Anjie Cho: Holistic Interior Architect

Anjie Cho, founder of Holistic Spaces

Anjie Cho, founder of Holistic Spaces, is a relative newcomer to the Awaken Fair family. As a Holistic Interior Architect, Anjie uses her background in architecture to create and enhance balance and harmony by designing spaces with an understanding of sustainability in conjunction with the ancient practice of Feng Shui.

We’re pleased to welcome Anjie to her second Awaken Wellness Fair!

AF: What drew you to this work?
Anjie: Ever since I can remember, I have always found great joy in designing, drawing, and sharing that beauty with others. In my search to expand my love of art beyond a piece of paper, I studied architecture in college. I realized then that architecture was more than engineering buildings, but an opportunity to create harmonious and nurturing spaces for people to inhabit. I was fascinated by the way that spaces and forms could shape the lives of people within them. In fact, I was the only student in my architectural photography class that captured images of people while everyone else took photographs of buildings. Then I began to see how my design work resonated when touched with human interaction. I focused my talents on interior spaces, yearning to tie consciousness and intention into my designs. This lead me to investigate and integrate holistic principles of Feng Shui, environmental psychology and sustainable green design in my work.

AF: What is the most rewarding thing about what you do?
Anjie: The most rewarding part of my work is designing harmonious living and work spaces that resonate with clients from both the inside and out. And of course at the end of the project, when they tell me how much they love their transformed space.

AF: Who or what inspires you?
Anjie: I find beauty in simplicity and balance, that’s found in nature and through my spiritual studies. I am also inspired by my many teachers and mentors, friends, and my clients.

AF: How do you see yourself making a difference in the world?
Anjie: I believe transformative action is possible through purposefully designing the environment around you.

Visit Anjie Cho at the Awaken Wellness Fair on Sunday, September 15 at the Doubletree Hotel in Ft. Lee, NJ.

For more information, visit Anjie on the Web at holisticspaces.com. You can also follow her on Twitter @HolisticSpaces.

The Breath of Inspiration ~ Getting to Know Lois Kramer-Perez

What do you do when life as you know it changes forever and in an instant? For Lois Kramer-Perez, the process of healing from a devastating loss gave her the opportunity to not only heal herself, but to pass that healing on to others through her work.

As an FIT grad, Lois enjoyed an exciting career in the fashion industry. “I was able to express my creativity while being part of the process of ideas being brought to life in the form of sweaters and knitwear,” she says. A life-changing moment, however, led her to an even deeper place of inspiration.

That life-changing moment came in September 2000 when her husband of 19 years suffered a fatal heart attack at home. “In seeking a way to heal,” she shares, “I discovered Reiki, Feng Shui and personal and environmental clearing with dowsing.”

“My teachers and mentors brought me new inspiration and before long, it was time to say goodbye to the fashion industry and begin my new life devoted to creating change for person and place.”

Lois has developed simple yet effective techniques which offer her clients tools for awareness, clarity and empowerment. “I embrace diverse energy modalities such as Feng Shui, personal meditative clearing and environmental space clearing as a way of life. Each of these services, she explains, can provide anchors for creating change from the inside out.

“Through teaching, working with my clients and exploring with colleagues and mentors,” says Lois, “ I am always finding new things to learn and experience which I pass on to my students and clients.”

Lois believes the Universe drew her to this work through her late husband. In an introductory Feng Shui class, Lois was told that in class the following week, she would be learning about the I Ching. “I didn’t know anything about the ‘I Ching.” Later that evening while going through books in husband’s office, Lois came across a book: The Illustrated I Ching. “Wow!” she says, “I had no idea he had this book! I felt he left this book for me, that it was a sure sign I was on the right path, going in the right direction.”

We can all make a difference in the world.  “Every person,” she says, “can make a difference by just being. As we each begin to find balance and embrace it, even for just a moment, all who are around us can experience the same. As part of the collective, we create the whole. As we can become peace, joy and balance, we influence all around us to join the experience, without words, without action, by just being.”

Lois is a published author and a member of the International Feng Shui Guild. She is also a faculty member at Ridgewood and Emerson Community Schools, and an anuak presenter at Holy Name Medical Center Healthy Living Programs. She is available for private consultations, speaking engagements and will design a program to fit your needs to create balance and change that is perfect for you.

Meet Lois at the Awaken Wellness Fair on Sunday, April 29 and be sure to catch her presentation, “It’s All About You.”

For more information, visit Lois on the Web at http://loiskramerperez.wordpress.com/  and don’t forget to find her on Facebook!

“It only takes a moment to take a breath,  It only takes a moment to become inspired”

 ~ Lois Kramer-Perez