Feng shui is the art of arranging belongings and making design choices to maximize the flow of good chi (energy) in various rooms and throughout your entire home. The bathroom is one of the most important rooms for feng shui because it is the one room that can literally pull good chi right down the drain and out of your home! Here are 7 tips for putting feng shui to work for you in your bathroom.

1. Closure – Tub drains, sink drains and toilets pull good chi down the drain and right out of your home. To prevent this, feng shui experts recommend keeping the toilet lid down, tub/shower curtains or doors closed and the door to the bathroom itself closed whenever the room isn’t in use.

2. Reflect – Hang or mount a mirror on the outside of the bathroom door to reflect good chi away from the bathroom (and its drains).

3. Balance – Symbolically, bathrooms are very “water-heavy” rooms in feng shui. Use earth or wood elements in the bathroom to balance the water element. For example, wooden accessories such as a soap dish, lotion dispenser and towel rack work well to balance the space.

4. Imagery – Feng shui masters say to avoid displaying photos of yourself or loved ones in the bathroom. They also say to avoid any imagery closely related to your career or life’s passions as the draining effect of the bathroom will drain away energy from those areas of your life. Instead, select nature-focused images and art such as meadow scenes, forests, trees, flowers and bubbling brooks.

5. Ventilate – Keep your bathroom well-ventilated and bright to allow air and good chi to flow freely through the space.

6. Purify – Put the draining nature of the bathroom to good use by setting the intention to use the space to release what is unwanted in your life. Use the draining nature to pull negative energy and emotion away from you and down the drain and out of your home. This will transform the “draining” nature of the room to one of purification. This can be amplified if you include live plants in your bathroom, particularly plants known for purifying the air.

7. Color – To further enhance the purification effect, use green, blue and white colors in your bathroom. The three colors work together to aid in purification. Blue represents water and cleanses away negative chi. Green represents growth and new beginnings. White symbolizes purification and keeps the new growth within you from acquiring negative chi.

Using these 7 feng shui tips for your bathroom help you prevent good chi from flowing right down the drain and out of your home. You can also use these tips to transform the draining nature of the bathroom to a positive, purifying nature that helps you drain away stresses and negative energy from your own chi and rejuvenate yourself with new growth and possibilities.