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With the guidance of local feng shui master Robyn Bentley, the plans for Kristin O’Connor’s horseshoe-shaped home balance each element of feng shui — wood, fire, earth, metal and water.
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Personal art drawn by O’Connor, some consignment castoffs and a vintage ’60s oil painting ground the library dining room wall. The dining table is a midcentury Brazilian cherrywood masterpiece that O’Connor purchased at Metro Modern in 2010.
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The burlwood side tables are antiques, the genie lamp with an ancient silk shade is vintage ’70s, and the flame-stitch pillows add texture. “By design, when you wake up in the primary bedroom, the line of sight embraces every element,” O’Connor says.
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The freestanding fireplace adds warmth to the bedroom, bringing the element of metal into the mix.
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An original painting of peonies — one of O’Connor’s favorite flowers — by Helen McCullagh hangs above the quartzite backsplash in the kitchen. O’Connor says it inspired the floral arrangement, created by Strawberry Fields. The color palette in “Walk by the Sea,” an original work by Ukrainian artist Khodakivskyi Vasyl, pulls all the natural colors from the outdoors — lake, pool, creamy stone — together with the indoor earth tones, stonework and floors, introducing you warmly to the home’s social spaces, O’Connor says.
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O’Connor says the dimensions of the living room were influenced by the size of her circa 2011 Restoration Hardware vintage-styled ‘English ’70s’ Italian leather sectional. “I love this sectional dearly. It gets better year after year with every nick, scratch and stain. I hope it lasts me another 25 years; it’s truly irreplaceable.”
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A collection of vintage pieces adds some zing to this outdoor patio area and poolside bar. Covered baskets below provide hidden storage.
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In the courtyard, O’Connor chose the sectional Platform One sofa by Loll Designs for its sleek lines, nearly zero maintenance requirements and modular flexibility. “I still haven’t exhausted configurations for this flexible seating sectional,” she says.
Kristin O’Connor’s lakefront home in Midlothian not only looks great — it feels amazing. That’s because every room was guided by feng shui principles.
Pronounced “fung schway,” this ancient Chinese art helps people connect and harmonize with their environment. Literally meaning wind and water, feng shui is believed to promote positive chi, the vital life force flowing through all living things and objects.
“Your home is an interface for your relationship with your inner self and your community as you define it, but it’s also your interface with the wider outer world, the universe inclusive of all these seen and unseen elements,” O’Connor says. “I can’t imagine anything more important.”
Having exited the advertising field, O’Connor has taken on building, renovating and creating homes as a passion project. After searching for waterfront property for years, she discovered her latest blank canvas on the perfect treetop perch on the Swift Creek Reservoir.
To carry out her vision for the home, she brought in Scott Stephens of SMS Architects and consultant Robyn Bentley, Richmond’s self-styled Feng Shui Diva.
Bentley’s first step was to divide the property and house plans into eight different compass directions.
“Depending on the year the home is constructed and the compass degree the home faces, there is a set of energy patterns that are both negative and positive,” Bentley explains. “We want to utilize the positive energies to spend more time there and neutralize the negative energies.”
Using the coordinates, Bentley and O’Connor discovered the precise degree they wanted the home to face for the most auspicious energy. Then, room by room, they determined the right balance of each element of feng shui: including wood, fire, earth, metal and water. Bentley also studied O’Connor’s astrology chart to make even more personalized recommendations.
“I’m a double-fire Sagittarius,” O’Connor says. “Energetically, it feels right to me when I use a lot of fire, metals and earth colors.”
Most of the house is decorated in minimalist style with walls painted Benjamin Moore White Chocolate that make O’Connor’s art collection pop. But to align with her personal feng shui, she decorated the dining room in a sultry contrast. She incorporated metallic elements such as the crystal and gold metal chandelier and painted the walls and built-in shelves a bronzy Willow by Benjamin Moore.
The chi was off in O’Connor’s bedroom, so Bentley integrated metal to drain the negative earth energy. They painted the walls Odessa Pink by Benjamin Moore and even hid metal barbells in her nightstand. Bentley also used O’Connor’s kua number, based on her birth year and gender, to determine her optimal sleeping direction.
“Just pointing your bed the right way has a big impact,” says Bentley. “I have a section on my website that’s easy to understand, and it’s really important for kids, too.”
In the kitchen, earth-based feng shui influenced the design. The space features European-style cabinetry with strong-grained cherrywood as well as stone finishes, a key earth element.
“The warm gray quartzite waterfall island, countertops and backsplash help ground the social corridor of the home and balance the expansive water views,” O’Connor explains. “I’ve also featured a unique backsplash called Personal Space by New Ravenna Tile. This artful piece pays homage to celestial themes, creating a playful juxtaposition with the earthen elements and offering a galactic wink at the cocktail station.”
What you can't see is even more important than what you can see.
—Kristin O’Connor
Nature is another important element in feng shui. The home was designed to maximize views of the trees and the lake below, and the north-facing side of the house is almost all glass.
“I precision-determined where every single window was located based on the lighting factors around the seasons,” O’Connor says.
Indoor and outdoor elements meet at the patio, where a saltwater pool and fireplace nestle in the nook of the home’s two wings, accentuated by high-gabled roofs.
“The U-shape home feels like a hug,” she says. “It’s the perfect balance of elements there. It’s so elemental in its glory, with the water, the air and the earth all around.”
O’Connor initially wanted an infinity pool, but Bentley advised against it. “She said it would be like prosperity running away from the home, down the hill and into the water,” O’Connor says.
Richmond designer Wendell Welder helped plan a natural landscape that wouldn’t require mowing, blowing or chemicals. Low-maintenance hydrangea gardens complement natural meadows with wildflowers on the hillside.
“Nature reciprocated,” says O’Connor. “We have butterflies, bumblebees and hummingbirds. We have bald eagles that roost there, geese, deer, foxes. I’ve made friends with all the trees.”
Thanks to well-guided and personal planning, O’Connor says, every part of the house feels good.
“I see a lot of design that looks beautiful in a composed photo; however, when you go into the space, it doesn’t feel right,” she says. “What you can’t see is even more important than what you can see — the emotional and ethereal energies of a space and how you work in concert with them, for both its and your [own] highest, best expression.”
