Sink Positive about Green

According to the World Health Organization “water scarcity affects one in three people on every continent and is getting worse as water needs rise with population growth, urbanization and the increased usage by households and industry.”

This situation is no longer just a concern of third world countries. With California in its third year of drought this is a situation that requires our attention in new home construction, remodeling and appliance purchases. Thoughtful design addresses not just form and function, but careful use of resources, both monetary and environmental. Each of us can make a difference.

Here is a fun product that thinks out of the box. It is called the "Sink Positive". It saves water and space, is hygienic by being hands free and is interactive for all ages. What a great way to get the kids to wash there hands!

Source

Being Green can be fun and a shown here doesn't have to be a lot of hard work. Let us know about other fun green items that you have found.

Hana Hammer

Keeping it in Focus

5:45 am - The alarm goes off and it is time to pop out of bed to head for the gym. So much time and energy trying to keep toned and tight, than ......as I head to the bathroom and look in the mirror, I am confronted by a mean trick of aging. I can’t see anything close up!

Each day over 45, it seems that I am being slowly mocked by Mother Nature. As we age, the elasticity of the lens of our eyes becomes worse and it is more difficult for our eyes to naturally adjust to changes in light and vision conditions.

Now like millions of others, I am constantly reaching for my reading glasses, but the reality is I am not ready to wear them on a chain around my neck. Reading glasses also have some major draw backs in the bathroom – they fog and get in the way.

Through no fault of its own, the bathroom is generally the most improperly lit room in one’s home. Because it is frequently the smallest room in the home, many people think that a single light fixture can sufficiently illuminate the entire space. The bathroom is a place in which a range of functions are preformed, and each task must be illuminated properly.

Here are a few easy tips to make your morning easier and to keep you bright and in focus:

• Use a lit magnifying makeup mirror. They come in both wall mounted and vanity styles. There are a variety of magnifying strengths 5x, 10x and even 20x. Try before you buy to make sure you like the strength. I found that more was not always better. There are a few pores and wrinkles I like to keep hidden……even from myself.
• Make sure that you have adequate light in the shower. For safety reasons the light in showers needs have a sealed cover, but with regular cleaning and an adequate strength bulb it is much easier to read shampoo and conditioner labels.
• Decorative tiles can be beautiful and can also be a great way to highlight changes in floor heights in the shower. No one wants to trip and fall stepping over the curb of the shower.
• Lighting your vanity requires strategic placement of a lighting fixture above the vanity mirror. To achieve sufficiently bright vanity lighting, the vanity fixture should hold at least 150 watts and it should be at least 24 inches long. For an even glow, the fixture should be mounted 75 to 80 inches above the floor.
• Keeping a spare pair of glasses or magnifying lens in the medicine cabinet is a smart thing to do! It is to easy to take incorrect dosages or drugs by not being able to read the tiny writing.

Physical aging is not always fun, but how great is it to live in a time when there are No rules on the who we are and what we do at what age.

A Birthday Wish....

One morning while sponging brackish water from a two piece toilet whose tank I'd unseated while climbing out of our shower-tub, I asked my wife, who was soaping up the water that had leaked from the shower onto the linoleum floor, what she'd like for her birthday. It was idle conversation, meant to shift the focus from our moldy, depressing bathroom to something light and cheerful. But my wife took the question seriously and her plaintive answer cut me to the quick.

"You know what I want for my birthday?" she said, sitting on the edge of the grungy avocado-colored tub in which we'd bathed our two babies, both of whom are now in college."I want a grown up bathroom."

It is impossible to convey just how profoundly her words struck me. A grown-up bathroom. It was like a slap in the face. I stopped my sponging and took a good, hard look at our 60's-era bathroom, with the mushy moldy drywall; the dust-encrusted ceiling fan and the metal medicine cabinet speckled with rust. The scales fell from my eyes. I, too, wanted a grown-up bathroom. We all want a grown up bathroom, don't we? Not someplace where we hurriedly do our business and wash our face, but someplace pleasant. A retreat. Nay, a sanctuary. According to the National Kitchen and Bath Assn., the average person visits the toilet 2,500 times a year. And spends about three years of his or her life in the bathroom. Three years!

Now think about that, then say the truth with me and it will set you free. "I want a grown up bathroom."

Because the minute you acknowledge the truth, you will be transformed. From your bosom will spring forth all sorts of repressed desires. Like the fact that you don't just want a new bathtub; you want a soaking tub. With air jets! And constant hot water that you'll never have to use the word "tepid" again!

Source: David Lansing, March 6, 2005 latimes.com/features/printedition/magazine

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Bathroom remodeling in 2010 is a hot topic! We all do want a grown up bathroom and there are some many design features that that will not create a retreat today, but also ensure a safe place for us to enjoy in the future.

