The Secrets of a Good Home Design Moving Beyond the Obvious

Posted by admin on November 21st, 2008 filed in HomeDecor

This article is not your basic primer on selecting your “dream home”. Nor does it contain the list of “items to ask your designer” - these things can be found on any designer’s website or Google search. As important as those items are, what we are going to do here is drill-down into the design a little, bypass the fan-fare and talk about some specific concepts that will really make a difference in your life.

Matching your house to your lifestyle begins with an exploration of your needs and wants. Most home designers will have some type of “discovery process” that will help identify the basics for your home design. It will start with the configuration of your lot and proceed through items such as privacy requirements, work areas, outdoor spaces, etc. Although this process is critical to your project, it rarely drills down enough to transform your design into a home that will serve your needs for a lifetime.

Here are two keys of good home design that must be addressed up-front: a) assessing the homeowner’s current needs; and, b) anticipating the future needs of people living in the home. Before you say “Yeah, yeahI’ve heard this all before!” let’s take a closer look at what “current needs” entail.

Almost all “discovery processes” used by home designers focus on the use and space requirements of the rooms in the house. This is good, but too little attention is given to the personal needs of the people actually living in the home. Without performing a comprehensive assessment of the client’s functional abilities, identifying areas of the home where modifications are necessary is often overlooked.

For example, the needs of a child and his / her ability to live comfortably in the home are rarely addressed at the design stage. It’s necessary to evaluate the child’s current abilities and design an environment that works and grows with the child. Some easy adaptive design elements would include adjustable shelves and rods in the closet. As the child grows, the shelves and rods can be moved to better accommodate their reach. Appliances present a similar situation as it is necessary for the controls to be accessible. Front mounted controls on washing machines and dryers enable their use. Safety also comes into play. A child trying to use a microwave placed overhead is a recipe for disaster!

Of course, the above example is very simple, but it illustrates the point that design needs to be done from the perspective of the individual and his / her ability to carry out daily routines in the home. This is why a good designer will perform an assessment of the client and specify the needed design modifications.

There are a couple of tools that a designer can use to evaluate the needs of their clients. One of those tools is the Comprehensive Assessment and Solution Process for Aging Residents (CASPAR). CASPAR was designed for healthcare professionals to evaluate their client’s ability to carry out routine activities in the home. This is also useful in determining the requirements of people who have disabilities.

Anticipating the future needs of individuals may prove a little trickier, but we can start by understanding the process of aging. Whether we like to think about growing old or not, it is inevitable, and people’s functional abilities diminish over time. A well designed home will easily adapt to these changing needs and allow people to stay in their homes longer.

Fortunately, “universal design” is beginning to take root in modern home design. Ron Mace, Founder and Program Director of the Center for Universal Design (NCSU), give us the following definition of UD: “The intent of universal design is to simplify life for everyone by making products, communications, and the built environment more usable by as many people as possible at little or no extra cost. Universal design benefits people of all ages and abilities.” Because the principles of universal design are inclusive for people with disabilities, the application of UD in home design is appropriate and addresses many of the needs of people who wish to “age in place”.

Adaptable design is different in concept from universal design. Where universal design benefits people of all ages and abilities, adaptable design allows the home to be modified for a specific need. An example of adaptable design would be designing a two-story home with “stacked closets” (a closet on the first floor directly below and aligned with a closet on the second floor) so that a residential elevator or lift could easily be installed in the future. In contrast, a universal design item might be the installation of lever door handles that are easier to use for people who have lost the ability to grip a standard round door knob. These lever handles also benefit anyone who may have their hands full with groceries and want to release the door latch by using their forearm or elbow, for example. Children also have an easier time using lever door handles.

Distinguishing between universal and adaptable design may seem difficult at first, but when one realizes that these principles have less to do about the installation of specific items and are more about a designer’s perspective, it all begins to make better sense. And the designer’s perspective is heavily influenced by a thorough client assessment.

Does this level of service cost more? Yes, probably. But a couple hundred dollars up front to hire a qualified designer who will accurately assess your lifestyle and evaluate your future needs, pales in comparison to leaving your design to chance. The number one secret to good home design is to avoid cutting costs at this stage of your project and find a home designer who is an expert in assessing your needs and applying the design criteria that will make your house a home for a lifetime.

Thomas Hewitt is the President of Falcon Homes, Inc., a home design company located in Albuquerque, NM. Thomas is an aging-in-place specialist certified by the National Association of Home Builders and specializes in universal and adaptable design. The company’s website can be found at http://www.FalconHomesInc.com.

