Future-Proof Your Home With These Design Tips for Aging-in-Place / November 6, 2023 by Margaret Chambers

Our client needed to use a wheelchair while recovering from a virus when we started this house. We knew everything needed to be handicap-accessible. This wide entryway area permits plenty of room for a wheelchair to enter.

Today, more Dallas homeowners than ever are interested in aging-in-place, whether that means making renovations to their current home, finding a home that is wheelchair-accessible, or building a new home. This is especially true of the baby boomer generation, many of whom watched their parents go to assisted living.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1991 set minimum standards for accessibility in newly constructed public facilities, and since then, these changes have been slowly making their way into the residential sector. The term “accessible design” encompasses homes designed for a variety of people with disabilities, but for this article, I’ll focus on wheelchair accessibility. Many of these design features can make the home more convenient for any homeowner, which is why some people refer to accessible design as “universal design.”

To be wheelchair-accessible, a home must have a wider doorway (preferably 36 inches) and a zero-step entrance. There should be no level changes in the house, not even a threshold for a door. ADA-compliant transition strips can help smooth thresholds between rooms. Since wheelchairs require a turning radius of 60-by-60 inches, open floor plans are a sensible choice.

If making the entire home wheelchair-accessible seems out of reach, consider making your home partially accessible. Even if you are not disabled or do not plan on retiring in your current home, you may wish to make your home more accessible so that aging or disabled parents, relatives, and friends can still visit you.

Carpets are a hassle for those who use assistive devices (interior designers like myself generally don’t like carpeting either). Go for hardwood flooring if you can, preferably with either flat-weave rugs or no rugs at all. Rugs should be secured to the floor with double-sided tape. If you must have carpet, choose cut-pile carpet or carpet with a thinner level loop.

Another accessibility feature we added to this Dallas home was a pair of grab bars in the shower.

Curb-less showers are not just accessible, but glamorous as well, making them a desirable feature. If you’re building a new bathroom, install plywood or solid wood blocking behind the shower wall so that it’s already reinforced if you need to add grab bars later. It’s also very important that the floor tile is slip-resistant.

Cabinets under the sink should be removed and replaced with plumbing that is installed tightly against the back wall. This creates knee space for wheelchair users to roll up to the sink. Some freestanding tubs are labeled “handicap-accessible,” but I don’t recommend them. It’s safer for someone to be able to sit on the side of the tub area, and swing their legs over, which freestanding tubs don’t allow.

If you’re building a new house for a handicapped person, the kitchen counter should be set 28-30 inches high. Multi-level countertops allow a person in a wheelchair to prep food alongside someone else who needs a higher countertop. In accessible homes, microwaves are often set into lower cabinets, somewhere between 15 to 37 inches from the floor. Also, keep in mind that the freezer is easier to reach when it is side-by-side with the refrigerator instead of stacked on top or on bottom.

When designing a home for clients who want to age-in-place, we will typically replace doorknobs with lever handles because they are much easier to use for those with arthritic hands.

A one-story house is better than a two-story house, but if you need the extra space, a two-story home with an elevator is another good option. The easiest place to install an elevator is where two closets are stacked. If you’re building a new house but don’t want the added expense of an elevator, you can include two stacked closets in the design just in case.

More interior designers are finding ways to make homes accessible without sacrificing style. It’s important that your home feels warm and welcoming, filled with things you find beautiful, rather than cold and clinical. After all, no one wants their home to feel like a hospital or a retirement home. Some designers bring their own experience with disability to their craft. For example, the famous modern architect, Michael Graves, became an advocate for accessible home design after he needed to use a wheelchair following illness.

If you’re looking for a home and accessibility is a priority for you, give us a call at 214.651.7665 or send an email to info@chambersinteriors.com. As a member of ASID, every year, I take 12 hours of continuing education classes to keep my registration, including a class on accessibility. I pride myself in my ability to design a timelessly beautiful home perfectly suited for my Dallas clients and their families’ needs.

4 Things to Know Before You Update Your Bathroom or Powder Room / August 18, 2021 by Margaret Chambers

A few accessories, like a soap dish or some fresh flowers, are all that's needed to complete a bathroom counter.

