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By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
The most recent survey of the National Gardening Association, conducted in 2005 finds that gardening is more popular than ever. The report shows that 91 million American households (83%) participated in some kind of do-it-yourself indoor and outdoor lawn and garden activities. This sets a new record, and an increase of 11% over 2004, according to Bruce Butterfield, NGA’s Research Director.
There are various levels of participation and expertise in gardening. Some people spend all their free time tending to their lawns, flowers, trees and vegetables. Many have a passion for plants while others have a casual interest. [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
After a spinal cord injury, where we go and who we visit become more limited. Since my injury in June 1998, I can no longer go to any of my neighbor’s homes and ring their doorbells. Even the two brand new homes a few doors down from me were built with concrete porches and steps that are barriers to me. I would have liked to have welcomed their owners to our neighborhood, but concrete barriers are hard to pass through when you are seated in a wheelchair.
Part of an international effort to make all new homes visitable, [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
It was months after my spinal cord injury before I did my first load of laundry. The reason why? I couldn’t get into my laundry room!
Even though our laundry room is on the main floor, located off of the attached garage, it is still a tight squeeze to navigate my manual wheelchair into the room. When I first got home from the hospital, my husband Mark had to remove the laundry room door to give me enough room to squeeze in. There are still black marks across the front of the washer and dryer, where my wheelchair [...]
By Linda Stango, AIA
The kitchen is one of the most interactive rooms in the house and is often the gathering place for family and friends. Planning is essential since this room cannot be “rearranged” as other spaces can. If you are considering remodeling or building new kitchen; a good place to start is by assessing the needs of the users, from their physical requirements to the types of food that will be prepared. What are the ultimate goals of the redesign: new cabinets, updated finishes, more room to maneuver or additional natural light? Space and budget constraints are the most [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
In July 1998, when I first came home from the hospital after my spinal cord injury, I realized that my wheelchair would never fi t into our bathroom’s 3′ x 5′ toiletting area; with the door attached, the door clearance was only 26 inches. I looked at the glass-enclosed shower and whirlpool bathtub and wondered how I would ever gain access. Life after my spinal cord injury was not going to be easy.
My husband Mark and I built our home three years before my injury. We did not want to do any remodeling until we were sure [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
I remember coming into my kitchen in my wheelchair for the first time after my spinal cord injury nine years ago. I was wearing a neck collar and body brace to stabilize my spine after surgery. I went to the kitchen sink to get a glass of water. The glasses were stored in the bottom shelf of the wall cabinet and were totally out of my reach. My husband Mark handed me a glass and I proceeded to go to the sink. I couldn’t reach the faucet to turn on the water. Mark came to my rescue again. [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
The egress solution that the author has chosen is the ScapeWEL® Window Well System.
When building a home with a basement it is important that an emergency escape route be included in the design. In addition to using the stairway, emergency exits can be provided through doors and windows.
When the occupant in the home uses a wheelchair, special thought must be given to basement design. Some homes include elevators, stairway lifts, or vertical platform lifts to transport wheelchair users to and from the basement.
Some homes are designed with walkout basements. These exterior doors create [...]
Whether you want to grow healthy vegetables, a beautiful bed of flowers, plants to attract butterflies, perennials, tropical or desert plants; a garden is a worthwhile endeavor and can reap great rewards.
By Linda Stango, AIA
A computer generated image of a raised garden bed demonstrates just how easy and accessible gardening can be for wheelchair users.
Gardening is a psychologically and emotionally therapeutic hobby, the benefits of which have been well documented. It is also a relaxing and productive exercise that is enjoyed by a growing number of people who use wheelchairs. All [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
Coming home from the hospital after a spinal cord injury is a traumatic experience. Chances are that the home you left prior to your injury won’t work for you in the short- or long-term because of your need for wheelchair access. Modifications and remodeling may be needed.
My homecoming in July 1998 posed plenty of problems since I live and work out of my two story home that has a full basement and no elevator. My husband, Mark, and I knew that quick fixes would be needed in order for me to get into my home.
Mark and I asked Jason, [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
My husband and I are in the final design phase of our new home, the Universal Design Living Laboratory (www.udll.com). As I look at our plans, I see that miles of wires will be concealed within our walls, ceilings, and floors. These will enable us to integrate the home’s various electrical technologies to make the house “smarter.”
