Shouldn't Kitchens be Accessible to All? Some Cabinet Ideas Show the Way!

Maybe that headline is a bit wordy, but it underscores the notion that universal design and barrier-free ideas are only for those who have disabilities or physical limitations. Contractors and designers trapped in this mindset tend to plan kitchen remodels without properly considering (1) the future needs of all household members and (2) how beneficial it is to inject accessibility features into a kitchen design. Designing and constructing a kitchen for all ability levels is easy and, more importantly, helps everyone in the household live better without sacrificing good looks or style.

As we've emphasized in earlier posts, Universal Design is all about ease of use across the whole range of human activities. In the kitchen, that means cooking, eating, and just hanging out. There are lots of ways to improve the use and access in this essential part of a home. This post will focus on how the standard closed-door kitchen cabinet, has evolved to help designers achieve maximum ease of use for people of all shapes, sizes, abilities, and ages. We know that the typical cabinet, located either above or below countertop level, does a fine job of storage, but can also be beyond the reach of individuals with mobility issues, whether age-related or otherwise. These traditional cabinets may fail to serve the rest of the population very well. Some areas in the cabinet can be hard to reach without bending or stretching, and they may become disorganized, and often lack stylistic interest. Fortunately, cabinet designers have risen to the challenge, creating a host of alternative designs that overcome all these shortcomings.

Pull out drawer systems are helping to lead the revolution that's reshaping the look of smart kitchen designs. They come in all shapes and sizes. 

Base cabinets with drawers are one option. For starters, they provide much easier access. No longer do you have to bend and reach into a deep cabinet; pulling out the drawer brings its contents to you. And these pull-outs are much easier to organize. You replace one large cabinet holding a jumble of kitchen items with drawers that can be stacked on top of each other and devoted to things that belong together. Specialty inserts can be added for pots and pans, dishware, or other kitchen objects and utensils.

It's also possible to stack base cabinets next to each other creating pantries that store spices, canned goods, or even pots and pans. These pull-outs bring stored items into open view and reach, again not just a benefit for mobility challenged members of the household, but a real convenience for everyone.

A smart approach for base cabinets is the use of pocket doors that open and then slide into the cabinet frame. It's a great look and removes the cabinet doors as an added barrier to access.  

Corner cabinet design is also changing with pull-out technology. Lazy-Susan's married to pull out racks offer vastly improved access and make organizing a far more straightforward task. They're also a surprising design element, adding a level of complexity to the overall look of the kitchen.

What about those upper cabinets that can be so difficult to reach? Several innovative designs are available to render even the highest cabinets readily accessible to all family members. Pull-out and down cabinets are absolute requirements for wheelchair users and others with serious reach issues. A broad selection of shelving inserts, including open racks, pegs and hooks extends its usefulness. It can bring variety to the overall kitchen appearance.

Another shelving option dispenses with the pull-out feature but maintains a more straightforward pull-down mechanism. This cabinet has an insert that slides up and down with the cabinet frame. It's an excellent choice for families with smaller children who may find these cabinets easier to use than the pull-out and down system.

Improving functional storage cabinets are just a small part of the overall strategy to achieve universal design in the kitchen. This post previews some possibilities. Future blogs will cover other kitchen accessible features, including appliances, shelving, lighting, and many of the other ingredients that enter into the creation of a genuinely accessible home kitchen. 

A Slice of the 2018 Kitchen and Bath Show

With each new year comes new industry trade shows featuring the best products, trends, and technologies in the industry. The KBIS, Kitchen & Bath Show, took place last week in Orlando, alongside the IBS, International Building Show. KBIS certainly is one of the largest trade shows in the country hosting 600+ leading brands, as well as, 100 new companies with pristine products for the interior design industry. The exhibits mimic whole houses, each packed with fully built kitchen and baths that allow you to easily experience the full impact of new innovations, design, and technology on display at the show. 

Kitchen and baths are two of the most important rooms in the home. They are the rooms people often remodel, requiring the largest investment, which in general, provides the largest return on investment related to the value of any home. Homeowners often decide to update kitchens and baths when moving into a new home, looking to update their space as part of a larger remodeling project, or when deciding to age in place. These rooms now require modifications to better support a changing lifestyle, and along with it, mobility, accessibility, and safety issues.  