Bathrooms and powder rooms are woefully overlooked areas in home design. Many people consider designing them an afterthought, or aren’t sure how to work with a small space. But no matter how small your powder rooms are, you deserve to have ones that are thoughtfully planned and tastefully designed. If you’re thinking about giving the bathrooms in your Dallas home a quick update—or an extensive remodel—you’ll surely find these tips useful.

Brunschwig & Fil’s iconic “Les Touches” wallpaper adds a playful touch to this bathroom we designed for a Dallas home.

2021 Bathroom Trends:

Although grey was a popular wall color for bathrooms the last few years, in 2021 it’s starting to go out of style. Instead, warmth is being brought into bathrooms through the use of gold or brass fixtures and wood accents. Wallpaper has also come back into style. If you do want to put up wallpaper, shop for the vinyl kind that is moisture-resistant.

While you’re updating, take a look into some of the latest developments in bathroom technology. These include smart showers that can be remotely set to start running, voice-activated lighting and temperature controls, and Bluetooth speakers for baths and showers. Heated floors have also been gaining popularity for some time now.

Layout Tips for Bathroom Remodels:

A common bathroom design mistake is to make your toilet the first thing a visitor sees when they enter the bathroom. Choose anything else as your focal point beside the toilet, such as your mirror, your bathtub, or your vanity. The toilet should be out-of-sight from the entrance whenever possible.

This area, with the freestanding tub and large antique mirror, serves as the focal point for this bathroom in Colleyville.

Bathrooms don’t have to be spacious to be appealing. To make a small powder room feel more luxurious, splurge on a few nice materials and finishes. If you prefer to take showers over baths, don’t take up too much floor space with a large tub.

When we remodeled this shower, we added glass doors, mosaic floor tiles, slabs of Carrera marble, and brass hardware.

You can maximize elbow room by installing a glass panel or shower curtains instead of a shower door. This way, you also won’t have to worry about your door swinging out and hitting the vanity.

Don’t forget to plan for storage space. Upper vanity cabinets along either side of the mirror are a smart solution for keeping toiletries out of sight. You can even build electrical outlets into the cabinets for plugging in your hairdryers and electric toothbrushes.

Choosing Flooring and Tiles:

There’s a reason why most bathrooms have tiled floors. Carpeting absorbs moisture and can develop mold, and if wood flooring becomes water damaged, it’s costly to replace. If you want the look of wood without the risk of water damage, I’d recommend porcelain tiles with a faux bois grain finish that emulate the look of real wood panels.

Improvements in manufacturing have paved the way for new and improved tile patterns, including chevron, diamond, hexagon, arabesque, and fish scales. I’m starting to see homeowners want to try new patterns instead of defaulting to subway tile.

The Best Lighting for Powder Rooms:

Lighting is always important for home design, and bathrooms are no exception. Older fluorescent light bulbs can cast an unflattering blue hue on skin, while dim lighting makes bathrooms feel small and closed-in. If the color tone of your bulbs is a cool white, update them with a warmer white.

The vertical cabinets in this vanity are great for storing toothbrushes, medications, etc. so they stay out of sight. The cabinets also contain electrical outlets, so everything can stay conveniently plugged in and ready to use.

As you update your lighting, make sure not to install the fixtures too far above your mirror, or else they’ll cast shadows on your face. Either bring the lights low enough so that they’re almost touching the mirror, or place sconces on either side of the mirror.

To make a bathroom feel light and airy, find a way to filter daylight in. A window to the outside or a skylight through the ceiling are both options. You can always put shutters over the window for more privacy.

We normally use tile in bathrooms, but the client wanted wood floors. To protect them, we added polyurethane coating.

For your finishing touches and decorations, keep things simple. Instead of cluttering counter space with lots of accessories, buy practical items—such as pretty soap dispensers—that are decorative and integrate into your overall design theme.

If your bathtub is next to a window, you can always add shades for privacy, like this motorized Roman shade we used.

Many people in Dallas continue to work from home and are thinking about ways they can give their surroundings a facelift. Whether you’re planning a full bathroom remodel, or just want to make better use of the space and layout you already have, the designer tips above will come in handy.

For those of you who are looking to bring in a professional, you should know that Chambers Interiors has a lot of experience a bathroom remodels. To schedule a free consultation, email us at info@chambersinteriors.com or call our Dallas office at 214-651-7665.