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Tasteful Home Decorating Changes Your House Into a Home

Posted by admin on November 8th, 2008 filed in HomeDecor

There is this undocumented story about Andrew Carnegie who kept postponing the decision to redecorate his home just because black, his default color of choice, was simply not used in home decorating those days! Mercifully today, you could well translate your home decorating ideas into alluring reality. For home interior decorating no longer means just coloring your walls in pastel shades and showing off your antiques - it is about using all the home decorating tips that one can get to highlight the most of what one possesses. Unless of course you wish to shrug the opportunity and call in a professional designer. But even this experience could be fascinating - what with “walk-throughs” in your “virtually” designed home before even a single coat of paint is applied!

Yes, with home decorating, either way you always come up trumps!

Use home decorating tips to your advantage!

Your d

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Thinking About Home Improvement Then Here’s a Checklist!

Posted by admin on November 6th, 2008 filed in HomeDecor

Dear friends, if you are planning to improve/renovate or
refurnish your home then this article can be a very
useful guide and save your lot of time.

When it comes to home improvement, most people think that
it’s has to do with painting the house from inside out
and forget about it.

But any architectural structure is much more than just walls
and ceiling. There are many systems working simultaneously
which keep the building under function.

Let’s have a look at these systems one by one.

1) Structural System:

This includes the support system of the entire building, namely
foundation, columns, beams, slabs(in R.C.C structure).
The most commonly used structural systems is R.C.C. Other types
include steel and wood.

While renovating a building special attention must be given to
the structural support system. Slabs should be checked to be
leak proof. Columns and beams which are exposed to external
atmosphere must be checked for damage. R.C.C structural members
are always covered with plaster. This plaster must be without
damage.

In case of steel structures, anti-rust treatment must be applied
wherever necessary.

In case of wooden structure anti-termite treatment must be applied
wherever necessary.

2) Plumbing System:

All pipelines which carry water in and out of the structure must
be checked for leakage. The main are of possible leakage is
at the joints, hence must be carefully treated.

Water taps at the washbasins, inside bathrooms, kitchen sinks,
toilet blocks, should be checked for good and smooth operating
conditions.

3)Drainage System:

Drainage from kitchen, bathrooms, toilets should have an unobstructed
and shortest path to outside chambers. Any clogging of these lines
can cause overflowing of the chambers, hence should be checked
and cleaned.

4)Electrical Systems:

This starts with the main supply of the electricity from the
local authorities. The point of entering the main supply should be
checked for any excessive disturbance in voltage levels, which
might cause damage to electrical appliances inside.

All switch boards and switches in respective rooms should be checked
for proper and safe functioning. Security systems such as
earthing and M.C.B’s should be checked for safe functioning.

5) Doors and Windows

These form an important part of any structure as far as safety
is concerned. Proper functioning of the doors and window
shutters is necessary. If your home has a security alarm system
installed, then it must be kept updated and in proper working condition.

Door and window shutter hinges should be applied with lubricants
for smooth operations. I case of sliding doors and windows, tracks
which allow sliding should be dust free.

6) Glass Panes

All glass panes used on windows and doors should be dust free.
Any broken or cracked glass panes should be replaced immediately.

If the building has a skylight, then it should be checked to be
leak proof and clean, to allow clear and unobstructed sunlight in
the interiors.

7) Flooring Materials

In most cases tiles are used for flooring. All tiles should be
checked for cracks and most importantly leveling.

In every home flooring has a natural slope to avoid clogging
of water if any such situation arises. Tiled flooring
must be checked at joints. Any cracks in joins must be
checked with proper bonding material.

In case of wooden flooring, extra care must be taken to keep
the flooring termite-free.

Wall Plaster and Wall Paint.

All external walls must be checked from outside for a proper
layer of plaster. Plaster prevents the rainwater to seep inside
the structure. If external plaster gets damaged, rain water
seeps inside causing dampening of walls.

All internal walls must be checked for scraping of paint.

Furniture and Carpentry Items.

All furniture items must be termite free and sturdy at the
joints. A coat of good quality wooden polish can add life
to the furniture pieces.

Other carpentry work includes door and window shutters, door
and window frames.

9) Other Accessories.

This includes small thing which matter a lot, such as all the
locking arrangement at doors, windows, towel rods in the
bathroom/wash basins, arrangement to dry washed clothes,
storage arrangements in kitchen/bathroom.

10)External Systems

This can include a solar water heater, electric pumps to push
the water from underground water tank to Overhead water tank.,
Cable TV antennas.

All these systems must be checked for proper functioning.

From the above discussion it is clear that proper functioning
of any architectural structure is dependant of many complex
systems which work simultaneously.

Hence all these must be given attention and respect. Any building
is just like a human body, with movable and stationary parts.
If dealt with proper care can give a very healthy living experience
for years to come.

I hope this article was helpful to everyone.

Copyright 2005 Shrinivas Vaidya

Shrinivas Vaidya is the webmaster of Bedroom-Design-And-Decorating-Ideas.com .Visit TODAY to get an in-depth knowledge of Bedroom Design, Bedroom Furniture Sets and Bedroom Decorating Ideas.

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