The products and exhibits highlighted the ever evolving design trends, colors, and styles. Whether the style is modern or classic, cabinetry is not only functional but evolving into beautiful home furnishing pieces. Appliances, however, are showing up in vibrant colors and in a variety of styles including historic, retro, and vintage, combined with cutting edge technology. We were in attendance at the show not only to preview some of the latest kitchen and bath trends and products, but also look for those products or manufacturers that specifically addressed the needs of our aging population or anyone with accessibility issues. Here’s just a slice of the show pie, so we hope it gets you hungry for more: 

The Intelligent Toilet

Every toilet manufacturer was highlighting these personal hygiene or bidet-toilets and making the statement: “once you have one, you will never go back.” Often highlighted as an “Aging in Place” toilet, as it promotes bathroom independence, it is now being promoted as “hands-free,” so you can toilet and text while remaining germ free. These toilets sense when you are entering the room, they have heated seats, provide a nightlight, wash and dry you in multiple locations, and offer other anti-bacterial and sterilization features. You can either purchase the toilet or just buy the toilet seat, just make sure you have an electric outlet nearby.  Here’s a link to the new top of the line Toto: https://www.totousa.com/neorest-750h-dual-flush-toilet-10-and-08-gpf-with-actilight. 

A Shower Experience

“It's not a shower. It's an experience.” Kohler’s DTV+ touchscreen interface technology allows you to create a multi-sensory spa experience at home by infusing the shower with water, sound, scented steam, and light. You can select from a variety of mood setting experiences including Relaxation, Well-Being, and Energy. The touch screen interface eliminates multiple knobs and levers, allowing you to pre-program your experiences, become more present in the moment, while increasing overall accessibility.  https://www.us.kohler.com/us/DTV+-Digital-Showering-Experience/content/dtvplus.htm.

Designer Shower Doors

Have you always thought that shower doors are considered to be more function over style? Well think again, as these shower doors are the new bathroom centerpiece. Coastal Showers has collaborated with designers including Bobby Berk and Vanessa Deleon to create an inspiring series of doors, panels, and room dividers. https://www.coastalshowerdoors.com/

Smart Appliances:

One of our favorite exhibits included the Samsung 4 Door Flex Family Hub refrigerator (pictured above). You can shop for food, organize family schedules, listen to music, share calendars, photos, notes, and more between your refrigerator and your family’s smartphones. Create shopping lists, look inside your refrigerator from anywhere and set expiration notifications to keep all your food fresh. In addition to the technology, the 4 Door Flex allows you to easily interchange compartments from refrigerator to freezer, making it incredibly accessible. https://www.samsung.com/us/explore/family-hub-refrigerator/connected-hub/ 

The Kitchen Workstation:

Sounds like an office environment, but the kitchen workstation offers a large counter space that incorporates a variety of functions and culinary tools, to help prep, cook, serve, entertain, and clean up, all in one convenient place. Marketed to be the new all-in-one “cooking triangle,” it may include a double faucet, an extra wide sink, different tiers of sliding boards including cutting boards, grates, drying racks, as well as, an upper deck to create additional work surfaces. Offered by many manufacturers, the one that really caught our attention was The Galley Dresser. http://thegalley.com/galley-dresser/

Steam Ovens:

Steam ovens offer tremendous cooking flexibility and nutritional benefits. These ovens easily cook many different types of foods including vegetables, fish, bread, custards, and so much more. When reheating foods, the steam re-hydrates foods, and as a result, offers superior warming to leftovers over microwaves. The steaming process also allows the food to retain all the vitamins and minerals with using less fats and oils, and is preferred over boiling as the food retains its color, texture, and flavor, as well as, reducing the possibility of burns from boiling water. https://www.mieleusa.com/domestic/steam-ovens-1461.htm

Automated Storage:

Regardless of your range of motion or accessibility issues, the automated pantry, wardrobe, and shoe systems (offered by Storage Motion) will improve your overall storage. It will allow you to access items regardless of storage height, through its automated rolling shelves and wardrobe lifts. The shoe system, called ShoeSelect, maximizes shoe storage by rotating the shoes on a vertical carousel, and can be operated by a wireless remote or wall switch. Any person with a large shoe collection should not be without this luxury! http://storagemotion.com/

All in all, KBIS was a big success for discovering new and improved products not only for our clients but also for our own homes. It certainly left us hungry for more, so we hope this post did the same for you!