your garage can do all the things you need it to do as a garage and yet make you feel happy, too.

Ready to learn how? Great! Let's get started.

Step 1

Begin by purging all of those things you:

  • no longer need (how many single gardening gloves does one person need, really?) 
  • are broken
  • don’t use

Physically ‘lightening the load’ translates into feeling lighter, clearer and empowered.  

Step 2

Next, give it a good old fashion tip to toe cleaning. Remove the creepy cobwebs, old and dried leaves, and oil drips off the floor.

Step 3

Invest a little money in storage supplies and take some time to organize all the things that are left.  Your goal is to have a place for everything and have everything in its place to help you stay neat and organized. Don’t underestimate the Chi significance of this step.

Step 4

Sure, it’s your garage and you aren't going to spend a lot of money, time or energy decorating it.  But, I highly recommend painting it. A little paint goes a long way towards spiffing up the area and making it feel a little crisper, a little brighter a little less….garagey (it’s a word….don’t look it up).  

Once it’s painted, utilize the bare walls and hang up something that makes you happy. Here are a few ideas:

  • Hang those pictures that you still love, but no longer work with your decorating.
  • Put up a vision board.  
  • Hang up the goofy family picture that makes you laugh but you can’t quite bring yourself to hang in the house.  

There are no rules and it is your garage.

The garage is a perfect spot for whimsical

I always recommend to have fun with the garage. For instance; my husband and I were given an old, framed ABBA album as a wedding gift (there is a story there, but I won’t bore you). We loved it, though not enough to hang it in our house. So, we did the next best thing: we gave it a place of honor in the Relationship Gua in our garage. I see it every day coming and going. It always reminds me of our wedding and makes me smile. THAT is good feng shui!

Tell me about your garage: Does it welcome you home? Or, does it give you a headache every time you see it?