When Fashion Feng Shui® Came Home

As Fashion Feng Shui® Facilitators, we spend much of our time helping clients discover themselves. We guide them to recognise their elemental energies, honour their essence, and understand how clothing can support the life they wish to create.

Yet, somewhere along my own journey, I realised that the greatest transformation wasn't taking place in my consultations.

It was happening quietly in my own home.

Like many parents, I believed I knew my husband and our three children well. We had shared decades of family life, celebrated milestones, travelled together and weathered life's challenges. But Fashion Feng Shui® revealed something I had never fully understood.

It showed me why five people, raised under the same roof and loved in the same way, could experience the world so differently.

Two of my children carry strong Water energy. My late son also possessed vibrant Fire energy. We visited Japan twice as a family, and on both occasions he asked if he could spend a day exploring on his own. At the time, I couldn't understand why he wanted to separate from us during a family holiday.

Looking back, I see it differently. His Water longed for freedom, independence and quiet discovery, while his Fire delighted in meeting people and immersing himself in Japanese culture. Those same energies also revealed themselves in his remarkable gift for writing. Whether crafting business proposals or creating imaginative content, he had an innate ability to combine the depth and insight of Water with the creativity and expressiveness of Fire. What I once interpreted as distance was simply his authentic way of engaging with the world.

My youngest daughter carries both Metal and Water energies. Her Metal is reflected in her appreciation for beauty, elegance and thoughtfully curated surroundings. Her Water, however, seeks peace, privacy and restoration. During the pandemic, while waiting for Australia's borders to reopen, she was perfectly content spending months quietly at home. What many found confining became a sanctuary for her.

My second daughter expresses a different combination of Metal and Wood. Her Metal brings structure, precision and high standards, while her Wood transforms plans into action. Together, these energies make her remarkably organised. Watching her balance family holidays, career and motherhood with such calm efficiency has given me a deeper appreciation of the strengths her natural energies provide.

My husband, on the other hand, is strongly influenced by Fire energy. Since retiring, he has become the social organiser among his friends, enjoys experimenting in the kitchen and finds genuine happiness in bringing people together around food and wine. Connection has always been the language of his Fire.

As for me, with strong Wood and Fire energies, prolonged confinement would have drained my spirit. Wood seeks purpose, growth and meaningful action, while Fire thrives on connection and shared experiences. During the lockdown, I instinctively reached out to my clients through regular Facebook Live sessions, provided private group mentoring onFashion Feng Shui® principles to help them apply the elemental energies intentionally during an uncertain time. I also organised Zoom dance sessions for a group of friends who simply needed to move, laugh and stay connected before cabin fever set in. Looking back, I realise I wasn't only supporting others but I was also nourishing my own Wood and Fire energies.

Perhaps the greatest lesson Fashion Feng Shui® taught me came during the most painful chapter of our lives - the loss of my son.

I immersed myself in work, allowing my Wood energy to keep moving when standing still felt unbearable. Yet beneath that movement, I broke down often. At the same time, I found myself drawn towards Water energy. Rather than resisting my grief, I allowed myself to enter its stillness. Water taught me that healing does not always come through strength or determination. Sometimes, healing begins when we stop fighting, allow ourselves to feel, and trust that stillness can gently restore us.

My husband grieved differently. He sought companionship, surrounded himself with friends and, at times, drank more than he should. Neither of us loved our son more or less. We were simply two grieving parents responding to the same heartbreak through different energetic needs.

As Facilitators, we often say there is no "better" element. Living through these experiences taught me that truth more profoundly than any training ever could.

Today, I judge less and seek to understand more. What appears to be withdrawal may simply be Water restoring itself. Restlessness may be Wood searching for growth. Exacting standards may be Metal seeking order. Fire may simply be longing for connection, while Earth expresses love through quiet, unwavering care.

Looking back, I realise that Fashion Feng Shui® did far more than change the way I dressed or the way I consulted.

It changed the way I understood the people I love.

To me, that remains one of the greatest gifts this work can offer, not only to our clients, but to ourselves.

Written from my heart:  SHEILA WONG, AICI CIP, FFSM