Synchronicities, Letting Go and Nora Ephron

"Rainbow From My Window" Photo Credit: Elana Kilkenny

I feel somehow that Nora Ephron has been woven inexorably into the tapestry of my living in this city that I love so profoundly. When I was a college senior I moved into a tiny, slightly decrepit one bedroom apartment in the boondocks section of the Upper East Side. There was scarcely a thing about that particular neighborhood or apartment that felt like me, but on my second night there I went to see "Sleepless in Seattle" in a local movie theater and it hit me...I was living my childhood dream of calling New York City my home. So my apartment was still just an apartment, but I was now at home in New York City.

Years later when I was in my mid-twenties, I found myself blessed enough to buy a one bedroom apartment in my beloved city. And although I had barely spent a minute in all my years in Manhattan on the Upper West Side, somehow my vision of living in New York City was shaped by my adoration of Woody Allen movies and my hundredth viewing of "When Harry Met Sally". My home for fourteen years was in the West 70's and close to Riverside Park. I spent countless strolls passing by the storied Apthorp building. And when I did, I would always look into the courtyard from the street and daydream of all the magical people I imagined lived there. Never realizing at the time that Ms. Ephron was one of those very people.

Years later, I found through a series of synchronicities Nora Ephron's famous love letter in The New Yorker to her apartment in the Apthorp. Somewhere in this timeline, my dear friend Alex D. invited me to the New York premier of "You've Got Mail" and I found myself living out another childhood dream torn from the pages of "The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler" of being inside The Natural History Museum after hour. Underneath the iconic blue whale stood both Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks who I adore, but it was Ms. Ephron that I was longing to speak to but too shy to approach. No small violins are playing here though, as in that inevitable way that life presents us all with our own full-circle story arcs, I had my opportunity years later to speak with her under much more meaningful circumstances.

So at this point in my own story, here is my love letter to Ms. Ephron that I posted in the wake of her recent passing:

"I will always remember Nora Ephron, not just because I loved her humor and her movies, but because she obsessively loved her Upper West Side apartment in the Apthorp and her article in The New Yorker about letting it go helped me to let go of my own apartment on the UPW that I was obsessively attached to. I loved her because when I was pregnant with my second child, and my aforementioned beloved home was in contract to be sold, I found myself sitting behind her in a movie theater and mustered up the courage to thank her for her Apthorp article. I told her of my heartache in moving and she turned around to me and put her hand on my arm and looked me squarely in the eyes as she said, "You will feel so stupid that you ever worried about leaving..." 

And it being Nora Ephron, it was said with the perfect mix of tenderness, tough love, perspective and emphasis. And of course, as I sit here looking out my window of my new home where I am greeted by rainbows, fireworks, and all the phases of the moon...I know she was right."

With deep abiding gratitude and love,
Elana

Revitalizing Your Home: De-clutter and Redesign

Jonathan Adler Store in NYC (Photo Credit: Elana Kilkenny)

With temperatures climbing across the country, it is a great time to spend some time indoors de-cluttering and re-decorating your home. I have found with myself and clients that so much energy gets stuck in our homes when clutter accumulates and when your home no longer reflects who you are. De-cluttering can be a bit overwhelming for many of us,  I have found that since becoming a mother and having less disposable time that for the first time in years I am needing to do a de-cluttering overhaul. It is often wise to start with a small defined area and to identify first the items that simply need to be sifted through for outdated material (i.e. papers, magazines, etc.) that are no longer of use. I start here first as it gives an instant boost in de-cluttering confidence as you have an instant clearing in space. The areas that have items that require you to create more systematic organization in order to properly place them takes more time and thought.

Karen Kingston has a great and simple book called "Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui" that I refer to a lot of my clients when I help them with the Intuitive Feng Shui design of their homes and office. A simple tenant that I try to keep in mind as often as possible is to keep that which you truly use and that which you love. Those things that you are keeping out of obligation, attachment to the past, fear of not having enough..all contribute to a constriction in your energy and general flow of not only your space but also your life to receive what is trying to come through to you.

While not all of us have the budget or desire to completely redesign your home, this time of year provides a great opportunity to be creative in bringing the style of your home into your own inspirational present. As an example, our family is still in the process of allowing our new home to speak to us and to acquire meaningful pieces to fill it. In the meantime, there are spaces that I know I don't want to commit to hanging pictures with nails as I know the furniture arrangement will probably change shortly. So I have taken some of my children's art and used simple blue painters tape to artfully arrange some pieces to add instant color and meaning to our home. When new artwork comes home or new inspiration hits I simply take down the old ones and replace them with new ones leaving my walls completely unharmed.

Another cost-conscious way to add instant pop to your walls is to frame pretty wrapping paper (Kate's Paperie is a great source), wallpaper remnants, or reasonably priced prints (Etsy has some great ones). The summer is a great time to also unleash your inner artist and even if you have never painted before  you can buy a canvas and simply buy paint whose colors attract you and paint. My inner painter was unleashed years ago at Rebecca Schweiger's wonderful The Art Studio NY (see below for resources) as her classes provide tremendous support and freedom to simply create regardless of whether you have ever painted before or consider yourself an artist.

Another instant re-boot for your home is to simply rehash some current furniture and pieces in your home by placing them in different locations and/or for different uses. For instance an old shelving piece with doors once used for books can be re-jiggered to be a min-wardrobe for a child. Simply switching out or adding some decorative pillows are great ways to instantly refresh your current decor and can be switched seasonally if you like.

For more design inspiration from everything from great interiors, furniture, pillows, etc. you can check out my Pinterest page at www.pinterest.com/elanakilkenny. Need some more one-on-one guidance, contact me about my transformative Feng Shui Design and Space Clearing and Blessing services. Happy clearing and decorating!!!

P.S. More tips forthcoming!

Resources:
1) For Design Inspiration and Resources visit www.pinterest.com/elanakilkenny
2) Art Classes: https://theartstudiony.com/.
3) Pillows of all price ranges (Ikea, Jonathan Adler, Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters and more on http://pinterest.com/elanakilkenny/pillow-talk)
4)For art at all price ranges follow your own muse or check out http://pinterest.com/elanakilkenny/artists-you-should-know-about/
5)"Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui" by Karen Kingston
http://www.amazon.com/Clear-Your-Clutter-With-Feng/dp/0767903595
6)Resources and great idea for organizing at http://pinterest.com/elanakilkenny/uncluttered-home-peaceful-home/