What is Design For A Lifespan?

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What is Design For A Lifespan?

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Introducing...BEA

This is Beatrice.  She is the "Bea" in Project Bea and Pearl.  Isn't this a wonderful photo of her?  She was born in upstate New York in March of 1912.  She is going to ninety eight years old...amazing!!  She is one of six children.  Her mother died shortly after giving birth to the sixth child.  She was nine years old and was deeply sadden by her loss.  Her father remarried and gave her three more siblings.  She is the only surviving member in her family of origin.  She often questions why she remains.  In her lifetime she has lived through the Great Depression, nineteen U.S. presidents,  the explosion of the information age,  six wars and is witnessing the present one.  She is an avid movie goer and a big TV fan, can you image all she has seen in the entertainment world?  That's a lot of living.

Bea is a widow, a mother, a grandmother, a great grandmother and a great great grandmother.  She lost her husband in 2006.  She is the mother of three children.  She has a daughter, the other half of Project Bea and Pearl, and two sons.  One son lives in Derwood, Maryland and the the other is deceased.  Bea and her husband moved to Arizona in 1977 to be close to Pearl and her family and to enjoy the Arizona sunshine.  Bea is an independent woman who's mind is sharp but her body will not cooperate with her as it did in the past.  Which is totally understandable...but...try telling her that!

Be sure to check back soon...Pearl's story is next.

Project Bea and Pearl

Coming soon...the story of Bea and Pearl.  Here's a hint:  Bea is a ninety seven year old woman living alone in her own home.  Pearl is her daughter and caregiver.  My job is to provide a safe environment for Bea while giving Pearl peace of mind in regards to her mother's safety.  Am I up to the challenge??

Universal Design...What is it?

Definitions:

uni·ver·sal, (yü-nə-ˈvər-səl), adj.

1: including or covering all or a whole collectively or distributively without limit or exception; especially: available equitably to all members of a society 
2 a: present or occurring everywhere, b: existent or operative everywhere or under all conditions 
3 a: embracing a major part or the greatest portion (as of humankind), b: comprehensively broad and versatile 

4 a: affirming or denying something of all members of a class or of all values of a variable b: denoting every member of a class
5: adapted or adjustable to meet varied requirements (as of use, shape, or size) 

de·sign, (di-ˈzīn), verb

1: to create, fashion, execute, or construct according to plan 

2 a: to conceive and plan out in the mind, b: to have as a purpose, c: to devise for a specific function or end 
3: archaic: to indicate with a distinctive mark, sign, or name
4 a: to make a drawing, pattern, or sketch of  b: to draw the plans for 

Explanation:

“Universal design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design.”        ~Ron Mace

The purpose of universal design is to simplify life for everyone by making products, technologies, 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, sizes and abilities.  Sometimes it is referred to as “design-for-all”.

Got questions or comments about universal design?

Contact me at:

jeanette@DesignForALifespan.com

480.695.1360

Patti Kanter, Account Executive for Tandus

Patti Kanter and I met for coffee recently.  It was a pleasure to get to know her personally and become acquainted with her line of business.  Patti is an account executive for Tandus, the fourth largest commercial carpet manufacture of the world. 

Like me, Patti’s interest lies in the interior design field.  Her formative years were spent in Minnesota.  She earned her interior design degree from the University of Wisconsin-Stout.  Her career began in the residential field while working for a well known furniture store in Phoenix.  She moved into commercial design when she took a position with an architectural firm that specialized in commercial design.  Here she discovered her passion for the commercial sector of the interior design industry.  Her next experience was the commercial carpet industry; she sold the products to the trade.  A move to Los Angeles, California put her in the mini bar segment, not only selling them, but designing custom furniture to house the units.  She took several years off from the professional world to experience the role of a stay-at-home mom for her two beautiful children.  Upon her return to Arizona in 2001 she returned to the commercial carpet industry.

           

For the past two years Patti has been an account executive with Tandus for the Arizona territory.  The company is a privately owned USA company out of Dalton, Georgia.  She represents three brands: Monterey, C&A and Crossley and their tag line is, “IN UNISON” through design, sustainability and technology, which results in the delivery of extremely green and environmentally safe products for their clients and the public.  Patti appreciates the company’s medium price point and high end design products, such as carpet tiles and Powerbond.   All of which work in conjunction with each other and makes for a wonderful end product.  To Patti the perfect client is an architect, interior designer or end user that understands the features and benefits of the product and is committed to completing the project.

Patti knows her products…she is passionate, well informed, experienced and an expert in the commercial carpet industry.  Give her a call for your project, she’ll take excellent care of you and your project needs.

Patti can be reached by any of these methods:

Pkanter@tandus.com

602-377-8331