Slender Nails Dyed Red, Balsam Pounded at Night: Nail Art and the Feng Shui of a Studio
AI translated from the original Chinese.
I've wanted to write an article on feng shui for a long time, but I couldn't find a suitable case. After all, a reading is a very private matter. Although discussing cases isn't bound by a counselor's code of conduct, a reader must still follow the rules: keep every client's confidence. Everything can only be discussed during the reading, and afterwards never spread around. So although I often talk in readings about using feng shui to improve one's fortunes, what we discuss is almost always someone's home, which isn't appropriate to make public.
As it happens, a young entrepreneur recently came for a reading, and her chart showed she has a distinctive gift for beauty. When I asked, it turned out she is a nail artist. Besides having a talent for beauty in her chart, the studio she set up complements that talent. So with her consent I'm using her studio as a case for discussing Dou Shu feng shui. I'm very grateful for her permission.
Let's talk about this talented nail artist:
Traditionally, career is read from the 官祿宮 (Career Palace).
- Career Palace: 天府 (Tian Fu), 右弼 (You Bi), 祿存 (Lu Cun). A flourishing career on a grand scale.
- Three sides and four directions of the Career Palace: 火星 (Huo Xing), 地劫 (Di Jie) and 左輔 (Zuo Fu).
Overall judgment: capable of starting a business, but the road of entrepreneurship won't be easy.
Reading career the traditional way, this is as far as we can get, so let's add some transformation:
In this chart we can easily see the subject's aesthetic talent. Her main star is 廉貞 (Lian Zhen); the analysis:
- 戌 Palace: 廉貞 + 天府 + 天喜 (Tian Xi). 廉貞 is a romance star to begin with; meeting a lesser romance star brings out its sense of beauty. And 天府 is where the occupation lies, so she wants to make "beauty" her career goal.
- 辰 Palace: opposite 戌, it has 紅鸞 (Hong Luan), which also strengthens 廉貞's sense of beauty.
- 亥 Palace: also the Life Palace, 太陰 (Tai Yin) + 左輔. 太陰 is also a romance star; flanked by 咸池 (Xian Chi) in 子 and 天喜 in 戌, its sense of beauty is brought out.
Overall judgment: the romance stars are strong, which shows not only in her appearance but gives her an aesthetic sensitivity beyond most people's, and she is willing to make a living from it.
What Actually Happened:
- Me: I don't know what you studied at university, but I can tell your life suddenly changed direction after your studies. In a situation like this, people generally don't work in what they studied, and it's very likely you work in something related to beauty.
- Subject: I do work in beauty now.
- Me: What kind of work makes "beauty" a source of income?
- Subject: I do nail art.
- Me: From your chart, you really do have a gift for nail art. Your occupation and your talent echo each other; you're sure to shine in this field. Do you have a studio now?
- Subject: I rent a studio. I've only been doing it for a short while, but through the internet and word of mouth from friends, family and customers, business has risen steadily in the few months since I started.
- Me: May I see where your studio is?
- Subject: 2F, No. 7-3, Alley 55, Lane 223, Sec. 1, Zhongshan E. Rd., Zhongli Dist., Taoyuan City (written out in full with the subject's consent, as a little promotion for her 😂)
- Me: Great, let's see whether your shop can bring you wealth.
First, let's locate it with Google Maps.
That is the location of the studio. The red arrow marks the direction of walking into the studio. Next let's find the studio's feng shui orientation:
The studio's orientation is awkward, falling on the boundary between the 未 and 申 directions. After careful measurement, and taking the shape of the building into account, I set the 未 direction as the studio's sitting direction. Let's focus on the 未 Palace:
The 未 Palace (with its three sides and four directions: 卯, 亥, 丑)
- 未 Palace: 紫微 (Zi Wei) + 破軍 (Po Jun) + 火星. 紫微 and 破軍 govern creative thinking; 火星 governs drive.
- 未 Palace: sees 左輔 and 右弼 among the three sides; a stable pattern. The studio has every piece of equipment nail art needs, and it is well planned.
- 卯 Palace: 武曲 (Wu Qu) + 七殺 (Qi Sha) + 祿存. 武曲 and 七殺 flanked by Lu stars: profitable. 祿存 is the source of occupational income.
- 亥 Palace: 廉貞 + 貪狼 (Tan Lang). The great romance stars are flanked by 天喜 and 咸池, drawing out the romance quality.
Overall judgment: the studio is small but has everything it needs. The subject's thinking about her career is steady and positive. Technically, her work is fine and exquisite and her eye is unique; customers who come for nail art will surely leave satisfied.
The studio is on the 2nd floor; how do we read that? Counting clockwise, the 2nd palace is the 2nd floor: the 申 Palace.
The 申 Palace (with its three sides and four directions: 辰, 子, 寅)
- Stem 甲: 廉貞 becomes 化祿, 破軍 becomes 化權, 武曲 becomes 化科, making the all-important 未 Palace a "meeting of the three marvels."
- 申 Palace: holds 天姚 (Tian Yao), meeting 紅鸞 and 咸池. Strong romance stars, suited to a career in "beauty."
Overall judgment: the building in the 未 direction is already strong, plus the romance stars of the 2nd floor and the "meeting of the three marvels": this studio is well worth running.
I was delighted to see a young entrepreneur combine her talent with her occupation and carve out her own world. Only in her twenties, she has thrown herself into entrepreneurship and runs her business with foresight and flexibility. Once the studio is on track, she plans to try other things. I believe that in time she will reach the goals she has set in her career.
Finally, a little advertisement: if you're interested in the studio, search Instagram for nailed it Ruby or 鹿比美甲, or to add her on LINE, click here to scan the QR code.
Address: 桃園市中壢區中山東路一段223巷55弄7–3號2樓 (2F, No. 7-3, Alley 55, Lane 223, Sec. 1, Zhongshan E. Rd., Zhongli Dist., Taoyuan City)
The subject's sense of beauty and technique are both first-rate; I'm sure anyone interested in nail art will be satisfied!