Here are a few "Universal Design" features to consider when planning your new bath:

• Walk in shower with no curb.
• Decorative non-slip tile surfaces for bathroom flooring.
• Grab bars as towel bars and toilet paper holders.
• Magnifying make up mirror.

Tell us about the things that you have (or want in your grown up bathroom!!!

Is Universal Design Green?

It was 5 years ago that John Salmen and I sat down to breakfast at The Biltmore at Coral Gables and discussed the future of Great Grabz, universal design and our aging population. We are in 2009, and the future is now. Here is a wonderful article written by one of the country's most innovative thinkers in the practical application of Universal Design in hospitality, commercial and residential projects. John Salmen is the founder of Universal Designers & Consultants at www.UniversalDesign.com and produces an online newsletter that should be on your reading list.

Universal Design Newsletter, Vol. 9, No. 8 (Oct. 2009)

Is UD Green?

By John P.S. Salmen, AIA

Inevitably, this question must be raised. As public awareness of green design swells to a tidal wave, many Students of UD think we see the next wave approaching – and its name is Universal Design.

But how do these waves relate to each other? Are they random swells? Or caused by undersea movement of the earth’s crust?

Valerie Fletcher, Executive Director of the Institute for Human Centered Design, and Elaine Ostroff, Founding Director along with Eric Mikiten, AIA of the Bay Area COTE, believe that they are both connected to the earth shaking movement of Sustainability. Eric presented his overview in detail at the AIA 2009 convention.

The trefoil logo, developed by the Department of Public Works of Queensland, Australia for its Smart House program. (www.build.qld.gov.au/smart_housing/elements/index.asp), communicated how these three universal design leaders visualize the “ three–legged stool of sustainable design.” The graphic above illustrates how universal design is a basic element of sustainable design, as it relates to resource efficiency and economic empowerment under the umbrella of environmental, economic and social sustainability.

Environmental sustainability relates to the green movement and natural resource conservation and efficiency. Economic sustainability relates to concepts of life cycle costing, equity and fair trade value of products and services.

Social sustainability relates to systems that support people by creating safe, secure and independent communities.

When compared to financial and natural resources, human ability is arguably the most precious resource of all. Human ability is enabled, supported and encouraged by a universally designed environment that gives everyone the opportunity to participate with a minimum of outside support. Just as we must conserve our natural resources, we must also conserve our human resources. It is a waste of human potential to create environments that demand dependence when a simple change in the design of the path, space or element could allow un-assisted use. Like “green design” universal design must be an integral part of design programming and the imaginative design process. It cannot be left as an add-on in a minimal compliance mode.

The relationship between two people who are locked in the care giver/receiver dance, while frequently a loving and enriching experience, is difficult, uncomfortable, and too often destructive of human dignity. Independence is best and can be extended with universal design. The obvious example is aging in place, which is facilitated by universally designed homes and communities.

As we struggle to make the most of limited resources, the value of universal design as a tool to conserve human resources will become increasingly apparent, and its relationship to the broader goal of sustainability will become clear.

The link to sign up for the newsletter is at www.UniversalDesign.com then they just click on the Subscribe Now button.

Universal Design Living Laboratory (UDLL) Groundbreaking on 9/23 a Success!

09.24.2009 – More than 100 people including regional media attended ground breaking for the “National Demonstration Home” will be the first of its kind in the U.S.A. Part home and part educational lab – the Frank Lloyd Wright inspired project will incorporate universal design, green and healthy building elements. The Universal Design Living Laboratory is a national demonstration home and garden design project that will bring attention to three critical architectural design and building concepts: universal design, green sustainable building and healthy chemical-free materials.

This home will not only serve as the residence of project leaders Rosemarie Rossetti, Ph.D. and Mark Leder, but also will be used to teach residential and commercial builders, architects, landscape architects, designers, interior designers, manufacturer’s representatives/distributors, and home buyers. The 3,500 square foot ranch-style home will incorporate the finest craftsmanship and state-of-the-art products, technology and services.

Rosemarie Rossetti, Ph.D., internationally known speaker and advocate for people with disabilities with her husband, Mark Leder, are leading the national project. Rossetti and Leder married on June 10, 1995. Three years later, the couple’s lives were transformed forever while bicycling on a sunny afternoon. A 3.5 ton tree came crashing down on Rossetti. She was paralyzed from the waist down with a spinal cord injury – this was the beginning of a remarkable new journey. Visit UDLL.com or email Rosemarie at rosemarie@udll.com.

Adaptmy.com

www.Adaptmy.com is a new web store dedicated to the Universal Design market. Click HERE to learn more.

Summer of Safety: Great Grabz partners with leading hotel chains to keep their bathrooms safe and stylish

Press Release: Summer of Safety: Great Grabz partners with leading hotel chains to keep their bathrooms safe and stylish