More and more these days, homes are including integration technology, allowing the heating, ventilating and air conditioning system (HVAC), lighting, security and home entertainment to be interconnected, thus communicating with each other. When the many systems at work [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
Of course, most of us want to live in pleasant, not to say “beautiful,” surroundings. We often think in terms of colors, patterns, schemes, shades, and so on. Many people are so concentrated on form when they think of home design that they all but forget function. I can’t afford that luxury.
The look of a product is certainly one factor influencing my purchasing decisions; however, I also factor in simplicity of use, ease of use, the cost versus benefit of the product, ease of maintenance, and durability. Since I use a wheelchair for mobility, I am most interested in [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, Ph.D.
When you are a wheelchair-user, you really notice when a bathroom is designed properly and meets your every need. Too often we are confronted with public restrooms, as well as hotel bathrooms, with designs that inhibit our independence and make life more difficult.
When given the chance to remodel our existing bathrooms or build a new house with custom bathrooms, we need to pay attention to all the details. Size does matter. An improperly sized bathroom can force us into a world of frustration and a lack of privacy. I know from experience.
It has been eight years since my [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
Building a new home is a daunting task. The investment is large and no one wants to make a mistake that you end up living with day after day for many years to come. There will be things that you notice after you move in that you wish you had done differently. But as we do our best to plan our dream homes, we try to avoid these mistakes by learning from others.
In my last two columns, I wrote about a visit my husband Mark and I made late last year to the home of Mark [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
Last fall, my husband and I met Mark and Jasue Mix of Warsaw, Ohio, who had recently built a home along universal design principles. An Iraq war veteran who was injured in the war, Mark now uses a wheelchair. We were curious about the universal design features used in the Mix home that we could incorporate in our own new home (and future Universal Design Living Laboratory www.udll.com).
As we entered the kitchen and stopped to chat at the center island, Mark handed me a list of things that he and his wife wished they had done [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
A stacked washer-dryer, like the one in Mark Mix’s
home, works against universal design principles.
The Mix Residence
Recently, I was invited to the home of Mark and Jasue Mix in Warsaw, Ohio, to take a look at the universal design features they included when building their 4,400-squarefoot, ranch-style home. The family graciously agreed to share things they would have liked to have done differently in designing the house. Since I am in the process of completing the design for my new home, the Universal Design Living Laboratory, (www.udll.com) I [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, Ph.D.
Universal design is a framework for the design of living and working spaces and products benefiting the widest possible range of people in the widest range of situations without special or separate design. My husband Mark Leder and I have been applying its principles as we build our new home, the Universal Design Living Library (www.udll.com) in Columbus, Ohio, which I’ve written about in previous columns.
Ron Mace, an internationally renowned architect, product designer and educator, is credited with conceiving the term “universal design.” He founded the Center for Universal Design at North Carolina State University (www.design.ncsu.edu/cud) in Raleigh [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti
It’s not always pleasant to think about, but even if we don’t have pets, we are never the only species living in our homes. Mold, mildew, bacteria, and other microbes can invade a home and cause serious illness for the human occupants— headaches, allergies, asthma, and other respiratory problems. Sometimes the problem is so severe people have to abandon their homes.
In addition, some materials used in home building are known to give off fumes that can cause illness, physical discomfort to people with allergies, or even death. But there are steps the homeowner can take to make their [...]
A proposed federal law would require newly constructed, federally assisted single-family homes to be made accessible to persons with disabilities.
By John Herrion
In March 2005, Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois (D9th) introduced an innovative piece of legislation, the Inclusive Home Design Act, that would require all newly constructed, federally assisted, single- family homes and town houses to be built so that they are accessible to persons with disabilities.
While United Spinal Association is pleased with the introduction of this legislation, there remains much work to be done to make this bill law.
People with disabilities face significant challenges in finding housing [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
Universal design and “green” building design are totally compatible approaches in home construction. The home that I am building, the Universal Design Living Laboratory, (www.UDLL.com) in metropolitan Columbus, Ohio, will serve as a national model showcasing how this marriage can take place. “Green” is an approach to building homes that conserves natural resources and highlights environmental quality. These homes are healthier in terms of air and water quality. The products used to build these homes emit fewer health endangering gases or volatile organic compounds (VOC). These gases are often produced from paints, stains, carpeting, wall paper, flooring adhesives, plywood, [...]
By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD
A documentary crew films the author and her young design team at the Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. (Photo courtesy of Mark Leder)
I never paid much attention to the thought process that went into lighting a home until it was time to build my own. When I built my first home 11 years ago, I relied on an interior designer friend of mine to place the lighting. My new home, the Universal Design Living Laboratory (which I described in the March 2006 Action), will be a national model for universal design. This time I’m doing [...]
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