What happens to the energy of your home when a staircase faces the front door, and ways to make it better.

Your front door is how your home receives its energy. When a staircase faces the front door directly, that energy rushes up or down the stairs before it has a chance to settle on the main floor. The result is a home that feels restless, unsettled, or subtly drained — even if everything else about it looks right.

However, this is a general statement because there are different variations of a staircase facing the front door, which create very different energy dynamics for different houses. The energy of a home with a spacious, light-filled foyer, beautiful grounding architectural features and the staircase further from the front door will be very different from a house with a narrow, small foyer and the staircase close to the front door.

In case of a big foyer with a staircase further from the door, the energy can settle in and nourish the space, gradually and harmoniously finding its way to other areas of the house. When the main entry is small, and the staircase is directly facing the main door, the energy becomes fragmented, being forced to quickly rush up or down the stairs.

The solutions are all focused on creating a specific feel in your main entry that visually and energetically slows down the energy, then guides it to other areas of your home. Basically, this means that when you enter your home, your personal energy feels settled and calm versus rushed, anxious or unsettled because of the energy of the staircase right by the door.

You can slow down and redirect the energy of your staircase with the thoughtful placement of such simple decor items as:

• big bold art on the wall close to the staircase
• strong wall colors
• a big vase of flowers or a big plant
• specific pieces of furniture such as a round table
• distinctive strong pattern on your floor (either a rug or the flooring itself)
• a grouping of crystals
• one or two big size mirrors in prominent frames (note that mirrors should never face the entrance directly, as this pushes the energy away instead of drawing it into your home.)

Best feng shui solutions are the ones aligned with the style of each home and the taste of its homeowners. You will achieve best energy when you work in line with the spirit of your home versus trying to “fix it” by using strange feng shui cures. I suggest you do not use items such as red tassels or exotic symbols in hope that this will remedy the situation; it will not.

What will help a home with a staircase facing the front door directly are well-thought, pracitcal and beautiful modern decor items that speak the same language as the rest of your home.

The staircase facing the front door presents a similar challenge to the direct alignment of the front door to the back door. In both cases, the energy is forced to leave the space quickly without being given the opportunity to settle in and harmoniously nourish your home.

Even though creating a harmonious, calm energy takes a bit of effort when you have a staircase facing the front door, it is definitely possible. Explore various solutions and choose only the ones that are in agreement with your own taste and with what the house can easily accept. What is happening in your main entry determines the energy for the whole house, so be sure you make all choices wisely.

Image: Hans