Author Archives: Laura Benko
Important (yet underrated) Areas to Spring Clean
It’s Spring! By now you’ve all heard about the importance of dovetailing the energies of the season with tasks at home in order to maximize productivity and synch with the natural rhythms of the world around you. (If you haven’t, here is a quick breakdown: Winter is a time for stillness and reflection, so engage in solo chores and activities. Fall is a time for harvesting, that means planning out projects. Summer is a time for more rigorous activity. That means get motivated for physical action). By synching with the seasons, you can accomplish more and feel like the Universe is giving you a boost. Life seems easier. You’ll be in your groove. With the bulbs on the ground bursting through and tantalizing gentle breezes, the promise of renewal is all around. This makes it an ideal time to engage in fresh starts in mind, body, spirit and space. This season, consider spring cleaning areas or items you don’t normally tackle in order to give yourself a fresh perspective.
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What It Means If You Don’t Like Sage
It is broadly known that the sacred ritual of burning sage has been used for ages to cleanse and purify the atmosphere. In the subatomic world of subtle energy, rituals of smoke for Space Clearing have been around for thousands of years. From Zulus to the Maori’s to even present day Catholic churches (wafting frankincense), these rituals help clear negativity and carry our prayers to the heavens. Sage has been used by numerous cultures long ago, from Celtic Druids to eventually European Witches and Native American Indians. All of these cultures have used sage to banish negativity. It is also a custom that I have used in my own home, my business and my Feng Shui practice for the past 25 years. It’s an intrinsic spiritual custom that cleanses negative energy.
Come Join Me: A Fall Retreat In Upstate NY
There is something transformative about small, intimate groups for learning, restoring and healing that accelerate the deeper shifts within. I love teaching my Holistic Home School of Feng Shui in small groups and have witnessed the profound changes that occur when the interactions are personalized and the course work is tailored to your needs. So, I decided to offer a long weekend upstate in my home for only a small group of people with a focus on the divine female energy and the power of one-on-one sessions of yoga, Reiki, Feng Shui and nature . The Yoga Director for The Holistic Home Company, Lauren Paasch, Reiki Practitioner Vanessa Gomez and I will be leading this restorative upstate weekend get-a-away. In addition to your personalized sessions, there will also be guided meditations, nature walks, healing, intuitive Reiki circles and a one-on-one Feng Shui Consultation with me. This is a weekend retreat meant to heal, restore and make connections between mind, body, spirit and space as you address all aspects of your own wellness in cozy, woodsy setting in the country.
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A 10 Year Anniversary: From Holiday Gifts to a Successful Wellness Brand
Ten years ago this month, my then seven year old daughter and I decided to make some holiday gifts for friends and family. We wanted our gifts to be made with our own hands and we wanted to personalize them for each recipient. It felt like a new exploration into a world of delightful scents and ingredients that yielded useful and beautiful gifts. It made us happy. After researching and playing around with a variety of materials from the best ways of blending notes of essential oils for body scrubs to which wick size to use for candles, we made gifts that garnered overwhelmingly positive feedback. My daughter and I felt like we did alright that year with our gift giving. I was ready to leave it at that, but my husband kept insisting I take it further and start selling these items online. There was pushback and excuses on my end before I eventually relented. My years long journey into research and formulations began.
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The Holistic Home Book is coming out with a Revised Second Edition!
After steady sales, an award and several printings, the Holistic Home book will now have a revised second edition, coming out January 2024! I am so thrilled about this and have been excitedly working on the updates, as well as a whole new chapter that delves into the afterglow of The Holistic Home book! A Feng Shui Retreat, A Holistic Home Feng Shui School, and opening a flagship store and Wellness Center have all helped craft a meaty chapter that addresses the most common Feng Shui questions I get asked.
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The Impact of Your Childhood Home
On a recent drive by of my beloved childhood home, I got up the courage to knock on the front door. It was a weekday afternoon. After a while, a man in his thirties answered, looking annoyed and confused. I … read the full article
Join me for a Mind Body Spirit Space Weekend Retreat
Could you use a long weekend away where you focus on your own wellbeing? Where you indulge in healthy, delicious meals, take personalized yoga classes, receive a healing Reiki session and a transformative feng shui private consultation? Then join us … read the full article
Mighty Rituals To Ring in The New Year
When you usher in a new year, it is the most POWERFUL time to engage in small, but meaningful rituals with a big return on value. These rites of passage can be anything from mindfully cleaning surfaces in your home as a purifying ceremony for atonement of the past, to lighting incense for intention setting for the future. Dovetailing these mindful actions to the end-of-year cycle and to the start of a brand new one deepens the layer of effectiveness.
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How You Can Integrate The Holistic Home School of Feng Shui Course In Your Life
I’ve been teaching an online course, based on my book, The Holistic Home: Feng Shui for Mind, Body, Spirit, Space for a couple years now. I teach this seven week course about two times a year. There are so many … read the full article
Tips for a Deeper, Restorative Nights Sleep
We all live these busy, chaotic lives with schedules that can be overwhelming. Studies show that as wonderful as the holidays can be, they can also be equally stressful. I help my clients create spaces that hold deeper meaning, that flow efficiently, that are beautiful and inspiring and wholly their own. I also create products that are made to nourish the soul, soothe the body and revitalize the spirit. Below are some actions and products for your bedroom or nighttime routine that can truly help you get a better nights sleep, lessen anxiety and instill a deeper sense of calm.